Taiwan and Tibet: Tens of Thousands protest

Al Jazeera English; Wisdom Quarterly

Taiwanese citizens oppose unification with mainland China (The Guardian)

 

Tibetan self-immolations on the rise

Opposition supporters have staged a demonstration in Taipei to protest against the policies of Taiwan's China-friendly president, in the largest anti-government action since he was re-elected to a second four-year term a year ago. SEE VIDEO

 

"Fury" in Taipei (vcstar.com)

Waving green-colored banners emblazoned with the two Chinese characters for "fury," the theme of the protest, demonstrators called on President Ma Ying-jeou to fire Prime Minister Sean Chen over the lackluster economic performance of the island, which saw growth of less than two percent in 2012.

 

Let my people go: Tibetan Buddhist monastics still set themselves ablaze in western China. The Free Tibet, a UK-based advocacy group, said tenth self-immolation took place outside a monastery in Ganzi in Sichuan province (A.J. 2010).

 

They also demanded that government regulatory bodies stop a consortium widely seen as pro-China from purchasing a mass-circulation newspaper and called for the convening of an all-party conference to discuss Taiwan's ailing social security and pension systems.

 

Gearing up for elections (aljazeera.com)

“The economic situation is very bad,'' said one of the protesters, 29-year-old Andy Chen, who recently returned to Taiwan after several years studying abroad. “It's very difficult for college graduates to find jobs.The government needs to do a lot more.'' More

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(TEDleaks) Sarah Silverman's TED talk on adoption, pee, and other discomforts

Controversy follows Silverman as TED organizer displeased

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"The Bitter Buddha" (comedy)

Wisdom Quarterly, Eddie Pepitone (The Bitter Buddha) via David Feldman (PLAY SHOW)

Fat happy Budai (speakinggod)

"The Bitter Buddha" is coming to theaters and on-demand in late 2012. Screenings and news can be found at TheBitterBuddha (Facebook) and TheBitterBuddha.com. This documentary is an unfiltered look at Eddie Pepitone, a real "comic's comic." His life is on full display in this comedic portrait of creativity, enlightenment, and rage. 

  

A film by Steven Feinartz. Animated segment: audio courtesy of WTF with the Marc Maron podcast. Original animation by Allen Mezquida.
 
"The Bitter Buddha" takes an unconventional journey through the life of one of America's most original comedic voices.

 

"Want to feel like you've discovered something new? That you're watching a comedian poised to hit critical mass? This is your movie."

- The Chicago Tribune

 

Featuring comedians: Eddie Pepitone, Patton Oswalt, Marc Maron, Sarah Silverman, Zach Galifianakis, Paul Provenza, Sean Conroy, Dana Gould, Todd Barry, Todd Glass, Andy Kindler, BJ Novak, James Adomian, Paul Gilmartin, Paul F. Tompkins, Andy Daly, Jen Kirkman, Jim Earl, Leo Allen, Matt Oswalt, Paul F. Tompkins, Rob Huebel, Scott Aukerman, Todd Barry, and more.

  

LISTEN Fridays or archived for 90 days at KPFK.org

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Comedy: Elections vs. Reality (video)

Jimmy Dore, David Feldman; Seth, Xochitl, CC, Ashley Wells, Wisdom Quarterly

War. What is it good for? Absolutely nothing. Politics, on the other hand. What is that good for? Laughs! We would give up paying attention -- if it weren't so tragically FUNNY.

  

Everything will be all right. But while the ride is in motion, we sometimes forget ourselves. Then it can get hair-raising. Is Romney that much of an idiot, Obama that much of a liar, the secret movers and shakers (hidden behind the scenes manipulating the game) that "evil"?

  
HALLOWEEN JOKES

Seven, Wisdom Quarterly
A boy was devouring a sack of candy -- bar after bar -- when the old Zen master walked up to him hollering. 

  

"You stupid fool, you're going to die eating that much candy!"

"My grandfather lived to be 107," the boy explained and kept gobbling away.

 

The old master was surprised. "You mean he lived to be 107 by eating candy?"

  

"No," the boy answered, "by minding his own business."

---------
Q: Why did the cat fall out of the tree?
I don't know, why?
A: Because he was dead.

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COMEDY: KPFK podcast FREE on iTunes

   
Is there compassion and kindness (karuna and metta) in today's cutting comedy? There may not be for those public figures being skewered. But there sure is for the majority of us forced to endure mass media disinformation campaigns and pernicious half-truths and bald-faced untruths of politicians and newsy talking heads.

  

Thank Comedy Central, Stephen Colbert, Sarah "Great Schlep" Silverman, Jon Stewart, Laura Kightlinger, Lisa Lampanelli, Seth MacFarlane, Southpark creators Matt and Trey, and the good ol' boys with the Red State Update!

  

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Sexy Jewish support for the Democrat (video)

Sarah Silverman (sarahsilvermanonline.com); The Young Turks (Posted July 18, 2012)

"I'm listening."

Following The Great Schlep during the last election cycle, comedienne Sarah Silverman gets very racy and even stoops to soliciting to steer Jewish money toward the Democratic candidate. She propositions multi-billionaire, Israel-booster, and gambling magnate Sheldon Adelson:

 

  

"If you give that $100 million to Obama instead of Romney, I will -- well, I won't have sex with you because we're not married and I'm a nice girl," Silverman explains seductively in the video before naming a sex act that includes keeping her clothes on. Ana Kasparian and Cenk Uygur discuss Silverman's indecent proposal to Romney-backer Adelson.
 

But Obama is worse than Bush!

Wisdom Quarterly (COMMENTARY)

Green Party 2012 nominee Dr. Jill Stein (Laura-Chase McGehee/AP)

  
Yes, that's true. Barry Soetoro Obama has put through most of the Bush Dynasty's illegal proposals, much to the surprise of his cousin Dick Cheney.
   
Even Karl Rove is surprised. But the fact is he is a lot less offensive than G.W. Bush, so that his current abuses do not seem so bad by comparison.
  
At least Obama is a great orator like former presidents Clinton and Lincoln. So the question is, "Who's worse, Obama or Romney?" We're not sure.
  
"The devil you know is better than the devil you don't," politicos like to remind us. And rigged American politics (video: Princeton Univ.) are all about picking the "lesser of two evils." Could the Whitehouse made the choice any easier? Willard "Mittens" Romney is a deplorable liar, but at least he's not believable.
  
B.S. Obama is a deplorable liar, yet so many of us believe him. Who's the greater danger?
   
Give us the Green Party candidate Dr. Jill Stein, give us the Comeback Kid Kucinich, give us Ron Paul, we'll even settle for Libertarian nominee Gary Johnson. Better yet, let's undo the farce that we live in a Republic with "democratic" elections and call it by its true names. Blank, blank, and fill-in-the-blank.

Why We Occupy #4 (occucards.com)

We're with Dougie the Dog on this one: We'd rather scissor Sheldon than engage in the futile federal ritual of voting for either Tweedledee or Tweedledum(b) only to be ignored by the military-industrial complex and its actual decision makers. The MIC does not need an official presidency, or the Kenyan they installed, to do what it wants in the name of the US and its partner police states.

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The Funny "Sick Sad World" (comedy)

Allana Bennett "You're Standing On My Neck" (Oberlin.edu); Wisdom Quarterly

Beyond Comedy Central: actress, genius, and comedienne Sarah Silverman, a real flesh and blood "Daria," may get her own NBC network show (Reuters/Fred Prouser).

  

My mother used to beg me to turn the channel halfway through a Daria marathon. “Her voice is irritating,” she would say. “It’s just so monotonous.” And it was. I completely saw her point, but my feelings on the matter were beyond the voice at that point. Daria Morgendorfer was my id.

   

I was a much more idealistic teenager than Daria. In fact, I was (gasp) an optimist. And I still am.
  

VIDEO compilation: Sick Sad World ("Daria," MTV)

   
But when you’re a teenager, especially the particular brand that spent her formative years curled up in front of a television set, you seek out characters that speak to a more hidden part of you -- the part that wishes she had the gumption to say half the things that regularly came out of Daria’s mouth. Watching Daria was like getting a... More

The New Sarah Silverman Show

Tim Malloy, TheWrap.com

NEW YORK - There's a long tradition of edgy comedians sanding down their edges as they try to make themselves generically likable enough to score network sitcoms. Sarah Silverman is NOT  part of that tradition. With NBC soon to decide whether to give her a show in the fall, the "Sarah Silverman Program" star made a joke [about "aborting" a burrito in her belly, tweeted some pictures, and ran afoul of the dreaded Drudge Report. Daria might have said the same thing if MTV writers had been that sharp.] More

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