Episode 21:  This expansive episode of the podcast welcomes guest Rantologist and fellow slacker Steve Angiolino, explores our Constitution and Julian Assange, and vibes with the beats of Maceo Plex. Oh, and Patty surprises Christian and Rob, once again, with a real story of our modern world.

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Meandering Rant: “Textification of American Language” by Steve Angiolino

Book Report: The First Amendment and Freedom of Expression

Music Segment: “Vibe your Love” by Maceo Plex.  Here’s the sexy video!

Also mentioned:
Rebel Rave TV - High quality videos of underground dance music culture

Are you old enough to remember when home video cameras first started to become popular and people started bringing them to parties or family things and somehow, whenever a video camera entered the situation, people changed.  You could be having a good meal or conversation and everyone would be relaxed and then some uncle would come through with the say-hi-to-the-camera bit and nervous people got more nervous, and outgoing people turned on the charm, and those in-between just kinda stiffened up and waved “hi” because they didn’t know what else to do?

Then, TV hit the air with a show called “The Real World” where they tried to capture that same social thing where everyone is hanging out together but there just happens to be cameras present?  What happened on that show in 1992 was sort of the same thing that occurred with your technical uncle – people became slightly warped, awkward versions of themselves for the MTV nation, and other people found that entertaining.

What was true in your family setting was true for those 20-somethings in that New York apartment – the camera changes things.

Now everything feels different.  Andy Warhol’s experiment has expanded.  The huge commercial enterprise that is now Reality Television has warped our true sense of what makes up the reality of our lives.

Technology and the interwebs have pushed entertainment into our lives every day in every way.  Videos on our cell phones, pictures and words everywhere; you’re no longer allowed to be shy or stiff.  You must have a joke, a smooth line, a sweet soundbite to share.  In this “I’m always on” world, friends become more like fans and all of us are performing most all of the time.

How can we not be confused by all of this expectation of entertainment?  Is Miley Cirus Miley Cirus today or is she Hanna Montana?  I can’t tell anymore.

In real life, now, people become impatient with those who don’t know their lines.  I’m guilty of it.  Standing in line 10 minutes to get a coffee and the person in front of me doesn’t know what they want when they get up to the counter, and I become so aggravated.  You mean they haven’t checked it all out, already?  They haven’t rehearsed exactly how they’re going to say their order?  They’re not ready for their performance?  Or, how about those people who always need help with their lines – using their cell phone – “Line, please” – to ask their girlfriend what they should get for dinner or what to pick up at the supermarket?

Do you sense it happening at work?  If your boss or some leadership person is speaking to a group of people, don’t you expect them to be perfect?  If they make a gaffe or are repetitive or lose their train of thought, do you lose respect for them?  Not only have we all become performers, but we have seen so much of this stuff, we have become intense critics, too.

You’re going to speak to me; it better be good.

Buddhists believe that reality is a big dream and that we’re all connected because we are all made up of the same essence.  I’m holding tight to that big dream part, because if I’m really connected with Snookie and her housemates from Jersey Shore, I gotta revaluate some things.

< Listen to this meandering rant, and more, on the Crazy like Patty (or Snooki) podcast TSF11 here or on iTunes >

Happy Festivus, You $#&$@ers!

I love it when television becomes our reality.  In my opinion, when it comes to injecting TV reality into pop culture, no other show can hold a holiday candle to Seinfeld.  Recently, an inmate in LA prison embraced the made-up holiday Festivus, from Seinfeld’s 1997 season, to enhance his dining experiences in the clink.  Good for him and Happy Festivus to the free and the less-than-free.  Air your grievances, everyone, because it is a holiday for the rest of us.

• Prison Inmate Tricks Jail into Festivus Perks (Run Time 1:43)
• Seinfeld Montage: Wishing you a Happy Festivus (Run Time 1:54)
• George & Frank Costanza: The Full Story and Experience of Festivus (Run Time 3:09)

Photo of Me taken by a Totally Sane Stranger

What happens when you and over 250-thousand like-minded people show up in the same place at the same time?  You experience lots of interesting, cool, and plan-changing stuff.  Here is my wrap up from the “Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear”…

I was surprised by so many people of my parent’s age:  Call me an ageist or whatever, but I consider Stewart and Colbert representatives of Gen X and Gen Y.  When I showed up in DC and was preparing to go the Rally, I was surrounded not just by folks my age and younger, but by baby boomers and people of my parent’s generation.  Sure, my mom and dad like John Stewart, but I never considered that they would make the trek to a Rally.  So cool that this event inspired sanity-desiring people of all ages to attend.

The Metro turned out to be a bad option:  How could we possibly drive into the event, we thought.  Too much traffic, no place to park? Let’s park further out of the city and take in the beautiful DC Metro, we planned.  Got into the station, waited in line for tickets, waited for train, and it arrives packed like the Japanese Metro at rush hour, but worse. 

People almost falling out when the doors open.  People are smushed body-to-body-to-body-to-body (like Japan) AND they’re dressed like smurfs and aliens (like Japan) AND they are toting signs-on-sticks instead of yakitori-on-sticks.  (OK, the Japanese are too formal to eat on the subway, but I worked the on-a-stick thing in, anyway.)

Via Twitter: Rally for Sanity breaks 19-year Metro Saturday ridership record: http://wldc.us/bR65YC

After a sad attempt to get a cab, we did the old-fashioned thing – we drove in without traffic and found local parking.  That which we feared most was the path to our success.

I didn’t really see any of the actual Rally event:  That’s right; if you were home and watching on TV or the internet, you had a totally different experience.  You saw John Stewart’s moving speech, the Crazy Train/Peace Train/Love Train performances, the matching American Flag sweatsuits. I didn’t.

I, instead, experienced what it was like to be in an immense crowd on the vast Mall in Washington, D.C.  All too far away to see the main show, I and my friends rallied within the Rally with thousands of others.  The people-watching, the sign-reading, the experiencing of the crowd collective was awesome.  It was a beautiful day and we just went with the spirit and great positive feelings of everyone.

Via Internet: Photos of Rally Signs are here.

Via Twitter: So you made it to the Rally for Sanity and couldn’t see or hear? Watch highlights: http://is.gd/gzKry or the entire three hours: http://is.gd/gzKLS

Technology failed me and many others: Yes, I tried to tweet from my BlackBerry.  The network was jammed.  My friend tried to get to the live streaming Rally site on her iPhone.  The network was jammed.  Too many technology-oriented enthusiasts in the same place overloaded everything and made that part of the day really craptacular.  We wanted to give and read live updates, yet the cell phone infrastructure failed us.

I would do it again in a heartbeat and would encourage you to do the same: Overall, it was a great experience.  Positive, smart people all sanely gathered to share ideas. If there are future events of this type, you need to go. But. why wait for others to organize?  I challenge you to do your own gatherings in the spirit of Sanity. Get people together – in person or online – to share information, jokes, ideas, concepts, questions, and conversation.  Keep connected, keep informed, and inspire a positive future.

Also, wear a cool t-shirt and random people will take your picture.

Cheers,

- Patty
@BeingPattyPino

p.s.  Thanks for following me for the little bit I tweeted, thanks for voting in your respective elections, and stay tuned for more podcasts and ideas on The Slacker Factor. (Send us your ideas and participate, too.)

Sadly this will likely be the death knell for the mix-tape as well.  And what am I going to do with my 80′s Metal cassettes??

Tune in to see just how the words in the title actually combine to form a coherent episode of The Slacker Factor.

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Meandering Rant: Business and Competition by Christian

Book Report: Music Piracy by Rob

Music Segment:  Travis Sullivan’s Bjorkestra

Your crack team of Slackers explores what’s real and what’s faux and Patty decides she’s cooler than Snooki in her “Reality is
Overrated” rant. Christian ponders the future of the suprising long-time coming electric car. And we feast our ears on the alt-pop of Draz. Now that’s a show! (or is it?)

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Links:

Meandering Rant: Reality Is Overrated by Patty

Book Report: Electric Cars by Christian

Music Segment:  Sunday Rain by Draz

Borrowed from BT Internet Rangers

I was talking with a buddy of mine who reads the Slacker Factor and he commented that he enjoys the blog and podcast, but he said he thought I was a bit negative at times.  Maybe even bordering on angry on occasion. I certainly don’t view myself as angry.  In fact I know for certain that today the sun came up, a puppy was born, and a baby took his first steps.  So, life is great!

Unfortunately, Glenn Beck still sucks.

From "We Blog Cartoons"

Alright, I admit it.  I have iPad envy… and its not because my iPhone is small.  Well, maybe it is.  Anyway, I was out the other night chilling with the family having some sushi and the table next to me of college kids had a new iPad and were showing it off.  And damn!  It is as cool as it looks on TV.  I haven’t actually had the chance to hold one and play with it but it does look seriously cool.

One thing that can go away is the constant media attention to it.  I can’t turn on the TV or radio without someone talking about iPad this or iPad that.  Its everywhere! Which is probably why they have sold 500k of them already.

Does everyone who writes and article or has a blog feel compelled to write about the thing?  Oh wait.  Anyway, I don’t think I will be able to get a P.O. from the wife to get one anytime soon so I will have to learn to live with envy.

And my iPhone is not small.

Here's to you MTV!

Well, its official.  MTV has announced their focus on Millennials, casting aside Generation X… the generation that made MTV.  Sad news indeed.  I’d like to give a big FU to MTV.  Not just for this recent admission, but for the crap they have been broadcasting for the past 20 years.  There was a time when MTV was about music television.  It was certainly a revolutionary, but simple, concept that changed music forever.  Play popular music but with supporting video.  It changed everything.  No longer were we sitting by the radio listening to music while doing something else.  Now we were completely focused on the music as a total sensory experience.  And when I say focused, I mean sitting like a zombie starring at the TV, one music video after another… completely enthralled.  It was a perfect formula and our generation shaped it.

Then something along the way happened.  Something terrible.  MTV changed focus from what made them great, music television, to a soap opera channel.  I blame the Real World and it was all down hill from there, recently culminating with Jersey Shore.  While this metamorphosis was occurring, MTV did still try to retain the Generation X market via MTV2.  This worked for a while but ultimately failed.  I want my MTV!

As I mentioned, we shaped MTV, but in a way it shaped us as well.  It changed how we absorbed music and how we responded to it on a social level.  Do you remember going into school on Monday after seeing the latest and greatest new MTV Video over the weekend???  MTV Network President Van Toffler said “Millennials are really about authentic reality and family” and that MTV “played up the camaraderie and famliy elements on Jersey Shore to appeal to them”.  What???  Has he seen Jersey Shore???  If this is any reflection on what Millennials are about, or if they are at all being shaped by MTV’s content… God help us all.

Certainly on some level I can understand MTV now focusing on Millennials.   They spend the most time in front of the television and apparently care far less about music than our generation had.  I wonder though, would Gen-Xers spend some of our prime time viewing hours watching MTV if there were still something that appealed to us?  Its hard to say because, despite their recent admission, MTV cast us aside many years ago.  So, again MTV… FU.  How’s that for cynical?

~cg