Every once in awhile in my various diaries here at c99% you will see citations of the philosopher Cornelius Castoriadis, born 1922, died 1997. One of Castoriadis' most important ideas is that of pseudo-rational pseudo-mastery. This came up when Castoriadis was discussing the future, in a quote which I think dates back to the Eighties:

Stepping out of the forest to see all the trees.
Jeffery Sachs Tik Tok video Sunday (H/T Lookout @ Weekly Watch) was a great summation of U.S. aggression and looking at all the trees. It's hard not to see the foolish missteps and rank incompetence pulling at the levers of power in America.

David Lynch entered art as a painter. But then one day he was looking at his in-progress painting, and he thought: Wouldn’t it be better if this were moving? And also if I could hear it? And the brainshower came on, and he eurekaed—film. So that’s what he became about. And. For all time.

Will this term be better, worse, or about the same as his first term? My guess is the latter. In the words of John Prine, "Pretty good, not bad, I can't complain but actually, everything is just about the same". My hope is he pivots from global domination to domestic development, and focuses on this country. One thing's for sure, I'm glad that Biden, Blinky, Jake the Snake, and the rest of that disastrous administration is out of office. However, administrations come and go, but the oligarchs largely remain the same. Meanwhile we have raging fires in the west, a colossal unpayable national debt, and a tentative ceasefire in Gaza. More domestic and global news below the fold...

Afternoon folks!

There's some outstanding blues this week! Starting off with an album from Robert Lockwood Jr, followed by a compilation of Chicago blues from Lacy Gibson, Big Leon Brooks and Andrew Brown. After that, we're officially old school with a compilation of jug band music - great stuff, don't miss it! Then we've got some serious r&b with Hank Ballard & The Midnighters, followed by Tracy Nelson. Finishing up we've got some country-flavored music with The Desert Rose Band and Rodney Crowell.

Enjoy the tunes and have a great weekend!