The Baltic

I played a gig over the weekend at an old place that's all new again.

The Baltic was a nice nightspot and restaurant in Point Richmond that kinda fell apart and closed about a year and a half ago. Well, I'm happy to report it's been reopened and it's a fine re-addition to an area that needs more cool hangs.

We had dinner before the gig and the kitchen is doing some nice stuff. I had a wild mushroom rissoto that was what good risottos should be; just firm enough to hold the right texture, and deeply infused with the flavorful additions to the rice. My partners had the ribeye, and a few of the large salads offered. All commented on the good grub, and the reasonable prices.

They have live music on Saturday nights (Blues and R&B mostly) and the bar crowd is a lively mix of 30 somethings looking to dance and have a good time.

Be sure to check it out!


The Baltic Restaurant
135 Park Place,
Point Richmond, CA 94801
510-237-4pub

-UF

Torture by any other name....

You know, this administration can use all the Orwellian language gymnastics it wants, but in the final analysis torture is torture, and if you value our Constitution and all it stands for you should demand a stop to it. Read about how one participant in the administration, Alberto Mora, tried......

"Mora thinks that the media has focussed too narrowly on allegations of U.S.-sanctioned torture. As he sees it, the authorization of cruelty is equally pernicious. “To my mind, there’s no moral or practical distinction,” .......... “If cruelty is no longer declared unlawful, but instead is applied as a matter of policy, it alters the fundamental relationship of man to government. It destroys the whole notion of individual rights. The Constitution recognizes that man has an inherent right, not bestowed by the state or laws, to personal dignity, including the right to be free of cruelty. It applies to all human beings, not just in America—even those designated as ‘unlawful enemy combatants.’ If you make this exception, the whole Constitution crumbles. It’s a transformative issue.”

Read the full article here

Carefully watch what they do, ignore what they say.

-UF

Billy's Vaults

There are some classic recordings by some of Rock's seminal artists at this site. It's worth checking out. What impressed me most was the quality of the live recordings. Very, very nice.

The Vault

Bill Graham and his concert promotion company, Bill Graham Presents, produced more than 35,000 concerts all over the world. His first venue, the legendary Fillmore Auditorium, was home to many of rock's greatest performers - Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, The Doors, The Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Otis Redding, Marvin Gaye, Led Zeppelin, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Prince - and the list goes on and on.

Graham taped thousands of live performances and stored the tapes in the basement of the BGP headquarters. These tapes and the concerts they captured lay dormant until the Bill Graham archive was acquired by Wolfgang's Vault (Bill Graham's given first name was Wolfgang) in 2003.

Vault Radio is now playing selected tracks from these concerts in an FM-quality, 128K digital radio stream. Songs will be added to and removed from the radio show on a regular basis. We will be broadcasting unaltered live performance music from many of the greatest bands of the last 40 years. The music you hear on Vault Radio has not been sweetened or polished. You'll be listening to what the band played that night - nothing more, nothing less.

Iraq; Our new little home away from home.....

Based on this article below, it seems we may be planning to stay for awhile in Iraq. Why? Because we are building huge, multi-billion dollar military bases. Given the amount of dough we taxpayers are throwing around over there, these base construction costs may explain why we haven't seen improvement in combating the insurgency, nor with re-establishing pre-war services to the Iraqi people. But Halliburton is getting their construction contracts.

What a suprise. Once again, carefully watch what they do, ignore what they say.

http://www.tomdispatch.com/index.mhtml?pid=59774

"There are at least four such "super-bases" in Iraq, none of which have anything to do with "withdrawal" from that country. Quite the contrary, these bases are being constructed as little American islands of eternal order in an anarchic sea. Whatever top administration officials and military commanders say -- and they always deny that we seek "permanent" bases in Iraq -– facts-on-the-ground speak with another voice entirely. These bases practically scream "permanency.""

-UF

The committee to study the committee to meet...

Here's some positive news. The Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board was created in 2004 to insure our civil rights from the potential excesses of the War on Terror.

The board chairwoman is Carol E. Dinkins a longtime friend of the Bush family, she was the treasurer of George W. Bush's first campaign for governor of Texas, in 1994, and co-chair of Lawyers for Bush-Cheney, which recruited Republican lawyers to handle legal battles after the November 2004 election.

So, with another crony, uh, I mean trained professional on board, and a wiretap scandal brewing, let's see what this group has accomplished in a little over a year....

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-liberties20feb20,0,5039697.story?coll=la-home-headlines


Watch what they do....not what they say.....

-UF

A VP in pain......

Well, Mr. Whittington got out of the hospital today after, uh, being shot in the face by the Vice President of the United States, and had this to say;

"My family and I are deeply sorry for everything Vice President Cheney and his family have had to deal with," he said. "We hope that he will continue to come to Texas and seek the relaxation that he deserves."

In other news Arub Gahrib prisoners apologized to guards for jumping in front of their fists and boots without warning and for insisting that they take pictures of them bleeding and naked. They hope that the guards will continue to come to Iraq and seek the truth and freedom that we deserve.

-UF

Getting your money's worth?

"October 18, 2004, President George W. Bush signed the FY 2005 Homeland Security Appropriations Act, which provides $28.9 billion in net discretionary spending for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). This is $1.8 billion more than the FY 2004 enacted level – reflecting a 6.6% increase in funding for the Department over the previous year. . "

It doesn't look like it's bought much on the FEMA side of
things, based on this report.

But, with just a little more dough, we can really get all this turned around. Trust us. We know what we're doing. Really. This time. Honest. Dig a little deeper in your pocket.....

"The White House asked the Congress on Thursday for 72.4 billion U.S. dollars in additional funding for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan this year, and 19.8 billion dollars in extra funding for Hurricane Katrina relief.
With the new money, the cost of the U.S. military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan would rise to 120 billion dollars for this year, and would bring the total war-related costs to date to nearly 400 billion dollars since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.
The Congress already approved in December last year 50 billion dollars to cover this year's war costs. Of the 19.8 billion dollars requested for hurricane rebuilding, 9.4 billion dollars were for continuing disaster relief, 1.3 billion dollars for disaster loans, and 1.5 billion dollars for levee repair and flood control projects.
The Congress has previously approved over 87 billion dollars for the reconstruction effort after Katrina hit the U.S. Gulf Coast on Aug. 29 last year that killed more than 1,300 people and left about 1 million others displaced. "

But this will make things better.

-UF

Nuthin' to see here...just keep moving

So. We can spend millions of taxpayer dollars peeking around Clinton's zipper but we can't do a little look see into how we might be illegally wiretapping our own citizens.

Why are these folks so hell bent on keeping this "legal" activity a secret?

-UF

Prima Ristorante

We had a chance to eat at Prima Ristorante in Walnut Creek last week and I wanted to do a quick review on this very nice Italian eatery.

Prima is in the heart of the Downtown area, which is a really happening place now that all the new development is done. It's a nice room done in warm colors with dark wood trim. The food is a nice California take on rustic Italian dishes.

On our visit we had an appetizer of scallops on a bed of lentils, gnocchi with Italian sausage, and a saffron and chicken linguini. The food is tasty and their wine list is a wonderful blend of hard to find Italian Reds and local California selections.

As an added treat on Fridays they have a talented Jazz trio quietly groovin' in the bar area. It's worth a trip just to have a glass of wine and listen to the music.

It's a nice place run by good people. Check it out.

-UF

The Grammys......

Well, I had a chance to slog through the Grammy show over the weekend. (Reviewers must love Tivo, I know I do. No commercials, and a quick blast through the last half of songs you know can't be saved.)

Here are my questions;

1. It looks like Madonna got a tight new face to go along with that finely toned body she was parading around. What's with facelifts that actually change the basic way a person looks.......and of course there were no real close ups during the performance. Coincidence?

2. Can Christina Aguilara just sing the damn melody. Nice voice and all, but enough with the R&B yodeling. Listen to the words of the song while you sing, convey the meaning of said words with your voice. Leave the scale practice for the shower.

3. Maria Carey and gospel. Who'd of thunk she would do a pretty good job of that. God knows she's still a space cadet, but not a bad performance.

4. Coldplay. I'm just not feelin' it. And was Chris Martin watching too much Bono during rehearsals? He stole the sunglassed one's whole vibe.

5. Kids, don't do drugs. For proof...two words....Sly Stone. A wonderful musical genius and innovator. He took all the music percolating in the Bay Area in the late 60's and molded it into a single clear vision. Funk, Soul, Acid, R&B, Rock......all into one. And then.......nothing, nada, zilch. Just a big line of coke to paranoidville. Tragic.

As for the rest? Bruce in Mr. Dylan's shoes, Paul rappin' Yesterday, Marching bands, American Idol Grammy for best karoke...........

Maybe next year........

-UF

Elmer C. V.P.

It's a cheap shot I know, but it is funny and the last time I checked you can post offensive cartoons in this country and not have to worry about someone burning down your house..... I think.....

Cheney's Got a Gun

More Yuks

-UF

Meet me in the Lobby

Here's an email from a senior Democratic hill staffer to Josh Marshall of 'Talking Points Memo" that helps me clarify the difference between lobbying and 'effective lobbying'....

"Its not illegal to be lobbied, and hell, we couldn't do our jobs if we didn't interact with them. Legislation/regulation/oversight can't be done solely by Google research. What is illegal is to go out of your way, and use your position, as quid pro quo for gifts, jobs, and campaign contributions. The vast majority of Democratic staffers work on the Hill, despite the miserable pay and long hours, to try to achieve some measure of good. Many, many Republican staffers- convinced that government is an evil- work here in order to make money off that necessary evil. That breeds corruption. When you have a majority of members and staffers that could care less about policy ad governing and more about power/influence/money/profit Abramoff is inevitable. When the hard, tedious work of legislating and oversight is done by people motivated by careerism rather than professionalism not only do you have Abramoff, but you have Michael Brown, Halliburton, and illegal NSA wiretapping."

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/007656.php

I don't know if I buy the whole "Democrats good, Repulicans bad" but the results based on the motivations painted here ring true.

-UF

Saturday's alright.....

And people wonder why we all put up with livin' in Northern California. I'll tell you why. It's the middle of February, there's not a cloud in the sky, and it's 73 degrees outside.

There's a ton of blossoms on my cherry tree. I got the top down, and I may need to break out the sunscreen. Gotta love it.

Not quite so good elsewhere....

Blizzards

-UF

Embrace Offensiveness

It seems to me that this whole flap about offensive cartoons is just another excuse for hypocritical fundamentalists to demand, to the point of direct violence, their "my way or the highway" world view. A view that should be totally rejected out of hand.

We are a country that is founded on free speech, we owe no apologies, nor should we accept censorship in exchange for perceived safety. That's called blackmail. Embrace the freedom of offensiveness. Question it, debate it, reject it if you so desire. But embrace and defend it's existence.

Sonia Mikich hits the nail on the head here;

"It should go without saying that individuals in a secular democracy have every right to caricature and mock authorities, even religious ones. They should be prepared to meet criticism but not punishment."

http://www.signandsight.com/features/597.html

More here;

http://www.slate.com/id/2135499/

and here;

http://service.spiegel.de/cache/international/0,1518,398853,00.html

-UF

Check this guy out.....

Juggling and Rock&Roll. Who knew?

http://marketplace.espeakers.com/movie.php?sid=5290&aid=10558','video',''

Rock and Roll Circus

I normally tend to gravitate towards small clubs and halls, preferring to get close to (and to actually find a comfortable chair to sit in) to hear my jazz, blues, and eclectic rock performers. But Wednesday, I joined the rock masses to see Aerosmith at the Oakland Arena.

Sometimes massive amounts of excess is just right. Aerosmith surely fits this bill. Huge stage, huge lighting, huge sound, bombastic music, tons of over the top guitar wanking, and a front man that is both entertaining, and completely bent.

http://www.contracostatimes.com/mld/cctimes/news/13831979.htm

I've always felt these guys were a warmed over impersonation of the Stones, and at the beginning of their career, I think this held true. But compared to what I saw of the Super Bowl halftime show that's certainly no longer the case.

-UF

Ideology first...

Governmental Competence - not so much....

With Michael Brown about ready to roll over, it's time for the internal finger pointing to begin. Too bad everybody is looking for ways to stonewall and nobody is working to avoid this type of failure in the future.

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/02/10/national/w062630S54.DTL

-UF

Welcome

Welcome to my new blog. If you stumble upon this site I hope to bore you with the inane ramblings of a self important internet dork. That's a new idea, huh?

Actually, I've figured this will be more like a diary, as I expect that this blog will have a general readership of one (me). With a little luck I may even get my immediate family to look at it on rare occasion.

So, with that said, in the immortal words of the late, great Marvin Gaye; "let's get it on".