Speak Gently To Your Mother- Five Blind Boys Of Mississippi
Hey Mama -  Kanye West
Sweet Child O’ Mine -  Guns N’ Roses
Queen Bitch-  David Bowie
Hey Mama -  Black Eyed Peas
Planet Queen -  T. Rex
Mama Told Me (Not To Come) -  Three Dog Night
What Have They Done To My Song, Ma –   Melanie
That Was Your Mother – Paul Simon
Queen Majesty – Techniques
Beautiful – Carole King
I Feel Like The Mother Of The World – Smog
Veins Of The Queen – Robyn Hitchcock & The Egyptians
Mama You Sweet – Lucinda Williams
I Had A Real Good Mother And Father -Gillian Welch
Momma Cried – Alison Krauss & Union Station
Hooves – Bowerbirds
Ay Mama – Devendra Banhart
Sugar Mama – Fleetwood Mac
Blues For Mama – Nina Simone
Nobody Loves Me But My Mother – B.B. King

Archetype

In this youtube video you can hear the father say, “Son, make the evil eye.” The baby responds by furrowing his brow and inclining his head to produce a menacing expression. This expression is recognized universally, perhaps due to an instinctual cue to avoid an angry and potentially dangerous individual. Check out this related article on facial prejudice and instinct from the BBC website. The video is so funny because this archetypal expression appears on the face of a cute baby that’s laughing and eating ice cream.

Stereotype

The jealous old hag is a stereotype often seen in film and literature,
particularly in fairy tales. In the hag’s jealousy of youth and beauty,
she curses the young and beautiful. The myth of the evil eye says that the
covetousness of others can lead to a curse on the person possessing the object
or attribute of jealousy. Old, solitary women were often suspected because it was
believed they were witches and women with a rheumy eye were particularly
vulnerable to the accusation. The image from an old self help book of a hooded
old woman cursing young, nude men creates a powerful juxtaposition.

Cliché

The Turkish nazar is a talisman believed to protect the wearer from
the evil eye. The stylized glass beads are meant to represent the human eye.
Once the amulet was said to protect it’s wearer from being cursed by jealous
eyes. Today, the amulet is considered a one-size-fits-all good luck charm
similar to the horse shoe. People wear the amulets on their clothes, post it
to their doors, and hang them in their cars. And today the phrase “to give
the evil eye” is synonymous with glaring or scowling at someone.

Wilmington metal band Mortal Man brings a classic sound into the 21st century.

Wilmington’s Mortal Man has the scruffy, bearded look of any number of metal bands. However, the group has decided to steer their sound in a direction that’s miles apart from their shrieking nü-metal contemporaries to create a story and sound that makes the genre accessible to a wider audience.

Mortal Man (from left) Keith McAndrews, Max Sweeney, Mike Desjean, Matt Murray, and Brandon Autry

The Mortal Men

The men, their ages, their instruments, and their beards:

Matt Murray, 26, vocals, 6 inches

Max Sweeney, 27, guitar, 5 inches

Mike Desjean, 27, drums, 1 1/2 inches

Brandon Autry, 28, guitar, an inch even

Keith McAndrews, 20, bass, 0 inches

The mortal beards. Murray (from left), Sweeny and Autry display their tufts.

An Epic Sound

On a Sunday afternoon Wilmington’s Mortal Man blasts their epic sound from Max Sweeney’s shed-cum-studio. The space is littered with beer cans, guitars, various bits of a drum kit, a single maraca, and a copy of Pro Tools for Dummies. Matt Murray, the vocalist, leans into the mic and whispers, “There was a guy and he did some stuff and then he found the scroll…”

This brief, improvised lead-in says much about Mortal Man. It’s a metal band of both lyrical and musical complexity and puerile camaraderie. Some of the members have been friends for years. McAndrews and Desjean played together in Throw It to Lucas and Sweeney and Autry are both Wilmington locals and attended the same high school. The guys spent interludes during Mortal Man’s practice discussing Ralph Wiggum quotes, Davis Cross sketches and genitalia.

Just Metal

Mortal Man is as traditional as a metal band can be. Like Black Sabbath (or even Led Zeppelin) before them, they focus more on lyricality and melody than sonic dissonance and volume. (And that’s not to say they’re not loud…) The vocals are clear, the lyrics decipherable, and the instrumental performances are precise and Wagnerian, articulating as manifestly as the lyrics themselves. It’s a sound that any fan of prog rock could embrace, though the band members themselves roundly agree they are a metal band (with no frills). However, they realize their sound has a wider appeal than just the metal community. “I like that we can b e a metal band that’s not only for metal fans,” Brandon Autry, guitar, noted.

The band cites forerunners Judas Priest, Thin Lizzy, AC/DC, and Black Sabbath as influences. Murray draws vocal inspiration from diverse sources such as Metallica; Dio, the band of former Black Sabbath vocalist Ronnie James Dio; and Elvis.

The Plot

Mortal Man’s moniker is the result of a serendipitous find by Autry. While reading The Lord of the Rings, Autry stumbled upon a passage stating death is a gift to mortal man, a theme first explored by Tolkein in The Silmarillion. “Death is their fate,” Tolkein writes, ” the gift of Ilúvatar, which as Time wears even the Powers shall envy.” The concept sparked Autry’s imagination. However, at first, the discovery merely inspired Mortal Man’s band name. It wasn’t until later that the band created the character of Mortal Man and began to weave the epic tale of his quest into their music.

The story of Mortal Man is a blend of Dr. Who-style science fiction, Tolkeinesque fantasy and myth, Homeric Odyssey and zombie lore. When asked to provide an overview of the plot, the band members exchanged glances and launched a convoluted narrative that included a zombie lord, a time immortal, several mystic relics, and Apocalyptic devastation.

The band seems earnest about their epic hero but also amused by their own gravity. When asked when Mortal Man’s story is set, Sweeney laughed and replied in a movie trailer intonation, “Thousands of years ago in the far distant future.”

Concept Band

Opeth and Mastodon, groups the band cites as contemporary influences, have both released concept albums. However, Mortal Man is quick to explain that the adventure of Mortal Man won’t be limited to a single release. “We’re not a band with a concept album,” Autry clarified. “We’re a concept band.”

The group hopes to expand the story of Mortal Man to create a sort-of band mythology. “Our first album will be the story of the rise and demise of Mortal Man,” Murray explained, “and we’re thinking of retelling the same story from different points of view in future albums.”

The Response

So far the concept seems to be working in Mortal Man’s favor. “We kind of did this as an experiment,” Murray explained. “I took some theater classes in high school and found that I like getting into character. I’m not just bullshitting between the songs, I’m creating part of the narrative. So far, we’ve gotten a great response.”

The band believes that the story of Mortal Man makes metal more accessible to audiences who might not be familiar with or even might not like the genre. “People have come up to me and said, ‘I’m not really into metal, but I really got into the story’,” Murray explained. “We’re really excited that people like it,” Autry added. “We were afraid they weren’t going to get it.”

Upcoming Shows and Projects

Mortal Man will be playing at the Soapbox on November 15th with the Black Skies, Rapture Cabaret, and Pride Parade. The cover is five dollars. There are no mp3s available on Mortal Man’s Myspace site as of yet, but the band has plans to start recording within the next couple of months and to begin the design of a Mortal Man comic to be distributed with the CD.

View Larger Map

About the Article:

I actually set out to do an article on voter registration and expected turn out. However, neither the Pender, New Hanover, or Brunswick Board of Registration returned my email or phone calls. I also contacted the Obama campaign to speak to a person who had been registering people on the streets but they had trouble finding someone that was cleared to speak to the press. Finally, I contacted the director of Democracy North Carolina, who also didn’t get back to me.

Luckily, I had gotten the information for Mortal Man’s singer when I saw their show because I’ve been thinking of pitching a local music review to Wilmington’s weekly, Encore. The Encore’s audience is locals, people interested in entertainment in the area. It’s Wilmington’s version of The Independent. So, I called the band and asked if I could sit in on a practice (since they didn’t have any shows scheduled for the week). I then went out to a local bar and interviewed three members of the band. I mostly let them talk while I took notes, but I loosely structured my interview to cover the following topics:

1. Band member names, ages, and instruments
2. Band history, previous projects
3. Influences
4. Self-described genre
5. Origin of the band name
6. Explanation of the band’s concept
7. Plans for recording/distributing
8. Performances so far and audience response
9. Upcoming shows
10. How do you distinguish Mortal Man’s story from Frodo’s quest in LOTR (This question arose spontaneously from discussion of the Mortal Man plot.)

Unfortunately, their practice wasn’t scheduled until Sunday, so I was pressed for time on writing the article. But I liked how it turned out overall. I did a good deal of research on the bands they named that I didn’t recognize so that I could make accurate comparisons. I also looked up the part of the Lord of the Rings they referenced.

If I were to webbify the article I would encourage the band to allow me to provide a free download of one of their songs, a streaming video feature, links to the band’s myspace page and the myspace pages of the other bands playing with them on the 15th. I would also include a sort of fast facts box with band name, genre, influences, and upcoming shows.

About the Revision:

I changed the title of the piece, and then added some introductory information to give a reader an idea of what the article is about, which was actually really tough because everything that I tried sounded fawning. I do like the band, but I hate when band reviews gush. I hope I struck a good balance. I also changed my first subhead to make it a little more explanatory.

Come and enjoy my twitter coverage of Lula’s Sunday night pub quiz.

View Larger Map

The Harper’s Puzzle, both friend and nemesis, comfort and torment. I’m sharing with you a play by play of both my victories and defeats as I progress through my problem solving. If you’d like to play along there is good news and bad news. Bad news is you’ll need to be a Harper’s subscriber if you aren’t already, but the good news is that you can subscribe right now and get access to the PDF of the puzzle, or you could always just run out to the newsstand and pick one up.

If you’ve ever tried your hand at the Harper’s Puzzle then you know that it is a cryptic crossword and that it is super difficult. Or at least it is for me… Perhaps you can polish one off in a matter of minutes, in which case, I hope that I’m more attractive than you.

I first started doing the Harper’s puzzle during a Maine winter. It was tough to crack, but once I learned to love it, I knew I’d love it forever. I hope this liveblog will be both instructive for the newbie and entertaining for the salty dog.

So, on the off chance that anyone is out there playing along, audience participation is appreciated. I will be using the October 2008 puzzle entitled “Playfair Square (‘Just Kidding’).”

Without further ado, I present to you:

Bailey vs. the Harper's Puzzle

P.S. The headband is both to stimulate blood flow to the brain AND to intimidate the puzzle.

Day One

10:21 Read the rules.

Almost every puzzle has some sub-puzzle to solve, so it’s important to read the rules of the puzzle every time.

10:34 I’ve given the puzzle a once over, and I think I’ve spotted the weakest clue in the flock, 32 Across:

The eight in parenthesis behind the clue means that the answer is eight letters long.

10:37 I’ve got it. “DULY” + “SEND” is an anagram for “suddenly,” which means “without notice.” “Off” indicates that the letters should be rearranged. So, 32A is SUDDENLY.

Look for words like turn, play, crazy, broken, and strange to indicate an anagram. Check out the Guardian’s cryptic crossword primer for more tips.

10:48 Now it’s time to get more coffee in celebration of the first clue down. Sometimes I’ll work on the puzzle for hours and only get six or seven, so even small accomplishments are cause for celebration.

10:51 20, 25, 19, 21, and 13 Down all intersect SUDDENLY, the 32 Across answer. However, 20 Down is a Playfair Square clue (see the rules above if you have no idea what I’m talking about) and 13 Down is 10 letters long, which means it’s probably difficult, so I’m going to focus on the other three. The clues are:

25D. By coating finish, you get working supply? (5) _ _ _ D _

19D. In this country, bad loan requires getting down in dumps (7) _ _ _ _ _ D _

21D. Denude abandoned place in Scotland (6) _ _ _ _ E _

11:04 I think that 25D might be BENDY because “By coating finish” could mean that B and Y should be placed on either side of END. “End” is a synonym for “finish.” BY could be seen as “coating finish” if it surrounded END. However, I don’t really see how “bendy” means “working supply.”

I’m going to hold off on entering that one into the puzzle.

11:10 21D solved. “Denude” is an anagram of DUNDEE, a “place in Scotland.” To work on my anagrams I like to put all the letters in a circle like this:

Anagram Circle

11:25 19D solved. (Clue: In this country, bad loan requires getting down in dumps (7) _ _ _ _ _ D _)

“In this country” means the U and S will be the first and last letters of the word. “Bad loan” means that the four letters after U will be an anagram of “loan,” i.e. “loan” written badly.

“Getting down” indicates that a D should be added*. So, the final answer is UNLOADS, which means “dumps.”

*Directions are often written as the first letter of the direction, e.g. D for “down” or L for “left.”

11:32 Now that I have both 19D and 21D, it’s time to start looking at the across clues again. We have two letters for 20, 28, 30, and 33 Across. Here are the clues:

20. One way to get to store: Water Street and Main (9) _ _ _ N D _ _ _ _

28. Returning soldier removed from foreign surroundings, tossed in cooler (5) _ _ _ O N

30. Organs playing right away, holding a note from other organs! (6) _ _ _ A D _

33. Head of government ordered “Eyes right” in spring uprising! (6) _ _ _ S E _

11:46 28D solved. (Clue: Returning soldier removed from foreign surroundings, tossed in cooler (5) _ _ _ O N.)

This one was a doozy. So, “Returning soldier” is IG, G.I. backward.

“Removed from foreign surroundings” indicates that IG should be removed from “foreign” leaving us with the letters FOREN.

“Tossed” tells us that the resulting letters are an anagram, which gives us the final answer FREON, for “cooler.” (“Coolant” would actually be more accurate, but who am I to argue with Richard E. Maltby Jr.)

11:58 I really believe that 30A might be “gonads.” Here’s the clue:

30. Organs playing right away, holding a note from other organs! (6) _ _ _ A D _

It seems a little saucy for Harper’s. Of course, last week’s Sunday New York Times crossword had “Pass the Courvoisier rapper” as a clue. So, who knows?

12:06 Lunch break! See you in a bit.

12:46 Alas, the cupboard was bare! So, I’ve recruited my sister to bring me a sandwich. In the meantime, let’s hope that hunger leads to heightened problem-solving creativity.

12:52 33A solved. (Clue: Head of government ordered “Eyes right” in spring uprising! (6) _ _ _ S E _.)

The “head of government” is G because G is the first letter, the head, of the word.

Next, we add “Eyes right.” “Ordered” signals us to create an anagram with “eyes” and R, for “right.” The result is GEYSER, a “spring uprising.”

12:58 I’m having a hard time with 20A. (Clue: One way to get to store: Water Street and Main (9) _ _ _ N D _ _ _ _.) I’m going to try some of the down clues that intersect it to try and get some more letters.

In addition to 19 and 21, which I’ve already solved, numbers 2, 5, 13, and 22 intersect 20A. The clues are:

2. Using modern communication, member of royal family, we hear, published books (8)

5. In the capacity of a dentist, takes in pure sick animals (10)

13. Bumped into not quite well-heeled friend, in poetic fashion (10) _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ L _

22. It’s money due you—speak up (3)

1:30 2D solved. (Clue: Using modern communication, member of royal family, we hear, published books (8))

So far, we’ve mostly been seeing anagram clues in this puzzle. This clue uses another popular trick, homophones.

Using modern communication is to “IM” (you know, like instant message). A “member of the Royal family” is a prince. It could also be queen or king or dauphin or whatever, but I ruled all those out because “we hear” indicates that the answer will be a homophone. “Prince” sounds like “prints”. So, if I add IM to PRINTS, I get the answer, IMPRINTS, for “published books.”

1:46 20A solved. (Clue: One way to get to store: Water Street and Main (9) _ T _ N D _ _ _ _.) I had to consult the dictionary on this one. Given the letters I have so far, I figure the first part is STAND. Then I scratched my head for a minute because I couldn’t come up with any words that begin with stand. So, I looked “stand” up in the dictionary and I found “standpipe.”

According to Webster’s a standpipe is “a high vertical pipe of cylindrical tank for storing water and keeping it at a desired pressure, esp. such a large tank used in a water-supply system for a town, etc.” I don’t really know what Webster’s means by that “etc.,” but I don know that definition seems to work with my clue. Particularly, if you follow the rules and remember that “mental repunctuation of a clue is the key to its solution.”

Think of the clue like this: “One way to get to store: Water.” Then, “Street and Main.”

The first half is our definition. The second half gives us the components of the word. ST is the abbreviation for “street.” AND is added verbatim. And, “main” is a synonym for PIPE. The results is our answer, STANDPIPE.

1:56 With STANDPIPE at 20A that means I have S _ F _ S _ G for the Playfair Square clue at 20D.

I’m not sure what to do with this info just yet, but it’s something to keep in mind.

2:00 Lunch break redux.

2:50 UPDATE:

The board so far.

3:37 It’s been nearly an hour, and there’s little to report. I abandoned strategy after coming to a standstill and have just been randomly trying to solve clues to jumpstart the game. So far my only coup has been 13A:

13A. Smash! Wham! KO! It’s hair-raising! (6)

The answer is an anagram of WHAM and KO, the two words “smashed,” if you will. The result is a “hair raising” MOHAWK.

This answer gives me the first letter of 13D:

13D. Bumped into not quite well-heeled friend, in poetic fashion (10) M _ _ _ I _ _ _ L _

4:30 4D and 12A solved.

(4D Clue: Meals On Wheels city? (5) ). “On Wheels” is an anagram indicator. So, an anagram of “Meals” that is also a city is SALEM.

(12A Clue: Apply time for piano, as is fitting (5)). This one seems like a bit of a stretch, I know, but I’m about 95% sure that it’s correct. I think that you’re supposed to substitute a T for the second P (“time” for “piano”) in “Apply” to get APTLY, “as is fitting.”

4:36 Well, it appears to have stopped raining, so that’s enough puzzling for me for one day.

Until tomorrow,

Bailey

Day Two

The game so far: I’ve seen better, but I’ve certainly seen worse. I think I’ve knocked out the easiest quadrant of the board already. So, I’m looking at a tougher go of it today. I’d like to get at least one of the two long answers that bisect the puzzle. I think that would help me move into new terriotry. These two clues are 5 and 13 down:

5. In the capacity of a dentist, takes in pure sick animals (10)

13. Bumped into not quite well-heeled friend, in poetic fashion (10)

I haven’t yet tried working on the Playfair Square part of the puzzle. Hopefully, I’ll get some more letters and maybe even solve one of the four Playfair Square clues.

1. Detective involved in hustle (6)

34. British zone out after silver (6)

10. Celebrity eating, in one extreme weight-loss program! (6)

20. What’s in the garden? Content of boxes, certainly (6)

2:29 It’s been a slow half hour, but I’ve made a break.

26. A degree in basic currency takes place in Algiers (6)

I was particularly pleased to get this one. I thought the answer would be in French because of “Algiers.” However, the answer is CASBAH, a “place in Algiers.” It’s an anagram of BA, “a degree” and CASH, “basic currency.”

2:45 I’ve relocated to Bella’s, my favorite local coffee shop, for some coffee, fresh air, and a new perspective.

2:55 25D solved.

25. By coating finish, you get working supply? (5)

I finally figured out the clue that I guessed was BENDY. I had been interpreting “supply” as in a supply of goods, but it should actually be read as “supply,” as in supple.

This means that 30A must be GONADS (tee hee).

30. Organs playing right away, holding a note from other organs! (6)

It’s an anagram of “organs” with “right away.” So, organs minus R gives us OGANS. And D is “a note,” so add D, mix it all up, and you get GONADS (tee hee, one more time).

2:35 13D kind of, maybe solved.

13. Bumped into not quite well-heeled friend, in poetic fashion (10)

This is one of the longer clues, and I’m not 100% on it, but I think it’s MET for “bumped into” and ALLY for “friend.” “Not quite well-heeled” has me completely stumped. However, I’m pretty sure the answer is METRICALLY for “in poetic fashion.”

2:37 27D solved.

Acronym potentially seen as fun? (5)

This is a fun one. “As fun” is an anagram for SNAFU, which is an acronym that I believe stands for “situation normal all fucked up.” Or so I’ve heard…

2:39 Bella’s is blasting the adult alternative station into the patio, and it’s ruining the puzzle-solving mood. I’m taking a break to ask them to change the station.

2:42 It was a close call between big band and classic jazz. I think classic jazz was the right choice…. I hate satellite radio.

2:50 29A solved.

Unclear in ad, yet open around the clock, as the sign might say (3-4)

This clue is a little weak. “Unclear” is the signal word for an anagram of “in ad yet.” I believe the answer is DAY NITE for “open around the clock, as the sign might say.”

2:51 22D solved incidentally.

22. It’s money due you—speak up (3)

With the letters from 20A, 26A and 29A we get PAY, “money due you” from “speak” a synonym for YAP backward, signaled by “up.”

3:01 24D solved.

24. I believe Designer’s Square is north of where robbery went down (6)

The bottom right quadrant is really starting to shape up. In 24D, “Designer’s Square” gives us T for “T-square.”

A robbery is a HEIST. T is “north” of “robbery.” So, T is above HEIST, making THEIST for “I believe.”

3:15 I was moving along at a nice clip, but it seems the coffee is starting to fail me. Perhaps it’s time for a refill?

3:20 4D and 16A solved.

4. Meals On Wheels city? (5)

16. Great Ballet Russe star from Long Island, a long way away (5)

So, 4D is wrong! Oops. My bad y’all. I was having trouble making any headway in the upper left, so it occurred to me there might be a mistake in that area. I had a feeling that 16A might be LIFAR for the first letters of “Long Island” plaus FAR for “a long way away.” However, I dismissed it because it didn’t work with SALEM and because I don’t know a lick about ballet. My mom wouldn’t let me take dance as a kid; she said I was too delicate. But desperate times… I Googled LIFAR and found that he is indeed a “Ballet Russe star.”

Now, you might be saying to yourself, “Isn’t using the Internet cheating, Bailey?” And my answer is a categorical no. The puzzle isn’t only about brain teasers, it’s also about learning. If I didn’t look up Lifar, then I wouldn’t have anything smart to talk about at cocktail parties if Russian ballet came up. So there.

Now, since LIFAR is right, SALEM must be wrong.

3:23 4D resolved! SELMA not SALEM! Tricky puzzle…

3:25 1D solved.

1. Likely story: making a bee-line inside (6)

A “story” is a LIE. “A bee-line inside” indicates that you should add ABL, creating LIABLE for “likely.”

3:35 5D solved.

5. In the capacity of a dentist, takes in pure sick animals (10)

This is another long one. “Dentist” made me think that DDS would be part of the answer and “sick” indicates that an anagram of “pure” should be included as well.

I guessed that the answer might be QUADRUPEDS for “animals,” but the QUA part of the answer was puzzling, so I looked it up and found that “qua” means in the capacity of. Score! I love it when I learn new words from the puzzle.

3:45 18A solvished?

Advanced University Track returns under boxing-related umbrella (10)

This is a bit of a guess, but frustration is the mother of creative guessing, so I’m going to go with it. I think all we get from “University” is the initial U. Another word fro “track” is “rut,” and if we “return” that we get TUR. The “boxing-related” bit is FIST. So far, if you put those all together, you get FUTURIST, but that’s not enough letters. So, I think the answer is FUTURISTIC for “advanced.”

3:50 Well, I think that’s enough for one day. My palms are in a cold sweat from caffeine overload, and I’m kind of starting to want to throw the puzzle into the river.

Day Three

6:24 6A solved

6. Vicar can absolve keeping secrets (6)

This one uses a word hidden in other words. The answer is in “Vicar can absolve.” The answer is ARCANA for “secrets”

6:30 17D solved.

17. Indication of slashing: Pop Art from $199 to $9 (8) _ I _ A T R _ _

This one’s all about the Roman numerals. CIC for 199 and IX for 9 with an anagram of ART in the middle, for the second foreign word in the puzzle CICATRIX, scar or “indication of slashing.”

6:47 7D solved.

7. You might see him rob criminal figures (6) R _ O _ _ I

“Him rob” criminally makes RHOMBI, plural of rhombus, for “figures.”

6:50 8D solved.

8. Kelly Ripa, e.g., falls short? Something fishy here! (5) C _ H _ _

I finally rememebered who Kelly Ripa is! She’s on that morning show with Regis; ergot she is a cohost. I looked up “cohos” because that would be cohost “falling short” and found that a “coho” is a small salmon native to the N. Pacific. So, the answer is COHOS.

]]> http://spacebailey.wordpress.com/2008/10/11/liveblogging-bailey-vs-the-harpers-puzzle/feed/ 2 spacebailey b-v-h1 dsc000091 50 http://spacebailey.wordpress.com/2008/10/06/fact-checking-content/ http://spacebailey.wordpress.com/2008/10/06/fact-checking-content/#comments Mon, 06 Oct 2008 02:45:52 +0000 Bailey http://spacebailey.wordpress.com/?p=39 ]]>

Forward Check

Analysis of your inbox

FW: Columbo

Introduction:

1. College records
2. Columbia thesis
3. Selective Service Registration
4. Medical records
5. Law practice client list
6. Birth certificate or Certification of Live Birth
7. Harvard Law Review articles published
8. University of Chicago scholarly articles
9. Record of baptism
10. Illinois State Senate schedule and records

Analysis:

1. College Records:

2. Columbia Thesis:

3. Selective Service Registration:

4. Medical Records:

5. Law Practice Client List:

6. Birth Certificate and Certificate of Live Birth:

7. Harvard Law Review Articles:

8. University of Chicago Scholarly Articles:

9. Record of Baptism:

10. Illinois State Senate Schedule & Records:

The Columbo forward does present some whoppers. However, the forward is mostly guilty of presenting half-truths or making demands for information that is already available (e.g., Obama’s birth certificate) or irrelevant (e.g., the demand for the record of Baptism). The forward is an attempt to create a sense of conspiracy. My verdict is that the Columbo forward should be taken with a grain of salt.

About the Author:

Forward Check is a column proposal created by Bailey Smith for JOMC 711 Writing for Digital Media at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Mrs. Smith is a registered Democrat.

Sources:

1. Obama vs. McCain on the issues. The Seattle Times. 27 September 2008.

2. FACTBOX: John McCain, Republican presidential candidate. Reuters. 26 September 2008.

3. Obama and the case of the missing ‘thesis’. NBC News: Deep Background. 24 July 2008.

4. Proclamation 4360 – Selective Service Registration. The American Presidency Project. 29 March 1975.

5. Proclamation 4771–Registration Under the Military Selective Service Act. The National Archives. 2 July 1980.

6. E-mail. Janice L. Hughes, Public & Intergovernmental Affairs, Selective Service System. 2 October 2008.

7. Barack Obama’s doctor gives him a clean bill of health. Los Angeles Times: Top of the Ticket Blog. 29 May 2008.

8. FACTBOX – John McCain’s health records. Reuters UK. 23 May 2008.

9. Ethics law reveals too little, group says. Chicago Sun-Times. 29 March 2008. (Available for purchase from the Chicago Sun-Times)

10. Obama, Rezko ties again at issue. Chicago Tribune. 23 January 2008. (Available for purchase from the Chicago Tribune)

11. Barack Obama’s Official Birth Certificate. Obama/Biden: Fight the Smears. 2008.

12. Born in the U.S.A. FactCheck.org. 21 August 2008. Born in the U.S.A. FactCheck.org. 21 August 2008.

13. Obama’s lost law review article. Politico. 22 August 2008.

14. Teaching Law, Testing Ideas, Obama Stood Slightly Apart. New York Times. 30 July 2008.

15. The Story of Obama, Written by Obama. New York Times. 18 May 2008.

16. Finding His Faith. Newsweek. 12 July 2008.

17. McCain: I’m Baptist, not Episcopalian. The Christian Post. 17 September 2007.

18. Fact Check: Obama’s State Senate Records Are Publicly Available. Obama/Biden: Know the Facts. 14 November 2007.

19. Transcript for Nov. 11 2007. Meet the Press. 11 November 2007.

1. Revamped Headlines

1. Rescue plan for funds will come at a cost
   Problem: Vague and obvious
   Solution: U.S. Treasury Guarantees Ailing Money Markets, Stricter Regulation to Follow
2. Minimizing Your Own Exposure to Risks
   Problem: Vague and redundant
   Solution: Minimizing Your Financial Risks
3. Rules Near for Animals’ Engineering
   Problem: Vague and confusing
   Solution: FDA to Announce Regulations for Genetically Modified Animals

2. Web Article with Lists

(Original)
Keeping Your Computer and Its Contents Safe
By DAVID A. KELLY

IT’S hard not to experience anxiety when you’re traveling with a laptop. A computer can certainly make life easier for travelers keeping an online travel journal, serial e-mailers and those who want to keep up with their jobs. But there are, as every laptop-toting traveler knows, numerous risks: accidental drops during security screenings, theft from a hotel room, loss in a taxi or restaurant or hardware failure from too many jolts.

Quick Tips for Laptop Safety

• Backup your files to a flash drive or a memory card that’s compatible with your cell phone or digital camera.

• Purchase a laptop lock or alarm.

• Ask for a hotel safe when renting a room (Be sure the safe is large enough for your laptop.)

• Add your laptop to your renter’s or homeowner’s insurance.

• Use a service that allows remote access to your home computer, and leave your laptop at home.

• Tape your contact information and photo to the back of your laptop.

“Laptops are great because you can take your entire office with you wherever you go, but you need to recognize that your entire office might be lost, stolen or damaged beyond use,” said Ann Westerheim, president of Ekaru, a technology services company.

Perhaps the most important safety measure, Ms. Westerheim said, is protecting the information on your computer, so that if it is damaged, lost or stolen, the data remain safe. Travelers now have many backup devices to choose from.

Beside storing your files and data on a removable CD or DVD disk, there is a variety of other portable storage devices. Particularly convenient are flash drives: small key-chain-size plastic devices that weigh only an ounce or so and plug into a computer’s U.S.B. port (the port typically used for connecting printers and other peripherals). You can copy your e-mail files, documents, pictures or data files to the U.S.B. flash drive and can then keep the files with you or keep them in the hotel safe.

…

3. Blog Headline Rewrite

Speaking Soccer in Brazil: Cheering for the Home Team, Right or Wrong

4. Writing Practice

8: China Retaliates, Suspending Import of Contaminated American Meats

6: China Suspends Contaminated American Meat Imports

6&8: China Suspends Contaminated American Meat Imports, Decision Responds to U.S. Crackdown on Chinese Products

Purpose:

The purpose of this article is to provide suggestions for the improvement of the FactCheck.org website. The application of these suggestions should provide improved navigability and readability.

About FactCheck:

FactCheck.org reviews political ads and stories for accuracy. The writing is consistently solid, well organized, objective, and concise. Therefore, the content is perfectly suited for a Web audience, and the objective tone inspires user confidence in the site. However, some of the site’s design elements make it hard to focus on the wonderful text. I often read the printer-friendly version instead of staying on the main site. FactCheck has also added a video broadcast and a blog.

Organization:

As it is, the site looks cluttered and busy.This is partly because the site only uses the center of the screen. Because the site is text heavy, this isn’t the most efficient way to use screen space.

The banner on the home page doesn’t include an image of the American flag, while the banners on the rest of the site do. I think this is because there is a graphic on the home page of the White House and an American flag. This graphic is huge and doesn’t really add anything to the site that the banner with the flag wouldn’t.

The thumbnail images included with each recent posting on the home page are unnecessary. They are too small. It would be better to choose one good graphic and feature it and nix the thumbnails.

Based on the Eyetrack findings, the site doesn’t have the right information in the upper left quadrant where users look first. There the site has a link to a video feature called “Just the Facts”. This feature will be more interesting to regular users than first-time users, so it would be beneficial to rearrange. “Recent Postings” should be on the left side of the page because this is the most important and substantive information on the site.

The “FactCheck Wire” link doesn’t have the same formatting as the rest of the screen, so it seems like the link part of the “Just the Facts” feature above it. The graphic for this feature is mostly text. It’s a nice graphic; it just doesn’t work with the other elements of the page. The red heading bars on the home page are also problematic, they draw the eye and keep people from reading the text below, and the font size in the bars is inconsistent.

Organization Recommendations:

• Use a left-justified design that uses 3/4 of the screen to create more space and still allow for screen size variability.

• Delete the White House graphic on the home page.

• Delete thumbnail images.

• Use the American flag banner on the home page.

• Move recent posting to the upper left of the page.

• Move the extras to the right and unify their presentation.

• Delete the Wire graphic and make the entry for the Wire consistent with the other features on the page.

• Use bolded text in a slightly larger font size instead of red heading bars.

Navigation:

The menu bar is clean and simple. There is also navigation at the very bottom of the page in case you’ve read to the bottom and want to link from there. However, the bottom navigation is not stylistically linked to the navigation at the top. The menu bar is also inconsistent; only the home page has an “archive” link.

There’s an “Explore FactCheck” navigation bar on some pages that does not appear consistently throughout the site. It includes links to the home pages of FactCheck’s supplemental sites (Just the Facts!, Ask Fact Check, and the FactCheck Wire). Each site has both an “archive” and “home” link, which looks busy because each link must be labeled to differentiate. Deleting the archive links would make this specification unnecessary.

Another problem is that it’s difficult to tell what exactly you are “exploring” unless you click the link, which people are hesitant to do. Two solutions would be to make the titles more descriptive or to add descriptive information. Using Javascript to show brief explanations of the sites when you mouse over them would be a space-efficient way to take care of that problem.

Moreover, when you visit the Wire there is no explanation of what it is. I looked around and found out that the Wire is basically the FactCheck blog. Smaller stories are posted on the Wire, and stories are posted more often than on the main website. The subheading “Faster than the speed of spin” suggests this, but a concrete explanation in addition to that would be useful.

Navigation Recommendations:

• Match the navigation at the bottom of the page to nav at the top.

• Add an archive link to the navigation on every page.

• Use the “Explore FactCheck” navigation bar consistently.

• Remove archive links from the Explore FactCheck nav bar.

• Describe the items in the “Explore FactCheck” bar.

Content:

The text below FactCheck.org on the banner, “Annenberg Political Fact Check,” is redundant. It’s important for the site to boldly display its affiliation to Annenberg, but the user doesn’t glean much from that subhead. Using a more descriptive subhead would be better for drawing in first time users. It should specify what sort of facts are checked.

It’s also important to consider that the user may not already be familiar with the Annenberg Public Policy Center, information about the center should be prominently displayed that let’s the user know Annenberg is affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania. Moving the Annenberg logo at the bottom of the page to the top will supply this information and lend the site more credibility.

The rest of the graphics at the bottom of the page are awards. A separate page for awards and press would be a great addition to the site. I know that FactCheck is often quoted in major newspapers. If the site linked to those quotes in the press section it would be good for site credibility.

The “Fact of the Day” on the homepage doesn’t really do anything for the site. It would be best to get rid of it.

Content Recommendations:

• Remove “Annenberg Political Fact Check” from below the title and use a subhead that is more descriptive.

• Move the logo from the bottom of the page that says “A project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania” to the top of the page.

• Create a page for press and awards, link it in the menu, and delete the extraneous award graphics at the bottom of the home page.

• Remove the “Fact of the Day.”

Conclusion:

FactCheck serves an important function as a political watchdog. Increasing the consistency and improving the design of the site will ultimately make FactCheck appear more credible to users, and thus, the site will be able to achieve its mission more effectively.

About the revision:

I changed the title of this article to “Website Recommendations for FactCheck.org” from “Formatting Recommendations for FactCheck.org” to make it clear what the article is about. I also added a statement of purpose to the beginning of the article. Next, I made an attempt to remove pronouns and to replace them with more precise nouns. Finally, I added a concluding section.

An American’s view of the cult of futébol (fu•chi•bol) in Brazil

To the Pub, World Cup 2006

There are more Brazilians than you might imagine living in Portland, Maine. In fact, until the 2006 World Cup, I had imagined only one, my husband Mario. However, to my surprise, it turned out there’s is a small but vital population of Brazilians who have forsaken the tropical climate of Brazil for the frozen tundra that is hibernal Maine. And, through some movement of the cilia of the collective soccer unconscious, the local Brazilian population seemed to congregate at the same bar, Brian Boru’s Irish Pub, for games.

That, or else, like us they had sampled their fair share of local bars to find the one with the right set of criteria: biking distance from home and work; large flat screen TV; decent sound system; ample seating; and Alagash White Ale, my favorite Hefeweizen and a product of Maine.

Brazil and Football: What it Means

At this point Mario and I had been together for only two years, and I didn’t know a lick of Portuguese. (I am now proudly up to half a lick and, maybe, an affectionate nibble.) So my reading of what took place among the fans at Brian Boru’s during the games was gleaned from what I could convince Mario to translate for me when he wasn’t, shall we say, “encouraging” the players.

He expressed a disillusionment with the players, a bunch of pretty boys (and if you’ve seen Ronaldinho, you know I mean that figuratively) who abandon Brazil during the regular season to make their fortunes playing for the more prosperous European teams.

If you were looking at an illustrated map of the world, the sort of little prejudice primer you can find for children, the Brazilian would be holding a soccer ball just as sure as the French kid would be there baguette en main.

England has its hooligans, sure, but they also have rugby and lacrosse, not to mention fish and chips and tea. The higher European latitudes have their winter sports and the world’s finest examples of social democracy in action. Australia has… well, Australia has baby-eating dingos.

And on the Other Side of the Equator…

And the American? He would probably have a little American flag in hand because all the requisite sports equipment could never fit in the illustration. The United States is a sort of sports superstore: football, basketball, and more extreme sports than you can shake a stick at. (In fact, stick shaking is probably an extreme sport itself.)

The fanatics are out there with their foam fingers and pennant-laden home offices, but the difference is in the language. You say, “I’m a Yankees fan.” In Brazil, you say, “I am Flamengo,” or, “ I am Botafogo,” or, if you’re at my house, “Eu sou Fluminense.”

Play It, Then Say It

It’s important to note the difference between estar and ser, forms of to be in Portuguese. Estar is the transient version of the verb. As in, “Eu estou com frio.” (I am cold.) That is, you are cold now, but you probably won’t always be cold. You would even say, “Eu estou vivo.” (I am alive). Now, but not forever. However, ser is immutable, so when you say, “I am Fluminense,” it means for keeps.

Playing by the Rules

There are 20 or so teams in Rio de Janeiro alone, and each has its adherents who support their team through good times, bad times, and on occasion, morally ambiguous times. Take for example the aforementioned Fluminense, my husband’s family’s team, and, by extension, my team.

National football in Brazil functions in tiers. Every year, the bottom three teams in the Campeonato Brasileiro are bumped down a tier, and the top three teams in the second tier are bumped up. This in theory provides fresh blood and promotes healthy competition.

There are four teams, Flamengo, Fluminense, Vasco, and Botafogo, that are by far the most popular in Rio. They are what you might call legacies. In 1999, Fluminense was demoted to tier two, and the following year, Fluminense dropped yet another level. In the meantime the desperation of Fluminense’s numerous fans was palpable.

The YouTube clip below shows some news footage of the game that knocked Fluminense from the second tier. The video also contains a shot of one desperate fan kissing his Fluminense jersey as one might kiss a cross.

Did Someone Say Foul?

Later in 1999, Fluminense won in the third division of the Campeonato Brasileiro and rejoined the second tier. However, that same year the championship was conveniently reformatted, and Fluminense was invited to rejoin the prime league. The ruse, the sporting world’s equivalent to skewed election redistricting, was largely accepted without qualm, except, perhaps, among Flamengo fans.

Bringing It

Ultimately, vehement hatred of the archenemy is just as important, if not more so, than fierce loyalty to your team. For Fluminense fans this enemy is Flamengo. The rivalry is so famous that it is merely called Fla-Flu. Nelson Rodrigues, a noted Brazilian journalist and playwright, dates the emergence of this term in the football lexicon to as early as 1911.

Having an enemy team greatly multiplies your enjoyment of the game. You are not merely limited to enjoying, for example, Fluminense v. Other games. You also have Flamengo v. Other to relish. In the latter case, with the hope that Other will royally crush Flamengo.

What’s the Deal Ref?

To be sure slavish devotion to the home team can be cause for joy. It inspires brotherhood among strangers, it brings poepole into the streets to dance and sing and rejoice. However, it is also the divisive force behind many a bar fight and even spousal abuse. And sometimes it’s the reason people turn a blind eye to corruption. But, hey, if the call goes your way, why question it?