Konformist Archives: 2002-Present

Finally, The Konformist has an archive on the Website of all regular postings.  The archive goes back to 2003 now, and will eventually include a section on special postings and archives for the 1996-2002 years.  To access the archives, go to the bottom of our Page 2 of regular issues, or go to The Vault page as well...

http://konformist.com/archives/
http://www.konformist.com/page2.htm
http://www.konformist.com/page6.htm

Five Questions: Rob Sterling

Kenn Thomas of SteamshovelPress.com interviewed Rob Sterling of Konformist.com for an upcoming book about the history of conspiracy cyberculture.  Here's the results...

1. What was the original inspiration for The Konformist?

Pot.  Lots and lots of pot.

I was also a big fan of Spy Magazine and Mondo 2000 in the early 90s, and had gotten into The Realist after reading Paul Krassner's Confessions of a Raving, Unconfined Nut.  I also read Jon Vankin's Conspiracies, Cover-Ups and Crimes in 1992 after reading about it in Mondo and the LA Times.  I was pretty sold on conspiracy theories after that.

Then in 1995, I started seeing all this conspiracy culture on the web: Brian Redman's Conspiracy Nation, Steamshovel Press, Feral House & Vankin & John Whalen's Conspire.com.  Here was all this mind-blowing information, and the ability to disseminate it to the masses was suddenly quite plausible.

And that's when it hit me: conspiracy culture was going to become the next big thing, and the Internet was going to be the medium.  So the plan was simple: I would use the Internet to create a quasi-magazine called The Konformist that would present this information with a sense of humor, like Krassner, Spy & Mondo had done before.  The bigger plan was to replicate Orson Welles: he used a new media technology (radio with War of the Worlds) so he could enter the field of motion pictures, his true art-form love like mine.  I released the first Konformist on April Fools Day in 1996, then pretty much went near daily in November after the Clinton reelection.  It got a huge following almost immediately.

I think to quite some degree, I was successful in leading a cultural movement to the masses with The Konformist.  Sadly, I have yet to make a Citizen Kane.


2. How wedded was it to Internet technology at first?

It's kind of funny, while I was so right on so many things (like anticipating the conspire cyberculture) I was also quite limited in my thinking on others.  Like the plan for The Konformist was that it would be a magazine, and by magazine I mean an actual magazine with pages made out of paper.  I didn't have the money for that, but the theory was the Internet version of The Konformist was going to be a practice version of the real thing when I got funding.  It was only after I was into it for over a year that I realized the Internet Konformist WAS the real thing.

Cut to 2012, and Newsweek is soon to die, and the future of mags appears to be paperless, as mainstream mags like Salon & Slate have been pointing to for over a decade.  My guess is we will soon be at the tipping point where nearly all magazines receive over half their readership between tablets and PCs rather than paper, if we aren't already there.  I didn't see that far ahead.

Anyway, a lot of how The Konformist developed was in an almost accidental style.  At first it was delivered by email: I'd see people's email addresses on bulletin boards or Websites and if I thought it would interest them, I would add them to my list.  Technically, I suppose you could call what I did spamming, but hey, you break eggs to make an omelet.  (Jay-Z sold crack.)  Then in 1998 (again on April Fools Day) I opened Konformist.com, and that became a center of special articles.  Later in 1998 I joined eGroups (later Yahoo Groups) and that became the way to distribute Konformist to people by email, now that I was pseudo-legit and had long stopped fishing for readers.  I was actually quite late to the Blog game in 2007, which is a shame, because Blogs are easily the most efficient way to distribute information on the Web at a centralized location.

I think one benefit I had was I wasn't part of the school paper in high school or college.  My thing was always writing fiction, not non-fiction, which is why I still write like a storyteller and not a journalist.  But since I didn't have any uptight loyalty to printed journalism, I was able to embrace things easier.

I may rib on him a lot, but Matt Drudge had a similar evolution with The Drudge Report as I did, and probably for the same reason.  We both didn't really know what the hell we were doing but we knew what worked.  As a side note, one of the earliest mainstream news article (written by the entertaining conservative Jim Pinkerton) that mentioned Drudge also listed The Konformist as a top Internet news source.  Drudge has gotten a bit more news coverage than me since, though.


3. How did you decide what to put in it (i.e, based on the importance of the scandal or the insight of the writer?)

Through the early years especially, the content of The Konformist was very much supply-side dominated.  This was the nature of the beast, as The Konformist literally was ground zero for conspiracy theory through the early 2000s.  If you had a conspiracy theory, and you wanted people to read it, it had to be in The Konformist.  So there was a lot of writers who sent me their stuff, and they were among the best of the cyberculture: Acharya S, Jaye Beldo, Greg Bishop, Barry Chamish, Alex Constantine, Stan Gates, Ian Goddard, Adam Gorightly, Ace Hoffman, David Hoffman, Kathy Kasten, Robert Lederman, SMiles Lewis, Jim Martin, Dave McGowan, John Quinn, Jon Rappoport and Kenn Thomas, among others.

I think besides the supply, the philosophy I had at the time was: "What you are hearing from the establishment is bullshit.  Here's something else."  So if some writing questioned the official version of things, I was heavily inclined to include it.

The last part of the original recipe was my own editorial style.  Like I mentioned, one great source of influence was Spy Magazine.  Of course, aside from a good sense of humor, I have little in common with with those snobby, Ivy-league pricks.  If I was trying to replicate Spy, I failed miserably.  But in a similar vein, when The Ramones started, they were actually trying to sound like The Bay City Rollers.  They failed miserably at that, too.  But somehow, I think having a running undercurrent of humor in The Konformist like there was in Spy (and, in a more similar way to The Konformist, Mondo 2000 and The Realist) was one of the things that really helped make it more digestible.


4. How has that process changed over the years?

Well, one major change is The Konformist no longer is ground zero in the conspiracy game.  The truth hurts sometimes, but that's the truth.

I would say the three sites that dominate the conspiracy cyberculture now are Rense.com, Alex Jones' Infowars.com and Disinfo.com.  And I salute them all.  And I think the main reason why they have succeeded (and I don't say this to diminish the quality of their content) is that they all had the best business plan.  Jeff Rense has a radio show with advertising, Alex Jones has a radio show with advertising, and Disinfo, even without their marketing maestro Richard Metzger, is an excellent book-DVD-etc. media producer.  To quote Al Pacino in the unfairly maligned Godfather III: "I don't need tough guys. I need more lawyers."  I focused on content, and I should've developed a business plan, or at least something that vaguely resembled one.  Because in the end, you can only run on tough guys and adrenaline for so long.

Many writers don't send me their stuff anymore, because they don't need The Konformist anymore.  They can put it on their own website, or put it on Facebook, and it gets out there without me.  That's how it goes when you aren't ground zero.

Also, I have increasingly shunned right-wing views.  That's my own editorial decision.  I've concluded that even when the right challenges the official version, their version is just as equally bullshit in its own right, and I have little patience for bullshit.

I would say since The Konformist is less supply-dominated, it has become more my discriminating tastes.  Basically, my philosophy has evolved: the question I now ask: "Would this be fun to read while stoned?"  I even have one popular regular feature (first inspired by my Uncle Fats, a dedicated Deadhead and culinary lover) called "Stoner Cooking" that tips off this philosophy.  So in some ways, The Konformist could be viewed as more entertaining than ever.  But it certainly no longer feels like you've been dropped in the middle of a new and exciting universe like it was when it started.


5. Are people smarter now about parapolitics or less so?

Well, I think conspiracy theory has more become more embedded in our culture.  It's like at the peak of heavy metal popularity in the late eighties, even Whitney Houston and Janet Jackson sang songs with riffalicious guitar licks.  So parapolitics has become something the official narrative needs to acknowledge.  And this is a two-way street.  It would be possible to read The Konformist today and perhaps not think it's a radical conspiracy site.  I don't think it's because my views have softened, but because there isn't a huge chasm between my interests and what mass culture accepts as there once was.

You can see the changes in our 2012 election.  Marijuana legalization was not too long ago considered fringe.  Only a few brave souls (most notably the late great Jack Herer) even discussed the economics behind the conspiracy to demonize and suppress it.  Cut to present, and it's pretty clear that pro-marijuana laws (despite the fight against them by the Democratic Party establishment) are an election goldmine that soon will be embraced.

Or look at GMOs.  When The Konformist first began presenting information about GMOs, nobody really new what the hell we were talking about.  Well, this year, Monsanto, DuPont and others had to spend $45 million to defeat Prop 37 in California (which would have required labelling of GMO foods.)  Yeah, 37 did lose, but when companies have to outspend their opponents 10 to 1 and barely eke out a victory, time is not on their side.

These micro-examples aside, demographic changes support the wider embrace of parapolitics.  As the 2012 election shows, our society is becoming increasingly black, increasingly Hispanic, increasingly Asian, increasingly gay.  And these are groups that are more likely to believe in conspiracy theories, because they are more likely to have been victims of them historically.  I'll even make a prediction on this: the sneering parody of a conspiracy theorist by the establishment as an angry white male will soon be outdated.

On the other hand, it may be that there are less conspiracies now than there were sixteen years ago.  That may sound strange coming from me, but I suspect that may be true.  And I don't mean that as a good thing.  Sixteen years ago, would torture be officially acknowledged by the establishment?  Would legalized assassination be officially acknowledged?  Would the massive criminality by the banking vultures be officially acknowledged?  "Conspiracy" implies a plot of secrecy, which at least means a desire to conceal bad behavior.  Our culture has become disturbingly depraved over the last decade, so there does seem less desire by the establishment to even hide their dirty deeds.

I also wonder if push comes to shove how critical the public's skepticism may be.  There was a lot of Sybian-riding in 2008 over Barack Obama's cynical "Hope & Change" marketing, and had there been more demands on his administration than cult of personality cheering, we wouldn't be experiencing a lost decade like we are now.  And then there's the big one of conspiracy: 9/11, an event which led to the immediate disintegration for most of the public of any critical thinking.  Yes, skepticism of many parts of the 9/11 story are now widespread, but it's after the Neocons got all they want.  If another giant event like 9/11 happens, do I expect people to be any more skeptical of the official line?  Nope.

Who is The Konformist Beast of the Year?

To vote for your pick go to:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/konformist/polls

Or send email to: robalini@aol.com

It's time for the annual pick of The Konformist Beast of the Year.

One nominee was chosen each month from May 2011 to April 2012. Here are the choices:

May 2011: Fukushima Nuclear Disaster
Despite an attempt to suppress the horrifying effects via a collaboration of political leaders and korporate media, strong evidence is quietly accumulating that Fukushima is even worse than Chernobyl.  The coverup by the establishment is not only in Japan and the US, but in the entire industrialized world, where military industrial complexes profit off the false notion that nuclear power is both safe and cheap.

June 2011: Paul Ryan
As reactionary and feckless as the Democratic Party has been in the age of Obama, the GOP has become scary crazy.  Exhibit A: Paul Ryan's 2012 federal budget plan, which would abolish korporate income taxes, estate taxes, taxes on capital gains, dividends and interest, and heavily reduce tax rates on the wealthy while ruthlessly cutting social programs, partially privatizing part of Social Security to Wall Street and fully privatizing Medicare.  Some would call this "Ayn Rand on Crack" (which may be an unfair smear of Ms. Rand, who was at least a gifted writer) yet all but four Republicans in the the HOR and five in the Senate voting for it.

July 2011: Ken Feinberg
Though not particularly well known, Ken Feinberg is a stunningly loathsome individual: as the government-appointed pay czar for the BP Gulf oil disaster, he has squeezed victims to sign off on lowball compensation claims or face long painful legal battles while dealing with personal economic crisis caused by BP's gross negligence.  This is not new: previously Feinberg had done the same screwing victims of Agent Orange, Dalkon Shield and even the 9/11 disaster, bullying them all in lawyer hardball for korporate and insurance giants.  Unsurprisingly, the one time Feinberg hasn't ripped off those he administered as a pay czar is in approving obscene salaries to beneficiaries of the Wall Street Bailout via TARP.

August 2011: John Lipsky
If there's one news story over the last year that just stinks of a frame-up, it's the supposed rape charge and continued harrassment of Dominique Strauss-Kahn, former IMF Managing Director and (until the dubious arrest) leading contender for the French presidency.  DSK was becoming an increasingly strong critic of the neoliberal economic agenda and even suggested the taboo (as far as the US banking system is concerned) of replacing the dollar as the solitary international currency.  He was arrested in New York in potential violation of both international law and diplomacy protocol before any evidence had been properly analyzed, then dumped onto Rikers Island until he resigned, conveniently timed to allow Lipsky to push the Greek austerity plan through.

September 2011: Jersey Shore
The idea that "Reality" TV is manufacturing a more depraved society in America is a conspiracy theory The Konformist has supported for over a decade.  Jersey Shore, the new low in culture trash, is pretty ironclad proof in our book.

October 2011: Peter King
Ten years after 9/11, Congressman King is perhaps the most notorious elected official to engage in anti-Muslim rhetorics that is barely concealed race-baiting against Middle Easterners.  His "Muslim radicalization hearings" give him the stench of a modern-day Joseph McCarthy.

November 2011: Brian Moynihan
That none of the leaders of the big banks have been jailed for their crimes is an outrage: that instead they were given billion in bailouts while homebuyers were given the shaft is a complete offense.  That Bank of America under their CEO Moynihan then tried to gouge customers with a monthly $5 debit card fee was a complete insult to account holders who bailed out the company's ass in the first place.  Fortunately, in the backlash that followed, account cancellations increased by 20% and B of A backed down.

December 2011: Michele Bachmann, Herman Cain, Newt Gingrich, Rick Perry, Mitt Romney & Rick Santorum
The six best arguments for Barack Obama in 2012 are these six jokers, who represented the GOP in the campaign against him.  Whether it be they are true believers or cynical opportunists, the policies and positions of these politicians perfectly exemplify the toxic combination of cluelessness and frightening demagoguery that dominates the Republican Party.  (Ron Paul, despite his many flaws, was once again exempted from Beasthood due to his surprising level of honesty, integrity and principled stands for a politician.)

January 2012: Eric Holder
While most analysis of Obama as a leader focus on the economy, his failures on justice and civil liberties may be his more notorious legacy, a legacy sanctioned by Holder as Attorney General.  The legacy includes sanctioning unauthorized wiretapping, torture techniques and punishing whistleblowers.  Meanwhile, the ruthlessness Team Obama has hunted whistleblowers, along with the push for indefinite detention of supposed War on Terror suspects and the legalization of assassination of Americans, has made a shockingly strong case that Obama is even worse than George W. Bush was on defendingthe Constitution, the supposed primary purpose of a prez.

February 2012: Chris Dodd
Based on their history of attacking freedom of speech, it would be reasonable to assume the GOP would be behind the greatest threat in years to the Internet.  Sadly, that would be false: SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act) may have had some backings by Republicans and right wing business leaders (most notably the repulsive Rupert Murdoch) but in the end it's fair to say it was a Democratic Party bill funded by big Democrat money.  The biggest player was the Motion Picture Association of America, the lobbying arm of the supposed "liberal" Hollywood film industry in Hollywood, whose Chairman is the former Democratic Senator Dodd.

March 2012: Terry Gou
If one is to make a case for the dark side of Apple, item one would be its Faustian collaboration with Foxconn in making its products, all the more offensive due to lack of necessity.  (Unlike most companies, Apple competes in value rather than price, making the extreme exploitation of workers not part of their business model.)  Still, the crude exploitation by Gou's Taiwanese goes far beyond their partnership with Apple and indicts the entire electronics industry.

April 2012: Joseph Kony & Kony 2012
What could be worse than an African war criminal whose deranged pseudo-religious cult of mysticism pushes children into sex slavery and cannon fodder for his theocratic Lord's Resistance Army?  (As Marlon Brando would put it Apocalypse Now: "The horror.")  How about a movement pushed forward by a film that, no matter how well meaning, seems to only the public on a Western invasion of Africa, the real purpose of which seems to be to steal even more natural resources from the continent?


To vote for your pick go to:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/konformist/polls

Or send email to: robalini@aol.com

Konformist Book Club: Hard Target

From HowardGordon.com:

Gideon Davis has settled into the quiet life of an academic and is weeks away from being married when he discovers evidence of an impending terrorist attack on U.S. soil. He brings his suspicions to his ex-girlfriend, FBI Agent Nancy Clement, but her bosses are leery of Gideon's source: a meth-head informant affiliated with a white supremacist group. When their informant is murdered before they can get more details from him, Gideon enlists his brother, Tillman — newly sprung from prison through a presidential pardon — to infiltrate a group of white supremacists who may be involved.

Together, Gideon and Tillman expose the audacious plan to eliminate the entire top tier of the U.S. government during a high-value, mass-casualty attack. With only Nancy's support, Gideon and Tillman go rogue to stop the powerful titan behind the conspiracy before the entire government is toppled.

Touchstone, January 2012
ISBN-10: 1439175829
ISBN-13: 978-1439175828

Amazon URL:

http://www.amazon.com/Hard-Target-ebook/dp/B004T4KRBU/thekonformist

Robalini Gladiators

"Kicking Ass Ten Yards at a Time..."

In 2010, Konformist.com did its first venture in sports sponsorship by backing the Robalini Gladiators fantasy football team in the Cantina Football League. (The league has as its headquarters the Paradise Cantina of Las Vegas, across the street from The Hard Rock Hotel, hence the league's name.) In 2011 the investment paid off: thanks to the adept drafting of Robert Sterling (the Gladiators owner and Konformist chief editor) the team dominated the 16-team league, going 13-2 and winning the league's title at Margarita Bowl II.

Key acquisitions in the draft: Drew Brees as the league's fourth pick, both Wes Welker and Larry Fitzgerald as wideouts, Sebastian Janikowski as kicker, and both the SF 49ers and Baltimore Ravens defenses. But the most important pick came in the seventh round, when the Gladiators took a chance on rookie Cam Newton, who combined with Brees pretty much made this championship team.

(If none of what I said makes any sense, it's because you aren't a fantasy football junkie, which means you have a life.)

The team was so successful that Konformist.com may demand a team name change to the Konformist Gladiators to keep the corporate sponsorship. In any case, to read more about the Gladiators, check out the URL below, and check out the 20-man roster over the season that contributed to this powerhouse. Go Glads!!!

http://football.fantasysports.yahoo.com/f1/732195/11

Starters
QB Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints
QB Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers
WR Wes Welker, New England Patriots
WR Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona Cardinals
WR Brandon Marshall, Miami Dolphins
RB Cedric Benson, Cincinnati Bengals
RB Donald Brown, Indianapolis Colts
TE Tony Gonzalez, Atlanta Falcons
K Sebastian Janikowski, Oakland Raiders
DEF San Francisco 49ers

Backups
QB Vince Young, Philadelphia Eagles
WR Michael Crabtree, San Francisco 49ers
WR Randall Cobb, Green Bay Packers
RB LaDainian Tomlinson, New York Jets
RB Stevan Ridley, New England Patriots
RB Carnell Williams, St. Louis Rams
RB Deji Karim, Jacksonville Jaguars
TE Jeremy Shockey, Carolina Panthers
K Ryan Longwell, Minnesota Vikings
DEF Baltimore Ravens

Konformist Book Club: Coup d'Etat

Ben Coes

Print List Price: $25.99
Kindle Price: $12.99 includes free wireless delivery via Amazon Whispernet
You Save: $13.00 (50%)
Sold by: Macmillan

The wait is over—Ben Coes, whose debut Power Down was called “the must read thriller of the year” (Vince Flynn) is back and at the top of his game with a mesmerizing new novel.

Wanting only a peaceful, obscure life, Dewey Andreas has gone to rural Australia, far from turbulent forces that he once fought against. But powerful men, seeking revenge, have been scouring the earth looking for Dewey. And now, they've finally found him - forcing Dewey to abandon his home and to fight for his life against a very well armed, well trained group of assassins.

Meanwhile, a radical cleric has been elected president of Pakistan and, upon taking power, sets off a rapidly escalating conflict with India. As the situation spins quickly out of control, it becomes clear that India is only days from resorting to a nuclear response, one that will have unimaginably disasterous results for the world at large. With only days to head this off, the President sends in his best people, including Jessica Tanzer, to do whatever it takes to restore the fragile peace to the region. Tanzer has only one viable option - to set up and execute a coup d'etat in Pakistan - and only one man in mind to lead the team that will try to pull off this almost unimaginable task in the nerve-wrackingly short time frame, Dewey Andreas. If, that is, Jessica can even get to Dewey and if Dewey can get out of Australia alive...

Ben Coes has worked at the White House as a speechwriter for the administrations of President Ronald Reagan and President George H.W. Bush. Coes subsequently wrote speeches for Texas oilman billionaire T. Boone Pickens. For more than a decade, Coes has been in private industry, where he is a partner at The Mustang Group LLC. He served as campaign manager for Mitt Romney’s successful run for Governor of Massachusetts and was subsequently invited to be a Visiting Fellow at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. A graduate of Columbia College, where he won the prestigious Bennett Cerf Memorial Prize for Fiction during his senior year, Ben lives in the Boston area with his wife and four children.

Format: Kindle Edition
File Size: 664 KB
Print Length: 480 pages
Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0312580762
Publisher: St. Martin's Press (September 27, 2011)
Sold by: Macmillan
Language: English
ASIN: B004VMV50W

Amazon Kindle URL:
http://www.amazon.com/Coup-dEtat-ebook/dp/B004VMV50W/thekonformist

Amazon Hardcover URL:
http://www.amazon.com/Coup-dEtat-Ben-Coes/dp/0312580762/thekonformist

Amazon Mass Market Paperback URL:
http://www.amazon.com/Coup-dEtat-Ben-Coes/dp/0312580770/thekonformist

Amazon Audio URL:
http://www.amazon.com/Coup-DEtat-Dewey-Andreas-Coes/dp/1455827452/thekonformist

Are You a Konformist?

click to enlarge

From Humbug, Volume 1, No. 11, October 1958

Courtesy of Kenn Thomas of SteamshovelPress.com...

Konformist YouTube Break

Sam Kinison on Late Night with David Letterman (4/13/1990) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JOqRQO21zY

"The Very Thought of You" is from Nat "King" Cole's 1958 Capitol LP of the same name arranged and conducted by Gordon Jenkins. The album is available on CD on the Capitol and Collectors Choice labels.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaYLWSo4fYM

If - Bread
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGfVOdTiUEc

Wings - Band On The Run (Original Video)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBX2dySWGew

Mick Jagger - Invocation of My Demon Brother
This is from the Kenneth Anger film Lusifer Rising.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRlP93FNTHQ

The Chantels - Maybe (1958)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IePTH1PWzAs

Song For The Asking, Live 1969, Simon & Garfunkel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-3BOruHq10

Beethoven: Symphony No. 2 / Abbado · Berliner Philharmoniker
Full-length concert at:
http://www.digitalconcerthall.com/concert/82
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msbZuhrNiEo

1968 Hot Wheels Commercials
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OuCcx_Rcd6o

Peter Levenda March 25, 2011 interview on blogtalkradio, Sinister Forces, Nazis, etc.
Uploaded by tenebroust on Apr 4, 2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kXjpClJ_tZY
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/thestenchoftruth
http://www.platformforthefuture.com/
http://www.tenebroust-thestenchoftruth.blogspot.com/
Here I interview Peter Levenda well known author of books on the Nazi's, Manson, and Freemasonry. We talk about the secret space program, Nazi involvement with NASA. Sinister Forces, the Manson murders. We also discuss "coincidence" and synchronicity. Also the assassination of JFK, hidden history, mind control and the ramifications of this on the psyche of the nation as well as the individuals in it. Find his sinister forces books at: http://www.trineday.com
His other works can be found at Amazon or ordered through any good bookstore. Find him also at:
http://www.sinisterforces.info/

A Public Service Announcement from The Konformist

The hobbit you just called fat? He’s skipping 2nd breakfast. The dwarf woman you called ugly? She spends hours braiding her beard so you can differentiate her from a dwarf man. The Uruk-Hai you just killed? He’s been abused by Saruman. See that Gollum creature with the gangly limbs&large eyes? For 500 years the Ring poisoned his mind. That Elf you just made fun of for crying? She just lost her wizard friend to a Balrog. Put this as your status if you’re against bullying in Middle-Earth.

Scarlett Johansson Naked!!!

Okay, we couldn't get the actual pictures up due to legal restrictions, but here's Konformist Korrespondent Andrew Helsper recreating one of the photos for your enjoyment...

Konformist Book Club: Good Strategy Bad Strategy

The Difference and Why It Matters
Written by Richard Rumelt
Print Editions
$28.00
http://www.randomhouse.com/book/208668/good-strategy-bad-strategy-by-richard-rumelt

Published by: Crown Business Hardcover
On Sale: July 19, 2011
Pages: 336 | ISBN: 978-0-307-88623-1
More Info...

eBook
List Price: $14.99
On Sale: July 19, 2011
Pages: | ISBN: 978-0-307-88625-5
Published by : Crown Business

Clears out the mumbo jumbo and muddled thinking underlying too many strategies and provides a clear way to create and implement a powerful action-oriented strategy for the real world

Developing and implementing a strategy is the central task of a leader, whether the CEO at a Fortune 100 company, an entrepreneur, a church pastor, the head of a school, or a government official. Richard Rumelt shows that there has been a growing and unfortunate tendency to equate Mom-and-apple-pie values, fluffy packages of buzzwords, motivational slogans, and financial goals with “strategy.” He debunks these elements of “bad strategy” and awakens an understanding of the power of a “good strategy.”

A good strategy is a specific and coherent response to—and approach for overcoming—the obstacles to progress. A good strategy works by harnessing and applying power where it will have the greatest effect in challenges as varied as putting a man on the moon, fighting a war, launching a new product, responding to changing market dynamics, starting a charter school, or setting up a government program. Rumelt’s nine sources of power—ranging from using leverage to effectively focusing on growth—are eye-opening yet pragmatic tools that can be put to work on Monday morning.

Surprisingly, a good strategy is often unexpected because most organizations don’t have one. Instead, they have “visions,” mistake financial goals for strategy, and pursue a “dog’s dinner” of conflicting policies and actions.

Rumelt argues that the heart of a good strategy is insight—into the true nature of the situation, into the hidden power in a situation, and into an appropriate response. He shows you how insight can be cultivated with a wide variety of tools for guiding your own thinking.

Good Strategy/Bad Strategy uses fascinating examples from business, nonprofit, and military affairs to bring its original and pragmatic ideas to life. The detailed examples range from Apple to General Motors, from the two Iraq wars to Afghanistan, from a small local market to Wal-Mart, from Nvidia to Silicon Graphics, from the Getty Trust to the Los Angeles Unified School District, from Cisco Systems to Paccar, and from Global Crossing to the 2007–08 financial crisis.

Reflecting an astonishing grasp and integration of economics, finance, technology, history, and the brilliance and foibles of the human character, Good Strategy/Bad Strategy stems from Rumelt’s decades of digging beyond the superficial to address hard questions with honesty and integrity.

Amazon Links
Hard Cover: http://www.amazon.com/Good-Strategy-Bad-Difference-Matters/dp/0307886239/thekonformist
Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004J4WKEC/thekonformist

Robalini Vs. B3 Burrito

On Sunday, May 1st, The Konformist own Robert Sterling went to the NASCAR Cafe in the soon-to-be-closing Sahara Casino on the Las Vegas Strip to battle the 6-pound, B3 Burrito.

Like Sly Stallone in Rocky IV against Ivan Drago, I wasn't just doing this for myself: I was doing it for AMERICA!

One friend of mine noted I had been preparing for this for at least a month. I issued a correction: "Dude, I've been preparing for this my whole fucking life."

It took 50 minutes and was quite painful, but the final score: America 1, Burrito 0.

Perhaps this great act of patriotism inspired our CIA to kill Osama...

Konformist Book Club: The Other End

John Shirley

Kindle Price: $9.99 includes free wireless delivery via Amazon Whispernet
Paperback: $16.95

Do you ever feel you'd like to reboot the world?

Do you ever think that the human world is hopelessly out of balance, blighted, off track, and the only hope is some kind of apocalypse, some sort of "Judgment Day with justice" that would allow the human race to start over--without, ah, certain people?

You know you don't want--and can't believe in--the usual Judgment Days that are predicted and ballyhooed by hysterical, superstitious people.

But when you look around at the world as it stands you see Darfur, you see Somalia and the Congo, you see the modern slavery of indentured servitude, you see children sold into prostitution, you see millions starving, you see mindless wars, you see people you care about dying of Alzheimer's and children dying of cancer and millions of others trapped in schizophrenia or living lives of media-hypnotized desperation...

And you know that it's only going to get worse. This can't go on; something has to change.

What if you could change it? What if you could design your own Judgment Day? Not a Judgment Day based on childish interpretations of religion, on bias and cultural narrowness...

What if you could design a Judgment Day, for the whole world--one that offers real Justice?

What would it be like?

In John Shirley's novel, THE OTHER END, a wave of light shatters the world's assumptions; human behavior takes a sudden unexpected turn. Swift, a newspaper reporter, has to find his missing daughter in a panicking world even as something from Every Where makes millions of people suddenly look inward. And looking inward, strangely, takes them outward again...

And then come the Adjustors. Who are they? Where exactly are they from? They say they're not angels, or aliens...Then who are they?

The usual End Timers offer one End of the World as We Know It...

John Shirley's courageous, genuinely risky new novel offers the other end. The other end of the ideological spectrum; the other end of the world.

Does it involve...aliens? No.

Does it involve God? Not really--but then, it depends on your definition.

John Shirley, the award-winning author of DEMONS, IN DARKNESS WAITING, CELLARS, A SPLENDID CHAOS, ECLIPSE, BLACK BUTTERFLIES, and so much more gives us a totally unexpected Judgment Day. Something is coming, to near-future Earth--to the whole world.

Something is coming that will finally give the human race the chance it never had before... to bring it to THE OTHER END.
From the Author

"As John's first teacher I've been waiting a long time for him to reach his full amazing potential. With this book he breaks the tape." -- Harlan Ellison

John Shirley, the award-winning author of Demons, In Darkness Waiting, Cellars, A Splendid Chaos, Eclipse, Black Butterflies, and so much more gives us a totally unexpected Judgment Day. Something is coming, to near-future Earth--to the whole world.

Format: Kindle Edition
File Size: 380 KB
Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
Publisher: E-Reads (March 27, 2011)
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
Language: English
ASIN: B004U7LZDU

Kindle edition: http://www.amazon.com/The-Other-End-ebook/dp/B004U7LZDU/thekonformist
Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Other-End-John-Shirley/dp/1617562262/thekonformist

Fluffer & Blueboy

Konformist VP of Snuggling Fluffer with her new boyfriend and roommate, Blueboy

Bad Guy Is Dead

Photo courtesy of Konformist Korrespondent Chris H.

Konformist Book Club: Andrew Tully On Everything

Kirby the Konspiracy Boy's latest pick is a collection of articles by Andrew Tully, the late grandpa of Konformist editor Robert Sterling...

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1451549873/thekonformist

Andrew Tully On Everything: A Selection of 100 Syndicated Columns Over 25 Years
Molly Wood Tully, Editor

Price: $10.99 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25.

A selection of 100 syndicated columns by Andrew Tully 1962-1987

Uncle Fats' commentary:

My Mom worked hard all year collecting, editing and publishing this collection of my Dad's columns about, well, everything. He was a great writer who thought about and wrote about just about anything. These are the columns that transcend time, and have to do with subjects more timeless than his usual fare of Washington goings-on. He also wrote about what it was like to grow up Irish Catholic in a small mill town!!!

Paperback: 284 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace (January 26, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1451549873
ISBN-13: 978-1451549874

Vonage: Internet Fraud Artists

Normally, I keep my own personal dealings apart from reporting in The Konformist, but as the case of Vonage now is a news story beyond me, it is time to present to Konformist readers.
A Website, SettlementVonage.com, has been started to deal with the many customers who have been defrauded by Vonage:

A Class Action Settlement Could Affect Your Rights if you became a Vonage customer in the United States, its territories or possessions on or before January 3, 2011, who (1) signed up under a one-or two-month free service promotion, (2) canceled service within ten days of the expiration of your money back guarantee promotion, (3) were charged a disconnection fee, and/or (4) requested cancellation but were thereafter charged regular monthly service fees for service that you did not use after the cancellation request.

A proposed Settlement has been reached in a class action alleging that the above-described promotional offers made periodically by Vonage, or fees associated with termination or cancellation of your Vonage service, were unlawful. The Settlement resolves several claims that challenge Vonage's promotional offers and account cancellation practices. Vonage strongly denies any wrongdoing, but has agreed to settle to avoid the burden and cost of further litigation. The sole purpose of this notice is to inform you of the Settlement so that you may decide what to do.

If the Settlement is approved, a settlement fund of $4,750,000 in cash will be created. Class Members who submit Claim Forms may receive monetary benefits between ten ($10) and eighty ($80) dollars per claim depending on the type of claim and establishment of eligibility. Please visit http://www.settlementvonage.com/ for details. You may also choose to exclude yourself from, or object to, the Settlement. The Court has appointed attorneys to represent the Class. You may hire your own attorney, but only at your own expense...

For a full description of the Settlement, related Court documents, and deadlines and forms, please visit:

http://www.settlementvonage.com/.


For what it's worth, I found Vonage to be such a shockingly dishonest company I would never use their services ever again, even for free. I would in the strongest terms advise anyone who even contemplates for a second on using their telecom services to think again, as they have a track record of deception that this lawsuit is only beginning to expose. Beware of Vonage...

Awesome Website & Mag: Maxim

Okay, nobody really needs to hear from The Konformist that Maxim and Maxim.com rules. But we'll tell you that anyways. Why? Because they've given us a free subscription to the mag for being a respectable media source. So let them know you heard from Konformist.com how awesome they are. PS: Playboy, Penthouse & Hustler, we'll give you the same plug...

Beast of the Year 2010: Glenn Beck

The votes are in, and The Konformist readers have spoken. Glenn Beck is your choice for the 2009 Beast of the Year - a choice that is well deserved.

One of the two big stories in the year following Obama's first 100 days was the rise of an extremely far right - and an often extremely crazy - movement given the label of "Tea Party" by some, or (more appropriately) "Teabaggers" by others. Point Zero of the Teabagger movement was Glenn Beck and his multimedia empire. Of course, there is nothing new here: during the Clinton years, Rush Limbaugh became a powerful media voice in his own right, and during the era of George W. Bush, Beck's current employer Fox News fueled the rise of Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity, while Ann Coulter became a shrill media commentator in her own right (among others.) So mark Beck down as the latest example of the right wing media darling, the only question being if this self-described rodeo clown will become a harmless buffoon who becomes a self-parody, or if he becomes a figurehead for a frightening reactionary movement. Stay tuned...

Runner-Up: Ben Bernanke

In the unlikely event that Beck can no longer fill its duties as Beast of the Year, Ben Bernanke is ready to take over the crown. Rest assured the BOTY trophy is in good hands either way. As the other big story of the past year has been the continued enrichment of the giant banking monoliths by the US government after the election of Obama, Bernanke, as head of the Federal Reserve, is ground zero of this vast larceny.

In any case, we salute you, Glenn and Ben. Congratulations, and keep up the great work!!!

The 10 best films of 2010

Chris Halverson, Konformist Movie Critic

Hey film buffs - looking back at all the films that were released in 2010 these are what I think are the 10 best from 2010...

10) Shutter Island (Director: Martin Scorsese) It has gotten overlooked since it came out so early in the year, but this was still Scorsese at his Hitchcockian best with great performances from Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo and Ben Kingsley.

9) The Social Network (Director: David Fincher) Not Fincher’s best film (that would still be Zodiac or Fight Club) and slightly overrated by critics who are calling it the film of a generation, but still a well made film that is deserving of praise. And kudos to Jesse Eisenberg for playing the asshole of all assholes and still making him a fascinating character.

8) Black Swan (Director: Darren Aronofsky) Yes, that film about the Bi-Polar/Bi-Sexual ballerina is a major head-trip. But no one can deny it’s topnotch filmmaking. Only Darren Aronofsky can blend together genres (melodrama/thriller/horror/musical/softcore porn) so effortlessly.

7) The Kings Speech (Director: Tom Hooper) The true story of King George VI snuck up me. Gracefully executed and brilliant acting all around.

6) The Fighter (Director: David O. Russell) Hollywood has made a lot of classic boxing films in the past. Surprising it took almost a decade for Mark Wahlberg to get this film about “Irish” Mickey Ward and his crazy brother Dickey made. The wait was well worth it for director David O. Russell and Christian Bale to come on board. A film that is sure to join those great boxing films of Hollywood’s past.

5) Blue Valentine (Director: Derek Cianfrance) A gritty but beautiful film about the beginning and ending of a relationship with Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling giving two of the best performances of the year. This is low budget; independent filmmaking at it’s very best.

4) Inception (Director: Christopher Nolan) Everything about Inception is completely original and brilliant. Name another film that has as many layers going as Inception does. The Academy CANNOT snub Christopher Nolan of a best Direction nomination again. He has to get a nomination.

3) The Town (Director: Ben Affleck) Ben Affleck is the comeback story of the year. A very tight film all around. The chase sequence of the crew getting back into Charlestown and involving the Charlestown Bridge is as good as any chase scene put on film and the final “heist” of a certain Boston landmark just may be the ultimate “heist” that has ever been put on film. This is proof that as he ages, Ben Affleck could have a similar career pattern to Clint Eastwood.

2) Toy Story 3 (Director: Lee Unkrich) Pixar has made yet another gem and has also done something that hasn’t been done since The Shawshank Redemption. A film that, in the end, can bring a grown man to tears.

1) True Grit (Directors: Joel and Ethan Coen) The Coen brothers have pulled of something that has never been pulled off before. Remaking a classic film that is every bit as good and in many ways better then the original. Roger Deakins cinematography is absolutely stunning, Matt Damon and Josh Brolin are perfect, and Jeff Bridges gives another iconic performance. But the two standouts are the criminally underrated Berry Pepper and the young Hailee Steinfeld who gives a star making performance. This is proof that the great American Western still has plenty of life left on the big screen.