ROLLING STONE: The orders came from the command of Lt. Gen. William Caldwell, a three-star general in charge of training Afghan troops – the linchpin of U.S. strategy in the war. Over a four-month period last year, a military cell devoted to what is known as “information operations” at Camp Eggers in Kabul was repeatedly pressured to target visiting senators and other VIPs who met with Caldwell. When the unit resisted the order, arguing that it violated U.S. laws prohibiting the use of propaganda against American citizens, it was subjected to a campaign of retaliation. “My job in psy-ops is […]
Phawker Presents The Third Installment Of BLOTTO
BY LANCE DOILY It was only about quarter to nine in the morning but what the hell, it’s happy hour somewhere in the world, right? I am sitting on a stool in Murph’s, a barely standing dive bar on Union Blvd. where I spend most of my time when I’m not working, regardless of whether or not I’m supposed to be. The salesman back at the distributor I make deliveries for must have figured out my weakness for the place, as sometimes he’ll space it out so that I have to deliver here up to 4 times a week. If […]
NPR FOR THE DEAF: We Hear It Even When You Can’t
FRESH AIR When writer Allison Pearson was growing up in Wales in the mid-1970s, she thought she knew exactly what it would take to woo David Cassidy, the teen idol who played Keith in The Partridge Family. The color brown. And lots of it. “I had read, when I was a child, that his favorite color was brown, and so for about 18 months during my precious adolescence, I had worn brown,” she says. “And I looked absolutely dreadful in brown because I was a very skinny, sallow little girl. I looked yellow in brown.” But Pearson didn’t only change […]
KOCH SUCKER: Wisconsin Governor Punked By Alt-Weekly Editor Pretending To Be Koch Brother
HUFFINGTON POST: Over at the Buffalo Beast — the former print alt-weekly turned online newspaper founded by onetime editor Matt Taibbi, typically best known for its annual list of “The 50 Most Loathsome Americans” — there appear to be recordings of a phone call between Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and current editor Ian Murphy. Now, why on earth would Scott Walker want to talk on the phone with the editor of an online site in Buffalo? Well, he wouldn’t. But what if said editor pretended to be David Koch of the famed Koch Brothers? Well, that’s a different story altogether, […]
ALBUM REVIEW: Radiohead King Of Limbs
[Artwork by STACEYANN] What can you say about Radiohead that hasn’t already been said? One of the worlds biggest rock bands, and they don’t even play rock music. Anymore, at least. Radiohead’s last album, 2007’s In Rainbows, saw the band create one of their most stunningly melodic and haunting works to date, and all with plenty of healthy-sounding guitars. Just last week they announced that their new album The King of Limbs would be on it’s way shortly. Fingernails whitened with anticipation around the world. PLEAASE GOD LET IT BE GOOOOD went the prayer on everyone’s lips. And then it […]
CINEMA: C’mon Get Happy!
The Unknown Japan film series, which specializes in showcasing obscurities unseen by American audiences, continues tonight at the Belleview. Tonight’s free screening is 1982’s High-Teen Boogie, an adolescent melodrama that serves as a vehicle for the eighteen year-old Masahiko Kond?, who was apparently the Japanese Justin Bieber of his time. In a story designed to make teen girls quiver and melt, Masahiko plays Shou, the wayward leader of a motorcycle gang who gives up his bad boy ways when he falls in love with the dour good-girl Momoko (Kumiko Takeda). You might think that a romantic comedy would be the […]
SECRET HISTORY: Teddy Roosevelt Vs. Bigfoot
[Artwork by SHARPWRITER] Artist’s rendering of this little-known, but game-changing moment in American history.
ABOUT LAST NIGHT: Pimping PIFA’s Savoir Faire
BY LAURA WESTERMAN To rev up the press and bloggerati for Philadelphia Festival of the Arts (PIFA), which kicks off April 7 and runs through May 1, the Kimmel Center hosted a media reception last night to showcase some of the fashion and food purveyors that will play a role in the arts festival: Le Bec Fin, Fork, Parc, R2L and Wolfgang Puck. Whilst I stocked up on free champagne underneath the Kimmel Center’s beautiful glass dome, spoke to the PIFA organizers, witnessed a small fashion show and tasted delicious food samples – including Wolfgang Puck’s famous crêpes (the banana […]
WARNING: Kochtopus Spotted In Downtown Madison
THE CAP TIMES: The billionaire brothers whose political action committee gave Gov. Scott Walker $43,000 and helped fund a multi-million dollar attack ad campaign against his opponent during the 2010 gubernatorial election have quietly opened a lobbying office in Madison just off the Capitol Square. Charles and David Koch, who co-own Koch Industries Inc. and whose combined worth is estimated at $43 billion, have been recently tied with Walker’s push to eliminate collective bargaining rights for public workers. The two have long backed conservative causes and groups including Americans for Prosperity, which organized the Tea Party rally Saturday in support […]
BLOODBATH: Hundreds Dead As Qaddafi’s Goon Squads Go House To House Hunting Protesters
[Photo by ENEMYKE] NEW YORK TIMES: Vowing to track down and kill protesters “house by house,” Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi of Libya tightened his grip on the capital, Tripoli, on Tuesday, but the eastern half of the country was slipping beyond his control. A bloody crackdown drove protesters from the streets of Tripoli, where residents described a state of terror. After a televised speech by Colonel Qaddafi, thousands of his supporters converged in the city’s central Green Square, wearing green bandannas and brandishing large machetes. Many loaded into trucks headed for the outlying areas of the city, where they occupied traffic […]
Phawker Presents The Second Installment Of BLOTTO
BY LANCE DOILY I’m still not sure what I did to get the Singac American Legion put on my route for the third straight week, but there’s no point complaining about it. You see, this woman Amy is in charge of handing out the truck runs in the morning, normally the most demeaning job in the company due to our fierce stubbornness and fiery tempers. But over the years she’s built up an impressive portfolio of dick pictures we’ve all been coaxed into sending her for one reason or another (for the record, none of us has gotten any further […]
TONITE: We Travel The Spaceways
ARS NOVA WORKSHOP PRESENTS THE CELESTIAL SEPTET (NELS CLINE SINGERS & ROVA SAXAPHONE QUARTET) 8 PM TONIGHT AT INTERNATIONAL HOUSE ARS NOVA: On Tuesday, February 22, Ars Nova Workshop presents the Celestial Septet, an extraordinary union of the Nels Cline Singers and the ROVA Saxophone Quartet. Hitting the road for only 5 concerts, this first date of the tour marks the septet’s Philadelphia debut. Given the significance of this epic collaboration, ANW and local webcast production team web.illish.us will be offering a free live webcast of the concert to audiences outside Philadelphia. Please follow this link to register for the […]
Was Anonymous Trolled By Westboro Baptist Church?
Not sure what exactly is going on here but we are sure enjoying the confusion. First this cease and desist letter to Westboro Baptist Church of Troll appeared on Anonnews.org, an open-source news channel for anons, on February 16th. Note that at Anonnews.org, “anyone can post to the site, and moderators will approve relevant posts. No censorship takes place!”, according to the web site. February 16, 2011 TO THE CONGREGANTS OF WESTBORO BAPTIST CHURCH: We, the collective super-consciousness known as ANONYMOUS – the Voice of Free Speech & the Advocate of the People – have long heard you issue your […]