U2 release at #1. a disappointment?

U2's new cd was released this week and is already doing some good numbers. early reports have it selling at around 750,000 to 1 million copies.

even with all of the apple i-pod related promotions and record company interscope slashing prices, the number still seems a bit low. now if i had a cd coming out and i got a sale like that, i would be over the moon. but, this is U2.

of course the album became "available" on the internet some 10 days before it's official release date. this with the constant push by the music industry to release the next big thing, and fan loyalty at a record low, surely hurt overall sales.

i for one do not agree with file sharing. i have made copies, mix cd's, for myself. i've even made a mix cd for a friend to discover a new band. but what i don't understand is what ever happened to breaking open the plastic cellophane and uncovering all of the goodies inside? a full hard drive is so less exciting.

i hope U2 does well with this album. i haven't heard it yet, but i hear it's good. U2 comes from an era where music meant something, not just a record company's bottom line.

as Bono once said, "at it's least, music is truth."

a tax for every mile

i was reading today that drivers in california might soon be paying taxes for every mile they drive, instead of by the gallon.

on paper i'm sure this sounds good. more money to fix the budget problems in this already struggling state. but let's take a closer look.

how would you track this? a device in your car? log at the pump? and who pays for the instalation? obviously the taxes payers. nice.

what happens if i visit from out of state, do i have to pay the per mile rate or just the tax per gallon?

i'm sure california will shoot this down with the dodo, i know i wouldn't want the government tracking how far i drive each week. maybe i would car pool instead. wait, good idea! less cars on the road, but less gas being used! less tax.

i think the law makers need to look at their spending habbits and less at taxing whenever they get in to a bind.

hey you?! get out of the fast lane!

a verdict, but not an ending

scott peterson was found guilty on both counts of murder yesterday.

as both sides reflect grief, relief and guilt, the verdict now becomes an endless discussion of the case and upcoming appeals.

i was truly shocked that he was found guilty. in a "CSI" world where evidence and reasonable doubt exists, this jury came back pretty quick to deceide a man's fate. especially since there was no crime scene, murder weapon, witnesses, time of death, or confession.

what there's little doubt about is who could/would have killed laci peterson. even with the weak motive that scott wanted out of his marriage, who else really would have wanted her killed?

so the musical chairs jury came back with a verdict after a strange few days of boat rocking and jury booting. some 5 hours of debate and both sides were back in the court room to hear scott peterson's fate.

sighs and tears in the court room as apparently peterson looked straight ahead. cheers outside as if this was a winning college football touchdown. then came the jeers and heckles towards scott peterson's mother. ahhh, classy.

despite the verdict, this is only the begining of the appeals process and debates on how he did it. the catch 22 is on the death sentance. if he begs for mercy from the court to live, he will no doubt have to admit his crime. but if he does, he certainly loses any attempt at appeal. gotta love the justice system. oh, and out of over 600 death convictions in california since the 1970's, only 10 have actually been killed. yeah tax payers.

hopefully this will bring closure and an opportunity for both sides to start to move on and rebuild their lives.

racing towards a boiling point

as nascar continues to open their lead in the u.s. as the top form of auto racing, two series' are locked in a battle that could leave both sides hurting and the fans out in the cold.

since 1996 the drivers and teams of "indy car" style racing have been split. indy speedway owner tony george formed the indy racing leauge (irl) http://www.indyracing.com as a way to lower costs and try and help up and coming american drivers. his feather in his cap has always been the indy 500, which he and his family control and own.

never mind the fact that he fell out of favor with the former board of directors at C.A.R.T. and took his indy "ball" and went home. cart wanted more of the money received from the race and t.v. coverage, george wanted more say in the direction of the series. so, the indy racing leauge was born.

in it's nine year history the league has grown. it's added new teams, drivers, sponsors, and engines. while the old cart series went out of business and is now racing under the champ car world series name http://www.champcarworldseries.com even with the competition limping, the league finds itself at a turning point.

chevy decided to pull their engines after 2005. and, toyota may be gone after 2006. despite new venues and close racing, attendance at the races and t.v. viewership is roughly flat. with costs rising and no american hero, save sam hornish, jr., the series seems to be drifting away from why it was formed in the first place.

champ car world series (ccws) is hardly benefiting. with old cars, barely known drivers, and low sponsorship the series announced a disappointingly smaller 2005 schedule. becoming a more international series and less racing in the u.s. has worked in places like canada and mexico. but poor t.v. coverage and running debts has hurt the series.

fans on both sides fight seriously on the internet chat rooms. blamming eachother, and each series' management. calls for a compromise get laughs or a you blink first attitude.

american fans of open wheel racing are the ones hurt the most. no major stars and no real excitement in years. nascar keeps growning as the general public has no idea what the difference between the irl and ccws is. and with no plans of talking about a unification in the near future, the future is very unsure.

in the u.s. more people know who jeff gordon is than who won indy in 2004 or who won the ccws championship. and that's too bad for the fans.

pathetic parade

now that the dust has settled on election 2004 all of the pundints have come out of their corners swinging.

to say the "right" is gloating would be to understate their position. there's no question they are happy, but to keep saying "this time Bush won" almost discredits the last four years.

but the other side to this really gets me.

to keep saying that the american people have been duped is obsurd. in an election where the vote "mattered more than at any other time" more people came out to vote. and they did so for Bush. if Kerry had won, the spin would be that the get out the vote campains had worked. instead most of the major media seems shocked and down right sad.

insulting the american people, as heartland losers and that the coasts should become a seperate state, really makes me want to buy the major news paper or turn on a cale news channel other than fox news. ;)

the pathetic parade has begun. but, the american people have spoken. in a time when this country has forgotten what happened on 9/11, we are told that most of this country is dumb.

hotdog?