Top 20 Favorite Albums of 2007

and the lists continue...

1. The Pigeon Detectives Wait for Me [Dance to the Radio]

2. The Enemy We'll Live and Die in These Towns [Warner Music Group]

3. Hard-Fi Once Upon a Time in the West [Necessary Records/Warner]

4. Tiny Dancers Free School Milk [Parlophone]

5. The Cinematics A Strange Education [TVT Records]

6. Interpol Our Love to Admire [Capitol Records]

7. Dolores O'Riordan Are You Listening? [Sanctuary Records]

8. The Automatic Not Accepted Anywhere [B-Unique Records]

9. The View Hats Off to the Buskers [1965 Records]

10. The Cribs Men's Needs, Women's Needs, Whatever [Warner Brothers Records]

11. Editors An End Has a Start [Kitchenware Records]
12. The Libertines The Best Of [Rough Trade]
13. Little Man Tate About What You Know [Yellow Van Records]
14. Babyshambles Shotter's Nation [Regal Records]
15. Jamie T Panic Prevention [Virgin]
16. 1990s Cookies [Rough Trade]
17. Bloc Party A Weekend in the City [Vice]
18. Various Artists Radio 1 Established 1967 [Sony Music Entertainment]
19. Biffy Clyro Puzzle [14th Floor]
20. Arctic Monkeys Favourite Worst Nightmare [Domino]

Top 100 Favorite Singles Released in 2007

last year i stopped at 75...yes, my music nerdiness is increasing...oh, and thanks to my itunes for counting play stats for me...i have tried to limit the list to singles with a commercial or radio release in the US or UK in 2007:

1. Hard-Fi Suburban Knights [Once Upon a Time in the West]

2. Athlete Hurricane [Beyond the Neighbourhood]

3. Stereophonics It Means Nothing [Pull the Pin]

4. Against Me! Thrash Unreal [New Wave]

5. Silverchair Straight Lines [Young Modern]

6. Klaxons Golden Skans [Myths of the Near Future]

7. Interpol Mammoth [Our Love to Admire]

8. Snow Patrol Shut Your Eyes [Eyes Open]

9. Biffy Clyro Folding Stars [Puzzle]

10. Bloc Party I Still Remember [A Weekend in the City]
11. Editors Smokers Outside the Hospital Doors [An End Has a Start]
12. Arctic Monkeys Fluorescent Adolescent [Favourite Worst Nightmare]
13. Tiny Dancers I Will Wait For You [Free School Milk]
14. Field Music A House Is Not a Home [Tones of Town]
15. Kate Nash Foundations [Made of Bricks]
16. The Pigeon Detectives Take Her Back [Wait For Me]
17. The Enemy Had Enough [We'll Live and Die in These Towns]
18. The Wombats Let's Dance to Joy Division [The Wombats Proudly Present: A Guide to Love, Loss & Desperation]
19. Snow Patrol Signal Fire [Spiderman 3 Soundtrack]
20. The Cribs Men's Needs [Men's Needs, Women's Needs, Whatever]
21. Kaiser Chiefs Ruby [Yours Truly Angry Mob]
22. The Bravery Time Won't Let Me Go [The Sun and the Moon]
23. The View Same Jeans [Hats off to the Buskers]
24. Dolores O'Riordan When We Were Young [Are You Listening?]

25. Little Man Tate This Must Be Love [About What You Know]

26. Mat Kearney Undeniable [Nothing Left to Lose]
27. Kings of Leon Fans [Because of the Times]
28. Andrea Corr Shame on You [Ten Feet High]

29. Interpol The Heinrich Maneuver [Our Love to Admire]
30. The Cinematics Break [A Strange Education]
31. The Enemy It's Not Ok [We'll Live and Die in These Towns]
32. Manic Street Preachers Your Love Alone Is Not Enough [Send Away the Tigers]
33. Silversun Pickups Lazy Eye [Caravans]
34. Hard-Fi Can't Get Along (Without You) [Once Upon a Time in the West]
35. Modest Mouse Missed the Boat [We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank]
36. Fields If You Fail We All Fail [Everything Last Winter]
37. Dogs This Stone Is a Bullet [Tall Stories From Under the Table]
38. Eisley Invasion [Combinations]
39. The Automatic Monster [Not Accepted Anywhere]
40. Ian Brown Feat. Sinead O'Connor Illegal Attacks [The World Is Yours]
41. Gary Lightbody and Lisa Hannigan Some Surprise [The Cake Sale]
42. Editors An End Has a Start [An End Has a Start]
43. The Pigeon Detectives I Found Out [Wait For Me]
44. LCD Soundsystem North American Scum [Sound of Silver]
45. The Enemy You're Not Alone [We'll Live and Die in These Towns]
46. Mat Kearney Breathe In Breathe Out [Nothing Left to Lose]
47. The Thrills The Midnight Choir [Teenager]
48. Scouting For Girls It's Not About You [Scouting For Girls]
49. The Twang Wide Awake [Love It When I Feel Like This]
50. Maximo Park Our Velocity [Our Earthly Pleasures]
51. Snow Patrol Open Your Eyes [Eyes Open]
52. Arcade Fire No Cars Go [Neon Bible]
53. Modest Mouse Dashboard [We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank]
54. Travis Closer [The Boy With No Name]
55. The Cinematics Keep Forgetting [A Strange Education]
56. Spoon The Underdog [Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga]
57. Aqualung Pressure Suit [Memory Man]
58. The Pigeon Detectives Romantic Type [Wait For Me]
59. Regina Spektor Better [Begin To Hope]
60. Vega4 Life Is Beautiful [You and Others]
61. The Killers Shadowplay [Sawdust]
62. Biffy Clylo Living Is a Problem Becasue Everything Dies [Puzzle]
63. The Shins Phantom Limb [Wincing the Night Away]
64. Cold War Kids Hang Me Out to Dry [Robbers & Cowards]
65. Babyshambles You Talk [Shotter's Nation]
66. Republic of Loose w/ Snow Patrol Comeback Girl [Aaagh!!!]
67. Test Your Reflex Pieces of the Sun [The Burning Hour]
68. Guster C'mon [Ganging Up On the Sun]
69. Newton Faulkner Dream Catch Me [Hand Built By Robots]
70. The Automatic Raoul [Not Accepted Anywhere]
71. Mêlée Built To Last [Devils & Angels]
72. Tiny Dancers Ashes and Diamonds [Free School Milk]
73. The Killers Read My Mind [Sam's Town]
74. Mark Ronson feat. Lily Allen Oh My God [Version]
75. Kaiser Chiefs Everything Is Average Nowadays [Yours Truly Angry Mob]
76. Babyshambles Delivery [Shotter's Nation]
77. Dolores O'Riordan Ordinary Day [Are You Listening?]
78. Little Man Tate Sexy In Latin [About What You Know]
79. The Pigeon Detectives I'm Not Sorry [Wait For Me]
80. Jamie T Shelia [Panic Prevention]
81. Sara Bareilles Love Song [Little Voice]
82. Rooney When Did Your Heart Go Missing [Calling the World]
83. Nina Gordon Turn On Your Radio [Bleeding Heart Graffiti]
84. The 1990s You Made Me Like It [Cookies]
85. Leona Lewis Bleeding Love [Spirit]
86. The Maccabees Precious Time [Colour Me In]
87. Orson Ain't No Party [Culture Vultures]
88. The Hoosiers Worried About Ray [The Trick to Life]
89. Athlete Tokyo [Beyond the Neighbourhood]
90. Marc Ronson Feat. Amy Winehouse Valerie [Version]
91. Bloc Party Hunting for Witches [A Weekend in the City]
92. The Thrills Nothing Changes Round Here [Teenager]
93. Kings of Leon On Call [Because of the Times]
94. The Good, the Bad, and the Queen Kingdom of Doom [The Good, the Bad, and the Queen]
95. The Cribs Moving Pictures [Men's Needs, Women's Needs, Whatever]
96. Arctic Monkeys Brainstorm [Favourite Worst Nightmare]
97. The Courteeners Acrylic [Acrlyic]
98. Interpol No I In Threesome [Our Love to Admire]
99. Turin Brakes Stalker [Dark On Fire]
100. Klaxons It's Not Over Yet [Myths of the Near Future]

Some great songs that did not get released as singles, or they would have made the list:
Phil Campbell Joy [Joy]
Snow Patrol Isolation [Instant Karma]
The Cribs I'm a Realist [Men's Needs, Women's Needs, Whatever]
Leigh Nash Ocean Sized Love [Blue on Blue]
Tiny Dancers Shame [Free School Milk]
The Twang Don't Wait Up [Love It When I Feel Like This]
Feist I Feel It All [The Reminder]
Against Me! Stop [New Wave]

gop state charman in kansas boasts of voter suppression

well, what else is new...via bluetiderising:

Earlier today Kris Kobach, chairman of the Kansas GOP, sent out a self-congratulatory litany of accomplishments. Among them was one particularly eye-catching item:

To date, the Kansas GOP has identified and caged more voters in the last 11 months than the previous two years!

We're going to move past the fact that any amount of voter identification would be more than the amount the GOP has done in the last two years, or four for that matter. The practice of caging is what caught our eye.

Caging is a particularly devious and underhanded method of purging likely Democratic voters from the pollbooks. It's also illegal.

How does it work?

The use of direct mail caging techniques to target voters resulted in the application of the name to the political tactic. With one type of caging, a political party sends registered mail to addresses of registered voters. If the mail is returned as undeliverable - because, for example, the voter refuses to sign for it, the voter isn't present for delivery, or the voter is homeless - the party uses that fact to challenge the registration, arguing that because the voter could not be reached at the address, the registration is fraudulent. A political party challenges the validity of a voter's registration; for the voter's ballot to be counted, the voter must prove that their registration is valid.

Voters targeted by caging are often the most vulnerable: soldiers deployed overseas, those who are unfamiliar with their rights under the law, and those who cannot spare the time, effort, and expense of proving that their registration is valid. On the day of the election, when the voter arrives at the poll and requests a ballot, an operative of the party challenges the validity of their registration. Ultimately, caging works by dissuading a voter from casting a ballot, or by ensuring that they cast a provisional ballot, which is less likely to be counted.

Slate.com has the best comprehensive write-up on how the Republican Party employs caging techniques to suppress the votes of the poor, the deployed, and college students. (You know, likely Democratic voters.)

Did we mention it's illegal? And that Kris Kobach is proud to be doing it?

Since Kris Kobach can't expand his own party or force his own Party's members to support his candidates he's shamelessly trying to keep Democrats from voting instead. This is the stratagem of a desperate and shrinking party.

Someone needs to ask Kris Kobach which voters he's caging and how he's doing it. Someone like a newspaper editor or perhaps a Grand Jury.

the president cuts millions in childrens health care. again.

first s-chip for the middle class kids, now medicaid for poor and disabled kids is being targeted by the bush administration...and this time, it impacts education, too, and likely will cause local school disrits to find the money elsewhere for speech and physical therapy for kids...so school tax will ilkey be raised, thus meaning the president both cut health care for poor kids and raised taxes. merry christmas, indeed:

President Bush drew criticism this fall for his refusal to fund a children’s health insurance program. On Friday, his healthcare slashing continued.

According to the Washington Post, “the Bush administration eliminated about $700 million a year in Medicaid reimbursements to schools, sidestepping an attempt by Congress to block such a move.”

Issued by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the new rule is projected to save the federal government $3.6 billion over five years, transferring those costs to school districts. Many school principals and superintendents said that the loss of the funding could force districts to cut other programs.

gun control legislaion supported by the NRA?!

file this under "things i never thought I'd read"

via rawstory:

The US Congress, spurred into action by the Virginia Tech shooting rampage in April, approved Wednesday a measure broadening background checks for gun buyers.

The measure, the first major gun control legislation approved since 1994, passed by voice vote in both the Senate and House of Representatives

The legislation provides funds to improve the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), the main US background check system for gun purchases, and to encourage states to broaden checks on local gun owners.

"A credible ... federal database to provide accurate background checks benefits everyone," said Senator Patrick Leahy, one of the bill co-sponsors.

Improving the background check system "will help curb the number of firearms that get into the hands of troubled individuals," he said.

The measure was supported by the powerful gun lobby, the National Rifle Association (NRA), and now awaits President George W. Bush's signature to become law.

"The end product is a win for American gun owners," the NRA said in a statement, describing the measure as "pro-gun legislation."

oh, how i loathe the grammys

so, every year the grammy nomoinations come out, and every year i yell something along the lines of, "what the motherfing hell do you mean _____ is nominated?!" or "i wish hadn't seen these stuipid nominations so i wouldn't feel so outraged at how awful they are!" this year is no exception to this personal umberella, ella, ella, eh, eh, eh, rule, but i think the good folks at best week ever have summed up exactly why the grammys are completely irrelevant:

The Five Types Of Grammy “Best Album” Nominees

The 2008 Grammy nominees were announced today, and at the risk of implying that the annual statue factory that is the Grammy Awards is in any way relevant, let’s handicap the field for this year’s “Album of the Year” nominees, which kiiiind of resembles last year’s “Album of the Year” nominees, and the year before that…

1. The New Album By Rock N’ Roll Band That Grammy Voters Have Actually Heard Of Because They’ve Been Around For 10+ Years: “Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace” by Foo Fighters.

Past Nominees: “American Idiot” by Greenday, the last six or seven albums by U2

2. The Rap Album By Artist Who We’re Pretty Sure The Kids Are Listening To Because We Saw A Joke On Leno That Mentioned Him/Her, So We Might As Well Give Them One Nomination In a Category Without ‘Urban’ In The Title: “Graduation” by Kanye West

Past Nominees: “Late Registration” by Kanye West, “The College Dropout” by Kanye West

3. The Country Album That We Assume Is Probably Really Popular Because We Heard That Country Is Really Popular Because It Sells A Lot Of Albums: “These Days” by Vince Gill

Past Nominees: “Taking The Long Way” by the Dixie Chicks, “Come On Over” by Shania Twain

4. The Album By The Person Who We Heard Is Generating A Whole Bunch Of Controversy So They Must Really Be The Bee’s Knees: “Back To Black” by Amy Winehouse

Past Nominees: “The Marshall Mathers LP” by Eminem, “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” by Lauryn Hill

5. The Album That No One Has Heard Of Or Possesses Any Evidence That It Actually Exists, But Holy Sh*t, We Have To Let It Win: “River: The Joni Years” by Herbie Hancock, featuring Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen, Norah Jones, and Tina Turner.

Past Nominees: “Genius Loves Company” by Ray Charles, “Two Against Nature” by Steely Dan

well, it's not a news network anyway

maybe they can sell it to fox noise. or the sci-fi channel.

from thinkprogress:

The latest National Intelligence Estimate concluding that Iran discontinued its nuclear weapons program four years ago has claimed one casualty: CNN has postponed speculative documentary “We Were Warned — Iran Goes Nuclear.”

The two-hour spec, which was slated for Dec. 12 under the “CNN Presents” banner, was “set partially in the future,” featuring a what-if scenario as former government officials — playing fictional cabinet members — debate how to deal with the Iranian threat.

That special was “based on a different set of rules and a different set of conditions,” said CNN veep-senior exec producer Mark Nelson, noting that the surprising NIE report “changed everything.”