The Drums-"Money"

Infectious jittery Brooklyn indie pop that I just stumbled on. Enjoy.

Plus, 6 sings from a set at Amoeba:

It’s Three Years Before An Election…Time for an Attack Ad:: Conservative Party of Canada Attacks Third Party Leader

Originally posted on ThickCulture

While I'm in NYC these days, much of my social media still comes from Toronto & Canada. The Conservative Party of Canada is running attack ads against the third party. Not the opposition, but against the Liberal Party interim leader, Bob Rae. This ad came out while the official opposition party, The New Democrats, were choosing a new leader, who was chosen yesterday, Thomas Mulcair. OK, to further complicate things, Rae was once a New Democrat at the provincial level in Ontario and Mulcair was a Liberal at the provincial level in Québec. I know, you probably need a scorecard. Anyway, while there's no election in sight for years {barring a finding of widespread election fraud from the robocall scandal}, the Conservative attack ad slams Rae's record from his stint as Ontario Premier in the early 1990s. Last year, I wrote a brief analysis of the Bob Rae premiership on vox.rhizomicon, that explains how Rae inherited an impossible situation worsened by a macroeconomic perfect storm. In fact, Rae's policies had much more in common with—a fiscally conservative strategy.

John Ibbitson of the Globe & Mail thinks the Tories are scared of Rae and the resurgence of the Liberals. There may be something to that. They ran ads in 2009 against then Liberal leader, Micael Ignatieff, framing him as an outsider because of his living abroad in the past. Why not use the wayback machine to do the same to Bob Rae?

One could argue that the Conservatives have more money than good sense right now. While it's no secret that the Conservatives want to keep the Liberals down and replace them as the "natural governing party of Canada", the strategy has its risks. Sure, it will get the Liberals to spend money on return-fire ads, which the Liberals vow to do, but the ad concept isn't fresh and the content is dated. While Andrew Coyne think the Conservatives win either way, I think he's wrong. It's not an election and the negative ads on the third party leader can be viewed as playing unfairly, particularly in light of the robocall scandal. The main problem I have with the Conservative ads is they have tipped their hand. Bob Rae has them worried and they're signaling it. Unlike Ignatieff, Rae is a seasoned politician and a good communicator. Liberal support isn't dead and the ads allegedly boosted Liberal fundraising by $225,000 and Rae offered this soundbite:

"You can't just abandon the airwaves to the jerks on the right-hand side of the spectrum."

While the Conservatives have a majority in Parliament, they know that with Rae and Mulcair opposing them, they'll have their hands full with a war in the media and the court of public opinion. They'll want to discredit both, but let's face some ugly marketing truths. They're the majority party and should act accordingly. Attack ads now look desperate and mean. The Conservatives' main ace up their sleeves is "stay the economic course." They don't have a hot-tempered firebrand from Québec who makes the news by being the news in a Thomas Mulcair. They don't have an elder statesman who can effectively sound as if he's railing at the establishment in a Bob Rae. The Conservatives are selling "stay the course" and they don't have many degrees of freedom that can really energize the masses, while unemployment remains fairly high and a housing bubble looms. Their current positioning is fairly moderate, which is how they won the last election by taking Liberal ridings in Ontario {assuming election fraud isn't shown in the robocall scandal, which is probably a stretch}. It makes the most sense to build the appeal to moderates by building a case why the Conservatives are good for stability on positives, even if there isn't any "there" there.

It will be interesting to see how the Conservatives deal with Mulcair. I'm sure his dual citizenship with France will factor in, as the Tories try to question his allegiance to Canada. Given the NDP strongholds of Québec and urban centers, it won't matter much to the NDP base and pressing the issue could turn off the new Canadians that the Conservatives are trying to court.

It's over three years until the next Canadian election and it's a tad early to start being tiresome.

Trace Buster Buster

Yes, The Big Hit was a stupid movie, but is it any lamer than The Whole Nine Yards, another hitman movie shot in Canada in the late 90s? If anything, it's a bit uneven, but this scene with Lou Diamond Phillips always cracks me up.

The TSA Patdown-SFO Style

Full Body Scanner at Charleston, SC

A few weeks ago, I had to fly from SFO to JFK, which was the first time dealing with security at a major airport since the new full body scanners were implemented. Now, given I parked my car in Orinda and miscalculated a bit how long it would take to get to the BART station to get to the airport, I was running 30 minutes behind my initial plan. I had my boarding pass printed, but I was still sweating it a bit. 

Well, I got to the terminal around 10 minutes before boarding and 40 minutes before my flight. I saw the security line wasn't too bad, so I breathed a sigh of relief. I saw people going through the new scanners, which reminded me of some kind of huge radioactive photocopier or worse...

I noticed how nobody was opting out. There were signs and messages on the large screen TVs saying you could opt out, but I don't think I saw one person do so. Now, I think the press and the TSA have been trying to tout these things as safe and it's clearly not as bad as "carousel" in Logan's Run::

or a disintegrator chamber::

so, I thought the compliance behaviors indicated that there was little perceived risk by my fellow travelers.

Now, I do know that there's some controversy with mammograms, in that high risk women for cancer might be increasing their risks with that procedure. While the dosages are low, radiation has a differential effect on people. In other words, your mileage may vary. Practically every study on the topic states that unnecessary radiation should be avoided at all costs. It should be noted that the probability of dying from a terror strike and from radiation emitted from the scanners is the same. 

There is a controversy with these full body scanners—the radiation risks are unknown and Senator Susan Collins {R-ME} wants to change that with new legislation requiring thorough tests of the devices. TSA head John Pistole originally told the Senate that he would commission more independent research on the risks, after Europe banned the machines, but has waffled, subsequently.

While I was pressed for time, I thought a few extra minutes of a patdown might be worth avoiding extra radiation {there's cancer in the family}, so I opted out. The security agent was a bit surprised that someone was opting out and it took a while for a male agent to set things up for my screening. I could have opted for a private area screening, but I decided to be the daily spectacle. The guy was professional and told me exactly what he was going to do, in great forensic detail. Lots of attention on the collar and belt. I think they might be deliberately steering clear of people's "junk" after the San Diego incident. 

So, was it that invasive? Well, I'm really not one who enjoys strangers touching me, but it really didn't bother me that much. Maybe because I was more concerned about boarding my flight that I wasn't perturbed, but I must say I'm still much more spooked by the scanners. I could see how shut-ins, touchy feely types, and, well, pervs, might actually like the contact.

I've blogged on the radiation technology on ThickCulture in 2010 and I pretty much stand by those thoughts. I don't think these technologies are making us safer, but are giving the appearance that something is being done to make us safer.

I made my flight, but now I'm facing the JFK version of the same—unless I manage to get a flight out of White Plains.

Wes Anderson from Above

via LaughingSquid & Moonrise Kingdom's Facebook wall.

newmusicmonday #101::The Darcy's AJA

The title might seem familiar—if not, maybe some of these tracks will ring a bell::

Tracklist

Black Cow Aja Deacon Blues Peg Home At Last I Got The News Josie The Darcys of Toronto and on Toronto's Arts & Crafts Records offer this homage to Fagen & Becker that's free for download. Lending their avant garde atmospherics to the wryness of Steely Dan works quite well. They will embarking on a North American tour [see CBCr3] starting this week and going through March, including dates in LA, SF, Vancouver -BC, Chicago, Toronto, Brooklyn, & NYC-Bowery. Twitterversion:: [blog] #newmusicmonday featuring @itsthedarcys. Free download of AJA from @artsandcrafts {via @StickyMagazine} @Prof_K

San Francisco 1955 in 'Cinemascope'

This was posted on Thursday on The Atlantic via BoingBoing.

"It's the work of accomplished amateur filmmaker (and expert tinkerer) Tullio Pellegrini, who combined a 16mm Bell & Howell Cinemascope lens with the wonders of Kodachrome and made this homage to the city of San Francisco. You'll see Playland, our oceanside amusement park which was closed in 1972, very rare footage of the SkyTram (an extinct ride over Seal Rocks and Sutro Baths), and a brakescreeching ride down the Crookedest Street in the World."—Rick Prelinger

The Meta Ad:: Family Guy & Wheat Thins

I was watching both Downton Abbey and Family Guy, but the above ad on Fox caught my eye. Adweek made it an ad of the day on Thursday. It's a seamless integration of pitch and content, playing on a joke from the series from a few years back::

Music & the Ad:: Toyota Prius V & Eliza Doolittle

I saw this Prius V commercial for the first time, as I slowly get accustomed to having TV again here in Eastbay—I've been watching broadcast digital signals with a converted attached to a very low-fi set. Anyway. This quirky ad continues the Toyota trend for Prius spots and the firm is wise to letting people in on information on the ad and music used. Here's a link to the 411 on last year's ads, including the 'Harmony' spot. The agency is Saatchi & Saatchi LA and is selling the concept of a hybrid hybrid, a hybrid car that is SUV like.

The artist on the Prius V commercial is Eliza Doolittle {Eliza Sophie Caird} and the song is "Rollerblades"::

and I had a vision of Steven Morrissey unironically hosting a UK show called "Pretty Songs Pretty Girls Make", featuring catchy songs and the theme song would be an updated cover of this. Anyway. Here's a video for Eliza Doolittle's "Rollerblades". Enjoy.

Whose Panopticon Is It Anyway?

In Ontario, Canada last year there was a story of the OPP using digital cameras to scan license plates on highways. While law enforcement touts public safety, it cannot be ignored that an expired tag fine for the Jetta mentioned in the article is $110. Questions arose regarding privacy have come up in Ontario, as well as how long data is kept and for what purposes.

Now, in California, law enforcement is using the same ALPR, Automated Licence Plate Recognition, technology to scan plates for alleged criminals. In addition, a private firm, Vigilant Video, is collecting data in its National Vehicle Location Service. Contributions are made by law enforcement, as well as private citizens. Again, questions of privacy are cropping up, as it remains a question who will have access to this data and for what purposes and Vigilant isn't talking. In an era when employers are using credit histories as screening criteria, I think we need to question the use and potential misuse of such data. The EFF agrees. Given that cybersecurity is hardly secure, as shown by "anonymous", illegal access to this information is also a concern. The simplistic aphorism of "don't be evil" and you have nothing to fear has scant weight when there's no transparency with respect to what's in the database and its quality.

Twitterversion:: [video] Whose Panopticon Is It Anyway? CBS-5 story on the collection of license plate data & privacy issues in Calif. http://vox.rhizomicon.com/2012/01/whose-panopticon-is-it-anyway.html @Prof_K

Silicon Valley Vs. Alley

I've been busy, so I'm a bit behind in following startup developments. This is somewhat interesting and is a good overview. I'd be interested in how regional advantages are manifested in both à la Saxenian, but those questions are better left to those out of the trenches in towers, ivory and otherwise.

Via MBA@UNC: Online MBA

Twitterversion:: [infographic] Silicon Alley Vs. Silicon Valley via UNC @Prof_K

"Moonrise Kingdom" Trailer-Wes Anderson

Wes Anderson's forthcoming Moonrise Kingdom looks like a return to all things darling and twee. Anderson's earlier work {Bottlerocket, Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, and The Life Aquatic} create a strong sense of place and typically managed to immerse the viewer into constructed worlds in a way that the characters' quirkiness doesn't grate on one's nerves. I'm quite interested in seeing this film—just the diversity of the cast alone piques my interest. Edward Norton, Harvey Keitel, Tilda Swinton, Frances McDormand, Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, and Bruce Willis are sharing the screen in Altmasesque glory. Also, the fact that Roman Coppola co-wrote this seals the deal, as I have a huge soft spot for his CQ.  This could be one of the ensemble greats and it appears that Wes is returning to his familiar theme of love amidst quirksterdom and dysfunction.

Twitterversion:: [video] Trailer for #WesAnderson's moonrise Kingdom evokes his earlier films of quirkster sensibilities.