One of the Best Oscar Awards Show Ever

The giant snafu over the Best Picture Award reminded me a little bit of "A Chorus Line," when the director asks several of the dancers who've auditioned to step forward and then, after they think they've been chosen to be in his show, thanks them and dismisses them!  Those who thought they hadn't won are now the winners!  But that was deliberate.  Last night's snafu was NOT! 

But I disagree with Mick La Salle, who says  the 2017 Oscar ceremony will be remembered for nothing but the huge error about The Best Picture Award.  There were many memorable moments, even one resulting from the terrible snafu, when a very gracious Jordan Horowitz of the "La La Land" crew handed over the Oscar he thought he'd won saying "I'm gonna be really proud to hand this to my friends for 'Moonlight.'" 

Mick La Salle thinks the Best Picture Award error shows that "we can't even get the Oscars right," but we DID get the Oscars right.  The Academy chose "Moonlight" instead of  "La La Land" for Best Picture and made other good choices.    We'll remember those.  We'll remember Mahershala Ali's speech, including his thanking his teachers and professors because, contrary to what Viola Davis said,  artists aren't "the  only profession that celebrates what it means to live a life."  We'll remember the appearance of Former NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson, an inspiration for "Hidden Figures" and the trumping of Trump, including Kimmel's references to the "over-rated Meryl Streep."    We'll remember Benj Pasek's tribute to his mother who "let me quit the JCC soccer league to be in a school musical" as he dedicated his Oscar "to all the kids who sing in the rain and all the moms who let them."  We'll remember seeing Lin Manuel Miranda's without having to pay, as Kimmel quipped, ten thousand dollars.  We'll remember that it was Iranian-American  astronaut Anousheh Ansari, the first female space tourist, the first female Muslim, and first person of Iranian descent  in space,  who accepted the Oscar for the absent Asghar Farhadi when "Salesman" won Best foreign-language film.  Let's hope too that we remember the part of the Farhadi's speech that Mick La Salle does not quote:

"Dividing the world into the 'us' and 'our enemies' categories creates fear. A deceitful justification for aggression and war. These wars prevent democracy and human rights in countries which have themselves been victims of aggression."

The Oscar ceremony of this year may be remembered as one of the best ever if we choose to remember what matters most.

Kellyanne Conway, of the Phrase "Alternative Fact" Misrepresents Feminism

Kellyanne Conway, the woman who gave us the phrase "alternative Fact," recently said she couldn't call herself a feminist "in the classic sense because it seems to be very anti-male and it certainly is very pro-abortion." Someone sent her the definition: the advocacy of women's rights on the basis of the equality of the sexes (She went on to say things that were more relevant and evolved, but she'll be remembered for misrepresenting the "classic meaning."

Do We Once Again Have Ladies against Women?

Javier just alerted me to a billboard sign that reminds me of a scarf I have from "Ladies against Women," a group parodying the kind of woman-held-captive who would like this sign, "Real men provide. Real women appreciate it."

My scarf has slogans like "I'd rather be ironing" and "Roses, not raises!" "Suffering, not suffrage! Repeal the vote!" "Born to clean" "Procreation, not recreation," and "You're nobody till your Mrs. Somebody."

Take a look at this sign, which we'd expect to find back in the 1950's:

http://whnt.com/2017/02/23/real-men-provide-billboard-in-north-carolina-is-turning-heads/

Remember the stereotype of what it meant to be a "real man" or a "real woman"? Haven't we evolved since then?! Are we going back?

Oh, how I love my scarf: "It's unladylike to accept money for work." "What do we want? Nothing! When do we want it? Now!" "Another Mother for World Domination" Well, I'd better get back to what I was doing. Working without getting paid.

"Keep our nation on the track.

One step forward, three steps back."

White House Rule, as Observed by Insight, SF Chronicle

In the blurb for BAD WEEK that the Insight section of the San Francisco Chronicle always has on its back page, the White House rule is acknowledged:

It was a bad week for Michael Flynn because of this White House rule:  "OK for president and aides to lie to American people, but it's not OK to lie to Vice President Mike Pence."

Telling a Joke According to Me's Dad in Paul Beatty's The Sellout

I listened to Paul Beatty's The Sellout on Audible, so when I got the print version, I had to search for the passage describing the way his father told a joke--very funny.

Here's the description verbatim on pages 205 and 206 of the pocketbook edition.  (Paperback is what people say today, isn't it!)  http://sarielhp.org/blog/?p=9288

Daddy told his jokes the same way he’d ordered pizza, written poetry, and written his doctoral thesis—in APA format. Following the standards of the American Psychological Association, he’d toddle onstage and open up with the oral equivalent of a Title Page. Stating his name and the title of the joke. Yes, his jokes had titles. “This joke is called ‘Racial and Religious Differences in Drinking Establishment Patronage.’” Then he’d deliver the Abstract of the joke. So instead of simply saying, “A rabbi, a priest, and a black guy walk into a bar,” he’d say, “The subjects of this joke are three males, two of whom are clergymen, one of the Jewish faith, the other an ordained Catholic minister. The religion of the African-American respondent is undetermined, as is his educational level. The setting for the joke is a licensed establishment where alcohol is served. No, wait. It’s a plane. I’m sorry, my mistake. They are going parachuting.” Finally, he’d clear his throat, stand too close to the mike, and deliver what he liked to call “The Main Body” of the joke. Comedy is war. When a comedian’s routine works, they’ve killed; if the bits fall flat, they refer to it as dying. My father didn’t die onstage. He martyred himself for that other unrecognized completely unfunny black man who, just as there must be extraterrestrial life, is out there somewhere. I’ve seen self-immolations that were funnier than my father’s routine, but there were no gongs to ring or oversized canes with which to pull him offstage. He’d just ignore the booing and segue from the punch line to the Conclusion. The Results of the joke were a smattering of coughing. A chorus of vocalized disapproval and a plethora of yawning found to be significant. He’d end with the joke’s Reference Section:

“Jolson, Al (1918). ‘Sambo and Mammy Cleared for Takeoff on Runaway 5,’ Ziegfeld Follies.

“Williams, Bert (1917). ‘If Niggers Could Fly,’ The Circuitous Chitterling Tour.

“The Unknown Minstrel (circa 1899). ‘Dem Vaudeville Peckerwoods Sho’ Am Stealing My Shit,’ The Semi-Freemason Hall, Cleveland, Ohio.

“And don’t forget to tip your waitress.”

Happy Lunar New Year

Happy Lunar New Year! "Peace all year round" is what these vase-shaped lanterns at the Civic Center symbolize: Sui Sui Ping An.

 They're by Hong Kong artist Freeman Lau. 

I noticed them at the peaceful rally there last Saturday, when I took this picture:

 I saw them again last night. 

I found this online at http://www.sfartscommission.org/pubartcollection/pubart-press-releases/2017/01/09/large-scale-sculptures-will-light-up-civic-center-plaza/

In Chinese, the sound of vase (花瓶 Hua Ping) is the same as safe and peaceful (平安 Ping An). The sculptures have the names of early Chinese migrants who adopted transcription of their names in an effort to assimilate peacefully in their new home. According to the artist, “This art installation symbolizes not only the history of Chinese descent in the States, but also a blessing of “家家戶戶歲歲平安Jia Jia Hu Hu, Sui Sui Ping An – peace all year round for every family” to both the City and the residents, for the celebration of the Chinese New Year.

Did Trump Speak Truth about the Crimes of Our Nation's Leaders against Iraq?

I'm accustomed to being appalled by Donald Trump's utterances, so I was astonished to find myself grateful for his acknowledgment that our country is not innocent of crimes, specifically in the illegal and immoral attack, invasion, and occupation of Iraq.

He's right that the political leaders of this country who got us into the war in Iraq are “killers,"

As David Talbot pointed out in his column "'Folks among Us Who Normalized Torture" and as Rachel Gordon documents in the book Talbot cites American Nuremberg:  The U.S. Officials Who Should Stand Trial for Post-9/11 War Crimes,  we do have criminals among our leaders past and present, and we need to face that fact and do something about it.  Haven't Romanians just rallied to repeal a decree that decriminalized official misconduct?  Couldn't Americans do that too?

I think torture is abhorrent and criminal (1949 Geneva Conventions, War Crimes Act of 1996/US Code 2441)   and for that reason, I agree with another statement Trump has made--that "torture works."

If I were tortured, I would immediately confess to being the mastermind behind the attacks on the World Trade Center back in September 2001. I would confess to being a member of Al Qaeda and of ISIS,  and I might even implicate other people I know and love by telling my torturers that they too were planning terrorist attacks.  I would confess to any number of crimes  I never committed because "torture works."  Torture works to get "alternative facts" that justify whatever crimes  the torturers intend to commit or have already committed.   

Let's not be too quick to censure--or censor--what Trump started to say before O'Reilly cut him off and, what I note, the San Francisco Chronicle cuts short in Darlene Superville's  report, "Comments on Putin cause stir," February 6, 2017.  His words were, “We’ve made a lot of mistakes.  I’ve been against the war in Iraq from the beginning –”  and when O'Reilly interrupted to suggest that the US was guilty only of "mistakes," Trump continued, “A lot of mistakes – OK – but a lot of people were killed, so a lot of killers around, believe me.” 

I will agree with that--without even being tortured.

How Javier and I Changed History at the Super Bowl

When it comes to F words, I'm not a Fanatic or even a Fan of sports, but I do like Food and Friends, so I usually join Javier and friends for the Super Bowl--usually in Fremont.

Yesterday our friends Evelyn and Walter were hosting, and the Food was Fantastic and plentiful.  There's no joy greater than munching on something FlavorFul while tolerating a game.  Evelyn also showed us some clever Saturday Night Live episodes with Alec Baldwin as Donald Trump and Melissa McCarthy as Sean Spicer.

I was rooting for Atlanta because I have cousins and friends  there and also because they'd never won, and Javier and I like to support the underdog.

We were glad that they were winning 23 to 3 even after Half Time, and since it was obvious that New England, The Patriots, didn't stand a chance and also because he was leaving for Costa Rica the next morning, Javier wanted to leave.

I said, "But if we leave, the game won't turn out as expected."

That had been the case three times before, so there was a pattern.  

But we left anyway, so you see that Atlanta lost all because of Javier and me! 

My apologies to those rooting for Atlanta. 

Those who placed their bets on the Patriots should give Javier and me a share in the ill-gotten  gains.

Trump Revives Frederick Douglass

Speaking on Black History Month, Trump said, “Frederick Douglass is an example of somebody who has done an amazing job and is being recognized more and more, I notice,” causing people to think he thought Douglass was still living.  (Douglass' family has defended Trump's use of the present tense.)  

Here's Andy Borowitz's take on this:

http://www.newyorker.com/humor/borowitz-report/trump-says-he-heard-frederick-douglass-was-alive-from-betsy-devos

Joe Matthews Sees Connection between The Sellout and La La Land

Sell Out by Paul Beatty, the first American to win the Booker Prize for Fiction for this book, was the January 2017 selection of the JoMama Book Club, and La La Land was the film Jonathan, Javier, and I saw on Christmas Eve before dinner, so I was interested to see a full-page article by Joe Mathews connecting the two.

"Musical movie, racial satire peer into state's dark heart."

They do both take place in LA., and Mathews calls them "two of the most thought-provoking and entertaining documents of today's California."  He says "we offer precious little space or support to those who dare upset our status quo."

http://www.zocalopublicsquare.org/2017/01/12/slaves-la-la-land-south-los-angeles/inquiries/connecting-california/

These Days Most News Is NOT Fit to Print

Recology comes early tomorrow morning, so I'm going through piles of newspapers before recycling them or putting them in a huge newsprint tablet I bought for the purpose of keeping interesting articles and then looking at them at the very end of the year to get an overview ooh  ooh.

"Ex-Presidents coming out for inauguration after all,"  Willie Brown Jan. 8, 2017

"Samall hope for sanity in Russian relations" by David Talbot  Jan. 8, 2017

?Paris listens when S.F. talks trash"  (they used Recoogy in their documentary Demain)  Jan. 8, 2017
from January 10, 2017 Mick La Salle, feeling apologetic and unpopular after referring to Meryl Streep's "rant," writes a more sympathetic take on it, "Streep uses award forum to lacerate Trump.  He says "Vanessa Redgrave made a fiery speech about her support for Pelestinians at the 1978 Oscars."  If I remember, she referred to "Zionist hoodlums."

"Lead poisoning plagues Fruitvale" (near where David's care facility is)  January 25, 2017
"Islamic Center of Davis vandalized"  January 25, 2017

"Doomsday Clock ticks closer to final hour of global calamity"  It's 2 and a half minutes to midnight.
Jan. 27

Mexico:  "Leader (Enrique Pena Nieto) cancels meeting over wall remarks."  January 27

Israel:  "Rabbis chanage their tune over Ivanka's conversion"  January 27

Presidnt Donald Trump's chief White House strategist says that the media should "keep its mouth shut."  (Steve Bannon)  January 27

"Muslim empoyee attacked at airprt"  byy Lindsey Bever  January 27

"Trump says defense secretary (James Mattis) will override him on torture"  which Trump says works (to get false confessions justifying whatever actiion he wants to take)  Jan. 27

"Pence condemns abortion, pledges White House action"  January 27
"Dark, disheartening new radicals' vision of future" Talbot's take on the documentary "The New Radical," which follows two Millennials."  January 29, 2017

"A good trip in more ways than one" lists Tonga as one of the Ethical Destinations" as reported by Spud Hilton, January 29, 2017



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