Morning Paper: Week In Review!

We cover a lot of stories here at MorningPaper, and thankfully you drop by and read all of them! Here is a list of the stories that got the most of your attention on each day of this past week.

6-26-07 WWE fans mourn the loss of a wrestling great!
Chris Benoit, wrestling great and mentor of the late great, Stu Hart, father of Brett "The Hitman" Hart, was found dead today with his wife Nancy and his seven year-old son Daniel. The authorities in Fayetville, Ga are investigating the scene, but there aren't any signs of a struggle or gunshots. Benoit was to be crowned the ECW World Champion at a pay per view event, when he had to back out due to a family emergency. Details should become available within the next few days. Rabid Wolverine aka the master of the Crippler Crossface will definitely missed by this long-time wrestling fan. Holla if ya' hear me bro, tell Eddie Guerrero I said "Hola Vato!"

Introducing The Sanyo 8500

We get em, we bring em to you! For those who like the clamshell design, it Looks like Sprint will have a nice selection for you to choose from in the next few months. The 8500 will have all the usual features and will of course let you take a 1.3 mega pixel photo and upload it on Sprints EVDO Power Vision. It's not the answer to the iPhone, but then again not everyone wants an iPhone. Who said that?

We couldn't get a confirmation on the pricing for you, but it's being marketed as a "High Tier Clam Handset" so you can put together your own figures from that. If or when we get a solid price and launch date, we'll let you know.

6-26-07 Beyond 411: Freeware For Blackberry!

Now ready for GPS enabled Blackberries!

Key Features

Beyond411 provides instant access to Yahoo yellow pages, maps, and driving directions. Some of its unique features are:
Speed: Beyond411 launches and searches faster than other search tools, and reduces the number of keystrokes and clicks required to get things done.
GPS support: Beyond411 can do searches and give driving directions based on your current location on compatible phones.
Blackberry address book integration: Add results directly to your address book, email search results as a vcard.
Interactive search suggestions save typing and include links to relevant yellow page searches, 1-800 numbers, mobile optimized web pages, podcasts, and reviews.
Local prices search using Yokel shopping search.
Web search using Yahoo.
Local sports, weather, and news.
Search Plugins allow you to add and share new kinds of searches.

thebogles.com

How's the Clock On Your Treo 700W or PPC6800??

These looks like a pretty cool apps.

Taking a look at the clock of your mobile phone is a action which everyone of us do at least several times a day. And that is why i want to share these two applications for Windows Mobile powered Smartphones - ClockOnTop and Retro Analog Clock, which are meant to improve the default clock program.

ClockOnTop is freeware which allows you to add a digital clock to the top bar (known as the taskbar) of Windows Mobile. It adds a feature that should have been there by default. It is quite usabe especially when you need to see the clock when you are working with you smartphone's programs.

Retro Analog Clock is a full-featured anti-aliased highly-customizable analog clock for your for your home screen. It comes with an editor to be run on your PC, called REdit (surprisingly a shorthand for Retro Edit), to assemble custom clock files and edit existing ones. It also contains a sample clock named Modern, directly taken from Vista's sidebar. Retro uses multiple PNG images with transparency for its compositing, placing them in up to 30 layers. This makes possible a wide range of effects, including superficial glass translucency, transparent clocks without background, chronograph-style clocks, and so on.

Mobiletopsoft

6-27-07 Link between Violence & Film – does it exist?

With the recent highly publicized link between the Virginia Tech shootings (April 16 2007) where 32 individuals were killed, and the South Korean film “Old Boy” (2003, Chan Wook Park) due to the killer photographing himself brandish a hammer in the same manner as the movie’s main character, one can’t help but question if there is indeed a link between violence in films and violence in society?   

This is not the first time a film has been blamed as the root cause for violence. A classic scapegoat has been “Natural Born Killers” (1994, Oliver Stone), where 10 separate killings were linked to it within the first 2 months of its release, not to mention the Columbine High School Massacre (1999, 13 dead, 24 wounded), where the killers used the initials NBK as a codename for their macabre plans. Then there is “The Matrix” (1999, Wachowski brothers), blamed when a killer shot his parents whilst wearing a trench-coat similar to the one in the film. Also one of the Washington snipers (2002, 10 dead, 3 critically injured) believed he was "a slave to (the) Matrix control".

Some would like to believe that it is an American phenomenon.  After all isn’t this the country that spawned the serial killer?  But as reports show, copycat murders linked to film are happening all over the world.  Take for example, The Dawson College Shooting (2006, 1 dead, 18 wounded) in Canada, link “Natural Born Killers”, or 5 separate murders in France, link “Scream” (1996, Wes Craven), or the murder of toddler Jamie Bulger in the UK, link “Child's Play 3” (1991, Jack Bender), or the UK’s Hungerford massacre (1987, 16 dead, 15 wounded), link “First Blood” (1982, Ted Kotcheff).

Can we believe what we read?  Is it the media, the defense attorneys, or the killers themselves that are blowing this link out of proportion or does it truly exist?

Research has gone back to the 1960’s without a conclusive relationship being found. Those that have come close rely on child studies which in themselves are rife with problems.

Conclusion: think of the millions of people who have watched the films listed above, compared to the few that supposedly acted on them, statistically it is not feasible to blame the films, rather focus on the individuals that ‘chose’ to carry out the crimes. 

It is far easier to pass the buck, than to stand up and take responsibility for ones actions.

Breaking Rumor: Palm Drops WiFi Team!

Okay, calm down, take a deep breath, so far this is just a rumor. But if this turns into fact, let's just hope that they are cleaning house to bring in an entirely new team. Yeah that's it. That's what's happening.

---) unstrung Several industry sources tell Unstrung that handheld maker Palm Inc. has dropped some -- or all -- of the team working on integrating WiFi in its Treo smartphone line and is now looking for replacements.

Palm has been slow to integrate WiFi into the Treo product line. It currently offers 802.11 connectivity via its Foleo companion device, but not on any of its smartphones, although WiFi is rumored to be in the new Treo 800w.

Meanwhile, rivals are starting to offer WLAN in their newest devices. The Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL - message board) iPhone out at the end of this week supports the technology, as do new Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK - message board) phones and upcoming handsets from RIM. (See Nokia Tries to Unlock US Market and Balsillie: WiFi & FMC 'Imminent' .)

6-28-07 Introduding the Katana II

Mug Shots & Movie Stars – It’s all about image baby!

  A picture can say a thousand words, thus it can make or break an actor’s, directors or even a films image in the public’s eyes.  Apparently Hollywood has come up with an answer.  Pre-arrest mug shots.  Yup, you heard it.  It doesn’t matter if you are a bad boy or not, you should have a mug shot portfolio handy at all times.  Got to keep that media image sharp, sure show a bit of guilt, but there’s no harm in coming to the table, or should I say jail house, prepared.

Queue the song, ‘You’re so Vain’ by Carly Simon. Take Mel Gibson for example. Ahh Melly boy, he doesn’t really care what you think of him, unless of course you think he’s ugly.

“The only thing that could be more painful than the whole world thinking I’m an anti-semite would be if they were making fun of how I looked in my mug shot.  Long after people have forgotten what the alcohol made me say, they’ll still be laughing at that dopey mug shot of Nick Nolte.”

More mug shot info

Ok let’s play a game, which are studio shots, and which are not?

Click on the pic for a larger view

6-29-07 iPHONE DAY!! But You really liked two other stories!

MAJOR MOVIE STAR, Jessica Simpson! Whew, it's just a movie folks!

Yes, it's true, the blond bombshell is making another big screen appearance in the upcoming Comedy, "Major Movie Star". Simpson stars as an actress who enlist in the Marines to gain the approval of a director who thinks she's unsuitable to star in his military movie. Sounds like the 1980 film "Private Benjamin" with Goldie Hawn. A little different premise but same angle. Odds are, this film won't be nearly as funny or hell, even funny at all. But it will be nice to look at I'm sure. The film begins shooting in July 2007 in Louisiana. Directed by Steve Miner.

Philly Mayor Drops Out Of iPhone Line!

Today Americans went crazy for the iPhone, including some of its elected officials. PHILADELPHIA Mayor John F. Street parked himself in his local iPhone line to catch an early offering, but the Mayor soon left the line after a citizen of the City of Brotherly Love asked the Mayor--Continue

6-30-07 The Dumbest Woman In The World!

Capitalism is a carnivorous comedy routine for people with more money than intelligence. I'm sorry to have to pile on this womans "series of unfortunate events". But that's what happens when you put your ignorance in front of the television cameras.

A Dallas woman shows up with $16,000 to buy a ton of iPhones to sell on Ebay. Of course there was a line, and she paid the first guy in line $800 dollars for his top spot.

Anyone reading any short blurb on the iPhone release, knew that you couldn't buy more than one at AT&T. She was showed the door and the guy got a free 8gig iPhone with all the trimmings. Capitalism is a carnivorous comedy routine...Watch the video

Why does music suck so bad these days?

Okay, it doesn't ALL suck.

In fact, there is  really great stuff out there. But you have to dig for it. And frankly, as much as I love a lot of disks/songs I've bought over the last decade or two, I'm not sure how much of it I'll be listening to, let alone, remembering, in another decade or so.

This is not an uncommon opinion. I've seen a bunch of articles on the web, in mags, dealing with this same question. And you hear a lot of people express the point of view - young and old - that there has been a serious decline in quality of tunes. When you look at the charts, the issue becomes starkly clear.

For instance, take a look at the he top sellers of 2006:

1. High School Musical,  A Disney TV show soundtrack
2. Me and My Gang, Rascal Flatts,
3. Some Hearts, Carrie Underwood,
4. All the Right Reasons, Nickelback,
5. Futuresex/Love,   Justin Timberlake,
6. Back to Bedlam, James Blunt
7. B'day, Beyoncé,
8. Hannah Montana, Soundtrack ,
9. Taking the Long Way, Dixie Chicks
10. Extreme Behavior, Hinder.

Now lets look at the top sellers in 1968:

1. Jimi Hendrix Experience,  Are You Experienced?
2. The Graduate,  Simon & Garfunkel
3. Disraeli Gears,  the Cream
4. Magical Mystery Tour, the Beatles
5. Waiting for the Sun, The Doors
6. The Who Sell Out,   The Who
7. Bayou Country, Credence Clearwater Revival
8. Music from Big Pink, The Band,
9. Beggars Banquet, The Rolling Stones
10. Cheap Thrills, Big Brother & Holding Company (w/Janis Joplin)

I mean how real does that make it? Rascal Flatts? Will you even know in a decade if they were a band or town in Arkansas? Do you now?

When you look at the chart for 1968 its pretty obvious that Justin Timberhead needs to head back to the Disney Channel.

The current top 5 disks in the Summer of 2007 are:
1. T-Pain - Epiphany
2.  Fabulous -  From Nothin’ to Somethin’
3.  Paul McCartney - Memory Almost Full
4.  RiHanna featuring Jay Z  - Umbrella
5.  DJ Khaled - We The Best

Flash back to 1969 and its like a completely different universe.
1. Abbey Road -Beatles
2. Three Dog Night
3. Led Zeppelin
4. Tommy - The Who
5. Blind Faith
6. Let it Bleed Rolling Stones
7. Nashville Skyline - Bob Dylan
8. Johnny Cash at San Quentin
9. Crosby, Stills & Nash
10. Blood Sweat & Tears
11.  In the Court Of the Crimson King - King Crimson
12. Kick Out The Jams - MC-5
13.  The Allman Brothers Band  (Debut)

The 2007 list you might as well be reading out of a phone book. I get pain just thinking of T. Is Fabulous really fabulous? And if he is wouldn't he just show it rather then feel the need to advertise it? The only amazing thing in that current list is that Paul McCartney, after almost 40 years in the charts. is holding his own against kids. That's great but it tells you something when a 65 year old vet is holding down the #3 spot.

The 1969 list is so abundant in riches its embarrassing to think it could all have come at the same time. Abbey Road has been the template for pop music for almost 40 years. The first Zep signaled a shift in how hard hard really is, and still rocks as well as anything created since. Tommy created a whole new genre - the rock opera - and still dazzles. Blind Faith was arguably the first super group.

The MC5 helped create punk, it just took the most of the rest of the US four decades to catch up. In four decades lets hope DJ Khaled learns that a sentence requires a verb. And somehow I don't think we'll remember that He Best.

Even into the 70s the wealth of original, provocative music or even merely excellent craftsmanship, was abundant. How did the overflowing well dry up so quick?

The top 5 albums of 2005 were:

- Mariah Carey - The Emancipation of Mimi
- 50 Cent - The Massacre
- Kelly Clarkson - Breakaway
- Green Day - American Idiot
- The Black Eyed Peas - Monkey Business

A list of some of the top albums of 1975 is astounding in its quality, diversity, and sheer imagination.

-Born to Run - Bruce Springsteen
- Still Crazy After All These Years - Paul Simon
- Wish You Were Here - Pink Floyd
- Physical Graffiti  - Led Zeppelin
- Katy Lied - Steely Dan
- Siren- Roxy Music
- A Night At The Opera - Queen
- Another Green World - Brian Eno
- Young Americans - David Bowie
-  Mothership Connection - Parliament
-  Live! - Bob Marley and the Wailers
-  10 cc - The Original Soundtrack
-  Captain Fantastic - Elton John
-   One of these Nights -  The Eagles
-  Slow Dazzle - John Cale
-  Blow By Blow - Jeff Beck
-  That’s the Way of the World - Earth Wind And Fire
-  Radioaktivität - Kraftwerk

You could easily argue that Parliament is the foundation for urban black music of new millennium (you would be wrong - if you neglected to mention James Brown and Sly Stone - but you COULD argue it). The bass player of Pink Floyd, without any other members, can sell out arenas doing Wish You Were Here 30 years after its release. Bob Marley is likely the most influential artist of the modern era on a global scale.

50 cent? You can't even buy anything at the dollar store with him. And why do I need to listen to a disk called Massacre when I can watch a new one daily on the news? Green Day are a nice little band but lets face it - they're basically duplicating bands that came three decades earlier (Ramones, Buzzcocks). Without Kraftwerk is electronica?

Don't get me wrong, there are Green Day songs I love, and they blew me away at the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame (doing a Ramones medley). And like  I said, there are certainly plenty of artist doing great stuff that just doesn't make it to the charts. But really, you'd have to be severely medicated to miss the point just by looking at these lists. So what happened?

Part of it is certainly the complete take over of the culture by mass marketing to sub teens.  Their sophistication level is well below the average listeners of earlier decades who were older. It brings everything  to pre -adolescent grinding halt.

And in my opinion, subject matter is less interesting, and dealt with less depth or finesse. Don't you wish your girlfriend was hot like me? No, not if she was as stupid and moronically boring as you.

Another part of the problem is that with the proliferation of home recording equipment, and the onset of the free music all the time era, there is just way too much stuff out there.

There are not enough creative people to create art that is worthy of repeated listening, that speaks to something deeper inside of you. If there were, everyone would be an artist instead of just thinking they are.
So as the marketplace is flooded with overwhelmingly bad product, our ears get used to it and we start to think its good. We lose sense of quality. And before long we lose people able to remind us of what that lost quality actually was to begin with.

Nowadays being a rock star is a career choice, like policeman, engineer, porn star. Everyone can and does do it. But practically none of them do it well.

But probably the base reason for the quality crash may be simple: people just don't know how to do it right anymore.

Craftsmanship is a lost art in this country. In all thing, but in terms of  this article a lost art in music making.

The craft of writing a well structured song, with meaningful lyric, doesn't come from watching MTV or listening to Green Day and 50 Cent. The guys who did it well, who filled the charts 30-40 years ago, did it by digging into the history of popular music and discovering its roots. They became one with those roots and followed them to the next generation of artists and on to the next. And by stripping each song down to both its emotional and technical craft essence they got to the heart of the matter. And as with all things, when you truly understand the heart, all things are knowable.

Most music today is made by people who don't care about the craft, or the history of the art, or even about  creating something lasting.

Artist of the last era chose to validate their experience by expressing their pain and longing in song and through that medium finding catharsis and redemption.

Music makers of today also seek to be validated. Most seek to validate shallow empty lives by being famous, making lots of cash, and having a stripper as a girlfriend. And rather then seeking catharsis and redemption they largely choose to wallow in adolescent angst and depression as if sitting in a poop filled diaper was the high point of potty training.

And we're all to blame. We don't stand up and say "Dude, you, and your pants, are full of s**t." So why should we be surprised when most of what we hear has a distinct sound and odor of brown excrement?

Maybe cause we're full of it too.