ilikekicks

 

It's a great that the MUSIC industry is taking action to culturally assimilate minority sections of the population.

Umm.. Honestly.. not really. Its more ' shock rock ' or a band taking a direction thats not mainstream. This happened a lot with " Captain Fantastic ", , The Sex Pistols and many other non conformists. Need I mention Marilyn Manson?

Arcade Fire has been around for a while. I saw them in a club in Quebec in 2001 ( 2002? ) when they were first starting out/fading out. They were NOTHING like they are today or what was in the video you posted.

I know they are in some way associated with David Bowie and I fee they are trying to bring similarity of his stage showing to gain/further their notoriety. 

Most of the bands I have spoken with in the local circuits in all different flavors are as they have always been. Theres no assimilations of ' minority cultures ' as you have mentioned. Theres just been a lot more shock-rock and glam-rock making it to the stages as of recent. 80's ' hair metal ' is starting to make a comeback ( sad, I know ).

Its a circle that rotates every 2-3 decades.

Exactly! The average joe or jane isn't going to get it.

No, they will see exactly whats presented for what it is. ' shock rock '. Most seeing the video wont listen to the lyrics. They will see the images being presented and thats what they will take from it. Its a genre of music that has never taken the forefront in all of its revolving times. Its always been ' just behind ' and sometimes very popular. Its seldom understood in quantity ( of the masses ) though.

MTV really screwed the pooch with it.

I actually disagree with both of you guys, so it's just one of those "agree to disagree" moments.  The comments on You Tube are equally sided.

 

The title is "We Exist" as whatever we want to exist as.  We chose our identity for ourselves.  Those who dare to do that in a world where everyone is trying to define who we are, wind up being the true heroes in life.

As you stated, the comments were of a 50/50 nature. If one takes away the stage show and just tries to hear the content of their songs, what will they come away with? They would probably come away with a more insightful sense of what the song is about. They would probably absorb the lyrics or ' message ' better as they are able to concentrate on less sensory input. This is why the group of people I work with dont do videos or allow them to be filmed. We do make cd's and mp3's that are for distribution as we want people to hear what we have to say in a clear message, not some fashion show. There are some videos out there, but we feel they take away from the content of the music itself ( as the video you posted demonstrated ).

Without the stage show, how well would the song in question be known? " Kiss " wasnt that great musically, yet their make-up and blood/fire breathing, spinning drumsets, smoking guitars.. it made them popular/famous.

The true heros are all in Arlington bro. I know a couple of them.

Hi Everyone! Long time no see... a lot has been going on and I finally have spare time! I'll give you the specs. I have transferred to a new school Colorado Early Colleges. In the school this semester I am currently taking 090 eng, reading, and literature. The fancy 090 stands for Intro. And next semester I'm going to be taking 121 english, and math or college eng and math! The goal for the time I graduate is to have an Associate's of science degree and a high school diploma. It's thrilling and fun since I tested out of high school level essentials.

 

 

Its good to see your education advancing. Concentrate on the basics first ( Math, science, language, history ) and stay ahead of the curve. Without that foundation, the rest is meaningless.

But otherwise I have met more people and made more friends. But also during this time I have been pondering ILK's words. My friends are humans, your correct so in that I will not be specifing them any more as either LGBT or not. They are the people who care for me.

They are your FRIENDS at this stage in life. Thats all that matters.

I'm turning 16 in November and I also have gotten my permit for driving. I'm going to be in Mexico from the 11-19 for vacation. Still no heels, but I am almost able to drive, I have to wait till next July.

Freedom! The ability to drive!

I have also turned Scene and all self expression like and life is good. So if you want to know any thing else just let me know. Thanks, BTBA

Stay away from Emo's and cutters! Worry more about your education/classes then going to the next ' show '.

Umm... Not my thing.. at all.

The term I have seen used with those kinds of footware is ' flatforms '.

I had one teacher whom I can say I actually liked. She would comment on various things and even go as far as to teach us things outside of her course. She would leave remarks on some of our tests/papers that were down to earth. 

Her one statement she used when teaching math was ' if you add 4 apples to 5 oranges, what do you have? ". She used such a statement when we were learning to add items that were dissimilar.

My younger sister had the same teacher for a ' summer school ' class and my sister told her ' You have mixed fruit! '. It made the teacher laugh as it was clever and quite valid answer.

From that day forward, the Teacher used these stickers of fruits for peoples ' test scores '. Apples were an ' A ', a ' B ' was a banana, ' C ' was a carrot ( not really fruit but.. )..

I think the total outlook is theres no real ' winner ' with any kind of energy.The effects of using each one may be different, but they all amount to the same result. What really bothered me about the whole thing is there are some whom will support one item and demonize the others when theres no meaningful difference . 

I have a 36square roof on my barn and I planned to install solar panels and a charging system this coming winter. I figured it would be a neat experiment and maybe there would be some beneficial gains. I just have a gut feeling that as soon as I turn on my guitar amp, the stored energies wont be enough to last very long at all.

Editors Note : Yep, its disclosure time once more. If you have thin skin or a ' politically correct ' agenda, read no further as you may not like whats going to be said. Its not a something that requires idiots calling someone a ' denier ' or a ' planet scavenger ' or anything of such.

Some of this can be taken as *satyr*, some as me just being my normal anal-retentive self or as something serious. You can choose which it is for yourself as were all of differing flavors of life.

Some of you have been following my recent journeys in regards to a local Town Board Member seat. Sure, you have asked about what I was wearing, but some of you have actually shown concern in how things work and how the polls are going..

Tonight was the last time the discussions/debates would happen, a somewhat fiery issue hit.

The topic of ' energy ' came up. There are a few farms in the area that grow corn crops for Ethanol producers. There are also a few mines/quarries that work anthracite coal and other minerals. Theres Natural gas wells and many people use them as fuel for their home heat and generators for electricity. Theres a HUGE Hydro Plant in Niagara Falls. Theres all too many of those  wind turbins.. 

A question came up in regards to what *I* would say if newer regulations came up for discussion and where I would stand on ' Fracking ' and other such items.

Being blunt, I had to laugh at most of it. Im sure it displeased many of those there but the whole ' scare tactics ' and ' foul mouthing ' of everything doesnt sit well with myself.

The Wind Turbins are an absolute Joke! For what they cost, they have to run for 5 years with no maintenance or repairs just to break even on putting them up. They are an eyesore and drive away some of the wild life in the area.

Natural Gas can leak and is quite flammable and is odorless ( not really detectable without equipment looking for it ).

Everyone hates coal, but it used to provide quite a bit to the local economy in jobs and commerce.

' Fracking ' a/k/a line boring is demonized by so many. It really started with a movie called ' fracnation ' in which blatant lies were told and displayed. The riging of a compressed methane tank to a water fixture in someones house showing how the tap water would catch fire : News to everyone, http://rt.com/usa/flammable-water-dakota-fracking-023/ its nothing new. The Well my house ( and all of my neighbors ) that provides our water supply is tested twice yearly for PH/Methane/Dioxins/Sulfers and other chemicals and NATURALLY OCCURRING items due to the chemistry of the planet. Guess what? Theres Methane in my water. It was in the wells out here before I was born in the 1960's!

The problem with ' Fracking '. Its noisy! I moved out here to get some quiet time and those rat-bastids are constantly drilling and running pumps 15 miles away.. and I can STILL hear them! They also drove the yummie critters ( Deer ) away in some areas!

Ethanol! When done by industry and forced into the fuel supply by government ( and all those subsides they give ' big oil ' to make it ) doesnt work. Tax dollars go to companies to drive down costs.. when those buying the stuff already paid for it.. DUH! Its ' less efficient ' and doesnt provide the mileage or full-on regular unleaded gasoline.. Sugarcane is another story, but corn ethanol.. its just raising the costs of produce all over the nation.

Someone mentioned the ' West Valley Demonstration ' project.. its a Nuclear Waste dump about 20 miles from our town.. Then they asked what I thought of Nuclear energy. Hmm.. Higher Cancer rates, radiation, waste products that need disposal.. not to mention if a Jihadist walked in to pay a visit.. Not at all for having such a thing where I live. Talk to those folks in Japan and ask them about the mercury content in their fish and the thyroid problems that have started in their people since their plants were washed-out a few years back. 

One of the people stated they bought a new Chevy Volt so they wouldnt use any fossil fuels and so she wouldnt be filling ' big oils ' pockets. I asked her " So you charge your car with an extension cord every night? " to which she replied ' yes '. I then informed her that her electricity from the towns grid is from a coal plant and coal produces 3 times as much carbons then refined crude/gasoline and that by causing a heavy draw on the grid it also increases her electric bill. She stated her electric bill went from 140$ a month up to almost 300$ a month. Maybe a Prius would have been financially/environmentally better for her way of thought? 160$ a month.. that buys quite a bit of gasoline.. shes not saving any money AND shes promoting the usage of coal still by consuming a product ( electricity ) made from its burning.

EVERYTHING has a trade-off. One type of energy isnt any better then the next. They all have pro's and con's to them and their usage. Theres a LOT of die-hards out there that just dont want to hear such and Im sure I lost some votes tonight ( and I really dont care if I did. Id rather be honest about things then promise some crap that cannot happen ) but some of the people there were really into the history of ' green ' and it was a breathe of fresh air to hear some of their opinions.

Being an agricultural center/area, the people ' out here ' care quite a bit about the ' Environment ' as if it takes a dive, they are bankrupt the next day. I think they have a better insight into what the values are of such moreso then some ' I have too many degrees of education and know it all because I read it on the internet ' types. ( if such a statement offends you, smoke a joint and relax, it DOES help your blood pressure levels ).

Talk of the icecaps melting and water levels rising.. It lead to a part of the discussion where *I* learned something ( YES folks! It is possible! Im no longer a granite head and CAN in fact absorb info and learn something new! ). The subject of the ' Medieval Climatic Anomaly ' in Greenland came up. Some dismissed it as an outright lie with no evidence to back it.. low and behold, someone brought their MacBook and pulled up the fact that there are birch tree remains under the ice. That was something I NEVER heard of before. How can trees start in ice/tundra? Maybe that area was really ' green ' at one time.. no?

The usage of the term ' Global Warming ' came up and was quickly put to shame as the planet cooled and everyone knows such ( but some wont admit it ). The new name ' Climate Change ' came along.. still the same theme, just a new name..

Then the talk of the Ice Age.. the earth was warm, it froze over, now its warm, it could freeze over again.. who knows? Do they even teach that in school today?

What things finally boiled down to was my saying ' I absolutely REFUSE to tax energy! '. None of this carbon crap tax. If people want food, and want it affordable, the entities that ' are ' need to knock it off with going after those whom are out on their tractors burning diesel and gasolines. Theres no such thing as a rechargeable tractor or solar/wind powered harvester for the fields. Common sense folks! Tax the products needed to make food and the cost of food goes up. With that happening, people cant afford food anymore and get a food-stamps card which costs everyone more in taxes.

Its a very vicious circle and people dont really look at how large it really is.

People can worry about the air they breathe. They can worry about the water they drink. Rightfully so! They also need to realize mankind wont survive on an empty stomach and that being a pompous ass about being ' green ' ultimately leads to mass starvation/a food shortage and rioting/wars fought over for what little food would be left. ( An unfortunate reality some will say would never happen yet it has, many times in history. )

It was 1:00am when I left. The TownHall Meeting ended at 9pm. Quite a few of us ( about 50 ) sat around discussing the subject and it was too damn interesting to leave. I thought I would share this for everyones entertainment. The November elections are coming faster then I thought they would !

-ILK

Gosh Ilick,

if you think people are struggling in the USA then you haven't seen anything yet. I've actually wrapped up and withdrawn all my assets there over the last year. I recommend you do the same and be quick about it too.

Don't get caught out holding any dollars. Exchange them for Rubles or Canadian dollars or something before they're worth nothing at all!

 

Tractors, seeds, livestock and bullets. No false-promisory-notes in my possession.

Im hoping Texas does tell the Union where to go. I'll be a new citizen as Im done with the failed Idealisms of the last 2 decades and the divisions being imposed.

No offense, but I think the Sheriff looks sort of ridiculous….

Sorry….  sf

Yep. Second most fugly pair of shoes I have seen.

Curiously enough the Norwegians do not seem to mind their high tax rates. I believe it is because they perceive value in what they get for their tax money, as opposed to those of us elsewhere who feel we are merely providing a slush fund for some elite gentleman's club.

Not to mention those that just want to freeload off the system.

I think Scotland saw a small taste of what the U.S. is experiencing.. and probably made the wrong choice ( Just my opinion ).

Shafted : I feel you and I both will agree that some people need a helping hand. We ALL experience ' low times ' in life and truly may need assistance or guidance in  pulling ourselves up by our boot-straps. All too often though, people turn a helping hand into a ' hand out ' and ride it for as long as they can regardless of the good will of others whom initially wished to help them.

It pains me to say this but I know of a farm worker whom applied for ' food stamps '. Its not that they needed the food ( They had all they could stuff in their truck! ), but they could sell one end and put money in their pocket. Thievery in my opinion but the ' system ' allows for such to happen.

Which end of the State are you from? Eastern or Western?

 

The UK has had to use the revenues through some hard times but it has 11 times the population of Norway to support, so it has been a bonanza for Norway and it seems to have pushed the cost of living through the roof as a side effect. The Big Mac Index shows that a Big Mac costs the equivalent of $9.63. (2012 figures)

 

What fun there could have been if the vote went Yes! I stand to be corrected on al this, of course

Maybe 12$ BigMacs?

$9.63 Thats INSANE!

On July 22nd UK Prime minister Mr Cameron turned up in Shetland unannounced.  At the airport the Prime Minister was accompanied by the Secretary of State for Scotland Alistair Carmichael. One week before Mr Cameron’s visit, the oil industry specialists Synectics announced it had designed and delivered an end-to-end surveillance solution for Clair Ridge oil field in Scotland.  The new technology is expected to result in more than 8 billion barrels being cost-effectively recovered over the lifetime of the field.

I voted 'Yes'  for a number of different reasons. However I don't think Mr Cameron had any intention of letting this new found Scottish wealth slip his grasp.

Oil? In Scotland? Now it all makes sense.

Thats one of the things I saw when I glanced at the reason of ' Why would the Scots wish to leave? '.

Scotland doesnt have a large population. The whole Nation tallies about the size of New York City.

Scotland DOES have a good amount of resources though, much more then the larger population of England.

Its much of the same here in the ' State ' of ' New York '. On my end of the state, its Agricultural. It used to have factories and assembly lines, steel plants, WestingHouse, General Electric, Boeing and many other large companies that provided good paying jobs and a good way of life. The other side of the state decided to ' take control ' and passed ' Regulations ', taxes and ' other measures ' which made those great jobs and businesses leave the State completely.

In watching all those opportunities leave, theres no remorse from those whom have ' shat where they dont live '. Most of those on this end of the state wont openly admit it but tend to feel that if New York City or ' Albany ' was swallowed up by the Atlantic Ocean ', it " might be a good thing for prosperity " as I have heard stated.

Such a thing is sad, that people would feel in such a way about others, but when someone whom doesnt have a clue to how you live your life, whats really necessary and what is a hindrance to it decided to impose dictations upon you, should they expect anything less then resentment?

As England will suck down Scotlands resources for their ' progressive ' system ( that is until theres none left! ), the same happened here.

To show a point, heres some real math behind the numbers of a decent sized farm.

Corn crops, Tomato crops and other crops :

In one day, I will burn through 125 gallons of Gas using a tractor and harvester. Ill clear about 20 acres. Mind everyone, that field is tended to 5 or 6 times in a year. Its roughly 800 gallons total of fuel used between surveys, sewing, reaping and harvesting different ways. Theres a 71 cent a gallon tax on fuel.

Add in the ' property tax ' from the State, its over 1000$ New York takes for THAT particular field ( Its closer to 2000 actually ). The maintenance on equipment is VERY expensive. Toss in the irrigation system, pumps and other things ( Its not just putting the seeds in the ground and picking the fruit off the plants a few months later! ) and the taxes associated with them ( sales taxes, hazmat fees, required licensing ).. its not very profitable at all.

Upon selling the produce, there are 3 other taxes involved.

When all is said and done, New York State makes the same ( and sometimes more ) then the people doing all the work. The ways we used to do somethings saved time and the costs passed on to consumers, but many of them were ' regulated ' out by those in nice suits whom never worked on a farm and live 400 miles away. Those ' suits ' have their hands wide open for what they call THEIR ' Revenues ' from *MY* work.

While some ' asshat ' from across the State votes in those whom take the fruit of my labour away and are paid much more then I am.

I hear a LOT about this supposed ' Economic Inequality ' from one side of the isle yet those people fail to realize THEY CREATED IT! ( and at their hands its still continuing ). Those on the other side of the state average TRIPPLE what my yearly income is and vote in people whom are talking about ' income inequality '? Seriously?

Yet Im told ' You didnt build that! '. I havent seen ' that guy ' whom made such an absolutely STUPID comment out at 4:30am rain the rain, snow or cold working a field. In fact, I havent seen anyone whom even voted for him doing the kind of work *I* do, let alone the neighboring farms. I dont see those suits from Wall Street whom OWN the NYC area lining up to help out. They sure do like all the foods we provide through the long hours of labour with no vacations or never having the time for a ' round of golf '.

There was another idiot whom stated ' You dont need 10 rounds to kill a deer! '.. How about Groundhogs, Coons, Possum and Coyotes whom destroy crops, the grounds and livestock? What about the Bear that tore apart one of our greenhouses this past week? Hes a millionaires son whom never worked a real job that required a shower after a days work.. and was elected by the other side of the state.. Yet we have to deal with his lack on what Reality really is.

I think theres a HUGE difference between a lot of people, yet most wish to ' compromise '. Most wish to say ' we can all get along '. People lie to themselves all the time. Its their choice.

The people in England should be breathing a HUGE sigh of relief right now that the Scots didnt leave their Union. They should also be well aware that

there IS some form of resentment OR a wanting to part ways. Its a mirror image or how it is in quite a few places on this globe. The wanting of the Scots to leave the UK system isnt Unique at all.

Isn't Malaysia a staunchly Muslim country? And aren't those really, really, really not keen on gays and gay behavior?

 

I was there briefly 20 years ago on a Pacific Float. About a quarter of the people there were Chinese and only about half were Malay.

Whats REALLY messed up is they have a guaranteed ' Freedom of Religion ' by law, yet they have a ' State Religion ' ( Islam, as you have mentioned ). Most of the Chinese whom are there considered themselves followers of the Budda. A LOT of the people there spoke english very fluently ( at least the parts I visited ).

My experiences are from 20 years ago, times change and I couldnt guarantee what the present situation there is. It was a nice place from what I remember.

Ummmm Dude - - - Gingers / Red Heads!!!

 

Surely you jest.

I usually associate such with the Irish. Freckles and red hair..

I think they've decided to give it another go for the sake of the ginger kids.

Ginger Kids? I have no idea what your referencing there LOL!

Congrats to you and yours! May you both live long healthy lives and prosper together for the rest of them!

I watched Dimbleby Interview of past Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Alex Salmond.

I think Gordon Brown is an absolute JOKE! An intellectually challenged individual. The guy makes Marx look like a capitalist!

After what Brown said.. I could understand exactly why the Scots might want to leave. The SAME situation exists here in Western New York as we wouldnt care less if NYC fell off the planet ( So long as they took their politicians and Ideals with them ).

The biggest thing in both of their interviews was about " Londons Debt " and that some of the Scots feel they are paying for other areas. Brown stated that the Bank of England would eat a lot of debt if the Scots did leave.

Im starting to see a situation thats not unique to Scotland, but to many different nations and how things are becoming very divided.

My concern is that if the Scots DO in fact vote ' Yes ' that come friday there will be a run on the Pound.

All is well Megan. I just put my concerns at a ' local ' level right now and havent really looked at ' global ' perspectives as ( being honest ) ' not my concern ' presently.

I do ( once in a very seldom time ) take a look at other nations and ask perspectives. As noted, it seems outside of those in the U.K. , its not really known that theres some Scots that wish to break away.

I spoke with some Canadians that didnt even know that Quebec wanted to split from Canada not to long ago.

ILK, if you miss a class you really must take the notes off someone who was there   or you'll fall behind.  

Thus why I asked. As you stated, I looked at it in comparison to the State/Fed conflicts happening in the U.S. . A union of a nation only goes so far.

Im not going to claim to know all the details or whats true or not in the whole deal with the Scots. Being honest, its not my nation so I'll stay out of their business. 

I am curious and was just looking for perspectives on whats going on. I'd rather read about things in the U.K. then in the Sandbox.

OUCH! If the arch wasnt so steep, I might like them.

A pair of black boots with gold tipped heels. They come right up to the knees.

Is there supposed to be a picture with this? Just curious.

Jim :

Maybe try and meet some new people with new perspectives, new outlooks. If the crowd your with now doesnt care for your style, find a different crowd.

Holy Schitt Saudade! THAT is bold! I LOVE IT! The only thing I could think of was to have black jeans instead of blue but even the blue looks fine to me.

-ILK

I saw this article..

http://news.yahoo.com/supporters-scottish-independence-narrow-poll-lead-first-time-005404318.html

I thought the UK's biggest problem was Ireland and the IRA. Any thoughts on Scotland leaving?

Scale  1-   -  5-

 

Looking good : 6

 

The contrast with the jeans shows them off.  With black leggings they will almost disappear, but it is a good look to try.

 

Enjoy them.

 

TBG

Agreed! I think they will stick out really well with the white jeans I plan on wearing for an upcoming event.

Bravo, ilikekicks! Those boots look darn good on you! The height of the shafts makes them work great with leggings or jeans. A terrific purchase, my friend!

The shafts arent as long as I would have liked, but they dont quite reach the ' half way point ' of my kneecap. So slouching them just a bit makes them look like normal knee-high type of boots.

After wearing them today for 6 hours, I must say they are quite comfortable. I had ' errands ' to do today and wasnt out in the fields so I dressed nice and wore the boots. MANY compliments came my way from them. Some of the women at the suppliers I had to visit to pick up parts and other items were quite impressed.

Its tough finding tall boots with a 34inch inseam .