wag the dog

Though there’s already been no shortage of controversy and upset in this presidential campaign and subsequent regime-building—and I hope the world’s karmic balance won’t be tabulated against all the tin-pot dictatorships that US and partners have propped up over the years, government offices and government-controlled industries entrusted to family members—the choice of chief strategist, administration’s mouthpiece and sophist is facing the probably the single greatest amount of scrutiny and derision—that is, aside from the choice of president itself.
Pre- post-truth and foremost, Steven Bannon’s message crafting is what cost the opposition victory, although the conservation is forward-focussed—incredulously—and concerns what his continued presence and counsel might mean. With a career that began as a naval officer, then post-graduate studies at Harvard and a stint as an investment banker, independently wealthy through royalties off a popular television series (one that would needs be heavily bracketed) before taking up the golden-ring of yellow-journalism with the mission of giving an under-represented but not necessarily disenfranchised demographic a perspective. What do you think? If this assessment is true and advisors are capable of channelling rants and raves, Bannon sounds more trumpian than Trump.

pam 21-41

Covering the entire gamut of good manners and etiquette becoming to both an officer and a gentleman, in 1949 the US Army issued a fantastically illustrated Personal Code of Conduct publication for soldiers, not just acclimating those who found themselves newly stationed in strange and exotic locations but also a day to day guide for common courtesies like tact, self-control, respect for women and being ambassadors of good will. I agree that we especially need this sort of civics manual to fall back on in these times.

wookieepedia

Billed to fans as indeed the exhibition that they are looking for, London’s O2 arena is host to a show called Star Wars Identities, the Londonist informs, that features costumes, models and props from the saga as well as extensive biographies and profiles of the different life forms that populate that Universe. There’s even a sciency aspect to the exhibition in collaboration with neurologists, sociologists and exo-biologists to reach an understanding about the cultural cachet of the franchise and find your Star Wars spirit animal—figuratively and not literally a Womp Rat or Nerf-herder.

he asked for a thirteen but they drew a thirty-one

Whether ironically, nostalgically or embarrassingly just catching up, the jury of teens and tweens that pick the German Youth Word of the Year chose Fly sein.
To be fly, that is—as in the Offspring song Pretty Fly (for a White Guy) from 1998. In all fairness, they had other contenders which included Hopfensmoothie (for a beer and one has to be sixteen to drink after all) and Tindergarten but they didn’t want to be seen as endorsing vice and it’s possible with the recent GEMA concessions, a whole new young generation was just now introduced to that year in music.