Hillary 08 Tee

It's time we face the facts America: WE ARE READY FOR A FEMALE

(TEENAGE SUPERSTAR) PRESIDENT!

Available for US$17.99 at Busted Tees.

Bush On Books

Great poster ad for the Sport Factory Outlet.

Via Adverbox

Senator Larry Craig Action Figure

This past June Idaho Senator Larry Craig was arrested at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport for "lewd conduct" in a men's bathroom - in other words - propositioning an undercover male police officer for sex. The news came out in the media in August and of course he denied all allegations against him, saying he was not gay (yeah, right!). The funny thing is that Larry Craig is a notorious homophobe, voting against bills that enabled same-sex civil unions and to exclude sexual-orientation protection under a hate crimes bill. Recently several men came forward saying that they have had sexual relations or were propositioned by the infamous senator, including a male escort whom Craig was an alleged "client".
To my utter delight I present "The Talking Senator Larry Craig Action Figure"! He stands about 12" tall and wears a t-shirt emblazoned with his declaration: "I Am Not Gay." His limbs are bendable, so you can put him in all sorts of poses... even the famous "wide stance" the Senator refers to. Best of all, THE ACTION FIGURE TALKS! Press the button, and he delivers a portion of his Press Conference... "Thank you all very much for coming out today. I will read a statement: 'I am not gay. I never have been gay." Priceless!!

Available for US$34.95 at Vicale Corporation

What Is This C*nt Doing Here???

I can't believe this! Help, help! Ann Coulter invaded Little-Pumpkins!!

That vile-mouthed Queen of Hate popped up as an ad on my blog via Google Ads and I am SOOOO pissed right now!! The "best-selling author/lawyer/TV political commentator" is a Hater with a capital H and she has no right to post an ad here of all places. She hates gays, Jews, Democrats, immigrants and everyone that isn't a "Pro-life Christian right-wing Bush-loving white Republican. Whenever she has a new book coming out she will spew her venom to spike sales like she did not too long ago by saying that "Jews needed to be perfected by turning Christian" and famous for calling John Edwards "a fag". She also believes that by taking away women's right to vote no Democrat would ever be elected president of the USA again. Bright, huh?

To hell with you Ann Coulter and get out of my blog!

You May Quote Me On That: Napoleon Bonaparte

"Religion is what keeps the poor man from murdering the rich."

Napoleon Bonaparte

Condoleezza Warho

I got this in my e-mail box and had to pass it along. Too good not to be shared...

Via Bleeding Hearts Club

You May Quote Me on That: Margaret Thatcher

"In politics, if you want anything said, ask a man; if you want anything done, ask a woman."

Margaret Thatcher

Miscellaneous Images - Volume One

I've been amassing way too many interesting images lately, as I always have my little Sonny camera on me when I am out & about. I have to say that I've been "rediscovering" Rio de Janeiro - and Brazilian culture in general - after so many years living abroad. Maybe I see the city with a tourist's perspective now or simply just am photo obsessed, not sure. These pictures here are a few (of many) that I keep around looking for the right post to use it in. As the "right post" may not show up anytime soon I decided to group them in "miscellaneous" and publish them anyway. All of these were shot here in Rio, mainly downtown and in Ipanema, and they illustrate a bit of my current experience here.

Carlos Zefiro - Vintage Erotica From Brazil

Carlos Zéfiro was the pseudonym of Alcides Aguiar Caminha, a Brazilian artist who drew underground erotic comics between the 1950's and 1970's. His small publications, or catecismos, were 24-32 pages long, crudely drawn and circulated clandestinely during that time. It was sold discreetly in newsstands and street markets, and slowly developed a cult following. They were the initiation manuals to many young man, before the age of explicit sex magazines and movies. It wasn't until one year before his death in 1992 that Carlos Zéfiro's identity was finally revealed in an interview to Brazilian Playboy magazine. He had hidden this secret identity even from his wife and family, who didn't suspect of his parallel life as an erotic cartoonist. It turned out that he was a public servant and feared legal action against his work, resulting in the loss of his government job. During the dictatorship era in Brazil an investigation began looking into the author of such pornographic work but the results came out inconclusive. Today, his work is very much prized as nostalgia and the original editions of the booklets he published are highly collectible and hard to find.

In 1997, original illustrations from Zéfiro's work were used on singer Marisa Monte's album cover and inserts, bringing a new found interest in his career.

To view more of his original work click here. Warning NSFW.

Globe-Trotting in The Mid-East (or Laura Bush as a Floor Mat)

My dear friend Princess Halleh just returned from one of her many exciting trips to exotic locales across the globe and shared some pictures with me. Her trip to Afghanistan and Dubai looked quite amazing and I picked a few images for Little-Pumpkins readers to enjoy. Besides her always gorgeous smiling self, my favorite image was the Laura Bush carpet, hanging on display in one of the shops. Pretty brilliant!

Thanks HK for the lovely pictures!

The Saggy Jeans Debate

Some American counties are outlawing those oversized saggy jeans, often worn bellow the buttocks with the underwear on display.

A style popularized in the early 1990s by hip-hop artists, are becoming a criminal offense in a growing number of communities, specially in the racially dived American South. Starting in Louisiana, an intensifying push by lawmakers has decided that pants worn low enough to expose underwear poses a threat to the public, and they have enacted indecency ordinances to stop it. Behind the indecency laws may be the real issue - the hip-hop style itself, which critics say is worn as a badge of delinquency, with its distinctive walk conveying thuggish swagger and a disrespect for authority. Also at work are the larger issue of freedom of expression and the questions raised when fashion moves from being merely objectionable to illegal.
Sagging began in American prisons, where oversized uniforms were issued without belts to prevent suicide and the use of belts as weapons. The style spread by way of rappers and music videos, from the ghetto to the suburbs and around the world.

According to Andrew Bolton, the curator at the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, fashions tend to be decried when they "challenge the conservative morality of a society." Like past fashion bans, the prohibitions on sagging are seen by some as racially motivated because the wearers are young, predominantly African-American men.

Personally, I deeply dislike the whole look but I am strongly opposed to any type of censorship at the same time. When I was younger dressing-up was an insintric part of who I was. This "personal statement" was what I stood for and what I didn't want to be associated with, at least in the mind of an young man. The idea of a court ordinance prohibiting my fashion choices seems too dictatorial and old-hat. If politicians can decide what you can or cannot wear, where will it stop?

I see the image below as "threatening to society" as saggy jeans. Where are the ordinances against that?

Via International Herald Tribune

100 Umbrellas - Tokyo

Collaborative group Mirey Hiroki is attempting to raise awareness of mass consumption with their installation using 100 vinyl umbrellas in a mall in Tokyo. In Japan, approximately 130 million umbrellas are imported every year, including 50 - 60 million vinyl ones (according to 2005 statistics). Most vinyl umbrellas are sold at every convenience store and considered to be "disposable". This, of course is leading to a serious environmental problem. Mirey Hiroki calls for end to this mentality for the sake of our future.

Via Tokyo Art Beat

Religion & Politics vs Artistic Freedom or Bin Laden as Jesus

In the 56 years since it was first awarded, the Blake Prize for Religious Art, In Sydney Australia, has not been noted for controversy. But this year's entries for the coveted £6,000 award have caused a chorus of outrage from Christians and Muslims alike. They include a portrait of Osama Bin Laden which, viewed from an angle, morphs into an image of Christ. And just for good measure there is a figure of the Virgin Mary, hands clasped in prayer, with an Islamic burqa concealing her upper body apart from the eyes.
While such exhibits might merely cause raised eyebrows if entered for Britain's always-controversial Turner Prize, the decision to place them on show at the National Art School in Sydney has caused deep upset in Australia, whose 20million population is predominantly Christian.
"The choice of such artwork is gratuitously offensive to the religious beliefs of many Australians," said Prime Minister John Howard. And Labour Opposition leader Kevin Rudd said: "I accept people can have artistic freedom, but I find this painting off, off in the extreme. I understand how people would be offended by it." Glynis Quinlan, spokesman for the Australian Christian Lobby, said: "It's really unfortunate that people take liberties with the Christian faith that they wouldn't dare take with other religions." She described the Bin Laden/Jesus picture as a "big mistake", adding: "Jesus brought a message of love and forgiveness that has nothing to do with terrorism."

Sydney artist Luke Sullivan, creator of the Virgin Mary entry, entitled "The Fourth Secret of Fatima", said his work was intended to pose the question of what was the future of religion.
Queensland lawyer Priscilla Bracks, who painted the Bin Laden portrait entitled "Bearded Orientals: Making the Empire Cross", said it was not meant to compare Jesus to the terror leader but was a commentary on the way Bin Laden had been treated in the media. She was concerned, she said, that Bin Laden would be unintentionally glorified in years to come.

In an astonishing defence, the chairman of the Blake Society, the Rev Rod Pattenden, denied that they were likely to cause harm because "the Christian community doesn't look at art a great deal". (!?)

As always, politicians being politicians. If a controversial subject is on the table (religion, gay weddings, abortion) it's always safer to play conservative and guarantee future votes.

The Blake Prize @ The National Art School in Sydney, via The Daily Mail.

Bush - A Pornographic Portrait in History

Artist Jonathen Yeo has created a collage portrait of US President George W. Bush by cutting up porn magazines. The Bush portrait, currently on display in London, has attracted the wrath of Republicans.

British artist Jonathan Yeo had every reason to be offended. The Bush Library in Texas had yet again rescinded a commission it had given him to paint a portrait of United States President George W. Bush. In the end, though, the artist decided to go ahead with his artistic portrayal of the 43rd president, even if he wasn't getting paid for it -- and created a portrait of Bush using a collage of pornographic images.
The tribute has not gone over well with Bush's supporters. A spokesman for Republicans Abroad International described the portrait as a "cheap stunt" in an interview with the British tabloid The Sun. Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Republican Party in Bush's home state of Texas didn't find much humor in the portrait either. "This picture is very distasteful," he told the paper, adding angrily, "Why would anyone want to make a picture of our president from pornographic material?"

For his part, artist Yeo has reacted calmly to the furore over the smutty visage. "I did it for fun, not to offend," he told the paper, adding that he was "pleased with it."
The artwork, titled "Bush 2007," is currently being shown as part of an exhibition at London's Lazarides Gallery and is available in a limited edition run of 150 prints, each measuring 86 by 56 centimeters. Via Spiegel Online.

Activism Brazilian Style

"The Amazon is 100% Brazilian. Period!!" This banner can be seen in Cinelandia, downtown Rio, in front of Camara Dos Deputados.

" Over crowded classrooms hinder quality teaching." At the same spot there was a peaceful demonstration by the teacher's syndicate as well.

Tropicalia @ MAM

The Museum of Modern Art, MAM, in Rio de Janeiro just debuted it's new presentation "Tropicalia-Uma Revolucao Na Cultura Brasileira" and features works by avant-garde Brazilian artists of the 60's Helio Oiticica, Lygia Clark and Glauber Rocha to name a few. It covers the time between 1967-1972, when the Tropicalismo movement bloomed, and includes samples of paintings, sculptures, music, photography, theatre, graphic arts and fashions of the period. There are several TV sets playing period movies and live performances by the likes of Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso. Part of this show had travelled to museums in Chicago, NYC, London and Berlin before arriving in Rio, which added several more pieces to the exhibit to complete the full Tropicalismo view. The show extends until September 3oTH 2007.