Today the post-
woman brought
me a fart in a

jar. Damn that
voice recognition
AI software—I'd 

asked for a jam 
tart to go with my
morning coffee.

wednesday newstrip

A woman wearing what appears to be leather lingerie has been charged with drink driving following a collision with an e-bike in Sydney’s Moore Park overnight · BidenMyTime called T.®ump the 'sitting President' during January 2024 speech · Lowitja O’Donoghue, celebrated campaigner for Aboriginal Australians, dies aged 91 · Victorian police chief labels protesters who confronted police taking part in a Pride march 'an ugly rabble' · King Charles has reportedly given his blessing to Prince Andrew & Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, to remarry each other · rallies held in support of offshore wind farms as Newcastle, Wollongong residents hopeful of job opportunities · Australian academic Yang Hengjun given suspended death sentence by Chinese court.

Waitangi Day

https://theconversation.com/waitangi-day-2024-5-myths-and-misconceptions-that-confuse-the-treaty-debate-221973

https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/has-this-years-waitangi-day-reached-flashpoint-maori-voices-speak-out/qr5ct96je

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-02-06/maori-protesters-nz-clash-with-nz-prime-minister-waitangi-day/103421202

wednesday newstrip

Australia must consider bringing back conscription as ‘all-out war’ with Russia looms, expert says · NotJustAnyahoo is defiant after UN court ruling, says Israel presses offensive for 'complete victory' · Rip Curl joins Australian swimwear companies in heavy pivot to growing trans market · women over 50 are the new gamers · Pram Minister Anthony Overeasy has been booed by the crowd at the Australian Open tennis men's final · North Korean leader Kim supervises tests of cruise missiles designed to be fired from submarines · activists throw soup at Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa in the Louvre in climate protest.

What AI is up to these days

aka The six-fingered demon who wants to rule the world.

Today the post-
woman brought
me Tropical Cy-
clone Kirrily. I
was blown away.

wednesday newstrip

Israeli Prime Minister BeenJammin’ NotJustAnyahoo rejects US calls for Palestinian state after Gaza war · Māori leaders & others in New Zealand attend a rare national meeting called by the Māori King due to concerns about the new government’s policies on indigenous rights · ex UK Prom Minister Bore-us Johnson says T.®ump back in White House is ‘what the world needs’ · Microsoft discovers state-backed Russian hackers accessed emails of some senior employees · Palworld, aka ‘Pokémon With Guns,’ is tearing up the steam & twitch charts · Jodie Foster is showing us all how to age naturally.

waiting in the wings

We're the red X.

Today the post-
woman brought
me a leporidae
farm. It had

been beautifully
maintained,
not a hare
out of place.

wednesday newstrip

Former New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern ties the knot with Clarke Gayford, as anti-vaxxers picket the wedding · Australian students handed ‘wellbeing shots’ made by subsidiary of British American Tobacco · DoNuts T.®ump returns to court for new E Jean Carroll trial – & it could prove costly · recovering the ‘Aryan worldview’: the Western Australian book publisher under scrutiny over far-right texts · console owners played more Fortnite than GTA V & Call Of Duty combined · “Chicest” is not a proper word, would not even be the best word to suit your intended meaning &, most of all, it's just such an ugly word · UN says Gaza war 'staining humanity' on eve of 100th day as Houthis vow to retaliate against US strike.

Now Out From Otoliths

Otoliths has just released David Jalajel’s Snapshots from the Ark.

David Jalajel
Snapshots from the Ark
b&w
illustrated
138 pages
ISBN: 978-06455483-1-0
$US17.95
Direct URL: https://www.lulu.com/shop/david-jalajel/snapshots-from-the-ark/paperback/product-655yzjy.html?page=1&pageSize=4

Until midnight this Friday, Lulu have a 10% discount running. Promo code: SNOWDAY10. Promo codes for future weeks can be found each Monday at the Lulu Press Facebook page.

Here is a bestiary with a weird taxonomy of “Dead Ducks”, “Dead Dinos” and “Dead Bugs”, describing the bizarre relationships people have with the animals it catalogues. Partially inspired by player mechanics involving video game animals, the relationships portrayed are exploitative, often abusive and always focus on people’s needs and concerns.

Snapshots from the Ark takes John Shoptaw’s maxim that “[h]uman interests cannot be the be-all and end-all of an ecopoem” and turns it on its head by taking human interests as the “nature” poet’s single-minded concern. Each poem zeroes in on a different way people act as if their interests are all that matter. The animals are opportunities to present unflattering and painful portraits of our worst anthropocentric tendencies.

So are they ecopoems? By holding a mirror way too close to our noses, they show us the ugliness of acting with indifference to the creatures who share the world with us. In this way, the poems raise our awareness about the consequences of our actions. Yet, they do so while being zany and fun, like when people clear-cut a forest using a giant crab that whacks down trees with dinosaurs clasped in its claws.

These poems unsettle us, make us uncomfortable, challenge the way we think, and hopefully inspire us to change the way we behave.

     — Flamur Vehapi, from his review on Otoliths

Blurbs

We live in a post-Ark world. And said world’s a bit (or more) messed up. But why would we think the messed-up world that caused the flood would be different after the floodwaters recede? Humanity is… humanity, nothing more and nothing less. David Jalajel’s Snapshots from the Ark is but a metaphor for that comprehension, except that it contains humour. The poet is wise to understand how one of the most effective weapons against evil is humour, and such is also what makes these poems worthwhile:

It has the dead-eyed stare of someone
who’s seen death and lived to tell the tale —

Plus it’s Scottish. And it grins up at you
like a little boy seeing his first pair of boobs.

     — Eileen R. Tabios

Imagine that David Jalajel were in Noah’s shoes, receiving instructions from the deity to form an ark of “gopherwood” covered “inside and outside with pitch” (Genesis 6:14) in which to place pairs of species. We would soon learn the who’s who of beings to be rescued from the ensuing flood: survivors, sea monsters, dead dinos, dead beasts, dead ducks, dragons, and dead bugs. How fitting that David Jalajel employs couplets mirroring the pairs. Each poem speaks to the reader in conversational tone with clarity, caveats, and hilarity. “Ammonite” begins:

That sucker’s
a total crybaby

Just give it
a good slap—

And from “Pegomastax”:

If you see one of these, aim it at
the nearest national bank and run.

They say the perfect pegomastax
can steal your credit card details.

Snapshots from the Ark is a brilliantly envisioned work encompassing all manner of life lessons from observing each being.

     — Sheila E. Murphy

Today the post-
woman brought
me a mid-
life crisis

& a Ferrari
in a color that
matched my
blood’s hot eyes.
  

wednesday newstrip

Israel's Prime Minister BeenJammin’ NotJustAnyahoo says military seeks full control of Gaza-Egypt border · heiress to the L’Oreal cosmetics throne becomes first woman to amass $100 billion · Kanye West’s Aussie wife Bianca Censori ‘laid the smackdown’ before his shock apology after a series of anti-Semitic tirades · Australia went to war in Iraq based on ‘oral reports’ to cabinet from then Pram Minister John Howard · new Queensland dangerous dog law won’t have enough bite, claims RSPCA · nearly 200 names linked to Jeffrey Epstein expected to be made public · the phallus on a prominent Māori sculpture in Te Āpiti – Manawatū Gorge has been cut off by vandals, shocking the stakeholders of the popular reserve.

wednesday newstrip

Apple has been barred from selling one of its best known products amid claims it stole the technology from a much smaller company · Israeli minister hints at retaliatory actions taken in Iraq, Yemen, Iran · Chinese chess champion stripped of title after defecating in hotel bathtub, alleged anal beads cheating · The New York Times sued ChatGPT-maker OpenAI & Microsoft in a US court on Wednesday, alleging that the companies' powerful AI models used millions of articles for training without permission · a frustrated regional council in Western Australia has erected signs warning drivers against using Google maps after GPS-based directions repeatedly sent travelers down unsafe roads · Maine bars DoNuts T.®ump from ballot as US Supreme Court weighs state authority to block former prissygent.

wednesday newstrip

Police appeal for information after barnacle-covered parcels of suspected cocaine wash up on Sydney's coast · 20 flights delayed at Sydney Airport as flash flooding sweeps through city · Joe BidenMyTime says he did not ask BeenJammin’ NotJustAnyahoo for a ceasefire in Gaza, as Iran threatens to block the Mediterranean Sea · Queensland home's Christmas light display so bright it needed Aviation Authority approval · Russia moves Putin opposition politician Alexei Navalny to a prison in the Arctic · “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”, Band Aid’s 1984 charity anthem, has come under fire online for continuing to perpetuate “racist” & “patronizing” stereotypes about Africa nearly 40 years after it was released.

wednesday newstrip

Israeli armed forces killed 3 hostages who were waving white flags “by mistake” · family of four-month-old baby say they found him in a fallen tree after Tennessee tornado destroyed home · Australians are eating more ultra-processed foods amid the rising cost of living · Rudy Giuliani must pay more than $148 million in damages to two former Georgia election workers he defamed through false accusations · debate over race relations rages in Aotearoa / New Zealand as new government repeals key social policies · flights stopped & crocodiles seen roaming streets as severe floods hit Australia’s North Queensland · U.S. affirms support for Israel as calls mount for Gaza ceasefire.

occasionally YouTube has some unexpectedly good suggestions

"St. Andrew’s College is independent and co-educational, with facilities for both day and boarding students from Pre School to Year 13. We have approximately 1350 students, and are the only independent co-educational school in the South Island of Aotearoa / New Zealad.

"We are situated on 13 hectares in the heart of Merivale, a suburb which is only 5 minutes from central Christchurch. Strowan Stream runs through the grounds, and serves as a picturesque backdrop to the historic Strowan House and our Memorial Chapel.

"Our facilities include a purpose built Senior College, a Fine arts and photography centre, a Music performance centre, a professionally equipped film and television studio, gymnasium, the Castle Hill Outdoor Education Centre and the College farm.

"Key features at all levels include:
• a challenging and extensive academic curriculum
• outstanding performing arts, including drama, musical groups, Pipe Band
• a wide variety of sporting teams with committed and highly talented coaches
• an extensive pastoral care and student welfare network.

"We are a Christian school with a long Presbyterian heritage, and are committed to enhancing the spiritual, physical, emotional, cognitive and social development of our students."

wednesday newstrip

U.S. vetoes Gaza ceasefire vote at U.N. Security Council meeting · U.S. is running out of money for Ukraine, Biden administration says · U.S. bypasses Congress to approve sale of 14,000 tank shells to Israel · Europe reaches a deal on the world's first comprehensive AI rules · the current memorandum of understanding commits the U.S. to $3.3 billion in annual Foreign Military Financing to Israel, the largest routine FMF package the U.S. provides on a yearly basis and which alone represents approximately 16% of Israel’s defense budget · Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Notjustanyahoo was forced on Wednesday to deny a report his government had approved a shipment of weapons to Palestinian security forces after hard-right ministers in his coalition expressed outrage · Avril Benoit, head of the Doctors Without Borders (MSF) charity, described the U.S. veto as a “sharp contrast to the values it professes to uphold.”

wednesday newstrip

8 Israeli soldiers killed by friendly fire in northern Gaza Strip in 1 week: Israeli media · high-fat flight is the first jetliner to make fossil fuel-free flight from London to New York · video of 50 Cent concert frenzy in Norway falsely linked to Israel-Hamas war · Russia's Supreme Court effectively outlaws LGBTQ+ activism in a landmark ruling · Shane MacGowan: The Pogues frontman dies aged 65 after eight-year long battle with brain condition · Tesla makes first deliveries of long-delayed Cybertruck, with lower range & higher prices than Elongated Muskrat first announced · Israeli offensive shifts to crowded southern Gaza, driving up death toll despite evacuation orders · at least four people have been killed & dozens wounded by an explosion at a Sunday mass service being held in a university gymnasium in the Philippines · drunk car thief in Aotearoa / New Zealand returns stolen vehicle with apology note & gifts for the owner.

Now out from Sandy Press

Now out from Sandy Press.

Mark Young
Ley Lines II
Sandy Press
ISBN: 978-1-7368160-8-0
100 pages
$US19.95
Available through Amazon

‘As far as I can tell, my first “A line from…” poem used as its prompt words found in a Ron Silliman piece. Jackson Mac Low, Charles Mingus, Paracelsus, Gunter Grass, Friedrich Durrenmatt, & Calvin Coolidge weren’t far behind. But three years before them came “A poem beginning with a line from Foucault” & “A poem ending with a line from Pablo Neruda.” & before them all — in my multiverse, at least — was Robert Duncan’s “A Poem Beginning with a Line from Pindar.”

‘There is a history which is there to be taken advantage of. Chance meetings, long associations, stochastic processes. Google as partner on the dance floor. Out of it, along one — dare I say it? — line, have come more than 500 of these “A line from…” poems, prompted by a random quote from poets, musicians, politicians of many persuasions, scientists, painters, actors, philosophers, as well as all of the U.S. Presidents & some of the sycophantic staff of one of the more recent.

‘So who’ll have the next fangoogle with me?’
–    Mark Young

A sampler is available here.