Christiern

Many years ago, NARAS did the same thing, nominating a clearly pirated Ellington. At that time, Michael Brooks and I co-wrote a protest letter that was published in Variety. Jazz Icons is an exemplary company and I well understand their outrage, even though the JJA Award is insignificant. I have long wondered what JJA does for its members, other than stroke some egos and collect dues. I recently raised the question on Mandel's blog, but his response did not allay my curiosity.

Of course, being declared a non-planet was a devastating blow to Jupiter and fans throughout the galaxy.

How on earth did President Obama manage that?

A good one, VB II. Roach Motel comes to my mind: "They check in, but they don't check out."

That is nothing new. For years, we heard people walk around with boom boxes spewing out the most horrendous reproduction of sound. The fact that the box carriers seemed to enjoy this has always puzzled me, but I guess that was as much about attracting attention (a la loud-speaking cellphone dummies) as anything. If you are listening to music on a subway via ear buds, you cannot expect matching the sound of good speakers hooked up to good equipment in the right room. True, iPod sound is inferior to that which can be achieved with more elaborate equipment, but it is relatively inexpensive, delightfully mobile, and far more palatable than, say, the sound of street construction or the rumble of a worn, outdated subway train. Mozart's Requiem Mass always sounds bad to me on iPods, and not too good on CDs, but Bozie Sturdivant, Gieseking, Billie, Louis, the Joplins, et al come through very well for me. It is amazing how well an iPod can do with the right earphones—I hate the buds, so do my ears (they reject them).

By "direct contact" you mean the ability to easily contact their support team? They have 400 million active users. Imagine if, when you worked at WBAI, that every inhabitant of North America listened to you every day. Now imagine that, say, 0.1% of those listeners had some beef that they needed to work out - they wanted to make a request or had trouble with their signal or whatever. That still comes out to 400,000 requests every day. That's the kind of scale we're talking about here - even if they hired 1000 people to field such requests they'd still have to tackle them at a rate of almost one every minute just to answer them all. You make a good point, BW. That said, other hugely popular sites somehow manage to respond to e-mail, Amazon, for example. And if the sheer number of subscribers makes direct contact prohibitive, they should give one less reason to attempt such contact—for example, a simple way out.

No whining here, just outrage. a) I am no stranger to online navigation and I have owned a computer for over 30 years. When I first discovered how FB takes control, I began my search for an exit (a permanent one). I did not stop until I received a message that I was now no longer a subscriber to FB. Did it stop the intrusion? You bet it didn't. And when I brought the site up (without logging in) it had my name and welcomed me "back". Fucking bastards! They know what they are doing, that's why they don't let you have direct contact. I sent an e-mail to Facebook.com and received a generic automated response. I got rid of the e-mail address I used when I so foolishly signed up and it did not prevent them from invading my privacy, they found another address for me and urged me to re-register using it. The more I attempt to shake these bastards, the more I discover that I am jus one victim in a rather large crowd of "whiners". You should know, btw that there is a difference between whining and making a legitimate complaint. b) You are right, I have no earthly use for the damn site, which is why I very quickly tried to get out from under it. You may not know that the FB bastards have written their program so that it is a breeze to get in but very difficult—if not impossible—to get out. I find no defense for that sort of thing. I appreciate and tried Bill Barton's step by step exit strategy, but it does not work for me. So, regardless of how I "come across," the fact is that this site is a trap that needs to be investigated.

Nothing personal, but I am convinced that Facebook could not exist without dummies.

Interesting piece BM !—Facebook's devious ways are surfacing and I will support anything that puts them out of business. I think it will take an act of Congress. I'll have to check your profile, BM 2 - now I wonder what I am bouncing my spam to

Thanks. I was congratulating myself for not attracting spam and odd friend requests until I read this... With the possible exception of Mehitabel Geldwasser, I really don't think today's giggly Jonas-Brothers-are-amazing airheads go for the moose look. I could be wrong.

Thanks for the link, Rostasi. That article really sums it up and should be read by all the suckers who—willingly or not—opened themselves to this fucking jerk... Mark Zuckerberg, whose ass needs to be hauled into a hearing room. Sorry, I'm goulding again.

Yep, that site is definitely to be avoided. It would be nice if something like Facebook was available, but in responsible hands. In the last of my many attempts to purge myself there, I came across a schoolmate from my days at Kent College, Canterbury—64 years ago! The first such contact I have ever made, so I can see where such a thing as FB can serve a useful purpose, but do you let a stream of strangers into your house and hope that you actually know one of them? I don't think so. And the spam? It really flows like cheap wine in the Bowery of old. Sorry Bright Moments, I bounced your invitation from O right back. What happened on your end?

Over reacting? Tim, I really don't think so. Facebook is fine for people who find it useful, are lonesome, or just like this sort of socializing. My complaint is that FB locks onto anyone who makes the mistake of signs up or even just gives them a shred of personal info. The way they suck you in and then make it impossible for you to drop them is outrageous and, I submit, an infringement. Believe me, Tim, I am not by any means the only one who has tried to shake thee bastards. Dan and others suggest that one simply change mailbox or re-direct traffic. Sure, there are ways in which one can make it difficult for them to contact you, but why the hell should anyone have to go to that length? If they weren't so damned devious, they would give you a simple option to unsubscribe and have all the stuff they have gathered on you deleted. I am not so sure that someone in authority won't eventually look into that and force these creeps to stay out of other people's business.

Jim, I did not go to the site for over a year, and then only to attempt getting rid of it. Even if one doesn't go there, those damn "invitations" and what-have-you clutter up one's regular inbox. Something really has to be done about this. The mistake is to ever access FB in the first place.

Aggie, deleting them does not work and, if it did, we should not have to go through all that. They should have it so that one or two click ends the association forever! And I don't know why some deli in Honolulu should have me on their mailing list! I have never been to Honolulu and the last time I went to a deli was 40 years ago! I realize that the "invites" come from subscribers and not Facebook itself, but Facebook not only encourages this sort of thing, they facilitate it. As I rummaged around, trying to find the permanent way out, I came across a series of messages from people who were experiencing the same feeling of entrapment. I hope this eventually gets to the attention of the government so that these bastards can be forced to stop.

I finally found a page that allegedly let me "deactivate," but I've been there before and the junk still comes to my inbox. I don't want to deactivate, I want to QUIT! The fact that everything is so convoluted and one cannot directly address these people is proof that they are not being entirely honest. I am not a paranoid sort, but they are obviously holding on to personal information that they are not entitled to. This gets me so mad that I have found myself borrowing from Gould's vocabulary—damn!

I tried it several months ago and thought, for awhile, that I had succeeded. Obviously not, for I keep getting requests from people who want to be my "friend." I know that some of them are legitimate, I mean, people I already know, but most of them are strangers and today it was some deli shop in Honolulu that wanted me as a friend! I just spent far too much time on that site, trying to find a way out, but those goddam bastards don't give you that option! I even went so far as to invalidate my e-mail address, but they quickly found one of my working ones. Guess you can tell that this thing really has me steamed. One option that appeared to be an exit returned a message welcoming me back!!! Who are these fuckers? How does one get in contact with them? If anyone here can tell me, I will be eternally grateful. I strongly advise anyone who values their privacy to stay completely away from Facebook!!! I degoulded the topic title, but remain as mad as ever

Beautiful machine. I have one from that same era, but the horn is built into it. I love that horn and take that it is metal—or is it real wood? Either way, it's a beauty. Also love those needles from Sears.

As I hear it, the problem with bad music is that it isn't good.

Strictly speaking, I think Whiteman beat Benny to it. That said, put the music in its historical context and you will find that it was better than it sounds to you now. This was more than just a historic concert, it was, in many ways, state of the art. Can I interest you in Benny's autograph?

Reckon so

In Jim Sangrey's case the alarm goes off after 5 or 7 minutes. BTW, I haven't ever heard it go off.

I still think it's the Hoffman Forum influence—not at all a good model to follow. Now, about Kate Smith....

Yes, let's move on, but first...how about somebody admitting that he over-reacted, is sorry, and has learned from the experience. Then, indeed, we can move on with some degree of confidence that this was a learning experience for and not a call for defensive postures. We would all like to get back to the obese patriotic singer who had a country placing radio sets on its desks.

Apropos Billy Eckstines mid-forties band...here's an interesting photo.