Grammy Reading

First, check out author Neal Pollack's running blog. An excerpt:

I'm sorry, call me an indie snob if you want, but Tim McGraw is just a country version of "Tuesdays With Morrie." The song, "Live Like You Were Dying," is about a man who gets bad news from his doctor, but doesn't let that stop him from going out and doing adventure sports.

Tim McGraw, how many of your fans can afford to go sky-diving or Rocky Mountain climbing? How many of them even have health insurance? If I found out I were dying, I'd fall into a sobbing heap for about two days, which is what most people would do, and then I'd start figuring out a way to use my sympathetic status so I could sit on the Phoenix Suns bench during the playoffs. Skiing wouldn't be high on my priority list.

Then read his response(s) to the many Salon readers that were offended by his disrespect (I'm trying never, ever to say "dis" again) toward Led:

Green Day found their initial success through the classic punk-rock DYI model, playing fun songs for relatively comfortable kids. It's not their fault they were born into a post-shock, post-rebellion world, or that they found a formula for commercial success. "American Idiot" may not be deep like, say, "Misty Mountain Hop," but what's so wrong with making an anti-establishment statement that's also palatable to the mainstream?

Next, you're off to Jeff Johnson's Fitted Sweats:

lastly, who is the tall guy in the Black Eyed Peas with the long hair who looks like someone stuck some scalding tacks in his undies? Man that fucker is annoying.

Finally, The Rattler has a post regarding the nonsense that is posthumous Grammy awards. Enough. I propose we start a new Grammy category, "Best Whatever by Someone that Died this Past Year". We can get started on this right after we start the new Oscar category, "Best Impersonation of a Nonfictional Character". Seriously. Howard Hughes, Jackson Pollack, Ray Charles, Virginia Woolf, Beautiful Mind dude... and that's off the top of my head. Enough. New categories.