Meet "El Lucky"

One of the founders of Los Zetas (I've tried to clean up the Google translation, but I liked the term 'regional manager', so I kept it):

The Procurator General of the Republic (PGR) today presented "El Lucky", one of 37 leaders of criminal organizations most wanted by the agency since 2009, for whom was offered a reward of 15 million pesos (and the DEA offered a million dollars).

"El Lucky" was the founder of "Los Zetas" and is currently serving as regional manager in the states of Hidalgo, Oaxaca, Puebla, Veracruz, Tabasco, Campeche, Queretaro, San Luis Potosi and Quintana Roo state of Mexico.

Authorities of the Attorney General's Office (PGR) and the Navy Secretariat of Mexico (Semar) state that "Lucky" was a direct collaborator with Heriberto Lazcano, nicknamed "The Lazca", alleged leader of the criminal organization known "Los Zetas."

The arrest of "Lucky" was carried out after an armed confrontation on the Veracruz-Mexico highway near the town of Cordoba. "El Lucky" also known as "Z-16" or "APA" was arrested with four of his collaborators: Germaine Hernández Flores, Nicolas Garcia, Rafael Méndez and Cristóbal Salinas.

...Authorities seized 132 long rifles, 36 handguns, a rifle, five grenade launchers, 2,641 porters, 28,000 cartridges of various calibers, 29 fragmentation grenades, a van, a vehicle, a trailer and a truck, and military uniforms, with shirts bearing the initials of the SIEDO, AFI and Marina.

Lee Hartgrave Weighs In On "Xanadu"

Lee Hartgrave from Beyond Chron liked "Xanadu":

What a wonderful dancing, comedy and roller skating trip. Wide-eyed lovers (a Muse and a young man) accidentally fall for each other. She is the quirky and exuberant Joie and he is a naïve sexy young man that is just as ditzy as his newfound love. Their mission is to try to resurrect an old Theatre to make magic and Art. But, first they have to deal with an older cranky landlord that wants to tear the Theatre down. Gee – sounds like San Francisco’s Fox Theatre days. Hello Mr. “C”.

There is no denying the extreme comic energy of this cast as they sing the insanely pleasurable, romping musical score (directed by G. Scott Lacy).

...Perfect endings are hard to come by but this charming little musical makes it more than perfect.

And for that: Thanks STEPHANIE TEMPLE for the Great Direction and Choreography.

...THE AMAZING CAST IS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE. They Are: Chloe Condon (Kira) – Jesus Martinez Jr. (Sonny) – Joe Wicht (Danny Zeus) – Jamelee Roberts (as Calliope and Aphrodite) – Nikki Arias (Melopmene and Medusa) – Angel Burgess (plays five different roles) – Molly Kruse (plays five different roles) – Nathan Marken (Plays four different roles) and Alex Rodriquez (Plays five different roles). And to them I say:

YOU ARE ALL HILARIOUS, SHOCKING AND BRAZENLY HONEST. You left me gasping and gagging with laughter!

NOW PLAYING AT THE NEW CONSERVATORY THEATRE

RATING: FOUR GLASSES OF CHAMPAGNE!!!! (highest rating)–trademarked-

Works For Me

WORK!

you better work ( cover girl )
work it girl ( give a twirl )
do your thing on the runway

work ( supermodel... )
you better work it, girl ( ...of the world )
wet your lips and make love to the camera

work, turn to the left
work, now turn to the right
work, sashay shante

it don’t matter what you wear
they’re checkin’ out your savior faire
and it don’t matter what you do
cause everything looks good on you ...supermodel

The Fake Debate About The Deficit

The GOP hasn't been the least bit interested in the federal deficit since the early Seventies, and it's surprising how many believe otherwise. As Paul Krugman says:

But it’s not odd at all, once you realize that the GOP is not now, and never has been (at least not since the 1970s) concerned about the deficit. All the fiscal posturing of the last couple of years has been about using the deficit as a club to smash the welfare state, with the secondary goal of frustrating any efforts on the part of the Obama administration to help the struggling economy.

The entire debate has been fake. If you don’t understand that, or can’t bring yourself to admit it, you’re missing the whole story.

Alien Gold Fever

South African UFO followers say it's all perfectly-clear:

Aliens -- much like humans -- have been plundering the planet for gold for thousands of years, according to the organizer of South Africa's first UFO Science and Consciousness Conference, held in Johannesburg last week.

"There's a battle for Earth by some interesting dark forces," conference organizer Michael Tellinger told News 24. "All the governments in the world are puppets and instruments to implement the will of a small group of individuals. The royal political bloodline goes back thousand of years."

..."They came to Earth looking for gold. We are all still obsessed with gold," Tellinger said, according to News 24.

And thanks to its diamonds and gold deposits, South Africa is "at the heart of this," Tellinger reportedly said.

"South Africa has been dubbed as the cradle of humankind and the place where all life form began, thus the reason [South Africa] was selected as the host for the UFO Science and Consciousness Conference," he told The Citizen. "We have scientific evidence that there was physical life before humans which were African knowledge keepers and custodians of secret knowledge."

Tellinger's statements about gold-hunting aliens were widely reported by the South African press, while comparisons between the gold-digging alien theory and the plot of the film "Cowboys & Aliens" were noted by the sci-fi blog io9.

...Laura Eisenhower, who describes herself as the great-granddaughter of president Dwight Eisenhower, claims world leaders have experienced close contact with aliens, signing treaties with them every decade.

"Extra-terrestrials have been working with governments for a while," she told News 24.

At Least The Southwest Is Getting Rain

And there are indications there will be persistent rain this weekend and early next week in Texas, which is a welcome change.

Still, things look bleak for Northern California. Nothing on the horizon....

Back When The Palestinians Weren't An Invented People

Newt's been all over the map when it comes to his positions.

Will Someone Please Tell Cinderella That The Ball Is Over

Life is tough in Hollywood:

The Hollywood Reporter has learned that Palin and Burnett are pitching another reality series, this one more focused on Palin’s husband Todd and his career as a championship snowmobile racer. But for now, TLC owner Discovery Communications has passed, say sources. And A&E Networks, which entered into a bidding war with Discovery for Sarah Palin's Alaska, also is not interested.

Creepy New New Mexico Town Is To Be Built, And Fast

This just creeps me out:

The $200 million Center for Innovation, Testing and Evaluation would be built with all the dressings of a typical midsize American city. There would be houses, office buildings, roads, highways, gas stations, banks and even a shopping mall, all connected by working utilities and telecommunications infrastructure. But no one would live there. The only people around would be experimenters and workers in an underground control center who run all the city's systems.

Over the next six months or so, Pegasus will figure out what technical systems the center would have, design the town and then figure out just where in New Mexico it's going to build it. Pegasus hopes to break ground in June 2012 and have the city up and running two years later.

Look, if they want to experiment on a real New Mexico city without the inconvenience of real people in it, why don't they just use Rio Rancho?

(Was that my outside voice?)

But seriously, even a fake city will have a big environmental footprint. Where's all the water supposed to come from? All those flushing toilets, you know. And they are rushing this thing through FAST! Start construction by June? Are they crazy?

Why don't they use former company towns? There are a few underpopulated places like that lying around the state. Probably too many real people there, despite all the houses decaying into dust.

Brumley envisions it as a place where people developing new technologies could run large-scale experiments in real-world conditions that — for practical, financial, bureaucratic or safety reasons — they wouldn't be able to do elsewhere. "People can go there and experiment without restrictions," he says.

Probably out-of-control robots chasing homeless squatters and illegal drug runners in the wee hours of the morning. Lasers and car bombs and AK-47's and tumbleweeds in the desert. Like something out of 'Blade Runner'.

And what do the politicians have to say about this?:

“I am confident this innovative project would provide a great boost to New Mexico’s economy,” Governor Susana Martinez said. “We are pleased to be able to offer the resources, open spaces, and talented workforce required to make this effort a success. My administration is committed to an ongoing relationship with Pegasus that will allow the Center to thrive and create New Mexico jobs.”

“I want to thank Governor Susana Martinez for her support. We were drawn to New Mexico by her and her administration’s encouragement of private-sector led, technology-based projects,” Brumley added. “That along with the state’s leadership in science and technology, strong university system, national laboratories, military bases, renewable energy resources, developing commercial space industry, motivated work force, and land availability made New Mexico an ideal location for The Center.”

A couple of kissing zombies, those two!

Even When FOX News Gets The Numbers Right, They Can't Plot Them

They must think their audience is stupid, or something.

"Xanadu" - NCTC - Opening Night, Dec. 10, 2011

Stage, with Muses mural, at start of show. NCTC contains three theaters, of which this, the Decker Theater, is the largest (seating roughly 120 people).




As mentioned, I wanted to see Chloe Condon play 'Kira' in "Xanadu" at New Conservatory Theatre Center (NCTC) in San Francisco, so I headed down to check out the show.

Waiting to enter the theater, I was pleased to run into Chloe's father, Frank Condon. I was also puzzled by the appearance of a special table, like a will-call table, containing principally tickets for people with press passes. "Why press passes," I thought. The opening was last weekend, was it not?

Turns out, the several previous shows of "Xanadu", starting last weekend, were all previews. TONIGHT was the formal opening!

My expectations of a fairly-young audience were upset by the appearance of a large cohort of largely-middle-aged, even elderly group of people, most of whom seemed to have known one another for years. These were the CRITICS! Real Critics! A whole bunch - a gaggle; a murder - of critics! EN MASSE! OMIGOD! Writing for who knows how many publications and Web Sites! And here I was, sitting right in their midst! So, I started networking with them (and suddenly grateful I had a few DMTC business cards on me that John Ewing made a few months ago).

The show got off to a great start. Chloe has awesome comic timing: a great lead player! Chloe's supporting cast members were dreams-come-true. Her co-star Jesus Martinez (Sonny Malone) was wonderful, as was Joe Wicht (playing Danny - the Gene-Kelly character). Nathan Marken (Thalia) has a wonderful voice. I particularly liked Jaimelee Roberts (Calliope), and the way she completely-committed to her performance.

I had trouble with parts of the script. "Xanadu" the movie meets Susan Sontag's description of camp (whereby performances are naive and in earnest), but "Xanadu" the musical is one big campy wink-of-the-eye to the audience. So, it's self-conscious camp, which isn't quite camp:

One must distinguish between naïve and deliberate Camp. Pure Camp is always naive. Camp which knows itself to be Camp ("camping") is usually less satisfying.

People who aren't quite in the camp spirit (like some traditional theatre-goers) might have trouble adjusting to the show, its pace, and its spirit.

In addition, I found some of the period-specific slang to be tone deaf. For example, the word "bummer", used most often in the early 70's, was more Nor-Cal, and probably used less-often in Venice Beach. Yet Sonny uses it several times. The writers apparently did not spend enough time watching a more-authoritative TV show regarding So-Cal slang, "Three's Company", where I doubt "bummer" was used very often. (Which reminds me, I once met a Doberman Pinscher in Los Alamos, NM, named "Bummer".) And the phrase: "Pity the fool". Omigod, that's A-Team 1986; not 1980!

I see "Xanadu" as a 70's musical, but the writers of the book seem to see it as an 80's musical. WTF? I pity the fools!

(But nevermind, Marc. Get back into the spirit of things!)

Still, Act I went very well. There was only one problem. At several brief moments in Act I, while singing, Chloe became nearly-inaudible. From where I was sitting, I couldn't be sure what the problem was. The problem was worst when she was facing upstage and riding on roller skates, so it could have been a combination of factors.

Nevertheless, Act I was so successful that, at intermission, the critics had little to complain about. Deprived of targets, they naturally zeroed-in on the audibility problem. Was it a technical problem with the mikes? Or was it, as I overheard one critic suggest, that Chloe was 'no Olivia Newton-John'? I didn't like the sound of that meme at all, but nothing was fixed in print yet, so it was time to start running interference by spouting out new memes. Like the way intercontinental ballistic missile warheads spout out metal-coated mylar chaff, in order to confuse radar.

I asked Critic A what he thought about the audibility problem. Was it because it was difficult to sing and roller skate at the same time (core stability and breath control working at cross purposes), or was it a technical problem with the mikes? Critic A thought it was a technical problem.

The need-to-know drove the critics forward. Fortunately they were in a good-hearted inquiring frame of mind. After the show and during the party, Critic B explained in Olympian style his research to all within earshot: "They admitted it; it was a technical problem!" So, the reviews will likely remark upon slight technical problems.

Act II went off perfectly, with no audibility problems, or problems of any sort. My issues with slang also largely-disappeared. Act II was very funny too.

Afterwards, party!

One guest raved at how much fun the after-show party was. Apparently he had been at other opening-night parties at this theater which were much more subdued. This theater usually features dramas, not musicals, so generally people have just one glass of wine before slinking off, for - a good cry? Not this time! Everyone was having fun! Musicals make for better parties!

Three cups of champagne, in my new, favorite, hot-pink "Xanadu" souvenir cup!

Director Stephanie Temple.

Molly Kruse (Euterpe).

Nathan Marken (Thalia).

Chloe Condon (Kira), with Joe Wicht (Danny) in the background.

Saturday Trip To San Francisco

Left: The North Concord/Martinez Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) stop.


I wanted to see Chloe Condon play 'Kira' in "Xanadu" at New Conservatory Theatre Center (NCTC) in San Francisco, particularly before the holidays started in earnest, so on Thursday I decided Saturday was the day. A few single seats were still available, and I managed to wedge myself into the front row for the show. (My impressions of the show here.)

Chloe appeared in only two shows at DMTC (As 'July', in "Annie" in March 2005, and as 'Anybodys' in "West Side Story" in September 2006). Nevertheless, Chloe represented the best of young Sacramento theater talent. She had already appeared all over the Sacramento area in a variety of theatrical productions, having essentially grown up in the theater. Her father, Frank Condon, had been Artistic Director at Cosumnes River College's 'River Stage' for 16 years, and her mom, Kim, had been Costume Designer for a number of those shows. I found it exciting that Chloe was going to play Kira: 1980's film "Xanadu" was a favorite of mine.

Still, I didn't want to take my car. It would be hard to find parking in the heart of SF (and I don't have much experience parking in SF) and I was by myself for this trip, so I decided to drive to the North Concord/Martinez Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) stop, park my car there, and ride the rest of the way in. Easy in; easy out.

There were a number of posters on the BART station walls promoting theatrical shows. This poster is for a biographical show for an indispensable person that I've never heard of before.

Here comes the train!

I remember first riding BART in 1974. I was so excited! It was the cutting edge of the future.

Once again, on this day, I'm riding BART. It's still the cutting edge of a Jetson-like future that never seems to arrive. Travel to the stars was supposed to be here by the 1980's. What happened?

The carpet was stained by surreptitious coffee spills, but otherwise the trip was appropriately, futuristically comfy. With minor delays. A sort of glitchy, not-quite-perfect 'Star Wars' kind of future.

Civic Center Station. Attractive, futuristic people down here under the streets of San Francisco.

A disorienting emergence from the tubes onto Market Street on a San Francisco Saturday night. People seem less attractive here. Like an inverted "Time Machine" world, where the attractive Eloi are down below and the scary Morlochs are up above.

New Conservatory Theatre Center (NCTC).

Unique facilities at NCTC

NCTC Lobby

Since there was plenty of time before the show, I started wandering around San Francisco's theatre district, looking at the sights. Here is Marion Davies Symphony Hall.

Eager ballet fans were flooding in to see the San Francisco Ballet's "Nutcracker".

Convincing "Nutcracker" evidence.

A pensive Abraham Lincoln, San Francisco style, with Santa cap and tinselly lei.

Sara Bareilles was performing on the night of December 10th at the Bill Graham Auditorium. Her fans were lined up right around the block. Strangely-enough, I have barely heard of her at all. I think I heard 'King Of Anything' for the first time on the radio just this week. It is clear my music tastes are out-of-date.

Everything in San Francisco seems curiously inverted. At first, I thought this was pure whimsy on the part of the City, but it turns out they just want to keep derelicts out of the Civic Center playground.

City Hall.

Thoroughly plowed under by champagne after seeing "Xanadu", it was time for the long, glitchy BART trip back to North Concord with the sleepy Saturday-night party people.

Checkout Is The Biggest Hurdle

Impaired thought process, plus necessity, are the mothers of invention:

A woman in Tulsa, Oklahoma was arrested Thursday for trying to set up a meth lab inside a Walmart store.

Police said security footage showed Elizabeth Alisha Greta Halfmoon, 45, in the store for at least six hours gathering the chemicals needed to manufacture methamphetamine.

Halfmoon told officers she was “too broke to buy the chemicals” and take them out of the store.

“She didn’t have the money to make the purchases of the chemicals that were needed so she was taking what was needed in the bottle,” Officer David Shelby told Fox 23′s Abbie Alford. “When I saw her, she had just finished mixing sulfuric acid with starter fluid in a bottle,” he added.

Sacramento Theatre Company's "A Christmas Carol"

Fun evening, watching Matt K. Miller playing Ebenezer Scrooge, Michael R.J. Campbell playing Fezziwig and the Ghost of Christmas Present, and Jerry Lee as Scrooge's nephew. Also in the cast were recent DMTC players Danielle Hansen, and Javen and Raven Crosby.

The lobby at half time.

I Didn't Know Sandahl Bergman Did Aerobics Videos

From 1983.

As Soon As Politics Gets Out Of Science, Rick!

Rick Santorum has had it with the eggheads:

Discussing controversial classroom subjects such as evolution and global warming, Santorum said he has suggested that “science should get out of politics” and he is opposed to teaching that provides a “politically correct perspective.”

Ray Bolger Dancing

Channel surfing late at night, I sometimes bump into TCM, which of late has been featuring song-and-dance segments from old movies. Here's one segment they showed this week of Ray Bolger (as available on YouTube, with a great dance starting at 1:12).

"Rock 'N' Roll Christmas" - Pictures From Last Sunday

Department Of Misappropriated Analogies - Part VII

At the optician:

Opt: There you go, I tightened your glasses' frames! How does it feel?

Me: This is great! I was getting really, really tired of my glasses always falling off my face, particularly during exercise!

Opt: The heat from your head softens the plastic of the frames, allowing them to flex and distort. You'll have to come in periodically to have that adjusted. It's part of the price we pay to look good!

Me: Like the women who come in periodically for a bit of plastic work. It's part of the price they pay to look good!

Ron Paul, And The Long Haul

The nature of the rules dictates the strategy. If you have proportional allocation rules in a Presidential primary, you get much different kinds of campaigns than if you have winner-take-all rules.

In 2008, Barack Obama's people understood the Democratic Party's proportional allocation rules better than Hillary Clinton's people did. Her media-oriented strategy wasn't attuned to the rules, and wasn't sufficient to derail Obama's more-methodical pursuit of delegates.

In contrast, the Republican Party primary campaign of 2008 didn't look at all like the Democratic Party's campaign, because the GOP's winner-take-all rules dictated a completely-different, more media-oriented strategy. Kamikaze John McCain understood the rules better than anyone else, borrowed heavily, gambled everything he had, and won!

This year, the GOP primary also has proportional allocation rules, which gives candidates with less access to media some hope of success, provided they have sufficient cash to weather the primary season. It suggests that an Obama-like approach might work this time around in the GOP primary.

Ron Paul might just succeed with this strategy:

In a far cry from his ragtag 2008 effort, Ron Paul is looking beyond the traditional early state contests and gearing up for a long primary slog that lasts at least through Super Tuesday.

...The Texas congressman’s long-haul approach is designed to take advantage of new GOP proportional allocation rules that enable candidates to amass delegates without finishing in first place, and to leverage the unique attributes of his campaign — an intensely loyal following and a steady flow of money that will likely enable him to continue for as long as he chooses.

...As of the fundraising quarter that ended Sept. 30, Paul had raised more than $12 million, the bulk of in small donations. Few others in the field can claim an ongoing donor base to raise money from once voting starts winnowing out the candidates.

...He’s put together a more professional team this time around, with a traditional campaign structure. He has spent more than $2 million on ads, including a national cable buy on Fox News, which helped elevate his standing in the latest numbers in Iowa. He’s also been highlighting lesser-examined aspects of his positions, like his opposition to abortion, in an effort to woo social conservatives.