Faking the Funk Since 2002 - August 31st, 2005

Tomorrow, Hurricane Fascism will make landfall on Austin's downtown bar scene, effectively ripping its soul out and flooding it with do-gooders and ... *GASP* ... clean air. Now, I know many of you have recently quit smoking, and for that, I congratulate you. But for those of us who still smoke---me and Johnny Depp being good, and sexy, examples---the smoking ban that goes into effect tomorrow is upsetting, to say the least. Even if you're a non-smoker, you should respect just how unnecessary, unjust, and devastating this ban is. If you don't, here, let me surround you in my nicotine exhalation.

I mean, if it's good enough for Britney, it's good enough for the rest of us.



To celebrate the last night that logic and sanity rules Austin's bar scene, please attend tonight's

SMOKE SLAM

Same slam time, same slam place (8pm at Ego's), but we'll be encouraging poems about/related to smoking. We'll be taking bets on how many cigarettes I can smoke (yes yes, I'm hosting). DJ Hot Wings (aka, Eirik Ott) will be spinning some smoke-inspired tunes. And we'll smoke until we burn down the place ... or our aveoli.

Besides ...

I haven't written about it, because what can I write that doesn't instantly become cliched?

Only this thought keeps returning: My hope is that, out of all of this badness, Americans finally get an up-close-and-personal sense of what it's kinda like to live in about 90% of the rest of this planet. Myself included.

Also: I hope we don't start politicizing this too quickly, if ever. It's irrelevant and explotive to do so.