SPARKY: ROVE'S TOOL MAY YET BE THE FULCRUM TO LEVER ONE SET OF THE GOP PARTISAN TRAITORS OUT OF THE WHITE HOUSE - WE REVISIT TREASONGATE

It's clear that Novak is upset he's being ignored as Karl Rove's extra mouth as no one is buying that he leaked a tampered Dick Cheney memo to the one who 'edited it for him.

How The Traitor Karl Rove Feels About Core American Values

" Why aren't all these useless bastards in jail yet. Or in front of a firing squad?

The same old trick failed to to impress anyone this time

And because we can do more than one thing at a time - it's time to go after Rummy and the Boy King for trying to fight this war on the cheap: Rumsfeld Responds to U.S. Soldier's Grilling — Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld Tries to Quell the Firestorm Over the 'Hillbilly Armor' Issue ... which inspired the below:

Bet many US Troops remember the special moment -

Shaking Hands: Iraqi President Saddam Hussein greeting
Donald Rumsfeld, then special envoy of President Ronald
Reagan, in Baghdad on December 20, 1983.

"I don't believe anyone that I know in the administration ever said that
Iraq had nuclear weapons." —Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, at a
hearing of the Senate's appropriations subcommittee on defense, May
14, 2003 — Perhaps he didn't hear the puppet king's boss say:
"We believe he has, in fact, reconstituted nuclear weapons."
—Vice President Dick Cheney on NBC's Meet the Press, March 16, 2003

So the consensus is Novak acted as he did to avoid questioning on TREASONGATE - it's all a sham performance from a traitor who should be locked away. Now that his partisanship is going to cost him some cash money and his “celebrity” status - maybe he'll squeal like the rat he's always been. Here's a videocapture of the treasonous pottymouth leaving the stage:

Above: In this video frame grab taken from television, "now suspended"
CNN commentator Robert Novak, center, walks off the set of the live
broadcast of the CNN program "Inside Politics." © (Photo: AP Photo/CNN) - fair use

In this photograph taken in June 2003, ex-CNN commentator Robert
Novak was suspended indefinitely by CNN after he swore and walked
off the set during a debate with Democratic operative James Carville.
©(Photo: AP Photo/Lauren Shay)- fair use

This link will take you to an article and small video segment which shows the traitor Novak in word and deed supporting the Evil Ms. Harris (as she is trying to spend her 30 pieces of "silver" for disfranchisement of 115,000 Democratic voters in Florida in 2000, 2002, and 2004) - and this is the transcript. More is explained here - but the below is the pertinent stuff:
Jay Rosen: Why Robert Novak Stormed Off the Set:

“… Why did it go down Thursday? Because on Monday, Aug. 1, Novak violated the terms of a professional stand-off that had been keeping him just this side of legitimate in the eyes of his colleagues in Washington journalism. He had previously said that, on the advice of his lawyer, he couldn't talk about the case, or answer any questions interviewers might put to him, until the prosecution had run its course.

But then he went ahead and talked about the case in Monday's Chicago Sun-Times column ("Ex-CIA official's remark is wrong") in which he disputed the account given by Bill Harlow, the official spokesman at the CIA whom Novak called for more information about Valerie Plame.

That was the fail safe conversation. That is where the system broke down. If Novak was going to be successfully warned off the naming of Plame, it was by Harlow as spokesman for the Agency, responding to the questions of a reporter with a story. Harlow told the Washington Post last week that he warned Novak in the strongest possible terms not to name Valerie Plame. He said he told Novak that his story was wrong, and would harm U.S. interests. Harlow said he told the federal grand jury the same thing.

Novak, in order to counter the suggestion that he had been properly warned but went ahead anyway -- which he said would be "inexcusable for any journalist and particularly a veteran of 48 years in Washington" -- decided to take up his pen. Ladies and gentlemen, he said, people have got to know whether their columnist is a crook. Or a jerk. Or a tool. Did I go ahead with the name of a CIA covert operative despite being warned? No, I did not.

Old Novak rules: sorry fellas, can't talk. New rules: Novak chooses when. When to take the Fifth on advice of counsel, when to ignore counsel and respond to the news with his own explanations of what happened to reveal Plame's name. This, I believe, is the real cause of Thursday's break down of professional discipline on air. The legitimacy of Novak's exemption from questioning had collapsed earlier in the week. Ed Henry knew it and was ready with that news. Novak was not ready to receive it. So he invented an out. ...”

An angered Robert Novak exited set of CNN ''Inside Politics'' show

Image © and Courtesy of The Daily Show - citing Fair Use

August 5, 2005

The journalist who first revealed in print the Valerie Plame CIA connection, Robert Novak, angrily left the set of an Inside Politics segment Thursday night.

The discussion, led by Ed Henry of CNN, centered on the Florida republican House representative Katherine Harris election prospects in a possible square-off against Florida’s democratic Senate representative Bill Nelson.

The Chicago Sun-Times syndicated columnist and CNN contributor, Novak took offense when co-appearing James Carville interrupted Novak when he was defending the Harris election victory chances. "Let me just finish, James, please," Novak said. "I know you hate to hear me, but you have to."

Carville countered with, "He's got to show these right-wingers that he's got a backbone, you know. It's why the Wall Street Journal editorial page is watching you. Show 'em that you're tough."

The discussion was shortened when Novak responded to Carville saying, "Well, I think that's bullshit, and I hate that." Then, with a wave of his hand to moderator Henry, Novak said, "Just let it go." Novak stood and then left the set. Henry never got to ask Novak about his role in the federal probe on the Plame leak led by Patrick Fitzgerald.

CNN suspended Novak indefinitely, despite his apology to the organization. Novak is a key witness in the probe into a possible leaking by Bush administration officials of the CIA officer Plame’s identity.

Novak, a political conservative, has similar views to those of the Wall Street Journal. The Journal editorials have defended Novak in the furor over the CIA case.

Sources

• "Pressure getting to Novak?". Media Matters for America, August 5, 2005 (video requires Quicktime)
• Eric Herman "Cussing, walking off show gets Novak suspended by CNN". Chicago Sun-Times
• Bush Knew About Leak of CIA Operative's Name
  

——————————————————
To refresh everyone's memory on the armor thing-
Soldiers question U.S. Defense Secretary on issues during Kuwait visit

December 8, 2004

Camp Buehring, Kuwait – U.S. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, after a speech to U.S. soldiers at an American military base in Kuwait, was confronted by Iraq-bound soldiers raising their concerns over a variety of issues.

During a question-and-answer session of unscreened questions following his speech at Camp Buehring, Rumsfeld replied to soldier's concerns over aging equipment and a lack of armor for military vehicles. One soldier, Spc. Thomas Wilson, received applause from the gathered troops after asking the defense secretary, "Why do we soldiers have to dig through local landfills for pieces of scrap metal and compromised ballistic glass to up-armor our vehicles?" [1] Rumsfeld hesitated, then replied, "You go to war with the Army you have, not the Army you might want or wish to have." Rumsfeld further clarified that the Pentagon was making all possible effort to provide the materials required as quickly as possible, but that it has been difficult to keep up with demand.

"It's not a matter of money or desire," Lt. Gen. R. Steven Whitcomb, the commander of Army forces in the Persian Gulf, told the troops after Mr. Rumsfeld asked him to address Specialist Wilson's question. "It's a matter of the logistics of being able to produce it" [2].

However, a recent claim by a company producing such armor for the Pentagon has contradicted this assertion. "We've been telling the Pentagon for months that we have the capacity to double our production," [3] said Matt Salmon, a consultant for ArmorWorks of Tempe, AZ. ArmorWorks, which has a $30 million contract with the Pentagon to supply armor kits to be fitted on Humvee vehicles, claims to be operating at only half-capacity, with little to no interest shown by the Pentagon in increasing their output.

Rumsfeld also addressed an expressed concern regarding aging equipment by asserting that, although all units have equipment of various vintage, troops headed into a combat situation in Iraq are equipped with the newest and best equipment the military can provide [4].

Maj. Gen. Gary Speer, the deputy commanding general of U.S. forces in Kuwait, stated that every vehicle deploying to Iraq from Kuwait has at least "Level 3" armor protection. According to Speer, this means the vehicle has locally fabricated armor for its side panels, but not bulletproof windows or reinforced floorboards. He was not aware of soldiers retrieving used bulletproof glass or scrap metal from landfills.

It is difficult to estimate the seriousness of the problems cited by the soldiers, and the Army claims to be unaware of widespread shortages in necessary equipment. However, enough soldiers have expressed concern ([5][6][7]) since the start of combat in Iraq to have provoked a reevalution within the military on the amount and type of protection U.S. forces require in Iraq [8].

Rumsfeld also faced questions from the soldiers regarding the army's 'stop-loss' policy and dismissed concerns over the allegation that Army troops receive better equipment than National Guard troops. "No way I can prove it, but I'm told that the army is breaking its neck to see that there is not a differentiation" in the quality of equipment[9].

Shortly after the speech, Rumsfeld continued on his way to Kabul to watch President Karzai be sworn in.

References

• Robert Burns "Disgruntled Troops Complain to Rumsfeld". Yahoo! News, AP, 8 November, 2004

• Eric Schmitt "Iraq-Bound Troops Confront Rumsfeld Over Lack of Armor". NY Times, 8 December, 2004

• Rep. Jim Saxton "Armed Services Committee Streamlines Rapid Combat Acquisition". U.S. House of Representatives, 12 May, 2004

• Tabassum Zakaria "U.S. Troops Fire Complaints at Rumsfeld". Yahoo! News, Reuters, 8 December 2004

• Joseph A. Reaves "Valley firm disputes Rumsfeld, is ready to supply Army armor". The Arizona Republic, 10 December, 2004

——————————————————
GOOGLE NEWS SEARCH:

East Valley Tribune

Robert Novak suspended by CNN Televisionpoint.com, India - 12 hours ago Journalist Robert Novak, whose publication of a CIA officer’s name in a 2003 column has sparked a federal investigation, was suspended by CNN after he swore ... Novak says he 'overreacted' Mobile Register Jay Rosen: Why Robert Novak Stormed Off the Set Yahoo News Novak apologizes for cursing, walking off Chicago Sun-Times WCAX - The Moderate Voice - all 524 related »

Novak: "Overreacted" during show, hopes to return to CNN soon
Gadsden Times (subscription), AL - 15 hours ago
Political columnist Robert Novak said Saturday that he "overreacted" when he used an on-air expletive and hoped to return soon to work at CNN. ...

Rove, Novak and the leak debate
Houston Chronicle, United States - Aug 5, 2005
By ELISABETH BUMILLER. WASHINGTON - These hot months will be remembered as the summer of the leak, a time when the political class ...

CIA Leak Case Recalls Texas Incident in '92 Race New York Times, United States - Aug 5, 2005 WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 - These hot months here will be remembered as the summer of the leak, a time when the political class obsessed ...

Roving justice Salon - Aug 4, 2005 Law professor Robert Turner explains the statute that could be used to prosecute Karl Rove -- or anyone else who may be guilty of outing a CIA covert operative ...

Rove affair: Is it Rove affair: Is it frog-march time, yet? The Southern, IL - 11 hours ago Now we know why it is called "spin." Your head could spin around from all of the information and disinformation swirling around disclosures that Karl Rove did ...

Americans Trace CIA Leak to White House Angus Reid Global Scan, Canada - Aug 6, 2005 (Angus Reid Global Scan) – Many adults in the United States are paying attention to the recent controversy over the possible leak of an undercover Central ...

Hot On The Trail Of The Novak-Rove Connection The Moderate Voice - Aug 6, 2005 by Joe Gandelman. Don't you get the sensation now that the coming months may not be happy ones for White House political bigwig and ...

Novak on the Plame leak: a pattern of contradictions Media Matters for America, DC - Aug 5, 2005 In the two years since CNN contributor and syndicated columnist Robert D. Novak exposed former ambassador Joseph C. Wilson IV's wife, Valerie Plame, as a CIA ...

Democratic National Committee on the Robert Novak Incident U.S. Newswire (press release), DC - Aug 5, 2005 After Robert Novak used vulgar language on live television and stormed out of CNN's studio yesterday, CNN called the action "inexcusable and unacceptable" and ...

CIA outing a new low Hilton Head Island Packet, SC - Aug 4, 2005 This is in response to the "CIA 'outing' useless news" letter that states that Valerie Plame was "not undercover at the CIA but merely warming a chair as she ...

Novak and Rove’s Long Relationship Outside the Beltway, VA - Aug 6, 2005 Elisabeth Bumiller has an interesting piece on the long relationship between Bob Novak and Karl Rove. She is apparently surprised ...

Democrats pile it on Novak, 'Can't stand the heat: That's bullshit ...
Raw Story, MA - Aug 5, 2005
"If You Can't Stand The Heat...That's Bull*t!" blares a Democratic National Committee release issued Friday. Conservative columnist ...

Robert Novak stands up for himself
RedState.org - Aug 5, 2005
In case anyone hasn't heard, Robert Novak has been suspended after swearing on and leaving the set during live TV (video here). ...

Robert Novak's Angry Outburst Chortler (satire), Canada - Aug 5, 2005 A lot of people were left confused by conservative columnist Robert Novak's sudden temper tantrum on this Thursday's live broadcast of CNN's “Inside Politics ...

Pundit Robert Novak Joins "Dick" Cheney at Cussers Anonymous DeadBrain.us (satire) - Aug 5, 2005 Right-wing fanatic and political commentator Robert Novak has been seen recently in church basements around Washington, DC attending meetings of the newly ...

Bernard Kerik's Out, Robert Novak's In Unconfirmed Sources (satire) - Aug 4, 2005 The Administration of President George W. Bush has announced that Conservative Columnist Robert (Bob) Novak will become the new Director of Homeland Security. ...

Robert Novak Still Skates as Scooter Libby Gives it Up. Unconfirmed Sources (satire) - Aug 4, 2005 Vice President Dick (Dick) Cheney's Chief of Staff I. Lewis (Scooter) Libby has waived Time Magazine writer Matthew Cooper's journalistic confidentiality pledge ... Valerie Plame and the Politics of Cooking: Update 1 Unconfirmed Sources (satire) all 3 related »

Robert Novak to leave CNN, CrossFire, Capital Gang: Joins ... Unconfirmed Sources (satire) - Aug 4, 2005 ... "We are more than proud to have Robert Novak on our team, His coverage of the Valerie Plame affair and the Swift Boat Veterans ad proves that Bob is our kind'a ...

CNN Suspends Robert Novak After He Swears, Walks Off Live Program ...
PR Newswire (press release), NY - Aug 5, 2005
5 /PRNewswire/ -- CNN has announced it suspended conservative columnist Robert Novak, already embroiled in the CIA leak case, after he cursed and stalked off a ...

And on Rummy:

Unconfirmed Sources (satire)

George W. Bush Fires Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld Over ... Unconfirmed Sources (satire) - Aug 4, 2005 ... has fired his long time friend and advisor Donald Rumsfeld. ... Rumsfeld has survived so many scandals nobody though ... failure to equip our soldiers with body armor. ...

Protecting our protectors OregonLive.com, OR - 13 hours ago ... American troops have improvised what they call "hillbilly armor," and one soldier directly challenged Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. ...

Almendhar

Some Bombs Used in Iraq Are Made in Iran, US Says Wilmington Morning Star, NC - 13 hours ago ... The design is crude but effective if the vehicle's armor plating is struck at the correct angle, the experts ... But Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and the ... Some roadside bombs used in Iraq designed in Iran, US says AZ Central.com Bombs built in Iran, US says Indianapolis Star all 29 related »

Bill Merritt, 60, Portland OregonLive.com, OR - Aug 1, 2005 ... Thomas Wilson asked (Secretary of Defense Donald) Rumsfeld: Why don't we have armor on the Humvees? Rumsfeld said you go to war with the army you've got. ...

Sponsor a US Military Humvee For Only $1395 a Day!
Unconfirmed Sources (satire) - Aug 5, 2005
... type of thing that will get Americans behind the war effort." Said Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary of ... We were always scrounging around for things to armor our Humvee ...
——————————————————
I'd love to see an expose on how much cash the Bush Crime Clan is getting because US Troops are forced to buy armor from secondary sources which funnel the cash back to 'Poppy' ...

What a world - Sparky - o&o

PS Imagine the outrage if Clinton had lied us into a war with over 1700 dead? I retooled this.

GURU: STRANGE SQUEAKY CLEAN AND TOTALLY UNREALISTIC STIRRINGS BELOW THE PP GURU'S BELT

So the PP Guru has been pounding his beat in LA for the past month and so and has become morbidly curious about all these billboards and huge skyscraper murals, especially the one on the corner of Highland and Hollywood Boulevard that depict a half dozen or more than average "meat on your bones" wenches in brighty glistening white underpants.

Now don't get The PP Guru wrong, he likes to see women in their underpants - but this?


Why, it must be raid your grandma's panty drawer night!

Which seems to be the latest rage these days in this 'quote unquote 'PC world in which we live in when we have come down to the last resort of labeling 'these huskies' as attractive babes. For those who are not big time city folk, and don't get to pound the pavements of a spiriling metropolis city block day upon day - a city like Los Angeles is usually cluttered with billboards and bus placards enticing the public to pay oodles of cash to take in the latest cinema blockbuster. If the campaign doesn't click, then it winds up as the latest flop. So as Angelenos become so desensitized to the the flood of endless stinkbombs such as Dukes of Hazzard none would expect such a mammoth crusade from the Dove line of products to hawk cleansing soaps, lotions or cellulite creams from Dove to come creeping into our everyday commute.

They're certainly not your grandma's Ivory Soap Girls, that's for sure.

The PP Guru wouldn't mind tangling with some of them.

He wouldn't exactly kick them out of the sack, only the deity of your choice would know that the PP Guru has had his fair share of playing Ahab to a couple of great whites when the social black book chips were down. But if one were to tangle in trying to mount these hefty 'sugar wall' - you're going to have to take on their whole bleedin' 'sugar castles' as a consolation prize.

The PP Guru is trying his damnest to find out where did this whole ' campaign for real beauty' originated from. This little blurb from Wikipedia gives us some kind of idea:

The Dove Campaign for Real Beauty was an advertising campaign started by Dove in late-2004.

Gina Crisanti stands next to a Chicago billboard image of
herself posing in underwear for an ad campaign to sell
Dove Beauty products.

One billboard in the series asked viewers to phone 1-888-342-DOVE to vote on whether a woman on the billboard was "fat" or "fab". The results were posted real-time on the board. While a photo in the October 25, 2004 issue of Marketing Magazine shows "fab" leading 51% to 49%, eventually the percentage of "fat" votes overtook "fab", much to the chagrin of marketers. This campaign has also spurred on a phenomenon whereby attractive but slightly overweight women are referred to as Dove Beauties.

In 2005, Dove, a large company in the health product and beauty sector, released a series of ads featuring happy-looking, lingerie-clad women with "everyday" looks. Proponents of Dove's campaign say that the company is striving to generate change from within the generally weight-conscious advertisement industry. Such persons would say that the ads are in juxtaposition to typical advertisements that almost exclusively feature overly slender models with features corresponding to a European standard of beauty.

Hermes, Conductor of Souls with Athena, Goddess of Macrame and War
Bartholomaeus Spranger - Flemish Painter c. 1585 - defines the fleshier
standard of European women.

This term has also been used perjoratively to refer to attractive but largely overweight women.

So they took the campaign from Europe and started to hatch it in the midwestern city of Chicago, where they recruited all women with nine to fivers in their late twenties or early thirties.

The PP Guru assumes that when it comes to push to dove, there's just too much pushing for the cushion. But why the whities? Don't all women know that when you strip off the white bra and panties and stand in a magnificently posed and naked before the PP Guru and his little magic wand, that the PP Guru is going to give a disgruntled look of disgust when he sees that you left your soiled and skid-mark panties on his perfectly waxed linoleum floors?

What the hell is wrong with you? You wear black when you enter the somnolentistic bed chambers of the PP Guru.

As a ever changing flower told to:

~ Coat

Sparky:Worse Bush Follies to follow — such as this and that ...

Bush Junta II puppet Boy King "W" AKA ''President Bush'' endorses intelligent design, stating that it should be taught in school. He is quoted as saying: "I think that part of education is to expose people to different schools of thought. You're asking me whether or not people ought to be exposed to different ideas, the answer is yes." The scientific community does not recognise ID as a scientific theory and considers it to be creationist pseudoscience. (Boston Globe)

The good Nancy wrote Sparky to rag on the Bolton appointment:

Dear Sparky:

Yesterday we saw the spectacle that is Republican abuse of power in all its glory. The White House brushed aside the Senate once again, along with its duty to advise and consent, using a recess appointment to make John Bolton our U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.

It is only fitting that John Bolton, a man who arguably personifies the arrogance and abuse of power that has become so typical of Republican rule, be appointed in such a stubborn and shameless manner. President Bush did so--not because there was a compelling case that Mr. Bolton was the best person for the job--but merely because as President, he had the power to do it.

For five months, Democrats and Republicans alike have refused to confirm Bolton because of serious doubts about his character and ability to handle such a vital diplomatic role.

Republican Senator George Voinovich called Bolton "the poster child of what someone in the diplomatic corps should not be." And David Broder of the Washington Post, who knows as much about the Senate as anybody, said on Sunday, "The truth is I think that if you had a secret vote in the United States Senate there would be a very small number of votes at this point for Mr. Bolton, Republican or Democratic."

This is the very reason why we need a Democratic Congress. With a Democratic Majority, the balance of power will be restored and the Republican Party's abuse of power will come to a grinding halt. You can help make that happen by supporting the DCCC today.

Click Here to Help Us Fight for a Democratic Congress.

The grounds for holding up Bolton's nomination have been many. In addition to his history of brash and abrasive treatment of those working for him and his history of offensively dismissive statements towards the United Nations, the primary impasse has been the withholding of critical documents by the White House.

The White House may claim that this was "obstructionism" by Democrats, but it was their tenacious refusal to hand over those documents that obstructed the Senate's role. As Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid said, it has given the distinct impression that "there must be something he's trying to hide."

And just last week we found out that he was hiding something. In 2003, the State Department performed an investigation into the matter of the forged documents regarding Iraq and uranium from Niger. John Bolton was interviewed. And yet when Bolton submitted his questionnaire in preparation for his Senate hearings, he declared that he had not been interviewed or given testimony in any investigation in five years.

And this was only revealed because Democrats and a handful of Republicans had stalled his nomination.

It is this lack of candor and harsh behavior that raises a multitude of questions.

But the American people may never know the answers to those questions - not so long as Republicans control the majority in both chambers of Congress.

Click Here to Help Us Fight for a Democratic Congress.

And so John Bolton, a man who once said of the UN headquarters in New York that "If it lost ten stories, it wouldn't make a bit of difference," will now be America's face to the world in that very same building. The world will know his involvement in the deceptive intelligence on Iraq, and they will know that he does not have the confidence of the United States Senate or the American people.

Ironically, he will represent this White House perfectly, but not the values of the American people or the best traditions of our democracy. And that's a shame.

Sincerely,

Nancy Pelosi
House Democratic Leader
————————————————————
Now that we're done with the pimping ...
Yesterday in the news:

• Conflict in Iraq: At least 15 people have died following a series of insurgent attacks throughout Iraq. (BBC) bring the total past 1800 dead.
  

Today in the news:

• Conflict in Iraq: 14 US Marines have been killed following an insurgent attack in Haditha, north-western Iraq. US Officials deny that a Marine has been taken hostage. (BBC)

Therefore the mantra shall be:
"BAD" BUSH LIED — GOOD TROOPS DIED!
The Guru has more to share with you later tomorrow ... Sparky o&o

GURU: TABLESCRAPS 8/2/05

When the PP Guru is a little knackered and isn't capable of fully blogging about the myraid of multiple topics - he'll just compose a few sentences and whisk you off to maybe a link instead.

However, the PP Guru has a follow-up to yesterday's story about the cancelation of the Yes solo member tour comprising of guitarist Steve Howe, bassist Chris Squire, and drummer Alan White with special guest star ex-keyboard player Geoff Downes that was traveling under the moniker, Howe, Squire, & White - the More Drama tour (named after one of the PP Guru's favorite all-time prog rock album). The PP Guru mentioned that he had spoken to Geoff after the performance with his main bread-winner band, Asia at their House of Blues gig last Sunday night and told him that he was so excited to see Geoff tackle this material again after a twenty-five year absence which the PP Guru has fond memories of when was starting out at his junior year of high school (Geoff as a goof gave us the opening staccato synth lines of Tempus Fugit to whet this Yes Fan's ravenous appetite. High school sweetheart, 3rd time runner up for Miss New Jersey, Linda Freeman attended that tour with the PP Guru at that time...not that it really matters, but Geoff said to the PP Guru that he'll see him Friday in the audience for Friday's show that was supposed to take place at the Wiltern Theater.

But less than twelve hours, a announcement was made from Yes' management that the whole tour was scraped less than a day it was supposed to begin in Seattle.

Well, last night, Geoff wrote in to the PP Guru to relay(er) his condolences - so to paraphrase him:

Hey PP Guru,

Really sorry I couldn't say anything to you last
night, because I was sworn to secrecy on the
'official' announcement today from Yes's management.
Hope you understand this put me in an awkward position
over the last few days. It's all a real bummer,
because I too was really looking forward to these More
Drama dates.

Anyways, hope you enjoyed last night's Asia show, and
lets hope we can at least get the 'White' band out
there this summertime in the absence of the Drama
show.

Something good will come out of it all

Take care and keep the faith.

Regards,

Geoff Downes

Never let it be said that members of Yes (and Asia ) don't share their fan's disappointments. Look, the PP Guru will not be holding grudges against anyone involved in this fateful decision. The entire city of London is so practically under siege now that you have bobbies scouring the rooftops with more than just billy clubs (try AK-47s) looking for these nutcase bombers taking pop shots at all the double decker buses and trains. The PP Guru can only assume that most of Steve Howe's family and band members along with members of Chris Squire's Syn are based in the London area and it will do no one any good to risk life and a limb or two (can't imagine Steve playing the mandolin with just one arm, rather to have that arm stay intact and see it fall off naturally with age- jeez, the PP Guru wishes that guy would just order a plumb juicy steak with garlic mash potatoes on the side once in a while) over a concert tour. Lately there seems to be a new terrorist plot unraveling on every Thursday.

Image © Frontiers Records 2005
The PP Guru forgot to mention yesterday that he had scored picking up the new Geoff Downes and John Wetton collaberation called Icon. He hasn't had a chance to listen to it yet- probably won't get around to it until Labor Day when he plans to lock himself away in Hog Hi-Fi Heaven with the new Yes boxset.

Well- here are more tidbits to keep things moving along. The PP Guru may be hooking up with Tantalizing Tara to catch a special Q & A with the cast of Queer as Folk- but he can't leave without heaping on this exciting newsblurb:

courtesy of http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/newsitem.cfm?NewsID=3816

Flash - The Complete Series IS in the works, and WILL be on DVD in the future! The studio hasn't said anything officially about this release yet, so we don't have a date or any other details, but stay tuned and we'll let you know more when we do.The 1990 series starring John Wesley Shipp as "Barry Allen/The Flash" and Amanda Pays as "Tina McGee" was short-lived (22 episodes) but has become a fan favorite. The show was based on the classic DC Comics superhero about a police scientist who gains super-speed in an accident involving lightning and chemicals, and who uses his powers to fight crime. M. Emmet Walsh, Jason Bernard, Angela Bassett, Priscilla Pointer, Denise Crosby, Jeri Ryan(??? The PP Guru is going to have to look that one up!) , Bill Mumy, David Cassidy as "The Mirror Master", and Mark Hamill as "The Trickster" are among the many guest stars in this cult classic.

The PP Guru felt this one was a no-brainer since David Goyer made the announcement that he was going to produce or direct a feature film of the Flash with Blade: Trinity co-star, Ryan Reynolds in the lead role. This is another show that made the PP Guru fall in love with his job at the studio. On his down time, he likes to walk around the studio lot pointing out the various locations they have used on the show, of course all those same wooden plank and cheap styrofoam buildings and streets have also made their recycled way onto Lois & Clark: the new Adventures of Superman sets.

Finally - The PP Guru wants to cover the new Amazing Spider-Man scandal that J.Michael Straczynski is trying flick past the longtime fans. J. Michael is up to something that is going to make the Gwen Stacy/ Norman Osborn debacle look like a piece of Disney soft porn . Why can't J.Michael kindly leave the sex lives of the supporting characters out on the sidelines and just concentrate on having Spidey kick major bad guy bootie (and shouldn't he be writing tv shows - since when does writing comics pay the bills around here?) ? But the PP Guru wants to tackle the subject full on as a sequel to his Peabody award blog entry "Green Teabagging the Goblin's Gonads" The PP Guru needs more tin plated statues on his mantlepiece. There's only so little precious time that the PP Guru can keep his four color journalistic discoveries bottled up inside before tabloid magazines such as Wizard can distort things out of major porportions.

The PP Guru has made a complete about face lately concerning his comic book purchasing habits. He's been reading a lot of spandex sob stories of late, and turned his tunic back on the revolution of self-publishers with the sole exception of Stray Bullets. But as a rapid follower of David Lapham's work - he jumped board the mainstream inflation express on some titles that David is working on the railroad for both DC and Marvel. Lapham has a whole year story arc going on in Detective Comics that's supposedly taking place before the events of War GAMES that went all over the place for a better part of a half year in all the Batman titles. David is also writing and penciling a Daredevil Vs Punisher mini-series which the PP Guru has the first two issues lying around to read.

The PP Guru figures it's more economical to be reading the mainstream stuff since he's able to find it at a decent discount in some area specialty stores. The PP Guru doesn't have a comic book store racket going on anymore since the owner of Rookies & Allstars passed away. The PP Guru used to manage that store for a good three years and had a relationship that gave the PP Guru full wholesale privileges and he used to buy a whole plethora of eccentric material- but that clout is goine these days as the PP Guru tries to save mucho bucks and stick with the 'cheap monthies'. Plus the PP Guru's social calendar has made major strides that the only time he has to even read his pile is on commuter trips back and forth from work and little spurts of rest at his Purple Papa Guru's house in Las Vegas.

The PP Guru is straining his DC reading abilities on most of the Batman core titles, Flash, Green Lantern, Hawkman, The Demon, Aquaman (damn the PP Guru is jonesing for a real good free-for-all brawl between Aquaman & the Black Manta) and the titles based on the animated shows of Teen Titans, The Batman, & Justice League.

And on the Marvel side, the PP Guru thinks that Brian Michael Bendis' work on the New Avengers and Daredevil is the fucking bomb- although, the PP Guru thinks his work on the Ultimate titles is just as exciting as peeling off paintchips and putting them in his mouth. Ed Brubaker does engaging work on Captain America as well and Black Panther with Reginald Denny at the writing helm is equally intriguing.

The PP Guru would say nice things about Warren Ellis on Iron Man - but Warren has no appreciation for the PP Guru's delicious talents of stating the obvious when he says 'it's always goddamn fucking late' that the titles' numbering is no longer neck to neck with Captain America. the PP Guru likes to read both Iron Man and Captain America side by side. He was teethed on Tales of Suspense ever since he was a tiny PP Guru. One does not go without the other- like a fucking Reese's peanut butter cup. Sure it sounds a little tad on the psychosomatic side, but then again, so was potty training.

Of course, as the PP Guru mentioned before, even though he lodges a heaping pile of shitty complaints upon it, J. Michael Straczynski taking on double duty with both Fantastic Four and Amazing Spider-Man invokes a wave of nostalgia the PP Guru hasn't felt since waking up early to get his bowl of soggy Quisp in order to watch the old cartoons on ABC Saturday morning. Even though, his plots are on the hokey side, Straczynski, along with Bendis are masters in the game of writing believable concise and hula hoop intellectual dialogue.

The PP Guru also sticks around with anything that's Hellboy related that Dark Horse barely seems to shit a few road apples to these days (It's heartening to see that Mignola's success hasn't gone to his head- who knows how many badly written or drawn Hellboy books the public needs to get it's head around- but Mignola decided to remain true to the integrity of the character and didn't have Dark Horse get into a glut of releasing amatuer movie tie-in junk to the average movie tie-in consumer ) The first mini-series: The Island is the first Hellboy mini-series to appear since the movie came out last year.

It appears the PP Guru is a rat fink when it comes to keeping his word:

To be continued in another senior moment to:

~ Coat

http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A645428 - worth a click

GURU: JUST ANOTHER MANIACAL MAULED MONDAY

The PP Guru had less than 4 hours of sleep last night after he indulged in heading out to the House of Blues in West Hollywood last night to catch the last show of (the band) Asia's Silent Nation tour. He knew he shouldn't have done it, knowing full well that he was going to have a shit mountain of work waiting for him on his desk come Monday morning. Somehow the PP Guru had managed to struggle through it, even though the world outside his window was blooming into a shit bouquet.

For one thing, Douchebag Dry Drunk Dubya went behind Congress' back and appointed fellow chickenhawk John R. Bolton to the UN ambassador chair and that's just goes to show that there is no limit to how much douchedbaggedness that the joke president will not resort to in order to get his way - never mind what his constituents and the people want in this order. Dry Drunk Dubya's ignorance of what the people want in this world is just nothing short of astounding. We all know that Bolton has a habit of losing his temper and generally likes to say stupid things when he's inflamed.It's been widely known that one of his favorite hobbies while he was serving as a undersecretary of State for Arms Controls was to take office furniture, vandalize it, and have the people working under him foot the bill for repairs. He's managed to piss off Kim Jong II during nuclear talks with South Korea and Larry Flynt claims to have a dossier on Bolton that says that Bolton once forced his first wife to participate in orgies at a New York sex club.

So while Congress takes a little dip in some kiddie pool or takes time to build some sandcastles on the shores of Virginia, Douchebag Dubya comes sneaking in with nary a ninja showdown and acts on his own bequest to have Bolton sworn in anyway with or without confirmation from the Senate floor.

This sneaky underhandedness of Dumbass Duyba just makes me more convinced that some brave fuck out here or there would just advocate putting a bullet in his rump cheeks, take his daughters out to Iraq to be slow boiled by some hot melted wax dildos in the shape of the Koran by hooded insurgents playing it up like a frat boy prank. Laura 'Pickles' Bush looks if she could use a body wax in a vat of chickenhawk fatty acid herself from what the PP Guru understands.

So that was more or less the mad on for the day until the PP Guru did a random check on his one of his favorite web site homepages later close to punch out time.

Like The PP Guru mentioned earlier, he was exhilarated to have seen the final show of Asia's Silent Nation tour - even though lead singer / bass player John Payne was exhibiting too much primal gargantuan ape growls everytime he was in channeling John Wetton mode for every song they recited off the 1982 multi-platinum debut album (and there were a little too many performed that night with the exception of the songs One Step Closer and Without You) - rather the PP Guru would have prefered that the band did more of the adventurous mature stuff that they composed with Payne rather than rehashing the old Wetton era. Former AC/DC & Uriah Heep drummer Chris Slade (now a Burbank resident, yay!) has started to fit in nicely with the band's poppish/prog rock groove having been with the band for 4 or 5 years now and the new kid, Italian rock god, Guthrie Govan was a marvel to behold, especially on his spanish guitar solo. The mantle of Steve Howe has to be passed on to someone- so it might as well be Guthrie.

The PP Guru also ran into this beautiful girl who used to date JP and once helped the PP Guru get backstage to hang out with them three years ago. The PP Guru never forgets a beautiful face, or a beautiful juicy rump, or a beautiful drooling rack, etc, etc. The PP Guru wished he had caught up with her after the show, so he could pass on a copy of Cary Coatney's latest Deposit Man issue.

So the PP Guru was thinking that Geoff Downes would be recapturing his hey day once again. There's no such thing as too much Geoff Downes music in the PP Guru's prog rock listening arsenal- in fact, the PP Guru has told Geoff that he has been the PP Guru's idol since he was in high school ( oh, BTW Geoff performed a real kick ass version of Video Killed the Radio Star - his self penned hit from his Buggles days and was also the first song that launched the broadcast of MTV- oh the PP Guru needs a transcribed manuscript of that real bad!! ) and his only appearance on a Yes album called Drama was the motivational tool that prompted the PP Guru to buy his very modular synthesizer back in his junior year. So once Geoff was finishing obligations with Asia, he was going to jump back on a plane to Seattle and start the inaugral show of the Howe, Squire, and White tour that was supposed to last through the Labor Day weekend.

The show is suppose to showcase a set from each virtuoso member of Yes with material from their most recent solo projects. Steve Howe was going to perform a hour acoustic set with members of his family on various instruments- like son Dylan for example, was to support his dad on the drums and such. Chris Squire was reuniting with his former bandmates in the Syn, the band he played with just before forming Yes with singer Jon Anderson. The band has recorded brand new material for a double album and would be performing it and some of their golden hits on stage for the first time in close to forty years. Alan White was going to debut some new material that he wrote with some Seattle area musicans with Geoff accompanying him on keys and then for the big finale, all three headliners would have joined Geoff onstage for a hard core revisit to the Drama material including the 'lost' songs - 'Go Through This' and 'We Can Fly From Here' .

But yet...

Something happened this afternoon- without little much of an explanation, as explained in this press release:


The More Drama Tour Cancelled


August 1, 2005 - The More Drama Tour has been cancelled (not postponed). Below is the press release with details. Fanfire will contact purchasers of the ticket packages directly regarding refunds.

Yes guitarist Steve Howe, bassist Chris Squire and drummer Alan White have canceled their More Drama Tour, which was scheduled to begin August 2 in Seattle, presented by VH1 Classic.

The cancellation was prompted by immigration issues in the wake of heightened security brought on by the recent terrorist attacks in London. The tour will be rescheduled at a later date. All those who purchased advance tickets should contact their local box office or Ticketmaster for refund information.

“We’re frustrated as much as the fans are but we understand the importance of the heightened security and hope we can reschedule the tour at some point,” said Chris Squire, bassist for Yes and The Syn.

The tour was to have spotlighted performances by three different bands, including the pre-Yes prog-rock group The Syn, featuring Squire and original vocalist Stephen Nardelli; renowned Yes drummer Alan White’s eagerly anticipated solo project White with keyboardist Geoff Downes; and Steve Howe’s solo guitar set. The three principals then planned to perform their own set of Drama-era Yes songs.

The PP Guru is at a real loss for words. This was supposed to be the highlight of his summer- GODDAMMIT! The PP Guru was looking more forward to this than his credit card siphoning jamboree at San Diego last month. The PP Guru had slated in his August calendar as his YES month where he will do nothing but play Yes music on his CD and DVD player for the entire month until the release of the live box set YES - the Word is Live which comes out on August 23rd through Rhino Records. The PP Guru was also planning on salivating over the solo projects of which he was sure they were going to have on sale at the lobby of the main floor at the Wiltern Theater since he hasn't been having much luck finding them at Tower or Amoeba.

Funny, when the PP Guru talked to Geoff Downes last night- he made no mention of this. When the PP Guru had bid Geoff a fond adieu and said he will see Geoff on Friday, Geoff said, 'yeah, we'll be seeing the PP Guru on Friday.'

Strange, the PP Guru smells a conspiracy here.

No wait, that would be Chris and Billy Sherwood.

More drama on this story as it develops.

A shock to the system via:

~ Coat