There are real things that are unforgivable. Saw a totally surprising video about CHOPIN, he of the sublime music, and it's not good in the sick oppressive way. As for WAGNER, I've just studiously avoided/ignored his magnificent music depriving myself. What else, oh well.

asked of anything. And PLEASE don't take this as offensive, but it's about the same way that some people would say they had to do their "own research" about vaxxes.

I mean, the source of the video just on its face appears to have a high degree of credibility, has a large number of videos on other artists suggesting extensive background.

Since I have NO/zero credentials, I can't possibly validate the truth, but am confident that if I spent years doing "research" on it I would find it to be valid. It's enough for me is all I can say.

dose of critical thinking and life experience can separate the chaff.

Teachers everywhere might tremble if their every word were challenged by that question. Cheers, friend.

Last edited Wed Aug 13, 2025, 07:23 PM - Edit history (1)

When YouTube came into my life, it did as "the university" - the sheer variety and volume of information - instructive or not, useful in all kinds of ways, practical or just entertaining, everything/whatever. One of my first impressions was that I learned more from its videos than I ever did from my two academic degrees, which were in general Liberal Arts things.

But beyond all the insights in trends of History, literature, and undreamt-of things - a secondary impression was that History and biography are barely different from plain old gossip, which I've long defended as a word *not* equating to "untrue," mainly highly personal things ruled by changing societal conventions and shaming. So my YouTube curriculum soon turned into delving into historical figures' dirty linens.

Lately, speaking about just the celebrity side of things, just a hint, but this challenge: Name any "Hollywood" celeb who before this had a top of the line reputation and there is a YouTube ready to shock you. At the moment, am thinking of 3 names never to be the same. Just saying, there are scads of movies to see in a totally different way.

The encounter lasted less than 15 seconds, which didn’t exactly leave time to develop a lasting relationship 😁

but I was tired and knocked over a clock and served him melted clock sandwich.

Mine happened because I was recruited by one of my teachers, who was connected to the snobby artist elite scene in Barcelona, needed someone on short notice who could play “música progresiva” on both guitar and keyboards. It was for the release of some incredibly fancy book Dalí was publishing. When it was over, one of the organizers asked how much I was owed for my gig. I wasn’t even told I was being paid, so I said I hadn’t expected anything. He peeled off 1500 pesetas (about $21 at the time) and stuck it in my pocket. I COULD have asked for one of those fancy books, and it never occurred to me. STUPID STUPID STUPID.

Taken one by one, many of these encounters come across as “our paths have crossed.” Obviously, as I got older, and came to be of a “let’s keep in touch” age, more of these encounters turned into acquaintances or even friendships. In 1968, Dalí was a worldwide legend, and I was a nerdy 16 year old kid from the States who spoke passable Castilian and rudimentary Catalan. If Dalí remembered who I was a week after our encounter, I’d be surprised. These days, I have members of the Senate on speed dial (which, believe me, I do not abuse). It’s a much more advanced degree of path-crossing, I promise you.

Dali is boring.

Blah blah blah masturbating, blah blah blah incest blah blah blah.

If you like Surrealism (it's great! You should!) check out the other Surrealists, they are far superior.

So my being seized by "Ascension" in no way extrapolates into pursuing DALI or Surrealism, and certainly not with DALI's extra layer of Fascism/Naziism.

When somebody asks whether I like "Country," I say, not-as-such, I like 2 or 3 songs by 2 or 3 people in several genres, each one its own thing. And the same goes by individual creators: I can't think of anybody whose entire ouevre I foster, the closest I came to it is TCHAIKOVSKY. But I *do* rule out entire genres - jazz and all-rhythm-only-based/no-melody stuff. And I also proscribe individuals who rub wrong, such as Madonna with her boring 1-2-3-4 monotone b.s. But she's just one more of
my abhorred - Nick CAGE, Danny DEVITO, many others, and the obvious political ones.

But take heart, my choosings are beyond subjective, just specific to me, not based on deep insight into the inner core of whatever/whomever, such that no negotiation with the specifics to others is possible.