Janet Jackson and Howard Stern – THERE IS A DIFFERENCE

You would think by the tone of my site I’d say, “About time!”, to news that Clear Channel is suspending broadcasts of Howard Stern. You’d be dead wrong.

1. People who tuned into the Super Bowl got a half time show they didn’t expect.

2. People who tune into Howard Stern know exactly what to expect. It’s not family entertainment and it’s not ment to be.

It’s a huge difference. One that matters.

There is political hay being made over this and other social issues – an uproar that is being encouraged – a fire given fuel – turning our attention away from missing WMDs, missing jobs, missing anthrax suspects, missing Bin Laden, missing future Social Security and so much more.

They are getting away with it and I’m afraid of what’s becoming of our country.

If you don’t like Stern, at least ask yourself: why now?

More details at Classless Warfare. Turns out the offensive word was never even heard on the air and that Stern has been directing more attacks Bush’s way.

You can read more over at Jeff Jarvis’s or Oliver Willis’s.

Ash Wednesday

Don’t be a hypocrite. Know someday you will die. Be brave enough face up to what you’ve done and reconcile. Do it with heart.

Matthew 6

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Take care not to perform righteous deeds
in order that people may see them;
otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father.
When you give alms,
do not blow a trumpet before you,
as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets
to win the praise of others.
Amen, I say to you,
they have received their reward.
But when you give alms,
do not let your left hand know what your right is doing,
so that your almsgiving may be secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.

“When you pray,
do not be like the hypocrites,
who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners
so that others may see them.
Amen, I say to you,
they have received their reward.
But when you pray, go to your inner room,
close the door, and pray to your Father in secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.

“When you fast,
do not look gloomy like the hypocrites.
They neglect their appearance,
so that they may appear to others to be fasting.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you fast,
anoint your head and wash your face,
so that you may not appear to be fasting,
except to your Father who is hidden.
And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you.”

— God bless.

Once Around The Philly Weblogger Way

Just like Alex I’m happy it’s Mr. Big too 🙂

Chantlady asks Does everyone know the Clothespin?. I walk by it everyday and now know more then I ever did. Great post 🙂 I gotta see My Architect now.

Chris Puzak’s metal music reviews are getting more and more notice. And publishing!

Mary’s had content from one of her sites stolen.

Lawrence is in Brazil, at Carnival.

Congrats and Condolences

A late congratulations to Robyn and Todd on the birth of their baby boy, Nathan.

Late congratulations on turning 41 Malcolm.

Congrats to Mike Zornek who got a new job.

Jim Cappozola is in trouble and is near homelessness. He’s taking donations from PayPal.

And my condolences to Mithras who lost his father last Sunday.

Around the Web About The Web

Yahoo! had dropped Google for it’s search provider (Times) and has implemented it’s own engine. I actually like it. Good to see some real competition in the space for the first time in ages.

I do think it’s a little scary that personalization will eventually have an effect on search (NYTimes), but it does make sense doesn’t it?

Writing is good for you (The Age)! So webloggers – maybe this is for your health!

Nonprofits are doing well on the web (Wired News). Old news but good news.

Shelley’s Stepping Stones to a Safer Blog is a must read if you have been hit by comment spam.

Around the Political Web

Just as the Democrats are showing signs of having a spine and coming together (Philadelphia Inquirer) – Nader comes along and wants to steal the spotlight (Yahoo!). I’m disgusted. I look forward to the day of a strong third party, however, Nader will hurt the effort to replace George W. Bush in the White House. If he wanted to be of help – the very best thing he could do is inform the public on why Bush must go and why Kerry or Edwards is the better choice. Instead he is an asshole. Bush is probably having a happy day just by hearing the news.

Kerry and Edwards, instead of attacking each other, have spent most of the campaign focusing on the end goal. That’s why they are still both in the race.

Speaking of Kerry, early on he looked like a goner, but he bet it all on Iowa (Philadelphia Inquirer) and won big.

Doing well makes you a target. If you are looked at as a legitimate threat, you should expect slings and arrows to come your way. So the right wing spent the last week slinging shit (MediaChannel) in Kerry’s direction to see if any of it would stick. From doctored-up photos (Snopes) to spreading false rumors (NYPress) of infidelity (who cares if they hurt someone’s reputation (NY Observer) in the process?), the mouth pieces of the right tried hard last week to bring him down. So far they’ve failed and each time my confidence in Kerry rises. He’s handled the past week with class and dignity.

lost remote has a terrific, sarcastic and honest post on how to cover such rumors on the net. The sad thing is hundreds of webloggers and news organizations were already following the advice.

The job market is always transforming and missing from the statistics are whole classes of job growth (NYTimes). Reminds me of a point made in Fast Company: “Boom-Time Buzz: Free Agent Nation is a utopia. The Brand Called You makes you more marketable than ever. Cold Reality: Free Agent Nation is a jungle. The Brand Called You is the only way to survive.” In any case, according to a study by Council of Economic Advisers, outsourcing actually leads to job growth (NYTimes). That’s when there are new classes of jobs to move to and trained/educated people to fill them. Does anybody have confidence in the current public education system?

Finally tech training schools (AP) that preyed on so many are starting to feel the sting.

The Bush Administration has been trying to censor science findings (NYTimes) in various reports. Scary.