Science Fiction Protocols

This paper traces a progression towards more intense social satire in the heavily plotted albums, and, as Zappa’s critique expands to comment on real or potential abuses of authority in American society, he comes more and more to employ science fiction (SF) poetics and tropes, what I term here “science fiction protocols”.

The Science Fiction Protocols of Frank Zappa (long, slightly Watsonian read, but looks interesting)

Habemus Conservative Rock-hater

Former cardinal now pope Ratzinger (you know, the guy that made it from Hitler Youth to the Vatican) talks about Pop Devil Music in this 1996 Times article:

[…] he also warned the young against the “subliminal” satanic influence to be found in songs by such groups as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Queen, Led Zeppelin and the Eagles. Vatican officials identified some of the “worst offenders” as Alice Cooper, Black Sabbath and AC/DC, whose initials they claimed referred not to alternating current or even bisexuality, but to the satanic phrase “Anti-Christ, Death to Christ”.

The Eagles, I ask?

Nothing Personal

Concise history of the word asshat:

From what I can trace back from archived IRC chats, the term ‘asshat’ was first used in the large European country of Sweden as an alternative for the word ‘asshole.’  From Sweden, by way of both train and ship, the word found it’s way to the shores of western France, where it was used by a software coder named Louis (LOO-ee) in a telephone conversation with his second cousin in Newfoundland.  This great man was responsible for sending this fashionable European word to North America for all children to enjoy!