First up on this WTK is the opposite of wealth. That term is “illth” and was coined by John Ruskin as a way of giving simple voice to the concept of possessing damage, discontent, or general ill health (physically, economically, spiritually, etc). In Ruskin’s case, and in several applications, this is largely applicable to the people (and actions by those people) who are generally considered wealthy.

Wealth, therefore, is ‘The possession of the valuable by the valiant’; and in considering it as a power existing in a nation, the two elements, the value of the thing, and the valour of its possessor, must be estimated together. Whence it appears that many of the persons commonly considered wealthy, are in reality no more wealthy than the locks of their own strong boxes are, they being inherently and eternally incapable of wealth; and operating for the nation, in an economical point of view, either as pools of dead water, and eddies in a stream (which, so long as the stream flows, are useless, or serve only to drown people, but may become of importance in a state of stagnation should the stream dry); or else, as dams in a river, of which the ultimate service depends not on the dam, but the miller; or else, as mere accidental stays and impediments, acting not as wealth, but (for we ought to have a correspondent term) as ‘illth,’ causing various devastation and trouble around them in all directions; or lastly, act not at all, but are merely animated conditions of delay, (no use being possible of anything they have until they are dead,) in which last condition they are nevertheless often useful as delays, and ‘impedimenta,’ (Unto this Last, 1860)

~ emphasis mine, quote boosted directly from the wikipedia article on illth

Here also is a much more concise description of the difference between wealth and illth from the late Robert Anton Wilson:

Wealth is best conceived as all the changes in the “natural” (prehuman) environment that are to the benefit of humanity and/or other life forms. A bridge that gets you across the river without your having to stop and build a raft is wealth in this sense. So is an airport. So is the furniture in your house. Think of ten other examples.

Illth, a term coined by John Ruskin, can be conceived as all the changes in the environment that are detrimental to humanity and/or to life itself. Weaponry, then, should be classed as illth, not wealth. Think of ten other examples.

~ from a very good article featuring several such concepts on nolanchart.com

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jb0v4ENtVhA

Here is, for example, Robert Kennedy Jr speaking about the illth generated during the previous President’s tenure in office. (via NewIlluminati)

During the course of of his speech(es), he mentions fairly regularly that the kind of environmental shenanigans that the Bush Administration was getting away with, that the corporate capitalists were/are getting away with, would not fly in a true free market capitalist system, which he seemed to convey with passion was generally self-regulating.

Which brings us to the next WTK term Laissez-faire Capitalism, coming from the the French for “let it be”, pronounced roughly as lah-zeh fair. It in this case referring to the market and its participants. (This was not coined The Beatles, though the general “laissez-faire” attitude appears to have perhaps had some influence on them.)

Generally speaking, the term means “let business run unrestricted by government interference”. While this is nice in theory, it of course produces a surfeit of unique challenges. Most of these challenges, this author would suspect, center around the need for a non-passive consumer base. As with any theory of business, government, and economy, there are a variety of different opinions on what exactly laissez-faire in the context of economic theory really means. The wikipedia article alone points to several branches of thought around the theory in general, and the theory as it relates directly to historical events or other philosophical standpoints.

To provide better context, it also helps to understand the basics of capitalism itself.

Capitalism is an economic system in which wealth, and the means of producing wealth, are privately owned.[1][2] Through capitalism, the land, labor, and capital are owned, operated, and traded, without force or fraud, by private individuals either singly or jointly,[3][4] and investments, distribution, income, production, pricing and supply of goods, commodities and services are determined by voluntary private decision in a market economy.

~ Note: There are no references attached to what appear to be footnote numbers in that definition. Which while irksome does allow me to link to the referring page on nolanchart.com, which has several articles from persons of differing opinion regarding the concept of capitalism in its various forms.

These are complicated ideas, fraught with intellectual and philosophical pitfalls. Perhaps the best phrase to concern yourself with? Laissez les bons temps rouler!

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Bottle Rocket – The Go! Team

I was minding my own business when: Digging through my collection I stumbled across a compilation with a few tracks I wanted to get in my list for the day, and opted to listen to the whole thing. This sweet jam surprised me with horns that screamed 70′s movie magic, a record scratched, the beats kicked in, and it went totally apeshit from there. The lyrics spread like hot butter over the tightly woven tapestry of samples and drums. And those awesome horns? They just don’t stop. It’s disco funk, classic rap, peppered with soul.

Look for: In at about a minute fifty, harmonica solo. There’s also a guitar sample or something early in (within the first 15-30 seconds) that I recognize but I can’t place. It’s maddening.

I recommend it if you like: Girl Talk, any of the Bootie crew mashups, (and to a lesser extent) The JAMs.

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www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfx4UH659kQ

This poppy, energetic, tightly executed ditty grabbed me in the first few seconds the way few songs have in a while (since the Fleet Foxes’ White Winter Hymnal, I reckon).

It’s a super catchy balance of techno precision and warm pop sensibilities, wrapped up into three minutes fifty-odd seconds of awesome. The vocals have the adorable lilt that makes people fall in love with artists like Feist, and the kind of simple but well crafted lyrics that make an absolute classic song. I detect little airs of Fleetwood Mac, or maybe Heart or Pat Benetar. There’s a throwback aspect here that I haven’t quite pinned down, but I’ll be happy to listen to again and again to discover. Little disco notes bubble up here and there, adding that particular flavor of jubilant funk to this heady brew.

If you bounced along with Freezepop’s addition to Guitar Hero (or just listened to their albums!) you’ll probably really enjoy this tune’s grin-inducing hoppy beats. It’s not all techno though, throughout you can hear the slide of fingers on guitar strings, providing little organic clues to the musicianship at work.

I’m excited to check out the rest of this album and highly recommend you press play above!

Also, nerd bonus I just noticed: Ender’s Game reference at about 0:45! :D

P.S. Their five song EP, The Robots in Love is only 5$ on Amazon MP3.

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I think I’ve been listening to too much Röyksopp lately. For context, I’ve found myself highly enamored of a certain track off their album The Understanding called “What Else Is There?“. It features vocals provided by Karin Dreijer Andersson from an electronica duo called The Knife (whose album Silent Shout has also been on repeat a lot for me) and I have fallen in love with her unique and expressive voice.

That being said, on the with the description. I was in this housing area, all cheap houses, run down and small. Looking on from a short distance, I saw a huge explosion rip through 3 or 4 of the buildings, seemingly at random. I looked to my companions (who defy description right now, just some people, I can’t remember) and ran towards the damage. I’ve dreamt almost this same thing before, I know it. Sudden fire in run down houses, or an explosion followed by fire. It was chewing up the old, dry buildings.

Then it all reset. Same place, no explosion, none of that. I rode in the mind of someone sneaking through these projects, tiptoeing by back doors and noticing as they all swung open by themselves. Screen doors, all, and cats of different kinds peering out from kitchens or living rooms. Sometimes there were people within, all walking away, not noticing that the door was open. The creeping person was a thief and although no entry was made into any of these houses, the big black bag s/he carried filled up. A small rip showed a blue and white striped piece of terry cloth sticking out. Perhaps the dishes wrapped in the towel to prevent noise? Who knows?

Finally coming to an unremarkable house near the end of the rows, the thief enters and discovers an old man and a fluffy white cat. There’s a moment of mutual surprise, then the cat makes a mad dash for the open door, and the thief follows, trying to track it down through these houses while still remaining silent and unseen, still carrying the full bag. The cat dashes under buildings built off the ground, and finally the thief is able to cut it off at an awkward turn near a wall and snatches the beast up, dragging it back to its master.

There’s a short conversation after that, and the old man says he’s not going to rat out the thief. The thief cautions that there may be some dangerous activity.

Cut to a group of about five or six people. Storm clouds are high, thready, and getting darker, turning the sky to a psilocybin vision of broadly patterned marble. The people are holding onto what appears to be the female end of extention cords, which are all tangled together and tied to a central location, looking to be pipes coming out of one of the houses. They stretch the cords into the road, fanning out in an uneven manner over about a 180° area. A stroke of lightning comes down slowly, almost like a weighted streamer: straight down, but wavering in the air. It is viewed from the eyes of one of the group before it hits them. The power goes through the cords and infuses the others. One by one they begin shouting, calling down the lightning on themselves, despite the presence of others on the scene insisting they stop (but too afraid to act).

There was only one left, hesitant, stupid, afraid of the lightning. The others had disappeared, disintegrated or wandered off or something. The one left walked away. It may have come back to the explosion at that point but I don’t recall.

Other points which are unclear to me now:

• Pulling a large revolver on someone who wanted to come into a house where I lived. It was large and dull and akward.
• Yelling and throwing things at a group of young, grinning hooligans who heaped things in the middle of the yard and doused it in gasoline, intending to set fire to the whole property
• Counciling a very angry young man, sharing tales with him. We were both in Civil War era dress. I slowly went from persuading him to stay, to comforting, to seducing. Anything to distract him from this blind fury.
• A master/husband type figure appearing during the “seduction” phase, unperturbed by the scenario.

Also, for your convenience here are the lyrics to “What Else Is There?”

It was me on that road
But you couldn’t see me
Too many lights out, but nowhere near here

It was me on that road
Still you couldn’t see me
And then flashlights and explosions

Roads end getting nearer
We cover distance but not together

I am the storm I an the wonder
And the flashlights nightmares
And sudden explosions

I don’t know what more to ask for
I was given just one wish

It’s about you and the sun
A morning run
The story of my maker
What I have and what I ache for

I’ve got a golden ear
I cut and I spear
And what else is there

Roads and getting nearer
We cover distance still not together

If I am the storm if I am the wonder
Will I have a flashlights nightmares
And sudden explosions

There’s no room where I can go and
You?ve got secrets too

I don’t know what more to ask for
I was given just one wish

Note: These are just what I found online, I know there is a verse or two missing and maybe a few lines wrong. Care to help me flesh that out?

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The Eagles of Death Metal – The Ballad of Queen Bee and Baby Duck

This song is great. It’s dripping with influence from psychedelic bands of yesteryear and it’s got the silly sensibilities which made Toni Basil’s Mickey so infectious. I really don’t know what to say about this song other than I love it. Don’t let the name fool you, they sound nothing like the Eagles, or death metal. (At least not on this track.)

(P.S. on an unrelated note, it’s my birthday!)

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If you happen to already have the soundtrack to the film Snatch, then you have definitely already heard this. However, if you haven’t I strongly suggest giving it a listen. The song is just like falling snow at midnight: lazy and impenetrable. The harpsichord! The drifting guitar! It’s so dreamy and enjoyable I can’t help being in love.

It is also the first of many songs which I will be posting that are ostensibly about heroin. The reason for this is that I have a theory regarding heroin-themed songs. That theory? They are all really great. I suppose it’s ultimately a matter of taste and some people may find the subject matter a bit too distasteful or too uncomfortable but I have to say that I have yet to discover a song about heroin that I didn’t like.

(P.S. I have not, nor do I necessarily endorse, doing heroin. Just clearing that up right now.)

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