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Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in
David's LiveJournal:
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| Wednesday, October 4th, 2006 | | 10:16 am |
New Hotness
I have come to find that due to my facebook link, I have lingering fans of my livejournal. This has given me some new reason to update, so here is a little taste of what's to come. A Haiku for Erik THE Erik Lorig Is begging me to update So here you are, man More to come. | | Sunday, January 22nd, 2006 | | 7:51 pm |
| | Friday, October 28th, 2005 | | 1:59 pm |
The Clarion Ledger has recently ranked the Madison Central Jaguar boys basketball team pre-season #4 in the state. Led by Coach Jeff Heath entering his 4th season as head coach, the Jags have returned all starters from last year's 23-9 team that lost at home in the first round of the state playoffs. Chad Atkins, the lone caucasian Dandy Dozen pick this year, is their leader at point guard. I remember his play when he was a freshman my senior year, and I really wanted him to be running my point. But after 5 years, it's become certain: The new coaching staff coupled with the key transfer of David Long from Jackson Prep has started change of the guard at Madison Central: while the football team remains strong, one can now argue Madison Central has become a burgeoning basketball powerhouse. Here's the lineup: Projected Starters Name Ht. Class Chad Akins 6-1 Sr. Malcoln Kirkland 6-7 Jr. Travis Reed 6-4 Sr. Vincent Powell 5-11 Jr. Tim Buckley 5-11 Sr. # Key reserves: Mason Ruhl, 6-4, Sr.; Reggie Welch, 6-4, So.; Jacolby Pittman, 6-10, So.; John Williams, 6-3, Jr. These kids were great as freshmen...let's hope they finish great this senior season. Hopefull I'll be home this christmas long enough to watch them play a few games. | | Monday, October 24th, 2005 | | 4:47 pm |
If it doesn't say I have finished it, I haven't seen it. This list makes me really question some users of IMDB...but they're mostly good movies. | | Tuesday, October 18th, 2005 | | 11:34 pm |
So I finally realized that it's been literally months since I have
published anything on my livejournal. This is neither live nor
journalistic, and needs to be remedied as soon as possible. We have a
lot of catching up to do since July 11, 2005.
But I'm not really going to recount what's happened since then. It will
suffice to say I'm in the middle of football season, and I go to a few
classes here and there.
What I'm really here to write about is one simple thing I have to get off my chest. I'm an addict.
It's not anything illegal, or even harmful. I'm addicted to music.
Old Music
New Music
Popular Music
Recorded Music
Live Music
Good Music
Embarrasingly Poor Music
I've run the gammut. In a time where one can obtain practically any
song on the market for free from some form of sharing, I still go out
and buy on average roughly one to two albums a week. A week, people.
This is not normal according to market trends or any sane reasoning.
But I'll be a monkey's uncle if I just don't enjoy taking off that
sticky wrapping and popping in something that these ears have never
heard before. There is just something about it. I'll even admit that
some of the albums I purchase sometimes don't get fully listened to
until months after I get them, and sometimes I don't even like them
that much. But sometimes, ohhh sometimes, I get an album that I realize
I will be listening to for a long time to come. And with my
coming to Northern California, I have been exposed to a wondrous world
not available in Mississippi: Live concerts by TONS of
artists. And boy do I go to those concerts. So here are a
few albums recently purchased that I fell in love with (or maybe
didn't) coupled with the subsequent concerts I attended.
1. Come on Feel the Illinoise by Sufjan Stevens
Many people aren't too terribly familiar with Sufjan, and even fewer
really take an immediate liking to him. I've been keeping up with him
for a while, intrigued by his incredibly pretentious and overwhelmingly
impossible project to make one album for each state in the union,
featuring songs tailored to themes and events of each of these states.
Sufjan is in his twenties, and still lacks fourty-eight states. His
first of the state projects was Greetings From Michigan: The Great Lakes State.
A solid album, but it simply doesn't compare to his next stately
venture into Illinois. Stevens seems to grow with every album he
releases (his first A Sun Came
is good, but a bit clunky and even childishly silly at times) and
really blossoms in his newest effort. Stevens really takes
the idea of a thematic album and weaves his songs and stories together
much better than in the Michigan outting. But the most glaring
and wonderful difference is the vast range of styles and genres dabbled
with in the album. There is definitely folk used, but there are
also funk, rock and blues influences throughout. Embracing these
styles and making them "Sufjanesque" makes for what I'm considering in
late 2005 to be my album of the year.
Over the summer (actually before I purchased the album) I got a chance
to see Sufjan and his band live at the Great American Music Hall in San
Francisco. An interesting concert to say the least. The
show was pretty much a live enactment of the album however it was not
very tightly run in the musicianship department. At least the stage
show was entertaining and the songs played definitely made me very
interested in checking the album out. And I got to see Sufjan
Stevens dressed in a U of Illinois cheerleading outfit and a beanie.
2. Guerro by Beck
Much more widely recognized and revered is the ever-talented and
creative Beck. I remember watching the "Loser" music video on MTV
in like 3rd grade and liking that odd, funky and somewhat hilarious
style. My brother even had Odelay
and Dave liked it. But that was back in the days when cool music
was pretty widely released and accepted (and played on MTV), so my
youthful tastes veered away from such things due mostly to Y101 and
middle school. However, High School, sweet High School brought
back into my life the sweet wonders of the real music world, and a bug
part of that was none other than Beck. Releasing Mutations, Midnite Vultures and Sea Change since Odelay, he has created new styles and sounds in each. In the new release, Beck seems to go back to the popular roots of Odelay
along with adding aspects of each subsequent work. I guess the
best way to put it is a Beck Melting Pot. And there are some good
songs on the album. Probably his second weakest ( Mutations
being the first in my opinion) it's still better than most of what
others have to offer. And E-Pro makes me want to dance.
This summer being a nice time for concerts, Beck happened to come to
the San Jose Civic Auditorium. And it was glorious. "San
Jose Civic Auditorium" sounds pretty fancy, but upon entry you realize
it's just a large high school gymnasium with a stage at one end.
And I'm seeing Beck here. All the classics from every album were
played ("Debra" being a highlight for me) but the setup was what really
made the show worth it. At one point in the show, all the
musicians simply sat at a dinner table and used the implements there as
instruments. Maybe it sounds lame in description, but it was
incredible live. Plus, there was some random guy dancing around
the stage all night, occasionally playing a single-facted percussion
instrument. Dressed as a 70's jogger.
3. Aha Shake Heaertbreak by Kings of Leon
The sophomore album by Kings of Leon is simply put better than the
first. And the first is really good. These Neo-Southern
rockers catch your attention right off the bat with "Slow Night, So
Long" and keep it up througout the record. I really don't know
what else to say about these guys...I just like 'em a lot.
And I like 'em a lot in concert. At the world famous Fillmore,
these guys rocked out for an hour and half, playing practically their
entire recorded repertoire. They were just incomparably cool
througout too. There were not fancy gimmicks, crazy lighting or
synthesized sounds. It was just pure rock and roll (which is
sometimes really lacking these days) that makes you wanna dance the
night away. And there were attractive women there. I love
the Fillmore.
4. Silent Alarm by Bloc Party
Oh man. Bloc Party. Bloc Party, Bloc Party, Bloc
Party. I listened to nothing but this album for about 3 months
earlier this year, and in now way is that sad. It's just that the
second I popped this one in the cd player, I was blown away.
"Like Eating Glass" is one of my favourite (hey they're British) songs
of recent years, and maybe up there period. And it's just the
first song. In the same way that Kings of Leon seem to
epitomoze New Southern Rock, Bloc Party should be the real poster boy
for Post-Punk rock. Don't get me wrong, I like The Killers and
Franz Ferdinand and everything, but Bloc Party stretches the limits
more...they're more daring in their songs but are able to keep it
catchy and melodic at the same time. And they aren't nearly as
homoerotic.
Simply put, their live show was the most fun I've had at a live musical
event. Once again a Fillmore show, the music was perfectly
performed, they played their asses off and the crowd was amazing.
Their showmanship in almost unparalleled because they know they rock,
but they'll still take a break and talk to the crown one-on-one.
They even stopped in the middle of one song because the lead singer
wanted to ask where this guy was from that was waving a Union
Jack. Then they immediately and flawlessly picked up where they
left the song off and the energy remained. If there is one live
act I'd unanimously recommend, it'd be Bloc Party.
These were the only album/concert pairs that I saw with concurrent
release year and tour year. But I've also seen Ben Harper, Arcade
Fire, The Killers, Oasis, Jet, and a couple others. Simply put,
with a Tower Records down the road and countless musical venues, I'm
like a Hobo in a free liquor store. There is no end in sight for
my hopeless addiction. At least it's a good one. | | Monday, July 11th, 2005 | | 10:00 am |
In honor of my recent birthday, I did some internet research to see what interesting and somewhat famous people shared the special day of July 9th as their coming out party. I'll begin with the youngest and work my way up.
1. Barby - No this isn't a typo. It's a pornstar. Now on my journey, I discovered that many pornstars share my birthday, but I only chose a couple to showcase. This one is just special somehow. She has been featured in such pieces as European Mail Order Brides 4 and 18 and Nasty Interracial 4. I guess they like her in 4th installments. She's pretty hot, but I don't think I'd party with her on our big day. Things could probably escalate quickly with her crowd.
2. Fred Savage - Ah, this is someone that we can identify with much more. A charismatic child star that stole our hearts with his work in The Princess Bride, The Wizard and of course The Wonder Years, Fred kinda dropped of the face of the earth until he recently showed up in the transcendently shitty Austin Powers in Goldmember. While watching this film, I wanted Beyonce's highly unnecessarily huge hair to burst into flames and THEN see how sassy she could act. That movie was a painful experience for me.
3. Jack White - This is another cool one. I like the White Stripes, especially their most recent album Get Behind Me, Satan. Really solid album. He's in a good rock band and has recently married model Karen Elson
Not bad, Jack
4. Joe Cool (II) - Our male pornstar installment. Joe Cool is one helluva guy. Or just a guy with a helluva lack of inhibitions. His titles include Top Heavy Grannies which I'm sure conjures up some horrific mental images simply from the title...mostly the third word of that title. He's also in the classic American Bukkake 13. And I know you are all wondering, so I'll go ahead and tell you. Yes, he was in 7 of the previous installments of the highly successful American Bukkake franchise.
5. Kelly McGillis - Let's take it back to the heyday of 80's film. Harrison Ford was sexy and kicking ass once or twice a year. Tom Cruise wasn't a Scientologist fuckhead and was making the movies that made my childhood fun. Along their side was Kelly McGillis, starring with Ford in Witness and more famously with Cruise in Top Gun. She sure took my breath away in that movie. Sorry, had to use that joke somehow.
6. John Tesh - You don't know how excited I was when I found out that John Tesh and I have the same birthday, until I realized that he's an alien, so July 9th might actually be a different day back on his home planet. This guy has made some of the worst music and gotten away with it for years. His finest hour was composing the classic "NBA on NBC" themesong, which I frequently listen to on my iPod. But he's also been a Klingon in Star Trek: The Next Generation, and appeared on the Pinky and the Brain Halloween Special. His sum of work boggles the mind. If you haven't seen John Tesh Live at Red Rocks, go do so now. He will blow your mind with his New Age theatrics. Seriously though, if you aren't familiar with John Tesh, you should be. He's one of the longest running jokes in Hollywood, and he's aware of this and somehow accepts it as his fate. He's just awesome.
7. Soledad Miranda - Star of Vampyros Lesbos. And yeah, that does mean what you think it does.
8. Orenthal James Simpson - Yes...the juice. I don't really have to write anything about him, do I? Just sit back and remember where you were when EVERYONE ON EARTH was entrapped in what was the craziest courtroom drama ever. Not since post-reconstruction South has someone so blatantly guilty of murder gotten off the hook. And he rushed for 2000 yards one season for the Bills. I think most people forget he actually played football instead of just being the black guy who got his ass kicked in the Naked Gun movies.
Side note: J.M. Barrie was married to Mary Ansell on July 9th. Happy Anniversary, Peter Pan. | | Sunday, June 26th, 2005 | | 11:14 am |
Been about a month
Guess it's time for an update. Finished up with school on the 9th and promptly flew home. Spent a few days in Madison and then went to one of the greatest places on earth: Seaside, Florida. It was just my family and my brother's girlfriend, but Brian Moore was working down in Fort Walton, so we hung out one night. Ate dinner and went to Batman Begins (which is great). It was really nice to be able to run into Brian this summer. Davidson's back up at Alpine, so I knew I wouldn't be able to see him. I'll have to write. Think he left the address on TheFacebook. When I was back in Madison, I got to see a lot of the old crew...Deanna, Kate, Josie, Cori, Daniel, Susan and Mary, Hedge, Nash, Joy Beth, others I'm sure I'm forgetting ...which is always so nice. I'm happy that we still keep in touch, because they're still some of the best people I know. I returned to Palo Alto on the 20th and starter my job at the Hoover Institute. It's going pretty well. The people I'm working with are a bit quirky, but really nice. Rick, the shipping manager has this huge shipping room with a nice stereo system, and when I'm in there, we listen to some great music. He's a bit of an aficionado, so it's nice to be able to talk to a guy at work with similar music tastes. We've been swapping new bands the past few days which is cool, and we're going to try to go to a free Ben Lee concert on the 1st. I've been here only a week, but I've already been all over the area mainly due to the Great Mattress Hunt. Pretty much Oakland to San Jose and back in one night. But I'm sleeping on a really nice queen mattress I got off craigslist.com for 50 bucks. Can't beat that with a stick. So, it was kinda a tossup with my roomies, because I didn't really know them. But as it turns out, we all have pretty similar personalities...dry wit, love of movie and general chicanery. I like my setup. The roomies and I get along fine. We all went out to a San Jose Earthquakes MLS match last night. It was good times. I'm really close to TC, Pat, Mek Mek and Jason's house, so I'm sure I'll be there a lot. I have several friends back on campus as well, so this is a great summer to be around here. I'm really excited about my concert lineup too. Check it: Bought and confirmed: Kings Of Leon Ben Harper Beck Coldplay Ben Folds, Ben Lee and Rufus Wainwright Oasis, Jet, Kasabian Pondering my going: Reel Big Fish Black Crowes Kaiser Chiefs My mom recently commented on the fact that I go to concerts like crazy. And possibly spend too much money in the process. I disagree, and I'm making my own money now anyway. I just don't get opportunities like this in Mississippi, so I need to take advantage of it while I'm out here. It's like a musical smorgasbord. Noah, Tim, Sam and I are completely obsessed with 24 now. We're all watching season 3, and I have to play catchup and watch season 1 on my own. Well, actually Alicia, Amanda and Jessica said they want to watch it too. So I'll have two different 24 parties going simultaneously. That Jack Bauer. He's a loose cannon and I love him like a father. I also love Robert Horry like a father. Go Spurs! Plus I won 20 bucks off those guys while at the Tied House. That's pretty much free dinner right there. The Ostrander's are throwing a barbeque for the football team in about an hour. That should be quite nice. It's good to be back out here and work with all the guys again. Plus having a job and not having school is really really nice. Making money, and I don't have to work AFTER I get home from work. So that's what life after college is like I guess. I can live with that. I guess that brings us pretty much up to date from last time I posted. I have a lot of free time to do so from now on, so I suppose I will. | | Saturday, May 28th, 2005 | | 2:11 am |
Shiestah!
The Ben Harper/Trey Anastasio concert got cancelled..I got refunded, but a part of my soul can never be returned. | | Friday, May 27th, 2005 | | 2:32 pm |
Condoleeza Rice
So I had an interesting morning. Had to get up for a team meeting at
7:00 down at Arrillaga, which I wasn't too excited about, because it
was going to most certainly be pertaining to shenanigans (and not
cheeky and fun shenanigans...cruel shenanigans) that had occurred over
the previous weekend between Sunsplash at Sigma Chi, Exotic Erotic and
Athlete Formal. It was. We have a 6:00 workout next Wednesday. But
that's a different story. Not this story. This is this story.
Upon leaving Kissick auditorium after our meeting, I noticed large,
black, unmarked automobiles parked where cars aren't supposed to be
parked: Outside the front door in between Arrillaga and Maples. That is
NOT legal parking space. But it would be for a high ranking public
official who can bend the law to his...or her
will to PARK WHEREVER THEY PLEASE. So, doing some quick
differential equations in my head, checking the barometric pressure and
consulting with others, I came to the conclusion that none other than
Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice was in our midst somewhere in
Arrillaga Family Sports Center.
We return to the locker room, and our thoughts are confirmed.
Gary Hazelet, our equipment manager, was promtly removed from the
weight room in order to make room for non other than Secretary Rice and
her goons. This is pretty cool because if Bush, Cheney and
Hastert die simultaneously...she's the President. Think about
that one for a moment.
So that's kinda the buzz about the locker room. Rice is
downstairs getting her buff on. I'm thinking...why not go meet
her? Most think this is crazy, that it can't be done since Gary
had been removed. However, Brent Newhouse, Stanford long snapper,
and Amir Malayery, Stanford right guard, agree with me: the worst
that could happen would be some Secret Service guy telling us we can't
go in there. So down into the bowels of Arrillaga we
venture...I'm unkempt, haven't shaved for a week, Amir's practically in
pajamas and Brent...well Brent is just Brent. We make it through
the back door undetected. We see Ron Forbes in his office, and
decide to tell him our plan. He claims it's "doubtful" that we
would get to meet her, especially Amir. Now this glaringly racist
comment is made because Amir's heritage has roots in Iran, part of the
modern day "axis-of-evil" (and let me tell you, Amir wasn't happy when
W dubbed Iran part of the axis-of-evil). But, I guess Amir thinks
Condi is cool, and we want to meet her. Either way, I had
said the exact same thing to Amir earlier. Race jokes are edgy,
and I'm a loose cannon anyway.
Brent approaches the nearest man who seems to be in charge of this
impromptu workout and asks if there is any way we can meet Ms.
Rice. He looks at our stature and our team-issue t-shirts and
says "Oh yeah...she's a huge Stanford Football fan. She'd love to
meet you. Just let her finish her workout."
Alright.
So Condi is on the elliptical machine, which leads me to wonder "Does
one of the most powerful women in government have to adhere to the 20-minute
time limit on the elliptical?" That question may never be
answered, because I didn't know when she started. But mere
minutes after our arrival, she slowed her brisk stationary jog and made
her way over. By this time, Julian Jenkins, Stanford defensive
tackle/end, had joined us. Apparently Condoleeza Rice's father
has a memorial scholarship, and JJ is the recipient of said
scholarship. So Ms. Secretary wanted to meet Julian anyway, and we
were along for the ride. So we meet, shake hands and talk.
I tell her of my Political Science major, my hopes of a Hoover
Institute internship this summer and my undying support for the GOP and
the Bush Administration. She then goes on to tell us she'll be at
the Navy game in September. That's neat. Maybe W will be
there too.I bet he misses good football. Later, she told Julian that
her step-mom lives close by in Palo Alto, and would love to have some
college guys over so she can cook for them. So I got offered
dinner at the US Secretary of State's step-mother's house.
And with that, Condoleeza Rice hit the showers, and my band of
patriots returned to the locker room victorious. I just wish I
had gotten her number so she could be a reference on my resume. | | Monday, May 2nd, 2005 | | 3:11 pm |
Things I am looking forward to this summer
I know it's still a ways off, but just some things make me want to
hibernate until it gets there so I won't notice any passing of time and
I might have a beard.
1.) Dukes of Hazzard hits the big screen.
They're just some good ol' boys, and they've been out of the limelight
for waaay too long. Bo and Duke will be reprised by Sean William
Scott and Johhny Knoxville respectively, but more than likely not
respectfully. I hope they differentiate their humor a bit from
their roles in American Pie
and "Jackass", but I've seen them in different movies, and they are
actually pretty entertaining in other roles than what they are best
known for. This is relieving. Now, I've done some more
research, and even more things excite me about this. Most people
know the basic cast...Jessica Simpson is gloriously squeezing into the
Daisy Dukes as...Daisy Duke. Willie Nelson is a skinnier, more
burnt-out Uncle Jessie and Burt Reynolds is taller, less rotund,
hairier and infinitely more insane than his predecessor as Boss
Hogg. This is all good and well, but what really gets me is the
casting for Cooter Davenport. Now I'm pretty sure most people who
don't watch the show are wondering who the hell that is, and I don't
really care about those people. Cooter will be played by none
other than David Koechner. Yes, THE David Koechner. World
reknowned as 70's sportscaster Champ Kind. WHAAAAMMMY! He
really impressed my, along with the rest of the cast of Anchorman
with their impressive ad-libbing ability and off-beat humor. And
the final detail that I have overlooked for no apparent reason is who
is at the helm as director of the film:
The man,
The myth,
The legend,
Jay Chandrasekhar
Ok, ok, I know once again you are wondering who that is. He is a
founding member of a comedy troupe that goes by the name of Broken
Lizzard. They've made a couple films in the past, namely Club Dread and one of my favorite movies of all time, Super Troopers.
Chandrasekhar was everyone's favorite racially ambiguous trooper Arcot
Ramathorn, and he directed both films. This may not impress you,
but he aslo co-wrote and directed something around 5 episodes of Arrested Development.
Now do you believe that he's funny? I don't know how GOOD the
movie is going to be, but dammit, I'm going to enjoy it.
 The Dukes
 The REAL star, The General Lee
 Wait, I lied...she's the real star.
2.) Being in California with free time
So, it looks like I'll have little to no summer back home (yes even
less than last year) so I'm going to take it in stride. I'm going
to get out and explore California and surrounding areas. The
redwoods, LA, the beaches, Yosemite National Park, maybe going back to
the OC. I don't know exactly what it's going to be, but I'll be
getting around.
3.) Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince comes out. Hundreds of pages to get me through summer workouts.
4.) *tentative* Seaside with the family.
Like I said, I might not even be able to come home for the summer, but
if I do, even for a week, I'll be heading down to Seaside with the
family. Perhaps my favorite happy place, Seaside is pretty much
Northeast Jackson displaces on any given week in the summer. It's
a nice, quaint place wit good eatin and lots of white sandy
beaches. I'll get my tan before coming back to cali I hope.
5.) *tentative* Working in the Hoover Institute
If I can get this squared away with Dr. Robbins, I hopefully will be
working for the largest conservative thinktank on the West Coast, and
one of the biggest in the nation. So Dr. Robbins is friends and
neighbors with a guy who works there..a former speech writer for
Reagan. He's the guy who wrote the "Mr. Gorbachev...tear down
that wall" speech. So I'm guessing he knows a lot about the
political arena. I need to get in touch with Dr. Robbins again
about that stuff...I need to live with him this summer actually.
Well, it's good that I know more about the movie version of the Duke
brother's antics than any type of summer job, but eh well.    | | Friday, April 8th, 2005 | | 9:03 pm |
Ok, please give me insight
So, Chewbacca obviously didn't speak English. But did he actually SPEAK? I wager he did not, and that Han, Lando, Leia, Luke, 3P0 and the rest just guessed at what the growls meant. I mean, Han and Lando had been friends with him for some time now, and Luke, Leia and 3P0 had their fair share of adventures along side the peerless wookie. I think once a friendship like that has developed, you can guess at what Chewy means. His cognitive vocal ablilities are obviously lacking, but his ability to understand what is said is there...which makes you think on the other hand that perhaps he is in fact talking when he growls. However, it is hard to have such distinct differentiation in a growl to derive actual words. This is really a tough decision that would require further research if in-fact Wookies were real. Well they are in my heart dammit, so I'm going to ask.com Holy shit... According to http://www.glorysite.com/swg/races.html, which breaks down the various races in the Star Wars Galaxy: "Wookiees are extremely loyal and honorable, strong, extremely over sized, smart with regenerative powers, understanding Basic language yet only able to speak their language, Shyriiwook, using animal-like sounds and actions to speak this language. Wookies live in treetop villages on Endor." Ok...so they can speak...but only with animal-like sounds and actions...I still doubt that Han can translate animal-like sound for animal-like sound here...gotta be a tough language to pick up, sorta like Russian. | | 7:16 pm |
Koran scholar: US will cease to exist in 2007
Boy is this interesting. Maybe I'll just stay in Germany after the World Cup for a year or so...
taken from The Jerusalem Post:
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?p agename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1111980180248
A thorough analysis of the Koran reveals that the US will cease to
exist in the year 2007, according to research published by Palestinian
scholar Ziad Silwadi.
The study, which has caught the attention of millions of Muslims
worldwide, is based on in-depth interpretations of various verses in
the Koran. It predicts that the US will be hit by a tsunami larger than
that which recently struck southeast Asia.
"The tsunami waves are a minor rehearsal in comparison with what awaits
the US in 2007," the researcher concluded in his study. "The Holy Koran
warns against the Omnipotent Allah's force. A great sin will cause a
huge flood in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans."
Silwadi, who is from the village of Silwad near Ramallah – the home of
Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal – is not a world-renowned scholar. He said
he decided to publish the findings of his research "out of a sense of
responsibility because what is about to happen is extremely shocking
and frightening."
His fear, he said, is that the world economy, which relies heavily on
the US dollar, would be deeply affected by the collapse of the US.
"It would be fair to say that the world would be better off with a US
that is not a superpower and that does not take advantage of weak
nations than a world where this country does not exist at all," he
added."The world will certainly lose a lot if and when this disaster
occurs because of the great services that American society has rendered
to the economy, industry and science."
Silwadi said his study of the Koran showed that the US would perish
mainly because of its great sins against mankind, including the Native
Americans and blacks.
"As soon as the Europeans started arriving in the new world discovered
by Christopher Columbus in 1492, they declared a war on the so-called
Red Indians, the legitimate owners of the land," he wrote. "Then they
began enslaving and humiliating Africans after kidnapping them from
their countries and bringing them to America. Millions of blacks were
brought to the US and treated with unprecedented harshness. Those who
became ill during the journey were thrown overboard to feed the fish."
Silwadi pointed out that the US continued to commit war crimes and
"ethnic cleansing" against humanity by becoming the first country to
use nuclear weapons during World War II.
"International law penalizes such crimes," he said. "If these laws were
not applied then, they are certainly implemented in heaven. If no one
on earth is capable of punishing [the US], Allah was and remains able
to do so. All these actions have been documented by Allah in a big
archive called the Koran."
Silwadi said he reached the conclusion that several suras (chapters) in
the Koran that talk about punishment for those who perpetrate heinous
sins actually refer to the US.
As an example, he quotes in his study verse 40 of the Spider Sura,
which states: "So each We [God] punished for his sin; of them was he on
whom We sent down a violent storm, and of them was he whom the rumbling
overtook, and of them was he whom We made to be swallowed up by the
earth, and of them he whom We drowned; and it did not beseem Allah that
He should be unjust to them, but they were unjust to their own souls."
Drawing parallels between Pharaoh and the US, who share the same "sin"
of arrogance and excessive pride, Silwadi noted that the Koran mentions
at least 12 times the fact that Pharaoh was punished by drowning for
his evil deeds.
The Narrative Sura, he noted, clearly suggests that the US will drown
in the sea: "And Firon [Pharaoh] said: O chiefs! I do not know of any
god for you besides myself; therefore kindle a fire for me And he was
unjustly proud in the land, he and his hosts, and they deemed that they
would not be brought back to Us. So We caught hold of him and his
hosts, then We cast them into the sea, and see how was the end of the
unjust [verses 38-40]."Explaining his theory about the approaching
extinction of the US, the scholar went on to analyze many numbers and
letters mentioned in the Koran. He said a careful reading and analysis
of words appearing in the Opening and Yusuf suras show that the US will
exist for only 231 years.
How did he reach that number? Silwadi said that by combing a number of
suras hinting at US sins he reached the numbers 1776 (the year the US
achieved independence) and 231. He added the two numbers and the result
was 2007, the year when the US is expected to disappear.
In his lengthy study, which is being circulated in many Muslim
countries, Silwadi noted that the US has often been compared to a tree
that grows very quickly and bears fruit, but has no roots.
In an attempt to find a reference to this metaphor in the Koran,
Silwadi said he counted 1776 verses from the beginning of the Koran
until he reached verse 26 of the Ibrahim Sura, which states: "And the
parable of an evil word is as an evil tree pulled up from the earth's
surface; it has no stability."
So,
as you can see, we're all dead in 2007. I mean, a guy connected
to the Hamas would have no grudge...this can't be a biased
interpretation. This kinda reminds me that one time some dude
told me that the Apocalypse would be Easter Sunday of 2033, due to
"interpretation" of the Bible. Too bad I won't be in America for
that one.
| | Wednesday, March 30th, 2005 | | 7:58 pm |
I wanna shake Steve Job's hand
Dropped my iPod down two flights of concrete stairs today. Still works fine. Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone" is currently my favorite song. Don't hate. | | Monday, March 28th, 2005 | | 12:27 pm |
Back in Cali
Spring Break was just what the doctor ordered. Came home last friday, and promptly slept for close to 16 hours. My brother was home for the weekend so we hung out a lot, and then I decided to acompany him up to Oxford, Mississippi so I could visit him some more as well as see some of my friends at the illustrious University of Mississippi. Saw tons of people, Davidson, Taylor Sledge, Will Levenway and others, met several which is always nice, and just sat around and hung out with some folk I haven't really just sat and hung out with in years. An old friend of mine happened to get engaged while I was there, so that was interesting timing on my part to be there on that specific day. That also reminded me that I'm not getting married any time soon. Sorry ladies. After a couple days in Oxford, I went back to Madison to close out my break. Ate lunch with Josie on thursday, and had an all around pleasant time with my mom. March Madness helped keep the bore bug away as well. Then Friday my brother returned home for Easter, as did many of my friends from other schools. Saturday, I dropped by the Lawrences in the afternoon and got to talk to Mrs. Lawrence for a good while. She was always really good to me, the whole family really. It's nice to have involvement from parents that actually know you and care about you from other families. With all its quirks, Madison is a good community because of people like that. Ya, know, takes a villiage to raise a child. Kate came over later, and we hung out for a bit. It was good to see her too, and I'm glad we could hang out. ALter on that evening Susan, Hedge, Mary, Kate, Josie and Jordan came over adn we just all hung out and caught up. It was a nice final night to the break, and a good break it was. Just what I was looking for. For the first time that I can remember, I sat next to a guy that I could have a conversation. He was from Houston, but went to school in the Bay area and flies there for work a lot. He was 41, but still kept up with music a movies and stuff like that. He said his wife was from Nahleans, and that he hasn't missed a JazzFest in eight years. We talked movies, sports, all sorts of stuff. I hope I still keep up with new music and what not when I'm an older guy. Then I'll be able to talk to college students on airplanes. It was really nice to not be next to some sloppy guy who falls asleep on your shoulder. And I got to watch Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events. Good flick. I had to explain Mello Yello and the Grand Ole Opry to Liz. What a yankee. I got to bring people to Mississippi. Seeing is the only way to learn. If you haven't heard the Kings of Convinience yet, go, listen and love it. I need to sign up for classes Current Mood:  lazyCurrent Music: Gershwin-Rhapsody in Blue | | Thursday, March 17th, 2005 | | 1:08 pm |
Good times with Chokwe
My AAU basketball coach, Chokwe Lumumba
He got disbarred today, and will not be allowed to practice law until he passes the "ethics" portion of the bar exam.
"Jackson attorney Chokwe Lumumba has been suspended from practicing law for
six months and until he retakes and passes the ethics portion of the
Mississippi Bar Association exam, the Mississippi Supreme Court ruled
today.
The state's high court also fined Lumumba $1,000 and required him to pay
all costs incurred by the bar and by Lumumba's appeal.
The Mississippi Bar sought to silence the outspoken attorney for comments
he made to Circuit Court Judge Marcus D. Gordon in October 2001.
During the 2001 incident, Gordon threatened to throw Lumumba out of the
courtroom after the attorney attempted to tell the judge how to get along
better with lawyers.
After Lumumba said he was proud to be thrown out of the courtroom, Gordon
said that statement would cost him $300. Lumumba said he would pay for
justice, referring to the fine. Lumumba then said he'd paid other judges to
try to get justice and he'd pay Gordon, too. Gordon said that would cost
Lumumba $500.
An October 2003 tribunal gave Lumumba a public reprimand for his court
conduct in the case, court records show.
"...we conclude that it is apparent that Lumumba needs a more severe
punishment than a public reprimand," the Mississippi Supreme Court
concluded today.
"To do less would be inequitable and in our view not prohibit or persuade
Lumumba from engaging in similar conduct towards our trial judge in the
future."
Lumumba could not immediately be reached for comment today. But in
December, he told The Clarion-Ledger that he said nothing wrong.
"I'm not always at my rhetorical best, and I don't think I've got to be. In
hindsight, I think I could have used a little better rhetoric," Lumumba
said then. "It's got to be more important for you to talk up for your
client than to say something that might hurt the sensitivities of the judge
... If a judge is worth his salt, he doesn't mind being argued with."
Chokwe is an interesting character. He's a radical lawyer, and truth be told, he's racist. I'm absolutely amazed that I was allowed on his basketball team. Maybe he thought he was exploiting the man by having me there. I mean, our team name was The Black Panthers. Either way, it was fun as hell to play with those guys. | | Saturday, March 12th, 2005 | | 8:12 pm |
Good week
 Plus 
equals 7-11 greatness. There is currently the "Under the Sea Pineapple" flavor at 7-11, and it's really good. Thursday movie night has continually morphed into something different, from actually watching movies to going to Safeway and now it has degraded to/peaked at going to 7-11.
The weather is pretty stellar this week. And that's very nice, since this week was crammed with work and football obligations. But the work got done, as it always does, and I set personal records in most categories of football testing this week as well. It's really nice to see quantitatively that you are improving.
I played disc golf on campus last night for the first time, and that is a glorious thing. This is just an awesome walking campus, and it was nice last night. Megan, Kendall, Megan's bro Chris and I played for close to 2 hours. I'll definitely be doing that again sometime in the future. Then today had a nice barbeque. Grilled some burgers, chicken, italian sausage and bratwursts. Delicious. Still got some chicken if anyone desires any leftovers.
So, it's a final on Monday, a takehome due Friday, and I'm done for the quarter. Mississippi folk, I'll be home Friday, so if anyone is in town, shout me a holler.
You Got Served is actually a pretty sweet movie, if you just watch the dancing. I love HBO.
It's out on DVD...I need to get it. Is it weird for a 20 year old to still watch cartoons? I really don't care, it's funny as hell. Pete & Pete is coming out on DVD soon. That makes me happy too.
Now it's off to study, maybe perhaps. I'll probably just sleep. Going to early church tomorrow, so I'll hit the hay early.
I images googles my name. Here are some of my favorites:
Photo entitled "David Long on the march" 
Jammin out 
"Me" with bass 
Me voting in a couple years I guess
 wait..where the hell did Babylon 5 come from?
A car of David Long: 
I think this is a sex offender database photo  yessssssss
Wofford baseball player David Long:
The good Dr. David Long: 
This is NOT David Long: 
Alright, when the google results start turning up women, it's time to stop. Too bad I'm not actually on there somewhere.
Whoop! There I am...horrible pic though...I'll take the one of me marching any day. Current Music: Ben Folds-Bitches Ain't Shit | | Wednesday, March 9th, 2005 | | 12:02 am |
Cool Story Hansel
So I go to 7-11, and how much do I spend? $7.11. I laughed out loud, but apparently neither the cahshier nor anyone in the store noticed the coincidence. I wanted to point it out, but I didn't want to prove to everyone that I'm a dork.
Look what I scrounged up...lil Davey from back in '99. I was in Guatemala hanging out with some Quiche indians, the decendants of the Mayan people, not the egg based pie from France.
Damn...I had hair back then. Current Mood:  dorkyCurrent Music: Talking Heads | | Sunday, February 27th, 2005 | | 1:35 pm |
Today in the Clarion Ledger, the had some great stuff on classic Metro Jackson basketball. They talked a lot about the 1990-1992 dynasty that was the Murrah Mustangs. Ronnie Henderson, Othella Harrington and Jesse Pate are three of the best basketball players to come out of the city, and they were all on the same team, averaging 20+ points a game. Back in the day, my dad tutored Ronnie Henderson for the ACT, and it was so awesome to have this local basketball god in my house weekday afternoons. My mom would make cheesecake, and he would study with my dad for a while, then we'd go outside and shoot some hoops in the backyard. Ronnie had an awesome career at LSU, but got lost in the mix when it came NBA time...not too sure what he's doing these days, but I hope he's doing alright. He's another one of those lost talent kinda stories, along the lines with Marcus Dupree. The top 5 players in Jackson history are listed at:
http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050227/SPORTS06/502270403/1025
And the top 5 teams of all time are listed at:
http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050227/SPORTS06/502270440/1025
That 1997-1998 Provine team was one I was close too as well. All those guys played summer ball with my brother, so I got to tag along with high school greats like Justin Reed, David Sanders, Aaron Harper, Marcus Terrell and Tommy Kelly. Of course Justin, David and Aaron played key roles in some good years at Ole Miss. Marcus went to USM, but I think he got in some trouble and I'm not too sure what he's up to. Tommy went on to have a solid football career at MSU. I'll never forget that summer in Vegas for the Adiddas Big Time AAU tourney. I would just sit back and watch amazing basketball. I got to see guys like Jonathan Bender, Emeka Okafor, David Lee and others all play before they got names for themselves at the next level. Guys like Coach K and Nolan Richards were seen in the stands. That was one great week. And my brother's team made it all the way to the semis, and looked poised to win the whole deal, but they blew a 10 point lead to some team from Michigan and lost in the final seconds. That was the most talented basketball team I have ever seen live, I truly think, besides the Bulls that same year. Besides those Provine guys, there were the likes of Murrah great Jimmy Boykins, and Donald Perry dude who played point guard for Indiana a few years later. We still have a picture of the team in our heralded Baker's Rack of Important Pictures. You should check it out sometime. | | 10:46 am |
Whew...been a while. Not much to say other than life is busy, my days starting around 5 in the morning for football and not ending too many hours before that every night after I'm through with work. School's pressing end of the quarter projects on me in standard fashion...these last few weeks will be a grind. But I'm a happy camper. Life is good, not gonna lie. I've just got some great friends that make these weekends something to really look forward to, and they get me through the week. This saturday I'm going to see OAR...I haven't listened to their music in quite some time, but tons of people are going, and I like em a lot, so I think it'll be really fun. I'll be home starting I think on the 18th of march, and there through easter. Anyone and everyone back home shoot me a line and we'll get together...movies, trivial pursuit, bowling...ANYTHING. Can't wait to see ya'll. | | Monday, February 14th, 2005 | | 10:01 am |
"Every day's the 14th" - Andre 3000
Happy Valentine's Day everyone. Just remember, former Alcorn and current NFL great Steve McNair was born this day in 1973. That should tell you something about how special this day is. Current Music: Damien Rice-Eskimo |
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