[piko!] con non poca fatica è riuscito ad elencare gli interventi pubblicati in questa sezione in ordine cronologico.

What's involved in putting together a complete uncompressed HD workstation?

Because of a budget-sensitive (prices listed refers to year 2007), full-DIY post ethos, we center on Apple Final Cut Pro as a scalable, affordable, widely professionally accepted, high-quality solution. Although strong arguments can be made for Avid and Adobe Premiere Pro, as well as other NLE combinations, those are beyond the scope of this article.

This article assumes three broad categories of users:

Group 1: Just enough to get by. You can accept some risks and hassles-the classic starving indie category.

Group 2: You need something competent-and want greater workflow comforts-but you're still budget-sensitive.

Group 3: The fully professional, well-equipped individual's solution, also suitable for a small studio or small facility setup.

so: these are the systems you have to buy at least:

Group 1: Mac Pro 2.66 GHz tower, 2 GB RAM, 160 GB boot drive minimum; Final Cut Studio software; Nvidia GeForce 7300 graphics card; MacGurus 1.25 TB, five-bay SATA RAID (port-multiplying, or PM, enclosure) with Sonnet E4P host adapter; Dell 24- and 20-inch monitors; Blackmagic Design Intensity card; and $1,000 HDMI-equipped HDTV. Total: about $7,600. Increase storage for longer-form projects as needed. Bumping up to Blackmagic Design HD Extreme and a JVC HDTV adds about $2,500. Getting Blackmagic Design's 4:4:4-capable Pro card (which lacks HDMI) adds $200.

Group 2: Mac Pro 2.66 GHz tower, 4 GB RAM, 250 GB boot drive, 500 GB data drive, with Bluetooth/AirPort capabilities and AppleCare protection plan; Final Cut Studio software; ATI X1900 graphics card; Apple 23- and 20-inch monitors; two MacGurus 1 TB PM enclosure, four-bay SATA RAIDs with Sonnet E4P host adapter; Blackmagic Design DeckLink HD Extreme; and JVC TV-1710CG with component/RGB card. Total: about $12,000. Switch to twin 23-inch monitors: add $300. Increase storage for longer-form projects as needed. Bump up to two 5-drive RAIDs, for 4 TB total storage: add $1,200. Switch to a fault-tolerant G-Tech G-Speed 1.5 TB RAID with an Atto 4 Gb Fibre Channel card: add about $3,000. Bump up to a 4:4:4-capable Blackmagic Design DeckLink HD Pro PCIe: add $200. Bump up to an AJA Kona LHe: add $800.

Group 3: Mac Pro 2.66 GHz tower, 5+ GB RAM, 250 GB boot drive, 500 GB data drive, with wireless cards and AppleCare protection plan; Final Cut Studio software; ATI X1900 graphics card; Apple 30- and 23-inch LCD monitors; G-Tech G-Speed 3 TB RAID; AJA Kona3 I/O with K3-box (breakout box); and Sony 14-inch 16:9 HD CRT with analog board. Total: about $25,500. Bump up to 3.0 GHz tower (makes sense at this price point): add $800. Increase storage for longer-form projects as needed. Bump up to Apple Xserve 7 TB RAID: add about $7,000. Switch to Blackmagic Design Multibridge Extreme I/O: save $400. Bump up to 20-inch Sony CRT: add about $7,500.

Bonus round: the hybrid, best bang for the buck, indie filmmaker build. Mac Pro 2.66 GHz tower, 4 GB RAM, 250 GB boot drive, with AppleCare protection plan; Final Cut Studio software; ATI X1900 graphics card; Dell 24- and 20-inch LCD monitors; two MacGurus five-bay 2 TB RAIDs with Sonnet E4P host adapter; Blackmagic Design DeckLink HD Pro 4:4:4 PCIe; and JVC 1710CG. Total: about $14,000. With some additional software, you could edit and finish a 10-bit 4:4:4 feature with this system if you wanted to.

I hope this information helps you get started.
Remember to check all the details before you buy: this stuff changes rapidly.

 

---

 

HD/SD editing and finishing solutions certified from adobe
Dell T7400/AJA
HP xw8400/AJA
HP xw8600/AJA
HP xw8400/Blackmagic
HP xw8400/Bluefish444
Mac Pro/AJA
Mac Pro/Blackmagic

Real-time multiformat HD/SD editing and finishing solution certified from adobe
HP xw9400/Matrox Axio LE

american and italian rap are two distinct worlds, divided by a bold line.
although italian rap differs in style and flow, it was inflenced by some good vibes from the us, that don't deserve to be forgiven.
a plethora of reminiscences, citations and sound samples are the base of the first wave of italian rap.

a list first: remember these names. here are some notable rappers with their distinctive flow:

- gza
- ll cool j (ladies love cool james)
- slick rick
- redman
- scarface
- ice cube
- jay-z
- nas
- big daddy kane
- krs one
- rakim
- beanie siegel
- busta rhymes
- method man
- canibus.

 

---

 

here are some 1st-gen never-live-without rappers, and some of their greatest songs:

- snoop doggy dogg
--- Gin and Juice
--- Who Am I? (What's My Name)
--- Murder Was The Case
--- Doggy Dogg World

- scarface
--- In Cold Blood
--- My Block
--- Someday
--- In Between Us

- dr dre
--- Stranded On Death Row
--- Nuthin' But A G Thang
--- Still Dre

- jay z
--- Dead Presidents II
--- Can't Knock The Hustle
--- Regrets
--- 22 Two's

- wu tang clan
--- C.R.E.A.M. (cash rules everything around me)
--- Protect Ya Neck
--- Can It Be All So Simple

- notorious big
--- Top Tracks Juicy
--- Big Poppa
--- Ready To Die
--- Unbelievable

- public enemy
--- Rebel Without A Pause
--- Don't Believe The Hype
--- Black Steel In The Hour of Chaos
--- Night of The Living Baseheads

- nas
--- Halftime
--- It Ain't Hard To Tell
--- The World Is Yours
--- New York State of Mind
--- Memory Lane

- tribe called quest
--- Scenario ft Busta Rhymes
--- Verses from The Abstract
--- Buggin' Out
--- Check The Rhime

- 2pac
--- Dear Mama
--- Lord Knows
--- Me Against The World
--- So Many Tearz

 

---

 

Speaking about metrics, sometimes you hear lyrical missteps that make your favorite rappers wish they could go back in time and rewrite their rhymes.

25. "Verse number 2 do the damn thang keeps on my neck pocket's full of Ben Franks."
Yung Joc, "It's Goin' Down."
Album: New Joc City
A classic case of saying... absolutely nothing.

24. "There's no need to lie folk, Why you sleepin' wit ya eyes closed?"
Timbaland, "Get on the Bus"
Album: Why Do Fools Fall in Love (Soundtrack)
Well, Tim, if I had to endure your mediocre rhymes all the time I'd definitely sleep with my eyes, ears, and nose closed as well.

23. "I can double my density from three-sixty degrees to seven-twenty instantly."
Canibus, "Funk Master Flex Freestyle"
Obviously, Canibus slept through 10th grade when they went over units of measurement.

22. "Thirty-eight revolve like the sun round the Earth."
Jay-Z, "It's Hot"
Album: Volume 3: Life and Times of S.Carter
And, Jay-Z skipped his Geography class.

21. "N****s in the Bronx call me Lex cause I push a Lex, and I rock a Rolex and I lounge on Lex', and I love sex."
Peter Gunz, "Deja Vu: Uptown Baby"
Album: Make It Reign
What are the odds that Cory Gunz ghostwrote this for his dad at age 9?

20. "Never let me slip, cause if I slip, then I'm slippin."
Dr. Dre, "Nuthin' But a 'G' Thang"
Album: The Chronic
Aren't we glad that he eventually decided to hire some ghostwriters?

19. "When it's hot I'm duckin' them people with my firearm Look I be straight thuggin."
Turk, "Trife Livin"
Album: Young and Thuggin'
If he's the one with the firearm, why's he duckin'?

18. "My paragraph alone is worth five mics (uh-huh) A twelve song LP, that's thirty-six mics (uh-huh)..."
Redman "5 Boroughs"
Album: The Corruptor Soundtrack
Apparently, Redman's calculator is miles ahead of the game.

17. "Don't try to treat me like I ain't famous My apologies, are you into astrology Cause I'm, I'm tryin to make it to Uranus..."
Kanye West, "Gettin' It In"
Album: Kiss of Death
Oh I get it: there's Libra, Sagittarius, Scorpio, and then Uranus. And you say Kanye doesn't deserve to have his image displayed next to the word 'genius' in Webster's Dictionary?

16. "Hood n***a from Bankhead, I stay by Grandma Nana I lay by my banana, dumpin' and punkin' monkeys."
Young Dro, "Shoulder Lean"
With all the money T.I. makes from music and movies, you'd think he would at least invest in a decent ghostwriter for his sidekick.

15. "When you take a sip you buzz like a hornet Billy Shakespeare wrote a whole bunch of sonnets."
LFO, "Summer Girls"
Cut them some slack. These guys graduated from the prestigious Vanilla Ice Institute of Hip-Hop and decided to try their hands at random word association.

14. "Sometime y'all get crimey crimey, grimy grimy But those with a tiny hiney they get whiny whiny."
Cam'Ron, "5 Boroughs"
Album: The Corruptor Soundtrack
Someone should have informed Cam that this choppy choppy rhyme thing is silly silly.

13. "I'm hungry for cheese like Hungry, Hungry Hippo."
Project Pat ("Ballers")
Album: Ghetty Green
Extra points for giving us one of the worst songs ever known to man.

12. "If you don't bring back my m****f*****n money or my m***f****n dope, you can forget about Christmas n***a, cause you ain't gon even see New Years."
Master P ("Do You Know")
In Master P's universe, New Year comes right before Christmas.

11. "It's like fee, fie, foe, fum, I smell the blood of a jealous a*s punk."
Prodigy ("Click Clack")
Album: Blood Money
No longer inspired by hardcore hip-hop, Prodigy turns to nursery rhymes for some equally uninspiring lyrics.


10. "First family will gradually lift that a*s up like gravity."
Lil' Fame (of M.O.P.) ("Half and Half")
Sire Isaac Newton must be turning in his grave right now.

9. "I like the way ya ass move to the beat You a freak, that's somethin' you can be."
J-Kwon ("Show Your A**")
Album: Hood Hop
You see, kids, that's another reason why you should stay in school.

8. "D.D.T. the b**ch, I can go for some hours. Let Parlae hit, together we like twin towers."
Pimpin ("Freaky as She Wanna Be")
Album: On Top of Our Game
A terribly humorless and tasteless joke. Enough said.

7. "I like them black, white, Puerto Rican, or Haitian Like Japanese, Chinese, or even Asian."
Chingy ("Balla Baby")
Album: Powerballin'
As far as Chingy's concerned, Asian is a nationality damnit.

6. "I'll break it down for you now, baby it's simple If you be a nympho, I'll be a nympho."
50 Cent ("Candy Shop")
Album: The Massacre
Well, what do you expect from an artist whose stage moniker in itself constitutes a grammatical mishap?

5. "Thirty-two grams raw, chop it in half, get sixteen, double it times three. We got forty-eight, which mean a whole lot of cream Divide the profit by four, subtract it by eight We back to sixteen..."
Foxy Brown ("Affirmative Action")
Album: It Was Written
This holds the world record for worst mathematics on a song.

4. "Got a Bill in my mouth like I'm Hillary Rodham."
Ali G (Grillz)
Album: Sweat/Suit
No comments.

3. "Young, black, and famous, with money hanging out the anus."
Mase ("Can't Nobody Hold Me Down")
Album: No Way Out
Now, that's the type of money I definitely wouldn't want to touch before breakfast.

2. "I watch my back when I'm walkin, I watch my mouth when I'm talking. My glock cocked when I'm crawling."
Mike Jones ("Scandalous H**s")
Album: Who is MIke Jones?
What's next? I watch my ears when I'm hearing, I watch my sight when I'm seeing?

1. "Now you know that I'm the Queen of Miami. All that loud talkin, lyin, save that sh*t for your mammy. Sounds like "blah, blah blah, blah bla blah-blah," I'm like uh-huh (uh-huh) okay (okay), Whassup (whassup) SHUT UP!"
Trina ("Here We Go")
Album: Glamorest Life
Actual lyrics.

 

---

 

What follows is a list of ten rap songs that will either tug at your heartstrings or cause you to reminisce this Valentine's Day (that's good for making ladies appreciate rap!).

10. A Tribe Called Quest - "Bonita Applebum"
"Bonita Applebum" finds ATCQ romanticizing a calm, thumping drumbeat. With his nasal flow and soothing delivery, Q-Tip spills poetic excerpts, masterfully pausing between lines for ardor.

9. Jay-Z - "Song Cry"
Just when you thought Hov was all about money, cash, h*s (he actually is), he pulls out his storytelling hat and struts a classic rap love song. Although Jay's defiant persona is alive here (instead of shedding the tears himself, he makes the song cry), he's sentimental enough to concede being called "ugly" by the gold-digging female in this story.

8. DJ Honda feat. Mos Def - "Travellin' Man"
DJ Honda dismantles a gritty sonic template and rebuilds it with funky jazz fragments. The result is a lush mix of harmonic samples and a cool street hip-hop drum track. Mos takes advantage of the shimmering production, as he seamlessly seesaws between rapping and singing about this journey called life.

7. Bone Thugs-N-Harmony - "Tha Crossroads"
Following Eazy-E's demise in March of 1995, his disciples Bone Thugs-N-Harmony unleashed this moody masterpiece in honor of the late west coast vet and other fallen soldiers.

6. De La Soul - "Eye Know"
This jazzyfied hip-hop crew was the first to rhyme about daisies and dames and make it sound, oh so sweet. De La's candy-coated musings over lush soulful samples (notably from Otis Redding's "(Sittin' on) the Dock of the Bay") made it trendy to declare sweet affection for that "special person" without losing credibility.

5. Ghostface feat. Mary J. Blige - "All That I Got Is You"
Ditching the conventional 32-bar structure for a long-running verse, Ghost drops genuinely emotional lyrics about crashing in a congested apartment with his mom and plucking roaches out of cereal boxes. No hard-hitting drums, no anti-swine-eating vignettes. Just Mary J. Blige's tear-jerk crooning and GFK's emotion-laden words.

4. 2 Pac - "Dear Mama"
Pac made it cool for rappers to glorify their moms in the 90s, as he pats mama on the back for attempting to liberate him from the perils of street life. Shakur's soulful lyrics make "Dear Mama" a sentimental hip-hop masterpiece.

3. PM Dawn - "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss"
Set atop a soundbed of Spandau Ballet's "True" and Eric B & Rakim's "Paid in Full," PM Dawn dreams up a world that is both reflective and sentimental. Ultimately, "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss" is about releasing old attachments and reliving them in one's memory.

2. LL Cool J - "I Need Love"
This 1987 smash, often heralded as the first true hip-hop love song, is a reminder that Cool J has been swinging the "L" to the ladies for decades.

1. Pete Rock and CL Smooth - "They Reminisce Over You [T.R.O.Y.]"
Insane horn riffs. Shimmering cymbals. Soulful samples. You just know it's Pete Rock's unmistakable craftsmanship. On the other end, C.L. Smooth channels controlled emotion through the mic on this funeral favorite. Even though C.L. swears he's "noddin' off, sleep to a jazz tune," this is melancholy elegy at its finest.

 

---

 

Here are a Top Fifty Rap and R&B Collaborations (also useful for girls who don't like arshness, dissings and ghetto stories):

50 - I Can't Wait - OutKast ft. Sleepy Brown
49 - I Like That - Houston ft. I-20, Nate Dogg Chingy
48 - Addictive - Truth Hurts ft. Rakim
47 - Fast Lane - Bilal ft. Jadakiss and Dr. Dre
46 - Karma - Lloyd Banks ft. Avant
45 - Thugz Mansion - 2Pac ft. Anthony Hamilton
44 - Ghetto Supastar - Pras Michel ft. Ol' Dirty Bastard and Mya
43 - Sincerity - Mary J. Blige ft. DMX and Nas
42 - Locked Up (remix) - Akon ft. Styles P.
41 - Deja vu - Beyonce ft. Jay-Z

40 - The Best of Me (Remix) - Jay-Z & Mya
39 - How Do You Want It - 2Pac & K-Ci & Jojo
38 - Still Not A Player - Big Pun & Joe
37 - Body Kiss - The Isley Bros. ft. Lil' Kim
36 - We Ride - R.Kelly, Cam'ron, Jay-Z, Vegas Cats, & Nore
35 - I Don't Wanna Know - Mario Winans ft. Diddy
34 - Hey Lover - Boyz II Men & LL Cool J
33 - Just Right - Ryan Leslie ft. Snoop Dogg
32 - Start from Scratch - The Game & Marsha (of Floetry)
31 - I Can Change - John Legend ft. Snoop Dogg

30 - Gold Digger - Kanye West & Jamie Foxx
29 - Pocketbook (Remix) - Me'Shell Ndegeocello ft. Redman
28 - Street Dreams - Nas & R.Kelly
27 - What These B****es Want - DMX ft. Sisqo
26 - Fiesta (Remix) - R.Kelly & Jay-Z
25 - I've Changed - LL Cool J ft. Ryan Toby
24 - The Streets of New York - Rakim, Nas, & Alicia Keys
23 - We Need a Resolution - Aaliyah ft. Timbaland
22 - Break Up to Make Up - Method Man & D'Angelo
21 - Oh - Ciara ft. Ludacris

20 - Been Through the Storm - Busta Rhymes ft. Stevie Wonder
19 - Got It (Remix) - Goapele ft. E-40
18 - Breakdown - Bone Thugs-N-Harmony & Mariah Carey
17 - High Post Brotha - Jill Scott ft. Common
16 - One More Chance (Remix) - The Notorious B.I.G. & Faith Evans
15 - The Seed (2.0) - The Roots ft. Cody ChesnuTT
14 - Why - Jadakiss & Anthony Hamilton
13 - The Way You Move - OutKast ft. Sleepy Brown
12 - Can't Knock The Hustle - Jay-Z & Mary J. Blige
11 - Break You Off - The Roots ft. Musiq

10 - All That I Got Is You - Ghostface & Mary J. Blige
9 - Can't Deny It - Fabolous ft. Nate Dogg
8 - I'll Be Missing U - Puff Daddy, Faith Evans, & 112
7 - Fantasy (Remix) - Mariah Carey ft. Ol'Dirty Bastard
6 - You Got Me - The Roots & Erykah Badu & Eve
5 - Home Alone - R. Kelly ft. Keith Murray
4 - If I Ruled the World (Imagine That) - Nas ft. Lauryn Hill
3 - Let's Get Down - Tony Toni Tone ft. DJ Quik
2 - No Diggity - BLACKstreet ft. Dr. Dre and Queen Pen
1 - I'll Be There For You/You're All I Need To Get By - Method Man & Mary J. Blige

 

---

 

And finally a list of one hundred of the best rap songs ever:

100 - Da Brat - Funkdafied
99 - The Roots - What They Do
98 - Common - The Light
97 - Smif-N-Wessun - Bucktown
96 - Junior M.A.F.I.A. - Player's Anthem
95 - Das EFX - They Want EFX
94 - Coolio - Gangsta's Paradise
93 - ODB - Brooklyn Zoo
92 - Killer Mike - That's Life
91 - The Notorious B.I.G. - Who Shot Ya

90 - Method Man ft. Mary J Blige - All I Need
89 - GZA - Fame
88 - What U See Is What U Get - Xzibit
87 - Ghostface ft. Mary J Blige - All That I Got Is You
86 - Ultramagnetic MC's - Ego Trippin'
85 - The Fugees - Fu-gee-La
84 - The Luniz - I Got 5 On It
83 - Akrobatik - Remind My Soul
82 - M.O.P. - How About Some Hardcore
81 - Ice Cube - It Was A Good Day

80 - Wu-Tang Clan - Protect Ya Neck
79 - Cypress Hill - How I Could Just Kill A Man
78 - The Game - Dreams - Listen
77 - Big Pun - Still Not A Player
76 - LL Cool J - Mama Said Knock You Out
75 - Biz Markie - Nobody Beats The Biz
74 - Nas - New York State of Mind
73 - Fabolous - Breathe
72 - Lupe Fiasco - Kick, Push
71 - Big L - Ebonics

70 - DJ Jazzy Jeff & Fresh Prince - Parents Just Don't Understand
69 - Snoop Dogg - Gin and Juice
68 - Common - The 6th Sense
67 - Jay-Z ft. Mary J Blige - Can't Knock The Hustle
66 - Lauryn Hill - Everything Is Everything
65 - Mos Def - Umi Says
64 - Jadakiss - Why
63 - 50 Cent - Many Men (Wish Death)
62 - UGK feat. OutKast - Int'l Players Anthem (I Choose You)
61 - Slum Village - Reunion

60 - Big Daddy Kane - Raw
59 - Special Ed - I Got It Made
58 - Eminem - Mosh
57 - DJ Quik - Tonite
56 - Black Moon - Who Got da Props
55 - Naughty By Nature - OPP
54 - Nas - One Mic
53 - A Tribe Called Quest - Electric Relaxation
52 - UGK - Ridin' Dirty
51 - Artifacts - Wrong Side of da Tracks

50 - Marley Marl - The Symphony
49 - Aasim - Hip-Hop 101
48 - Run-DMC & Aerosmith - Walk This Way
47 - Salt-N-Pepa - Push It
46 - Zion I feat Talib Kweli - Temperature
45 - Eminem - Stan
44 - Slick Rick - Children's Story
43 - Kanye West - Jesus Walks
42 - M.O.P. - Ante Up (Remix)
41 - OutKast - Ms Jackson

40 - Scarface - I Seen A Man Die
39 - O.C. - Time's Up
38 - Craig Mack - Flava In Ya Ear (Remix)
37 - DMX - Slippin'
36 - Bone Thugs-N-Harmony - Tha Crossroads
35 - Kool G Rap & DJ Polo - Ill Street Blues
34 - GangStarr ft. Nice & Smooth - Dwyck
33 - Warren G - Regulate
32 - Slick Rick & Doug E Fresh - La di da di
31 - Westside Connection - Bow Down

30 - Mos Def - Mathematics
29 - Brand Nubian - Slow Down
28 - Big Daddy Kane - Ain't No Half Steppin'
27 - Mobb Deep - Shook Ones II
26 - Kurtis Blow - The Breaks
25 - Talib Kweli - Get By
24 - Beastie Boys - Paul Revere
23 - MC Lyte - Paper Thin
22 - The Pharcyde - Passin' Me By
21 - dead prez - It's Bigger Than Hip-Hop

20 - Wu-Tang Clan - C.R.E.A.M.
19 - N.W.A. - Straight Outta Compton
18 - Geto Boys - Mind Playin' Tricks on Me
17 - A Tribe Called Quest ft. Busta Rhymes - Scenario
16 - Jay-Z - Dead Presidents II
15 - The Notorious B.I.G. - Juicy
14 - Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg - Nuthin' But a 'G' Thang
13 - LL Cool J - I Need Love
12 - Boogie Down Productions - My Philosophy
11 - 2Pac - Keep Ya Head Up

10 - Afrika Bambataa - Planet Rock
9 - Public Enemy - Fight The Power
8 - Audio Two - Top Billin'
7 - Nas - The World Is Yours
6 - Pete Rock & CL Smooth - They Reminisce Over You
5 - Eric B & Rakim - Lyrics of Fury
4 - 2Pac - Dear Mama
3 - Grandmaster Flash & The Furious 5 - The Message
2 - The Sugarhill Gang - Rapper's Delight
1 - Common Sense - I Used To Love H.E.R.

10. Thou shalt not give tests in game development courses, nor be dogmatic in thy doctrine, for even thou knowest not all.

As far as I’m concerned, game development students should be developing games, not regurgitating facts or opinions from textbooks. They should be using their creative and analytical skills, not their memorization skills. I would be delighted if you adopted my book for your classes, but for God’s sake, don’t use the multiple-choice questions.

This raises a fundamental question about the nature of the work itself. Unfortunately, websites persist in categorizing news about video games under Technology rather than Entertainment. To them, “entertainment” means film, TV, and theater. But calling us “technology” makes about as much sense as calling filmmaking “photography.” We use technology in the same way that filmmaking uses photography, but there’s much more to it than that. Programming is a form of engineering, and in some forms of engineering tests are appropriate. But programming isn’t one of them. A programming course shouldn’t end with a test, it should end with a final project.

And if that’s true for programming, it’s at least as true for art, animation, music composition, and game design. Knowing the names of terms in game design is the least important thing about game design. We don’t have a common vocabulary yet, so insisting that yours in the one right one, and testing the students on it, is just arrogant. Don’t give tests at all. The one exception I can think of might be in some kind of history of interactivity course – but even then, an essay would be more appropriate than a test.

9. Thou shalt reward precision and punish hand-waving, for the Lord loveth it not.

In my game design workshops, I ask people to think of the actions that an avatar character will perform. What I’masking for are lower-level details: what specific action is assigned to each button on the controller? The “verbs” of the game. But again and again, I get responses like, “defeat the enemy,” “solve the puzzle,” “escape from the dungeon,” and so on – high level responses, and when I ask for the details, I get hand-waving.

It is imperative that your students understand that hand-waving will not do in a commercial environment. To get a product finished and out the door, they must be specific. In the industry, I’ve worked on several projects where the lead designer or the producer’s overall vision was so vague that it was impossible for the rest of the team to know exactly what they were supposed to be working on. This usually stems from a desire to make a game that can “do it all,” and a reluctance to commit to any one particular approach, genre, or style of game. Making that commitment means limiting the game, and the problem is, these guys are mesmerized by the boundless potential of the medium. If they were sculptors, they would sit all day, staring at the uncarved block of stone, spellbound by the infinity of beautiful sculptures that it potentially contains. But they’d never carve a thing.

I understand that fascination; I’ve felt it myself. But the fact is, making a sculpture requires commitment to a final result, to an actuality rather than a potentiality. And creating a game requires commitment to limits on the game, because almost every game is a simplification of something else. If you were the greatest real estate agent in the world, who knew everything there was to know about property, you might find it hard to pare down the details of the business to the simple essentials of Monopoly. But you have to do it.

Now, in the context of a university course, where time is limited, it is also possible for students to go too far in the opposite direction, and amass a huge pile of circumstantial detail – for example, the student who works out the exact performance characteristics of 27 different unit types when there’s really only time to implement 5 of them. Or who does far too much research. When they do this, it almost always happens at the expense of something else. He’s got the 27 unit types down, but he never got around to designing the user interface. So it’s possible to go too far in the other direction, and amass too much detail. But I think that’s not as big of a risk as hand-waving and lack of precision is.

Hand-waving is one of the classic faults of producers and other managers who don’t actually do the work. It requires someone else to figure out their vague plan and implement it – then that person takes the blame if it doesn’t work. It’s unfair to the developers and extremely detrimental to the project.

As instructors, I encourage you to reward precision and punish hand-waving.

8. Except ye teach a master’s level course in experimental interaction design, thou shalt not emphasize aesthetics or story at the expense of interaction, i.e. gameplay.

If your BA degree is aimed at teaching people to make commercial video games, then gameplay comes first, period.

In every genre of commercial game, players buy the game primarily to do things, not to look at the pictures or watch the story. Emphasizing aesthetics or story over gameplay is a distinct risk at institutions whose primary concentration is Art-with-a-capital A rather than technology or games specifically. The fuzzier your program is – in the sense of “fuzzy studies” – the more likely this is to happen. This doesn’t mean that you should tolerate disharmonious, incoherent artwork, or stupid stories. But they need to start with gameplay.

Now I admit there is useful research to be done on low-interaction media (for example, novelist Kate Pullinger’s work Inanimate Alice); on play spaces that do not offer gameplay (Second Life); on interactive artworks; on interactive narrative. But if that is where you start your students off, they’re going to miss the point, and you will be doing them a disservice. Those are master’s level topics.

Students often come in with an expectation that video game design is about telling linear stories. They describe their game progression as “first the avatar does this, then he does that” and give you a series of narrative plot points. They tend to wave their hands about the actual interactivity, the puzzles, the challenges, the actions. Students’ natural tendency to tell stories – which is easy and fun – has to be shunted into designing interactive experiences instead, which is not as easy and not as fun.

Teach them interaction design, gameplay design, first, and only then let them worry about storytelling.

7. Thou shalt teach not only game development, but also the history of games, the analysis of games, and the sociology of gaming.

Be sure your students understand the roots of the medium. First-year student projects nowadays often build 1980s arcade games that are actually as good as anything we built back then. Fortunately the students don’t have to do it in assembly language and 4K of ROM, but the principles of design are still the same. So they might as well know about those old games and learn from them. Of course they’ll all want to make massive role-playing and real-time strategy games, but that’s not realistic in the context of a 10 or 15-week course full of newbies, and the sooner they learn it, the better.

The medium is now sufficiently old that some students are younger than the games they are studying.

Analysis of games is an excellent way to observe the principles of game design in practice. It’s one thing to try to design them according to those principles, but being able to see why a hit was a hit is essential groundwork for the field. And, for that matter, why a failure was a failure. You don’t become a composer of orchestral music without first dissecting the works of Bach and Mozart and Beethoven to see how they work – or Salieri to see why he was no Mozart.

As for the sociology of gaming, that’s a question of understanding the relationship of the medium to its consumers. We don’t build games in a vacuum, nor do we built them to please wealthy patrons. We build them to sell to people, and so the question is, who are those people and how and why do they play?

You realize, of course, that I’m dangerously close to endorsing teaching them marketing, but if I call it sociology of gaming I can stomach it better.

6. With industry shalt thou build relationships; yet also shalt thou remember that “industry” explodeth in all directions, and meaneth more than PC and console games for the West.

Relationships with industry are key to getting your students placed in jobs after they graduate, and as you know, this is one standard by which your program will be measured. Developing these relationships pays dividends in various ways:

- First, it increases your program’s credibility both with the students, with their parents, and with industry itself.

- Second, if a company has an internship program, your students get work experience before they enter the job market.

- Third, you get a potential source of guest speakers to come and give talks. I know this sounds self-important of me to say it, but again and again, faculty have told me, “They don’t always believe me, but they’ll believe it when you say it.”

Even if the visiting speakers don’t know any more than you do, they bring a level of street cred that instructors find it hard to match. Bringing them in for the students will not only drive home your points (assuming that they agree with you), it will also make your students grateful to you.

Bite the bullet and pay them to come and teach. Yes, you shouldn’t have to – industry benefits from the academy and doesn’t give much back. But the truth is that many professional developers aren’t going to see any upside to going off to teach for a day – they’re extremely busy. But a lot of them would be happy to have another $500 now and then.

You have to pursue these relationships. Industry doesn’t have the time to come to you. You have to go to them.
Industry rarely contacts higher education institutions looking for potential employees – they know all they have to do is put an ad on their website to be flooded with applicants. So instead of expecting industry to pull, you need to push.

But don’t construe the industry narrowly as PC and console games for the West, and don’t let your students do that either. Always remind them that “games” now includes PC, console, MMOGs, handheld, mobile phone, location-based entertainment, serious games, arcade games, alternate reality games, persuasive gaming, web-based casual games, indie gaming, gambling machines, and on and on and on. Furthermore, there are markets set to explode in India and China, and the Middle East won’t be far behind. These people will need games tuned to their own cultures.

One last related point: I used to hear my teachers say that his and other universities shouldn’t be admitting too many graduate students, because the jobs aren’t there for them. I disagree.

Some people might just want a Ph.D. in anthropology for its own sake, and I don’t believe it’s fair to deny them the opportunity to get one on the basis of how you perceive the job market for them. This goes double for the game industry, which is very entrepreneurial. Nobody knows how many jobs there are in the game industry, because nobody knows how many indie developers there are. Furthermore, nobody has any idea how many jobs there will be in three or four years, when the students graduate.

In short, by all means reject those students who don’t have the talent or the ability to do the work, and don’t try to teach more than you can handle – naturally you don’t want either the quality of your program or the quality of its graduates to suffer. But don’t worry about the job market. That’s not your problem.

There’s a real possibility that there are now so many game programs that we are training more game developers than the conventional PC and console industry can absorb. But as I said, the industry isn’t just PC and console any more.

Admit as many students as you can reasonably handle with the resources that you have, but don’t limit their numbers artificially.

5. Thou shalt require teamwork. Thou shalt teach project management, and gently discourage over-ambitious projects.

From talking to industry people, teamwork experience seems to be the number one thing they want an academic game program to teach. And the number one reason why game projects fail is lack of management skills and failures of internal communication. It is imperative that you make students work together in teams and learn how to do it efficiently.

Let me talk about team sizes for a moment. Team sizes on first-year projects at the University of Skövde tend to be in the range of 8-10. Two or three programmers, two or three artists or animators, two or three designers, a writer, and a team leader. If someone has music composition skills, that person may often be shared among several teams – which in fact mimics the situation at real companies. Team sizes at the University of Ulster are similar. Be sure the teams are big enough to include some redundancy. You can’t allow teams to have just one programmer or just one artist; if one drops out, it tanks the whole project.

Teach your project managers or team leaders:

* To know the state of their project at all times.
* To know what each person on the team is doing at all times, and what they will do next.
* To be able to stand up in front of a group and explain it.
* You might even teach them to use Microsoft Project, although that’s usually overkill if you have teams of three or four.

These are skills that few people emphasize, except perhaps the military, where an officer is expected to be able to deliver a concise and accurate situation report at a moment’s notice. But they’re valuable.

Above all, emphasize the importance of finishing – the need to complete and ship. The most fantastic, amazing, wonderful, game is worthless if it can’t be shipped.

4. Thou shalt permit failure in thy students’ first-year projects, and encourage them to learn from it.

The fact is, on a first-year student game development project, especially a group project, the students have been thrown in at the deep end of the pool. They’re really not prepared for what it demands of them, and many projects will fail to complete their work. That’s all right. We learn far more from failure than from success. But you should also punish those who do not learn from their failure, and continue to fail.

Require each student to write a reflective report on the project, and to keep a project diary. They must attend the build meetings, and of course they must have actually contributed to the work. But the quality of the resulting game is not relevant. As you probably already know, you will get some students coming in who think a game degree is going to be all fun and games, what we used to call a Mickey Mouse course. One good way to weed them out is by not allowing any game development at all in the fall semester of freshman year. Stick to your history, analysis, and basic skills courses then; they’ll get annoyed they’re not diving straight into games, and leave.

3. In their final projects, thou shalt encourage thinking outside the box.

College is students’ best and perhaps only opportunity to do really strange things. Nobody in the industry is going to pay them to be weird. We’re too busy trying to meet the product plan to tolerate any weirdness, so let them be weird while they still can. This is an art form, not civil engineering. There are good and bad design principles, but almost any design rule can be broken under certain circumstances.

Juvenile satires aren’t true weirdness, however. You will undoubtedly have to put up with some of that. There’s a game development contest for students called Dare to be Digital, with teams coming from all over the world. A team from the University of Ulster wanted to make a game called Bathroom Buccaneers, about tiny pirate ships in a toilet bowl – along with the kinds of things one might encounter in a toilet bowl. I told them, “Look, do you actually want anyone to fund and build this game, or not? Because you’re not going to get very far with that idea. You might think it’s amusing, but nobody will ever turn it into a real product.” I told them to move it to the bathtub, which offers more opportunities for gameplay anyway. They did, and they ended up representing Ireland in the finals. If you want to be taken seriously, you also have to take yourself seriously – at least to some degree.

Their final project is also the most important part of their portfolio. You need to offer them some freedom here, and to encourage them to express themselves to the best of their ability. They will naturally want to do things that will be most impressive to the conventional game industry, and sometimes that will mean being conservative – it won’t do to force them to be radical if they don’t want to be. But emphasize that they need to stand out from the rest of the crowd. A hiring manager is going to be looking at a stack of DVDs and they need theirs to rise above the others.

2. Thou shalt require thy pupils to study other arts and sciences besides the craft of game development, for the ignorant developer createth only the derivative game.

There’s an issue about this commandment – in some cases it will be unnecessary, and in others it will be impossible.

At American institutions that offer a bachelor’s degree, this commandment may not be necessary, because an American BA includes distribution requirements for a degree of breadth – that is the nature of the American, four-year system. So you Americans don’t necessarily need this advice. However, I don’t apologize for making it. Don’t take up your students’ time with so much game stuff that they don’t have the chance to study other things.
As you design your curriculum, don’t concentrate too much on technology and practice. Make some of art, literature, music, history, economics, anthropology, psychology, sociology, and classical physics part of the requirements. You might even consider things like military history for strategy designers; ballet, or gymnastics for animators; political science for those interested in Civilization-type games.

On the other hand, European institutions may not be able to provide these things. The European undergraduate model assumes that the students already got an adequate high school education, so students expect to study only one subject for their bachelor’s. They don’t have the distribution requirements that American schools do.

As a result, many European universities are not actually universal at all. Because they are centrally funded by the state, they often concentrate on a few subjects to avoid duplication. For example, the University of Ulster Magee is particularly strong in computer science and integrated systems, and nursing! Still, do the best you can with what you’ve got.

In addition to basic game development courses, some universities require the following: dramaturgy, human-computer interaction, cognitive science, game analysis, hypermedia, digital culture, online cultures, and the history of games.

1. Thou shalt integrate all the disciplines of game development unto the utmost of thy institution’s capacity.

One of the most extraordinary things about this medium is the number of fields that it draws together – even more than the movies. It uses fields that seldom talk to each other in the context of higher education. How often do the people in the English department talk to the people in the music department? At least they’re both in the College of Arts and Sciences. Computer science is often stuck off in the College of Engineering. Art is in the art school, while animation is probably in the film school – if there is one.

One of the hardest things about setting up a game development education program is getting all these people together, especially if there is an entrenched bureaucracy and an old guard of tenured greybeards who see video games as a frivolous waste of time. It’s particularly difficult at the grass roots level, at large institutions, and at old institutions. It’s easier at smaller and newer institutions that don’t have so many traditions already in place. It’s easiest still if it has a powerful champion of some kind – an important leader who has the support of the university administration and the resources to make it happen. But, champion or no, you’ve got to do it, or your game program will be lopsided and poor value for your students.

Skövde has a peculiar situation in that the school is named “Humanities and Informatics” – Informatics being a catch-all European term for “computer stuff.” The fact that they came together is an accident of history and bureaucracy, but it turns out to be very fortuitous for their game development program that it includes humanities in the same school.

I strongly believe you should make the students all learn each other’s tools – not necessarily the high-end tools, but the basic ones. Make everybody learn to use a simple audio waveform editor. Make everybody learn to use a paint program like Photoshop if you can afford it or GIMP if you can’t. Make everybody learn to use a 3D modeling tool like 3DS Max if you can afford it or Blender if you can’t. Make everybody learn a little programming – not C++, but Python or Lua or maybe Java. Yes, even the artists!

Don’t fail them if they suck – they’re going to suck. That’s part of the point. The idea is to get them to understand what their other colleagues do. They have to realize that they have complementary talents and they need each other. That’s critical for communication on team projects later on. Don’t fail them for not being talented at everything; fail them if they refuse to try.

I realize that some of these may be difficult to achieve. Audio engineering is not a traditional university subject. But look for workarounds. For example, DeVry University’s program is heavy on programming but light on art. At the Phoenix, Arizona campus of DeVry, they cooperate with the Art Institute of Phoenix so that people with art skills can come and work on their game development projects.

Finally, as this is a programming-related discipline, I have in true programmer-fashion, incorporated a zeroth commandment:

0. Thou shalt NOT take an existing computer science, art, animation, media studies, English, or other program, add a game course or two to it, and call it a game program, for that is an abomination unto the Lord.

I cannot emphasize this enough. We’re all familiar with fly-by-night outfits that make unrealistic promises to students because they’re offering a half-baked program. If you do this, you are doing a terrible disservice to them. You’re cheating them. I realize that I may have insulted some of you just now, but if you have reason to feel insulted, then you probably deserve it. Build your curriculum properly, from the ground up. The latest edition of the IGDA’s Curriculum Framework Document just came out, so there are plenty of resources to help you design a solid program.

penso che berlusconi vinca le elezioni per via dell'ignoranza degli italiani.

con i vecchietti ci parlo tutti i giorni, ed il modo in cui ragionano ce l'ho ben chiaro.
i vecchietti danno la colpa all'euro, come se dentro la moneta ci sia qualche magico mistero di raddoppiamento dei prezzi. i nostalgici del fascismo poi sono tanti, come tanti sono quelli che vivono di espedienti, si arrangiano nel rubare una striscia di terra al confinante, a fare gli allacci abusivi, a strappare un'autoradio, a non pagare qualche tassa.
tutta la fascia d'eta sopra i sessant'anni vota berlusconi perchè durante il fascismo secondo loro si stava bene, e di conseguenza è cresciuta con questa mentalità anche buona parte dei loro figli. sto affermando che è un fatto di ignoranza storica, culturale e di maleducazione, che viene proprio dai genitori.
tutta questa fascia crede in qualche modo, nel subconscio, che berlusconi coincida con il ritorno dei fasti fascisti, ma non è ovviamente così. credono che berlusconi sia il nuovo mussolini ma berlusconi è il male, l'inculatura somma.
perchè berlusconi è populista: urla cose tipo meno tasse e più stipendi e tutti abboccano. dipende a chi e dipende come.

l'altra porzione invece, quella giovane ed adulta, si lascia confondere da tutti i diversivi che offre berlusconi con i suoi media: la spagna ci surclassa, allora per nascondere le giuste azioni politiche di zapatero lo si infanga con la storia del matrimonio tra gay, che scandalizza - ovviamente - l'opinione bacchettona e filo-ecclesiastica degli ignoranti italiani. io che ci sto dentro alla chiesa non mi scandalizzo (ma la religione è trasversale, in queste cose non c'entra e non deve proprio entrarci), la gente che non gliene frega nulla si. curioso. perchè berlusconi è furbo: quando deve fare un qualche impiccio, lo copre con uno più grosso per buttare il discorso in caciara. e funziona!

ne parlano canale5, rete4 ed italia1, il tema che copre il tema vero scotta (vedasi anche: lodo alfano - legge blocca processi), e di conseguenza ne deve parlare anche rai1 e rai2, certamente meno ma anche rai3, per fare audience perchè un telegiornale non può sembrare fuori dal mondo, la linea editoriale deve seguire i trend. per non dimenticare che il consiglio di amministrazione delle reti statali è creato a tavolino per esser filoberlusconiano. cosa arriva alle masse: che zapatero è uno zozzone, quando invece si parla solo di assicurare uguali possibilità legali alle coppie di fatto.

perchè berlusconi è nazista: invece di costruire ponti, innalza barricate. la via più breve per confinare i problemi e non farli vedere alla gente. al rogo tutti gli extracomunitari, i campi nomadi, la gente che non mi piace. via tutti. senza considerare che il mondo è uno solo, che non puoi nascondere la polvere sotto il tappeto, spostando il malessere in un altro paese o riportandolo indietro. come l'immondizia, che va smaltita correttamente, gli immigranti vanno integrati: è l'unica strada. se non smaltisco bene inquino, se non integro c'è la delinquenza.

mettiamoci anche che i politici italiani si ostinano a fare gli eruditi (vedi d'alema, fassino, bertinotti specialmente con i suoi discorsi fuori dal tempo, veltroni che ci prova ad esser vicino alla gente, a cui abbiamo creduto tutti e che non è stato premiato) e la gente non li capisce, apprezzando invece di pietro che parla pane e vino (per immaginare la gente, pensate ai romanzi di verga).

la globalizzazione è la stessa cosa. se chiedi cosa è in giro, anche ai ragazzi, ti rispondono che è mac donald's che apre in india. e non che ci sono multinazionali che sfruttano i lavoratori dei paesi poveri, sottopagandoli, per guadagnare di più sul prodotto finito, che viene presentato allo stesso prezzo, nonostante possa esser prodotto a meno. e non che si sfruttano risorse e si inquina senza misura in paesi dove la regolamentazione è meno forte. e non che se indiani e cinesi si spostano dalle campagne alle città, non si sa chi più coltiverà le campagne per dargli da mangiare. e non che questo sistema è direttamente connesso ai temi dei diritti umani (pena di morte), riscaldamento globale e fame nel mondo (perchè la globalizzazione qualche aspetto positivo potrebbe anche averlo, ma è l'ultimo degli interessi delle multinazionali). la globalizzazione del resto è inevitabile, va solo regolamentata il prima possibile, ma non si sta facendo nulla, e tutti i ragazzi in piazza urlavano a gran voce che era il caso di far qualcosa.
il messaggio che è passato invece è che le generazioni di oggi non hanno nulla da fare il giorno, e vanno a farsi ammazzare in una rissa tipo quelle dello stadio. del motivo per cui i ragazzi erano lì a manifestare, se chiedi in giro nessuno ne sa nulla.
il risultato fu, sempre su ordine di berlusconi, una dura repressione per far capire alle generazioni moderne cosa devono aspettarsi se si mettono contro di lui giù in strada.

arriverà - diamine! - il momento in cui la gente smetterà di dormire (credere a televisione e giornali, o cominciare ad informarsi sulle vere motivazioni di quel che accade) e scenderà in piazza con i forconi. in italia la folla non nasce perchè tutti hanno paura del ripetersi di certe scene (straviste in tv ed ampiamente strumentalizzate come monito per le generazioni future, come dicevo prima). no invece!
il primo passo deve essere un accordo di unità (o al massimo di non belligeranza) con le forze dell'ordine, perchè anche loro - che dovrebbero essere i più vicini al potere dello stato - stanno soffrendo. e non vedo l'ora.
quando lo stato non avrà più il supporto delle forze dell'ordine, la popolazione avrà l'obbligo morale di modificare tutto il sistema. e poi, se avremo un nuovo piazzale loreto, sarà solo una vecchia storia che si ripete.

Le multinazionali sono in realtà Stati, e come Stati muovono guerre, anche se sono costretti a farle per interposta persona. Scendono nei nostri paesi e fanno filotto di realtà industriali con tradizioni decennali, e molte volte comprano la griffe per poi propinare la bassa qualità.

Partiamo con i bebè, e riconosciamo alla NESTLE' il primo posto in classifica in virtù del fatto che le sue politiche commerciali uccidono circa 4.000 neonati al giorno. Un bambino allattato con latte in polvere è 25 volte più a rischio di morire di dissenteria di uno allattato al seno, in posti dove l'acqua non è sicura. Come ripetutamente segnalato dall'Unicef la Nestlè viola il codice internazionale redatto dall'Organizzazione Mondiale della Sanità e dalla stessa Unicef, che proibisce la promozione dell'uso di latte in polvere per l'alimentazione dei neonati. Nelle Filippine la compagnia ha dovuto subire lo scandalo di essere stata scoperta a " affittare " delle infermiere diplomate in funzione di " educatrici sanitarie " per andare per le case e convincere le madri ad usare i prodotti Nestlé. L'uso del latte in polvere, in sostituzione a quello materno, fornito gratuitamente negli ospedali nei primi giorni di allattamento, crea nel lattante disaffezione al latte materno. Ciò ha causato e causa la morte di un altissimo numero di bambini nei primi mesi di vita, poichè nel terzo mondo il latte in polvere viene preparato con acqua spesso malsana. Fonti dell'Unicef parlano di più di 1.000.000 neonati morti all'anno nel Sud del mondo perché non più nutriti al seno. Ignorando i consigli dell’OMS che raccomanda che i cibi complementari debbono essere utilizzati dopo i sei mesi di vita, i prodotti Nestlè sono etichettati come utilizzabili dopo la seconda settimana. Le diciture non forniscono informazioni chiare e, in alcuni casi, lo fanno in lingue che le madri non possono capire. Con le indicazioni non hanno mai brillato per correttezza ed è notevole questa "perla" tratta dal loro archivio storico: Nestlè esporta i suoi prodotti nelle "colonie" fin dal 1873, e nel 1939 lo faceva in Singapore e Malesia etichettandoli come "ideali per bambini delicati", mentre ne era stata vietata la commercializzazione in Gran Bretagna per via dei casi di cecità e rachitismo.
Una delle ultime prodezze della Nestlè è stata quella di far passare la possibilità di etichettare come cioccolato, prodotti fatti anche senza il cacao: un nuovo mezzo per rovinare la nostra alimentazione e far ribassare i prezzi ai contadini del sud del mondo produttori di cacao.

Passiamo ai bambini e alla magia di WALT DISNEY. Topolino difensore della giustizia e della legalità, Pippo e Paperino protettori degli spiriti liberi, Qui Quo Qua attenti alle tematiche ambientali, Pocahontas e il gobbo di Notre Dame a sottolineare la nuova attenzione per i popoli diversi e i diversi in genere... Brava Disney, entrata nel mirino dei " benpensanti " quando ha deciso di pagare gli assegni famigliari a tutti i dipendenti che vivono in coppia, compresi i conviventi e gli omosessuali. Tutto all'insegna della non discriminazione. Peccato che ad Haiti, a 5.500 chilometri di distanza dai suoi assolati uffici californiani, migliaia di giovani, poco più che quindicenni, lavorino alla confezione di abbigliamento a marchio Disney per uno stipendio di circa 27 centesimi l'ora. In Birmania le condizioni dei lavoratori sono ancora peggiori che ad Haiti: 6 centesimi di paga oraria, per un monte ore settimanale superiore alle sessanta. Meno di 300.000 lire all'anno in un paese dove la dittatura militare impone i lavori forzati, reprime brutalmente qualsiasi rivendicazione sindacale, e non si contano i casi di sparizioni e massacri. Quella stessa dittatura militare che abbiamo ben imparato a conoscere in questi ultimi giorni, oltre ad imporre una tassa del 5% su ogni esportazione, è diretta proprietaria del 45% degli stabilimenti Yangon nei quali vengono prodotte le felpe.

Ora siamo diventati ragazzi e adoriamo la NIKE. Lo slogan di Nike "JUST DO IT!", "FALLO E BASTA" è anche il rapporto di lavoro che vige nelle fabbriche Nike in Indonesia e negli altri paesi dell'estremo oriente. Nelle fabbriche Nike vigono le più dure condizioni di lavoro. Nike fa finta di niente dicendo che gli stabilimenti in questione non sono suoi, ma fabbriche alle quali subappalta i lavori. Ma ormai a questi giochi di scatole cinesi non crede più nessuno e le associazioni dei consumatori americane hanno portato in tribunale Nike per le menzogne che sta raccontando. "Eh si, siamo capitalisti... e se ci capita di guadagnare qualche spicciolo, beh non dobbiamo chiedere scusa a nessuno". E' questa l'isterica risposta di Nike alle campagne di boicottaggio, contro questa multi dello sportswear, che chiedono la fine della produzione in fabbriche senza diritti sindacali, ed anche della fine dello sfruttamento dei bambini come operai Nike.

Altra cosa di cui i ragazzi non possono fare a meno è la COCACOLA. Dal 1989 ad oggi il sindacato colombiano Sinaltrainal ha subito decine di sequestri, torture, minacce di morte, sfollamenti forzati, montature giudiziarie. Tra tutti i sindacalisti assassinati nel mondo, l’80% viene assassinato in Colombia. Tra il 1991 ed il 2003 in Colombia ne sono stati assassinati dai paramilitari 2000. La CocaCola Company è accusata di essere responsabile di questa campagna repressiva attuata per mezzo degli “ squadroni della morte “ dei paramilitari colombiani. In Colombia, nelle imprese imbottigliatrici della Cocacola, un lavoratore dipendente sindacalizzato al quale viene applicato il contratto nazionale, guadagna circa 360 dollari al mese. Un lavoratore precario, non sindacalizzabile, viene pagato 80 dollari al mese per 12 ore di lavoro al giorno. Parte di questi soldi vengono dati ai responsabili dei paramilitari come tassa per l’assunzione. Negli ultimi due anni la Coca-Cola ha chiuso in Colombia 11 impianti su 16 e oggi il 94% dei lavoratori sono terziarizzati, precari e non sindacalizzabili.

Diventati adulti e alle prese con problemi energetici, ci accoglierà a braccia aperte la ESSO. La Esso, o Exon-Mobil è la più grande multinazionale mondiale e l’ottavo sistema economico del pianeta. Da sola è in grado di superare le economie di quasi tutti i paesi industrializzati e di ridicolizzare quelle dei restanti. Principale artefice dell’elezione di Bush alla presidenza degli Stati Uniti ha preteso che sull’altro piatto della bilancia venissero messi gli accordi di Kyoto sul clima, in attesa di farne carta straccia. Naturalmente le pressioni per l’intervento in Iraq sono state incessanti, visto che i costi saranno sopportati dall’intero paese e gli immensi benefici andranno interamente nelle tasche degli azionisti, fatti salvi quelli investiti per la campagna elettorale di George W.
Altro fatto curioso, se girerete il web, noterete come la maggior parte dei link che riportano le responsabilità della Esso e invitano a boicottarla sono stati prontamente disattivati.

E concludiamo in nostro excursus con l’anglo-olandese SHELL e i suoi sanguinari affari con la dittatura militare Nigeriana. Dopo essersi distinta per l’appoggio al regime di apartheid Sudafricano, negli ultimi decenni la Shell ha spremuto duecento miliardi di sterline dalle terre del delta del Niger. Gli Ogoni non ne hanno vista una, ma in cambio hanno visto l’allagamento delle loro terre coltivabili e sono stati ricoperti dalla fuliggine proveniente dai pozzi di petrolio. Quando si sono ribellati la Shell ha fatto intervenire i militari nigeriani che hanno ucciso centinaia di persone. Ken Saro Wiwa, leader tribale degli Ogoni, prima di essere impiccato ha detto: “ dalla mia cella imploro la comunità internazionale degli uomini e delle donne di buon senso, di fare pressione sul governo nigeriano, affinchè la Shell fermi questa carneficina, questo genocidio “.

Le ultime tre citazioni sono per la farmaceutica GLAXO, la cui lotta per la difesa di brevetti a scapito di produttori generici di farmaci salvavita uccide, o meglio lascia uccidere dall’AIDS, circa tre milioni di persone l’anno; alla multinazionale del tabacco BAT, distintasi nel promuovere su larga scala il contrabbando di sigarette per aggirare la riduzioni dei margini che deriva dalla tassazione diretta delle stesse; per terminare con la nostrana BENETTON, che al di là della sua connotazione progressiva non ha rinunciato allo sfruttamento dei bambini in Turchia, pur per interposta persona, e a gestire i suoi enormi investimenti in Patagonia a scapito delle popolazioni aborigene locali, che parevano più interessate a tenersi le loro terre che a variare il loro look e sposare il verde finto-ecologista che da sempre distingue il gruppo.

Siamo giunti alla fine, e abbiamo dato nome e cognome a una sola morte, che sarebbe ben poca cosa di fronte a milioni di altre, se non fosse per la sua brutale ferocia. Ma ricordiamoci che Ken Saro Wiwa si rivolgeva a noi, prima di salire sul patibolo per aver difeso il suo popolo, e ricordiamoci che, pur tra le migliaia di marchi che rendono oltremodo complessa la cernita, possiamo scegliere prima di buttare qualcosa nel carrello della spesa.

---

un'ultima cosa: se il popolo di myspace fosse una nazione sarebbe l'ottava più grande del mondo.

forse una speranza c'è. se solo le communities avessero il coraggio di prender un qualche tipo di connotazione, il mondo (in particolare i ragazzi, che sono quelli che avrebbero la forza di portare a termine certe azioni) risulterebbe sensibilizzato ad un sacco di problemi.

speriamo di arrivarci: social networks vs multinazionali, sfida epica!

Whether you're researching the habits of marine life, ancient texts or just a new way to market products, you'll likely need some funding to get your studies underway. The Internet is a great place to start looking for sources of funding, and we've put together a list here of a hundred or so places where you can get some assistance for your next big research project.

General

These sites are great places to start looking for funding in a wide range of fields.

1. Grants.gov: This is one of the largest sites on the Internet for finding government sponsored grants and can be a great place to search for assistance.
2. Foundation Center: On this site you'll find links to hundreds of charitable foundations that can be sources of funding for research of all kinds.
3. GrantsNet: This site allows you to search through thousands of funding opportunities in nearly all of the science and medical fields.
4. Community of Science: The Community of Science site provides loads of resources for the world's researchers including links to funding opportunities.
5. Chronicle of Philanthropy: This publication is focused on philanthropic groups and foundations and provides a list of grants and awards that are available.
6. ResearchResearch: Search through all kinds of sources of federal funding in the U.S. using this easy-to-use interface.
7. Council on Foundations: This organization represents thousands of foundations, which you can search through to see if any match your funding needs.
8. The Grantsmanship Center: Use this site to find grants, learn to write them and more.
9. GrantSelect: This pay site provides an easy to search list of grants and funding options to ensure you get the assistance you need for any research project.

Social and Civil

Check out these sites to find financial assistance for research in social and civil issues.

10. National Endowment for Democracy: Those working on projects that focus on bringing democracy to all areas of the world can find support through the resources supplied on this site.
11. William T. Grant Foundation: This foundation is dedicated to research that helps improve the lives of young people, and encompasses a variety of fields.
12. Russell Sage Foundation: Here you will find funding that is directly exclusively at research in the social sciences.
13. The Pew Charitable Trusts: Pew Charitable Trusts funds research in fields like the environment, health and human services, public policy, arts and culture and much more.
14. Haynes Foundation: Check out this foundation to find funding for projects in business, economics, government, public safety and more.
15. Economic and Social Research Society: This society is the leading founder of research in the UK for economic and social concerns.
16. The American Political Science Association: Here you'll find grants and fellowships that are sponsored by this political science focused organization.
17. Social Science Research Council: This council provides fellowships to students and researchers in the social science fields exploring ideas and concepts that help to advance their chosen field.
18. Horowitz Foundation for Social Policy: This foundation supports research in the fields of psychology, anthropology, sociology, economics, urban affairs, area studies, political science, and other socially focused disciplines.

Science and Engineering

Find funding for your science or engineering research on these sites.

19. National Science Foundation: The NSF is a government institution and provides funding for research projects for numerous science related fields.
20. Frauenhofer Gesellschaft and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation: Researchers with their PhDs can find funding for their scientific projects through this foundation.
21. National Academy of Engineering: The National Academy of Engineering offers a variety of awards for study and research in the field of engineering.
22. Animal Behavior Society: Those working on studies that involve animal behavior may be able to find some assistance from this society.
23. U.S. Department of Energy: The Department of Energy offers numerous science-related grants and funding resources on this site.
24. American Physical Society: If you're working on a research project in physics you may be able to find the financial assistance you need from this society.
25. Sloan Foundation: Established by the original CEO of GM, this foundation funds science and technology initiatives among other fields.
26. American Society for Engineering Education: Thinking of new ways to improve engineering education or the study of engineering? You may find funding through this site.
27. U.S. Civilian Research and Development Foundation: The grants through this foundation are awarded to those doing research that requires international collaboration and has the ultimate goal of benefiting people throughout the world.
28. Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council: This UK based council provides funding to those working on research and development in numerous science related fields.
29. Sigma Xi: This scientific research society provides researchers with a variety of grants which you can apply for through their website.

Health

Get a little support for research on a range of health issues from these foundations and grants.

30. National Institutes of Health: Researchers in the health fields may be able to find funding through this government sponsored institution.
31. Whitaker Foundation: The Whitaker foundation focuses on funding biomedical engineering and awards those who have earned or will earn a PhD.
32. Biomedical Engineering Network: This network can be a great place to look for funding on your biomedical engineering research project.
33. American Heart Association: Those working on health issues related to improving heart health care can find funding through the AHA.
34. Women's Health Research Coalition: Women face many unique health issues and you can get funding to research them through this nationwide coalition.
35. Damon Runyan Cancer Research Foundation: Get the funding you need to work on projects that can help fight cancer through this foundation.
36. Burroughs Wellcome Fund: This fund focuses on supporting research in infectious diseases, medical sciences, laboratory sciences and science education.
37. Alcoholic Beverage Medical Research Foundation: Studies on the impact of alcoholic beverages can get a little financial assistance from this foundation.
38. Alex's Lemonade Stand Young Investigator Awards: Started in honor of a young victim of cancer, awards from this group focus on helping those researching cancer cures and treatments.
39. National Cancer Institute: The NCI gives out research funding for groups or individuals working on cancer research.
40. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: Here you can find a list of grants offered by both government sources and other foundations.
41. The Commonwealth Fund: This fund provides funding towards research that helps design health systems and programs that are efficient and high performance.

Arts and Humanities

Those doing work in the fields of the arts and humanities can look to these sources for assistance.

42. Arts and the Humanities Research Council: Here you'll be able to find funding for projects to do with the arts, modern languages, English literature and other specialties in the humanities.
43. The Getty Institute Grants: This Los Angeles based charitable foundation gives out grants to those doing research in the field of art history and historical preservation.
44. National Endowment for the Arts: Check with this government-based endowment for funding in a wide range of arts-related subjects.
45. Digital Cultures Project: Students who are willing to travel to the UC in Santa Barbara can get funding for research in how cultures functions in the digital realm.
46. Humanities Research Institute: This UC department gives out a number of grants each year to students who are pursuing research in the humanities.
47. National Endowment for the Humanities: You can get funding from the government to pursue your research by applying for grants and fellowships through this organization.
48. Institute of Museum and Library Services: Those working on projects related to library science or museum studies may be able to find grants to help them in their work through this site.
49. James Marston Fitch Charitable Foundation: If you're conducting research that involves new methods of historic preservation or a large project to do historic preservation then check out this foundation for grant support.
50. Hasselblad Foundation: Research projects that focus on photography, especially nature photography, may be able to find support from this foundation.
51. Lannan Literary Foundation: The Lannan Foundation supports projects that study the English language or create new contemporary literature.
52. National Sculpture Society: Those involved in the study or creation of sculpture may be able to find some support for their work through this organization.
53. Andy Warhol Foundation: This foundation is dedicated to sponsoring work that is on the cutting edge of the visual arts and has a highly experimental nature.

Behavior and Psychology

Get funding for your research of the human mind from these helpful organizations.

54. FundSource: This site provides a search tool for finding funding for research in the behavioral and social sciences.
55. Social Psychology Network: Check out this site for a big list of places you can go to find support for your projects in psychology and the social sciences.
56. American Psychological Foundation: The APF provides a wide range of scholarships, awards and grants to those working to advance the field of psychology and you can apply for a number of them on their site.
57. Foundation for Psychocultural Research: This foundation hopes to advance research through funding that focuses on mixing the disciplines of culture, psychology, neuroscience and psychiatry.
58. James S. McDonnell Foundation: Created by aerospace developer James McDonnell, this foundation focuses on providing funding for research in the social sciences that helps to improve the lives of people all over the world.
59. Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation: Students pursuing psychology or social science research on the problems of aggression, violence and dominance can look to this fund for support.
60. GradPsych: This magazine for psychology grad students can provide a listing of numerous places to go to find funding for research projects.
61. American Psychological Association: The APA grants a number of research awards each year for those who are making a contribution to the advancement of psychological science.
62. Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues: If you're thinking of pursuing a research project that has to do both with psychology and how it affects how people function in society, check out this group for potential support.
63. Psi Chi: Psi Chi is a national honor society for psychology, and offers a number of awards based on research and scholarship each year.

Business

Research new business methods and projects through help from these resources.

64. TheFunded: Check out this site for a list of funding sources and to get the latest news on well funded business research and startups.
65. NCAM Grants: The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine is willing to provide funding for research by small businesses into a variety of alternative medicine practices.
66. Small Business Innovation Research Program: If you're interested in finding new ways to function in the small business world, check out funding from this program.
67. Institute for Research in Marketing: If marketing is more your thing you'll be able to find all kinds of research funding through this institute.

Education

Check out these sources for funding in educational initiatives.

68. Institute of Education Sciences: This government organization gives out grants and support for research on education statistics and education research at all levels.
69. Grants Alert: This site is dedicated to keeping you informed about the latest grants available in the field of education.
70. International Reading Association: Those working on projects that promote literacy and reading can find help and financial support through this association.
71. Arthur Vining Davis Foundations: This foundation is dedicated to improving the world through education, and as such it supports research on a range of education related topics.
72. Barbara Bush Foundation: Projects focused on improving literacy in America can find support through the former first lady's foundation.
73. Educational Cyberplayground: Here you'll find places you can search for grants, find funding and resources on how to write a grant proposal.
74. National Center for Special Education Research: If you have considered or are working on a project that relates specifically to special education you may be able to find the funding you need through this government institution.

Technology

Get a little help for your projects in technology from these sources.

75. Markle Foundation: Work in emerging information and communication technologies is the focus of this technology-based foundation.
76. Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education: If you're working to find innovative new ways that technology can be used in education try this association for financial support of your research.
77. Benton Foundation: The purpose of this foundation is to show people how to use new technologies and how they can be useful to solving social problems. If this sounds like your research, try checking this foundation for support.
78. Science and Technology Facilities Council: Based in the UK, this foundation supports a huge number of research projects both in the technology field and in the sciences.

Environment

Whether you're working to save wildlife or lower carbon emissions, you can find support here.

79. Sea Grant National: Research that is focused on conservation, study, or problems related to the oceans and seas of the world can find support through the grants found on this site.
80. National Center for Environmental Research: Get a little support from this government organization on your environmental research.
81. The Turner Foundation: The Turner Foundation is dedicated to protecting and preserving the natural world and supports a range of projects on this subject.
82. Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation: Those working on sustainability research and green innovations can find financial support for their work through the Dodge Foundation.
83. Glaser Progress Foundation: This foundation supports work in the preservation of natural environments and animal research and conservation as well as in supporting independent media and AIDS and HIV research.
84. Blue Moon Fund: The Blue Moon Fund is focused on funding ways that the relationship between humans and the natural world can be changed, namely funding research in new ways of energy use and urban development.
85. Environmental Research and Education Fund: If you're working on a research project that pertains to solid waste management, you may be eligible to apply for a grant through this fund.
86. Office of Biological and Environmental Research: The U.S. Department of Energy funds several grant programs for research in fields like climate change, environmental remediation and more.
87. American Society for Environmental History: If your research focuses more on the history of how humans have interacted with the environment you may find the support you need to conduct your project through this society.
88. Environmental Protection Agency: The EPA offers several funding programs for research on ways to protect and conserve the natural environment.
89. Conservation Grants Center: This website is dedicated to helping researchers find grants that relate to conservation and environmental science.
90. Resources for the Future: This organization conducts research on air quality, climate change, energy, development and the environment and a variety of other topics and can be a good resource for research help and funding.

Multiple Specialties

These foundations support a variety of research projects and may be able to help you in yours.

91. Rockefeller Brothers: This large foundation supports research and initiatives in subjects like peace keeping, democratic practice, sustainable development, stewardship and more.
92. Dana Foundation: The Dana Foundation focuses on two key areas for support: neuroscience and arts education. If you're working on either of these, check out their site for grant possibilities.
93. John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation: Here you can find funding for research in nearly every field including the arts, natural sciences, social sciences and the humanities.
94. MacArthur Foundation: Those looking for support from the MacArthur foundation should be pursuing projects in art and culture, digital media and education, community and economic development, policy research or mental health.
95. Ford Foundation: The Ford Foundation supports research and development in the areas of knowledge, creativity and freedom; peace and social justice; and community development.
96. Carnegie Corporation of New York: Founded by noted philanthropist Andrew Carnegie in 1911, this organization funds research and other projects that promote peacemaking and advancing education.
97. Andrew W. Mellon Foundation: If you're looking for funding for research in higher education, scholarly communications, information technology, museums and art conservation, performing arts or conservation and the environment check out this well-known foundation.
98. The Mott Foundation: This Michigan-based foundation provides grant support to those working on projects on poverty, the environment and civil society.
99. Bush Foundation: Those living or working in Minnesota or the Dakotas can find funding for community initiatives and research in medicine, the arts and more through the Bush Foundation.
100. Heinz Family Philanthropies: Here you'll be able to find sponsorship on a wide range of issues including aging, women's studies, the environment and the arts.

And two other more... as a bonus!

101. Packard Foundation: This foundation aims to support projects that deal with reproductive health, science education, conservation and children's programs.
102. Volkswagen Foundation: While sharing the same name as the car company, this organization is a separate institution, providing funding in huge variety of fields to those researching in Europe.

l'alcova d'amore più lurido e sgangherato del centro di ferentino è ormai inaccessibile.
dopo una serata al dorian o all'ada's bar, i ferentinati ubriachi non potranno più portarci le troie che hanno rimorchiato. sarà necessario trovare un altro posto abbastanza vicino + abbastanza nascosto altrimenti ne andrà del morale dei tanti squallidi tamarri che popolano il piccolo centro ciociaro.

quella stradina, ingresso nord della tenuta pietro giorgi, con le sue antiche fornaci, ne avrà viste di tutti i colori. corna a volontà, bambini nati per caso e potenziali bambini morti per terra, brindisi e cazzotti, e anche qualche prostituta picchiata e lasciata lì senza pagamento.

l'opera di sistemazione, perpetrata con pazienza ed un certo stomaco da mauro mancini e dal sottoscritto, ha riportato alla luce numerosi reperti. è curioso notare come il 65% dell'immondizia totale (e questa potrebbe essere una statistica confermabile da una discarica) è composta da bottiglie di plastica. evidentemente il sesso in automobile fa venire sete, oppure i frequentatori della stradina avevano la necessità di lavarsi la faccia dopo tanto impegno.

un geniaccio ha anche brindato chianti o spumante, le bottiglie erano vicine, con due bicchieri sottratti all'ada's. il vino più gettonato, anche in boccioni di plastica da due litri, è il rinomato tavernello / san matteo, indice dell'alta levatura sociale dei frequentatori. altri si sono limitati ad una birra, uno in particolare ad una lattina da un litro mai vista per dimensioni.

preservativi ed assorbenti meritano una nota a parte. per i primi, la marca più utilizzata è certamente durex: quelli arancioni economici del distributore automatico, a soli 5 euro la scatola da 6. per gli assorbenti invece stravince lines seta, con la caratteristica bustina viola.

parlando delle esperienze sessuali dei ferentinati, un furbone, probabilmente alle prime armi, ha preferito indossare tre preservativi, uno sull'altro per sicurezza. la domanda è: se si prova tanto disgusto, probabilmente lo si sta facendo con la persona sbagliata? e a questo punto... meglio far da sè!

concludendo, meriterebbero una coltellata tutti coloro che hanno scaricato scarti di edilizia, lavandini, divani, stendini, lavatrici, scaldabagni, scatole di mattonelle e soprattutto normali sacchette dell'immondizia. ma se il secchio della spazzatura è 15 metri più su, all'incrocio, perchè buttare l'immondizia in mezzo ai prati? segno di totale mancanza di senno. è il caso di ricordare infatti che l'immondizia di oggi, sarà nella culla dei vostri figli, e sarà anche nel loro cibo. auguri per la loro sopravvivenza, e buon divertimento in ospedale quando avranno un qualche tumore, quindi.

un ultimo particolare saluto: a chi, chissà quando, con il cucchiaino e la siringa, ha dovuto prender la medicina perchè si sentiva troppo male, e a chi, proprio la mattina delle pulizie, non ha saputo contenere una colichetta ed ha lasciato un ricordino profumato.

post scriptum: d'ora in poi, attenti alle trappole interrate. e questo vale non solo per chi viene in macchina, ma anche per chi viene a rubarmi funghi o asparagi. con gran maleducazione tra l'altro, perchè nonostante la mia presenza e le mie richieste di allontanarsi, tutti i soggetti hanno continuato imperterriti nella loro azione.
e tra l'altro io non mi sono mai permesso di entrare nel giardino altrui a fare spesa, ma mi sa che comincerò a farlo.
con la ruspa.

marco infussi

pensavo oggi che per il prossimo compleanno avrei voluto regalarmi un elicottero, allora ho chiamato il concessionario e mi son fatto fare qualche preventivo. :)

ecco case e modelli che possono andare per un privato che intenda svolazzare qui e lì per spostarsi quotidianamente.

 

Eurocopter EC-120 Colibri

Eurocopter EC-130

Aérospatiale AS-350 Écureuil

Robinson R-22

Schweizer 300cbi

Schweizer 333

Rotorway Executive 162f

MD-500

ed ecco le offerte complete (usato):

Schweizer 300c
€ 290.000 euro

MD Helicopters MD 500C (1971)
£ 185,000

Bell 206B-III
£ 285,000

MD 520 Notar (1996)
€ 800.000

NH300C
€ 150.000

Agusta Bell 47G2 (1961)
€ 170.000

Robinson 44 Astro (1999)
€ 170.000

Bell 206 BIII JetRanger
€ 700.000

Bell 47 Sky Zone (1969)
Engine time 757, new interior and painting 2005, Maintenance JAR 145 CDN NOV 2005, TTAF: 3742
€ 55.000

Bell 47G2 (1961)
TTAF: 0 (new), S/N: 117
€ 170.000

Robinson R22Beta II (2008)
TTAF: 0 (new), S/N: 4344
$ 258.670

Robinson R22-Beta (2004)
TTAF: 930
£ 77,000

Schweizer 300C (1994)
TTAF: 2100, S/N: 023, Reg: NH300C
€ 155.000

Schweizer 300C (1989)
TTAF: 2677, S/N: 51412
£ 75,000

Enstrom 280FX (1992)
TTAF: 690, S/N: 2065, Reg: HB-ZHJ
€ 149 000

Rotorway Executive 90
TTAF: 129, Reg: G-CHTG, Garmin 420, Skymap, 30mm Secondary Drive, Exec 162F Stainless Steel Exhaust, New Exec 162F Water Jackets, New Steel Cam Gears 400 hour life instead of 250, Reverse Cooling System, Chadwick Tracked & Balanced, Fully Comprehensive Insurance Included, Maintained by ICB & ISO9001- 2000 Company
£ 27,000

attenzione: questo articolo è un draft.

stamane ho rispolverato alcune canzoni del buon eminem.
propongo qui una lista dei maggiori successi (magari è maggiore la probabilità che tu, lettore/lettrice, li abbia ascoltati) per una analisi contenutistica, e quando mi andrà in futuro anche metrica. l'esperimento è: vai su songza o youtube, scrivi il titolo della canzone ed ascoltatela. se servirà una traduzione, chiedi e la metterò.

ho ripensato a tutto il rumore che si faceva perchè i testi sono diseducativi eccetera, ma continuo a trovarli deliziosi, sia dal punto di vista contenutistico che metrico.
capisco che alcune espressioni siano forti, ma è possibile trovare altrettanti spunti di riflessione. l'importante è che chi le ascolta tenga presente i testi per intero, e non solo le frasi di maggiore effetto. estrapolare dal contesto è sempre un errore, specialmente quando in una canzone troviamo trenta soggetti diversi.

eminem cerca sempre di prender le distanze da quel che dice, spezzando i suoi testi con skit o voci esterne che rivelano i dopppi sensi e la natura satirica dei suoi testi. altre volte esplicita il suo pensiero, riconducendolo però al suo stile nella clausola finale:

"un sacco di persone mi fanno domande sceme, un sacco di persone pensano che io faccia veramente quel che dico nelle canzoni, o che credo in quelle cose, o che se dico che voglio uccidere qualcuno poi lo faccio sul serio. bene, se ci credete allora vi ammazzo.
e sapete perchè? perche sono un criminale!"



"Criminal"

A lot of people ask me.. stupid fucking questions
A lot of people think that.. what I say on records
or what I talk about on a record, that I actually do in real life
or that I believe in it
Or if I say that, I wanna kill somebody, that..
I'm actually gonna do it
or that I believe in it
Well, shit.. if you believe that
then I'll kill you
You know why?
Cause I'm a...

CRIMINAL
CRIMINAL
You god damn right
I'm a CRIMINAL
Yeah, I'm a CRIMINAL

My words are like a dagger with a jagged edge
That'll stab you in the head
whether you're a fag or lez
Or the homosex, hermaph or a trans-a-vest
Pants or dress - hate fags? The answer's "yes"
Homophobic? Nah, you're just heterophobic
Staring at my jeans, watching my genitals bulging (Ooh!)
That's my motherfucking balls, you'd better let go of em
They belong in my scrotum, you'll never get hold of em
Hey, it's me, Versace
Whoops, somebody shot me!
And I was just checking the mail
Get it? Checking the 'male'?
How many records you expecting to sell
after your second LP sends you directly to jail?
C'mon! - Relax guy, I like gay men
Right, Ken? Give me an amen (AAA-men!)
Please Lord, this boy needs Jesus
Heal this child, help us destroy these demons
Oh, and please send me a brand new car
And a prostitute while my wife's sick in the hospital
Preacher preacher, fifth grade teacher
You can't reach me, my mom can't neither
You can't teach me a goddamn thing cause
I watch TV, and Comcast cable
and you ain't able to stop these thoughts
You can't stop me from topping these charts
And you can't stop me from dropping each March
with a brand new CD for these fucking retards
Duhhh, and to think, it's just little ol' me
Mr. "Don't Give A Fuck," still won't leave

I'm a CRIMINAL
Cause every time I write a rhyme, these people think it's a crime
to tell em what's on my mind - I guess I'm a CRIMINAL
but I don't gotta say a word, I just flip em the bird
and keep going, I don't take shit from no one

My mother did drugs - hard-liquor, cigarettes, and speed
The baby came out - disfigured, ligaments indeed
It was a seed who would grow up just as crazy as she
Don't dare make fun of that baby cause that baby was me
I'm a CRIMINAL - an animal caged who turned crazed
But how the fuck you supposed to grow up when you weren't raised?
So as I got older and I got a lot taller
My dick shrunk smaller, but my balls got larger
I drink more liquor to fuck you up quicker
than you'd wanna fuck me up for saying the word ...
My morals went thhbbpp when the president got oral
Sex in his Oval Office on top of his desk
Off of his own employee
Now don't ignore me, you won't avoid me
You can't miss me, I'm white, blonde-haired
and my nose is pointy
I'm the bad guy who makes fun of people that die
in plane crashes and laughs
As long as it ain't happened to him
Slim Shady, I'm as crazy as Em
-inem and Kim combined - [*kch*] the maniac's in
Replacing the doctor cause Dre couldn't make it today
He's a little under the weather, so I'm taking his place
(Mm-mm-mmm!) Oh, that's Dre with an AK to his face
Don't make me kill him too and spray his brains all over the place
I told you Dre, you should've kept that thang put away
I guess that'll teach you not to let me play with it, eh?
I'm a CRIMINAL

[Interlude Skit]
Aight look (uh huh) just go up in that motherfucker
get the motherfucking money and get the fuck up outta there
[Em] Aight
I'll be right here waiting on you
[Em] Aight
Yo Em
[Em] What?!
Don't kill nobody this time
[Em] Awwright... god damn, fuck...
(whistling) how you doin'?
[Teller] HI, how can I help you?
[Eminem] Yeah I need to make a withdrawl
[Teller] Okay
[Eminem] Put the fucking money in the bag bitch
and I won't kill you!
[Teller] What? Oh my god, don't kill me
[Eminem] I'm not gonna kill you bitch, quit looking around...
[Teller] Don't kill me, please don't kill me...
[Eminem] I said I'm not gonna fucking kill you
Hurry the fuck up! [*BOOM*] Thank you!
[interlude ends]

Windows tinted on my ride when I drive in it
So when I rob a bank, run out and just dive in it
So I'll be disguised in it
And if anybody identifies the guy in it
I'll hide for five minutes
Come back, shoot the eyewitness
Fire at the private eye hired to pry in my business
Die, bitches, bastards, brats, pets
This puppy's lucky I didn't blast his ass yet [*dog whines*]
If I ever gave a fuck, I'd shave my nuts
tuck my dick in between my legs and cluck
You motherfucking chickens ain't brave enough
to say the stuff I say, so just tape it shut [*tape unrolls*]
Shit, half the shit I say, I just make it up
To make you mad so kiss my white naked ass
And if it's not a rapper that I make it as
I'ma be a fucking rapist in a Jason mask



criminal contiene tutti i temi più cari all'autore: parte con l'omosessualità, prende in giro una celebrità e segue con un gioco di parole, poi le vendite dei dischi, poi il discorso rivolto al predicatore, la richiesta di beni materiali e prostituta per distrarsi dalla moglie in ospedale, "non potete fermarmi perchè io sono io", "un sacco di scemi comprano i miei dischi", "sembra che ogni mia rima sia un crimine", la madre drogata che dà alla luce un figlio destinato allo sfascio, ma che cerca di liberarsi da quel destino, il disprezzo per le istituzioni, l'affermazione della propria riconoscibile identità e del suo macabro umorismo, uno skit sul suo personaggio schizoide (lo stesso omicidio è in fin dei conti un siparietto buffo, con dre che gli dice: "non ammazzare nessuno stavolta!" e lui, nonostante la rapina fosse andata a buon fine, spara alla cassiera mentre scappa, ringraziandola), " ...'fanculo a tutti" e "baciatemi il culo".

"My words are like a dagger with a jagged edge / That'll stab you in the head / whether you're a fag or lez / Or the homosex, hermaph or a trans-a-vest / Pants or dress - hate fags? The answer's "yes" "

è un geniale gioco di parole, ma è destinato solo a far scandalo. mentre:

"Please Lord, this boy needs Jesus/ Heal this child, help us destroy these demons / Oh, and please send me a brand new car / And a prostitute while my wife's sick in the hospital / Preacher preacher, fifth grade teacher / You can't reach me, my mom can't neither / You can't teach me a goddamn thing cause / I watch TV, and Comcast cable / and you ain't able to stop these thoughts / You can't stop me from topping these charts / And you can't stop me from dropping each March / with a brand new CD for these fucking retards / Duhhh, and to think, it's just little ol' me / Mr. "Don't Give A Fuck," still won't leave"

vale tutta la canzone per come è pronunciato, con una metrica all'arrabbiata, con una falsa voce inziale e l'astio a seguire. finale e ritornello saranno invece volutamente disinvolti nella flessione delle parole. complessivamente il testo non racconta una storia, ma propone una serie di immagini. cosa che accade spesso, come ad esempio assieme ai suoi amici dre, nate, snoop ed xzibit:



"Bitch Please II"
(feat. Dr. Dre, Nate Dogg, Snoop Dogg, Xzibit)

[Dre]
Yeah whattup Detroit?
[Snoop]
Nu-uh, nu-uh nuh-no he didn't!
Ahhh! They didn't do it again,
what-what, what-what?
Did you shit on these niggaz two times Dr. Dre?
[Dre]
Oh fo' sho'!
[Snoop]
Uh-uh, naw, ya smell that?
This is special right here
What-what, what-what-what?
Yeah, it's a toast to the boogie baby
Uhh, to the boogie-oogie-oogie
Yeah, y'know! What's crackin Dre?

[Dr. Dre]
Just let me lay back and kick some mo' simplistic pimp shit
on Slim's shit and start riots like Limp Bizkit (Limp Bizkit)
Throw on 'Guilty Conscience' at concerts
and watch mosh pits til motherfuckers knock each other unconscious
(Watch out now!) Some of these crowds that Slim draws
is rowdy as Crenshaw Boulevard when it's packed and full'of cars
Some of these crowds me and Snoop draw +IS+ niggaz from Crenshaw
from Long Beach to South Central
[*LOUD SCREAM*] Whoa, not these niggaz again
These grown-ass ignorant men with hair-triggers again
(Hehe) You and what army could harm me?
D-R-E and Shady, with Doggy from Long Beach
(East-side!) Came a long way, to makin these songs play
It'll be a wrong move, to stare at me the wrong way
I got a long uz', and I carry it all day
(Blaow!) Sometimes it's like a nightmare, just bein Andre,
but I..

[Snoop Dogg]
somehow, someway - tell 'em, nigga
You know about Dogg-ay (Snoop Dogg)
Now let me cut these niggaz up and show em where da fuck I'm comin' from
I get the party crackin' from the shit that I be spittin' son
Hit-and-run, get it done, get the funds, split and run
Got about fifty guns, and I love all of 'em the same - bang bang!
Damn baby girl what's your name?
I forgot... what'd you say it was? Damn a nigga buzzed
Hangin' in the club, with my nephew Eminem
(Whassup Slim?) Whattup cuz? (Whattup Snoop?)
The Great White American Hope, done hooked up
with the King of the motherfuckin West coast, bay-bee!

[Chorus: Nate Dogg (+Snoop)]

And you don't really wanna fuck, with me
Only nigga that I trust, is me
Fuck around and make me bust, this heat
[Snoop] That's, the devil, they always wanna dance

[Xzibit]
I'm the Head Nigga In Charge, I'm watchin you move
You're found dead in your garage, with ten o'clock news coverage
Gotta love it, cause i'lI expose the facade
Your little lung is too small to hotbox with God
All jokes aside, come bounce with us
Standin over you with a twelve gauge, about to bust
It's like ashes to ashes and dust to dust
I might leave in the bodybag, but never in cuffs
So who do you trust? They just not rugged enough
When things get rough I'm in the club shootin with Puff
Bitch, please - you must have a mental disease
Assume the position and get back down on your knees - c'mon

[Chorus 2X]

[Eminem - impersonating Snoop]
Awww naww, big Slim Dogg
Eighty pound balls, dick six inch long
Back up, in the, heezy BAY-BAY
He's Sha-day!

[Snoop]
He's so cra-zay!

[Eminem]
Hahaha! Gimme the mic, let me recite, 'til Timothy White
pickets outside the Interscope offices every night
What if he's right? I'm just a criminal, makin a living
off of the world's misery - what in the world gives me the right
to say what I like, and walk around flippin the bird
Livin the urban life, like a white kid from the 'burbs
Dreamin at night of screamin at mom, schemin' to leave
Run away from home and grow to be as evil as me
I just want you all to notice me and people to see
that somewhere deep down, there's a decent human being in me
It just can't be found, so the reason you've been seeing this me
is cause this is me now, the recent dude who's being this mean
So when you see me, dressin up like a nerd on TV
or heard the CD usin the fag word so freely
it's just me being me, here want me to tone it down?
[LOWER pitch] Suck my fuckin dick, you faggot
You happy now? Look here

[Eminem - impersonating Snoop]
I start some trouble everywhere that I go (that I go)
Ask the bouncers in the club cause they know (cause they know)
I start some shit they throw me out the back do' (the back do')
Come back and shoot the club up with a fo'-fo' (a fo'-fo')

[Chorus 2X]

[Xzibit]
2001 and forever
Slim Shady, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, X to the Z, Nate Dogg
C'mon, yeah!!



mentre gli altri dicono robe del tipo "spacchiamo ai concerti" (è l'ambiente di dre), "ho 50 pistole e le amo tutte" e "ragazza, come avevi detto che ti chiami? l'ho dimenticato" (non può esser altri che snoop, con la sua vocina sensuale), "siamo tosti" (xzibit!), eminem imita scherzosamente snoop, e si distingue con un "dico e faccio quel che voglio", "sotto sotto c'è qualcosa di decente in me", "quando mi vesto come un nerd, ed uso la parola finocchio così liberamente, sono solo me stesso". non dimentichiamo la parola "mamma" che prima o poi fa capolino in ogni testo. è chiara quindi la sua importanza: è il cavallo di battaglia di eminem.



"Kill You"

When I was just a little baby boy,
my momma used to tell me these crazy things
She used to tell me my daddy was an evil man,
she used to tell me he hated me
But then I got a little bit older
and I realized, she was the crazy one
But there was nothing I could do or say to try to change it
cause that's just the way she was

They said I can't rap about being broke no more
They ain't say I can't rap about coke no more
(AH!) Slut, you think I won't choke no whore
'til the vocal cords don't work in her throat no more?!
(AH!) These motherfuckers are thinking I'm playing
Thinking I'm saying the shit cause I'm thinking it just to be saying it
(AH!) Put your hands down bitch, I ain't gonna shoot you
I'ma pull +YOU+ to this bullet, and put it through you
(AH!) Shut up slut, you're causing too much chaos
Just bend over and take it like a slut, OK Ma?
"Oh, now he's raping his own mother, abusing a whore,
snorting coke, and we gave him the Rolling Stone cover?"
You god damn right BITCH, and now it's too late
I'm triple platinum and tragedies happen in two states
I invented violence, you vile venomous volatile bitches
vain Vicadin, vrinnn Vrinnn, VRINNN! [*chainsaw revs up*]
Texas Chainsaw, left his brains all
dangling from his neck, while his head barely hangs on
Blood, guts, guns, cuts
Knives, lives, wives, nuns, sluts

Bitch I'ma kill you! You don't wanna fuck with me
Girls neither - you ain't nothing but a slut to me
Bitch I'ma kill you! You ain't got the balls to beef
We ain't gonna never stop beefing I don't squash the beef
You better kill me! I'ma be another rapper dead
for popping off at the mouth with shit I shouldn't said
But when they kill me - I'm bringing the world with me
Bitches too! You ain't nothing but a girl to me
.. I said you don't, wanna fuck with Shady (cause why?)
Cause Shady, will fucking kill you (ah-ha ha)
I said you don't, wanna fuck with Shady (why?)
Cause Shady, will fucking kill you..

Bitch I'ma kill you! Like a murder weapon, I'ma conceal you
in a closet with mildew, sheets, pillows and film you
Buck with me, I been through hell, shut the hell up!
I'm trying to develop these pictures of the Devil to sell 'em
I ain't "acid rap," but I rap on acid
Got a new blow-up doll and just had a strap-on added
WHOOPS! Is that a subliminal hint? NO!
Just criminal intent to sodomize women again
Eminem offend? NO! Eminem insult
And if you ever give in to him, you give him an impulse
to do it again, THEN, if he does it again
you'll probably end up jumping out of something up on the 10th
(Ah!) Bitch I'ma kill you, I ain't done this ain't the chorus
I ain't even drug you in the woods yet to paint the forest
A bloodstain is orange after you wash it three or four times
in a tub but that's normal ain't it Norman?
Serial killer hiding murder material
in a cereal box on top of your stereo
Here we go again, we're out of our medicine
out of our minds, and we want in yours, let us in

Eh-heh, know why I say these things?
Cause lady's screams keep creeping in Shady's dreams
And the way things seem, I shouldn't have to pay these shrinks
this eighty G's a week to say the same things TWEECE!
TWICE? Whatever, I hate these things
Fuck shots! I hope the weed'll outweigh these drinks
Motherfuckers want me to come on their radio shows
just to argue with 'em cause their ratings stink?
FUCK THAT! I'll choke radio announcer to bouncer
from fat bitch to off seventy-thousand pounds of her
from principal to the student body and counselor
from in-school to before school to out of school
I don't even believe in breathing I'm leaving air in your lungs
just to hear you keep screaming for me to seep it
OK, I'M READY TO GO PLAY
I GOT THE MACHETE FROM O.J.
I'M READY TO MAKE EVERYONE'S THROAT ACHE
You faggots keep egging me on
'til I have you at knifepoint, then you beg me to stop?
SHUT UP! Give me your hands and feet
I said SHUT UP when I'm talking to you
YOU HEAR ME? ANSWER ME!

Ha ha, I'm just playing ladies
You know I love you



ecco allora che era la madre a dirgli che il padre era un infame: crescendo il nostro eminem invece capisce che la madre era la vera pazza, ma non poteva farci nulla. in questo pezzo eminem sfida tutti quelli che credevano non potesse ancora reggere un personaggio solo contro il mondo intero, un personaggio che offendeva per il puro gusto di farlo. e va giù pesante con un testo del tipo "uccido tutte le ragazze, per me non siete altro che puttane".
riesce anche a dirsi da solo "questo tipo stupra la madre, abusa di una prostituta, sniffa coca e noi gli diamo la copertina di rolling stone?" e allora "fareste meglio ad ammazzarmi", si risponde. un altro rapper morto perchè aveva detto quel che non doveva dire. sottilineo il finale: "ha ha, ragazze sto solo scherzando. lo sapete che vi amo!".

m-in-m afferma la sua identità con un trittico: "my name is", "the real slim shady" e "without me".



"My Name Is"

[Chorus (2x):]
Hi! My name is.. (what?) My name is.. (who?)
My name is.. [scratches] Slim Shady
Hi! My name is.. (huh?) My name is.. (what?)
My name is.. [scratches] Slim Shady

Ahem.. excuse me!
Can I have the attention of the class for one second?

[Eminem:]
Hi kids! Do you like violence? (Yeah yeah yeah!)
Wanna see me stick Nine Inch Nails through each one of my eyelids? (Uh-huh!)
Wanna copy me and do exactly like I did? (Yeah yeah!)
Try 'cid and get fucked up worse that my life is? (Huh?)
My brain's dead weight, I'm trying to get my head straight
But I can't figure out which Spice Girl I want to impregnate (Ummmm..)
And Dr. Dre said, "Slim Shady you a basehead!"
Uh-uhhh! "So why's your face red? Man you wasted!"
Well since age twelve, I've felt like I'm someone else
Cause I hung my original self from the top bunk with a belt
Got pissed off and ripped Pamela Lee's tits off
And smacked her so hard I knocked her clothes backwards like Kris Kross
I smoke a fat pound of grass and fall on my ass
Faster than a fat bitch who sat down too fast
C'mere slut! (Shady, wait a minute, that's my girl dog!)
I don't give a fuck, God sent me to piss the world off!

[Chorus]

[Eminem:]
My English teacher wanted to flunk me in Junior High
Thanks a lot, next semester I'll be 35
I smacked him in his face with an eraser, chased him with a stapler
And stapled his nuts to a stack of papers (Owwwwwwww!)
Walked in the strip club, had my jacket zipped up
Flashed the bartender, then stuck my dick in the tip cup
Extraterrestrial, running over pedestrians
In a space ship while they screaming at me: "LET'S JUST BE FRIENDS!"
Ninety-nine percent of my life I was lied to
I just found out my mom does more dope than I do (Damn!)
I told her I'd grow up to be a famous rapper
Make a record about doing drugs and name it after her (Oh thank you!)
You know you blew up when the women rush your stands
And try to touch your hands like some screaming Usher fans (Aaahhhhhh!)
This guy at White Castle asked for my autograph
(Dude, can I get your autograph?)
So I signed it: 'Dear Dave, thanks for the support, ASSHOLE!'

[Chorus]

[Eminem:]
Stop the tape! This kid needs to be locked away! (Get him!)
Dr. Dre, don't just stand there, OPERATE!
I'm not ready to leave, it's too scary to die (Fuck that!)
I'll have to be carried inside the cemetery and buried alive (Huh yup!)
Am I coming or going? I can barely decide
I just drank a fifth of vodka -- dare me to drive? (Go ahead)
All my life I was very deprived
I ain't had a woman in years, and my palms are too hairy to hide (Whoops!)
Clothes ripped like the Incredible Hulk (hachhh-too)
I spit when I talk, I'll fuck anything that walks (C'mere)
When I was little I used to get so hungry I would throw fits
HOW YOU GONNA BREAST FEED ME MOM? (WAH!)
YOU AIN'T GOT NO TITS! (WAHHH!)
I lay awake and strap myself in the bed
Put a bulletproof vest on and shoot myself in the head (BANG!)
I'm steaming mad (Arrrggghhh!)
And by the way when you see my dad? (Yeah?)
Tell him that I slit his throat, in this dream I had

[Chorus]



"The Real Slim Shady"

[Eminem]
May I have your attention please?
May I have your attention please?
Will the real Slim Shady please stand up?
I repeat, will the real Slim Shady please stand up?
We're gonna have a problem here..

Y'all act like you never seen a white person before
Jaws all on the floor like Pam, like Tommy just burst in the door
and started whoopin her ass worse than before
they first were divorce, throwin her over furniture (Ahh!)
It's the return of the... "Ah, wait, no way, you're kidding,
he didn't just say what I think he did, did he?"
And Dr. Dre said... nothing you idiots!
Dr. Dre's dead, he's locked in my basement! (Ha-ha!)
Feminist women love Eminem
[*vocal turntable: chigga chigga chigga*]
"Slim Shady, I'm sick of him
Look at him, walkin around grabbin his you-know-what
Flippin the you-know-who," "Yeah, but he's so cute though!"
Yeah, I probably got a couple of screws up in my head loose
But no worse, than what's goin on in your parents' bedrooms
Sometimes, I wanna get on TV and just let loose, but can't
but it's cool for Tom Green to hump a dead moose
"My bum is on your lips, my bum is on your lips"
And if I'm lucky, you might just give it a little kiss
And that's the message that we deliver to little kids
And expect them not to know what a woman's clitoris is
Of course they gonna know what intercourse is
By the time they hit fourth grade
They got the Discovery Channel don't they?
"We ain't nothing but mammals.." Well, some of us cannibals
who cut other people open like cantaloupes [SLURP]
But if we can hump dead animals and antelopes
then there's no reason that a man and another man can't elope
[*EWWW!*] But if you feel like I feel, I got the antidote
Women wave your pantyhose, sing the chorus and it goes

[Chorus: Eminem (repeat 2X)]

'Cause I'm Slim Shady, yes I'm the real Shady
All you other Slim Shadys are just imitating
So won't the real Slim Shady please stand up,
please stand up, please stand up?

[Eminem]
Will Smith don't gotta cuss in his raps to sell his records;
well I do, so fuck him and fuck you too!
You think I give a damn about a Grammy?
Half of you critics can't even stomach me, let alone stand me
"But Slim, what if you win, wouldn't it be weird?"
Why? So you guys could just lie to get me here?
So you can, sit me here next to Britney Spears?
Shit, Christina Aguilera better switch me chairs
so I can sit next to Carson Daly and Fred Durst
and hear 'em argue over who she gave head to first
You little bitch, put me on blast on MTV
"Yeah, he's cute, but I think he's married to Kim, hee-hee!"
I should download her audio on MP3
and show the whole world how you gave Eminem VD [AHHH!]
I'm sick of you little girl and boy groups, all you do is annoy me
so I have been sent here to destroy you [bzzzt]
And there's a million of us just like me
who cuss like me; who just don't give a fuck like me
who dress like me; walk, talk and act like me
and just might be the next best thing but not quite me!

[Chorus]

[Eminem]
I'm like a head trip to listen to, cause I'm only givin you
things you joke about with your friends inside your living room
The only difference is I got the balls to say it
in front of y'all and I don't gotta be false or sugarcoated at all
I just get on the mic and spit it
and whether you like to admit it [*ERR*] I just shit it
better than ninety percent of you rappers out can
Then you wonder how can kids eat up these albums like valiums
It's funny; cause at the rate I'm goin when I'm thirty
I'll be the only person in the nursin home flirting
Pinchin nurses asses when I'm jackin off with Jergens
And I'm jerkin but this whole bag of Viagra isn't working
And every single person is a Slim Shady lurkin
He could be workin at Burger King, spittin on your onion rings
[*HACH*] Or in the parkin lot, circling
Screaming "I don't give a fuck!"
with his windows down and his system up
So, will the real Shady please stand up?
And put one of those fingers on each hand up?
And be proud to be outta your mind and outta control
and one more time, loud as you can, how does it go?

[Chorus 4X]

[Eminem]
Ha ha
Guess there's a Slim Shady in all of us
Fuck it, let's all stand up



Without Me

{Obie Trice}
"Obie Trice, Real Name No Gimmicks..."

{Beat Changes}

{Eminem}
Two trailer park girls go round the outside,
round the outside, round the outside.
Two trailer park girls go round the outside,
round the outside, round the outside.

{Female Voice}
"Ooooohhhhh!"

{Eminem}
Guess who's back, back again
Shady's back, tell a friend
Guess who's back, guess who's back,
guess who's back, guess who's back,
guess who's back, guess who's back,
guess who's back...

Verse 1:
I've created a monster, cuz nobody wants to
See Marshall no more they want Shady
I'm chopped liver
Well if you want Shady, then this is what I'll give ya
A little bit of weed mixed with some hard liquor
Some vodka that will jumpstart my heart quicker
Then a shock when I get shocked at the hospital
By the Dr. when I'm not cooperating
When I'm rocking the table while he's operating "Hey"
You waited this long to stop debating
Cuz I'm back, I'm on the rag and ovulating
I know you got a job Ms. Cheney
But your husbands heart problem is complicated
So the FCC won't let me be
Or let me be me so let me see
They tried to shut me down on MTV
But it feels so empty without me
So come on dip, bum on your lips
fck that cum on your lips and some on your tits
And get ready cuz this sht's about to get heavy
I just settled all my lawsuits, "fck you Debbie!"

Chorus:
Now this looks like a job for me
So everybody just follow me
Cuz we need a little controversy,
Cuz it feels so empty without me

I said this looks like a job for me
So everybody just follow me
Cuz we need a little controversy,
Cuz it feels so empty without me

Verse 2:
Little hellions, kids feeling rebellious
Embarrassed, their parents still listen to Elvis
They start feeling like prison is helpless,
Til someone comes along on a mission and yells "btch"
A visionary, vision is scary, could start a revolution,
Pollutin' the air waves a rebel
So let me just revel and bask,
In the fact that I got everyone kissing my ass
And it's a disaster such a catastrophe
For you to see so damn much of my ass you ask for me?
Well I'm back (Batman Noise) fix your bent antenna
Tune it in and then I'm gonna enter
Into the front of your skin like a splinter
The center of attention back for the winter
I'm interesting, the best thing since wrestling
Infesting in your kids ears and nesting
Testing "Attention Please"
Feel the tension soon as someone mentions me
Here's my 10 cents my 2 cents is free
A nuisance, who sent, you sent for me?

(Chorus 2x)

Verse 3:
A tisk-it a task-it,
I go tit for tat with anybody who's talking this sht that sht
Chris Kirkpatrick, you can get your ass kicked
Worse than them little Limp Bizkit bastards,
And Moby, you can get stomped by Obie,
You 36 year old bald headed fag blow me
You don't know me, you're too old
Let go, it's over, nobody listens to techno
Now lets go, just give me the signal
I will be there with a whole list full of new insults
I've been dope, suspenseful with a pencil
Ever since Prince turned himself into a symbol
But sometimes the sht just seems,
Everybody only wants to discuss me
So this means I'm disgusting,
But its just me I'm just obscene
Though I'm not the first king of controversy
I am the worst thing since Elvis Presley,
To do Black Music so selfishly
And use it to get myself wealthy (Hey)
There's a concept that works
20 million other white rappers emerge
But no matter how many fish in the sea
It'll be so empty without me

(Chorus 2x)

Hum dei la la la, la la la la la, la la la la la, la la la la
Hum dei la la la, la la la la la, la la la la la, la la la la



quindi nell'ordine: sono eminem e faccio questo tipo di cose, un sacco di gente mi copia, e la rimanente cerca di insabbiarmi. ma senza di me non sarà lo stesso.
un altro tema caro ad eminem è il patto, più volte affermato (anche in 8mile) con la sua crew: il primo che sarebbe diventato famoso avrebbe tirato a galla tutti gli altri. ed in my band eminem ironizza proprio su questo tema.



"My Band"

[Intro - Eminem]
I don't know dude
I think everybody's all jealous and shit
Cause I'm like the lead singer of a band dude
And I think everybody's got a fuckin problem with me dude
And they need to take it up with me after the show
Because.

[Chorus - Eminem]
These chicks don't even know the name of my band
But they're all over me like they wanna hold hands
Cause once I blow they know that I'll be the man
All because I'm the lead singer of my band

[Verse - Eminem]
So I get off stage right and drop the mic
Walk up to the hot chicks and I'm all like
"Sup ladies? my name's Slim Shady
I'm the lead singer of D-12 baby"
They're all like "Oh my God it's him!"
"Becky oh my fucking god it's Eminem!!!"
"I swear to fucking God dude you fucking rock!"
"Please, let me, please let me suck your cock!"
And by now, the rest of the fellas get jealous
Especially when I drop the beat and do my acapellas
All the chicks start yelling, all the hot babes
Throw their bras and their shirt and their panties on stage
So like every single night they pick a fight with me
But when we fight it's kinda like sibling rivalry
Cause they're back on stage the next night with me
Dude I just think you're trying to steal the light from me
Yesterday Kuniva tried to pull a knife on me
Cause I told him Jessica Alba's my wife to be
This rock star shit, it's the life for me
And all the other guys just despise me be 'cause

[Chorus - Eminem]
These chicks don't even know the name of my band
But they're all over me like they wanna hold hands
Cause once I blow they know that I'll be the man
All because I'm the lead singer of my band

[Bridge - Eminem] (9x)
My band! my band! my band!

[Verse - Swifty McVay]
You just wanna see a nigga backwards don't you
Hey dad how come we don't rap on proto?
Smash these vocals and do a performance
But we in the van and he in a tour bus
You don't want my autograph, you's a liar
And no I'm Swift (oh I thought you were Kuniva)
What the hell is wrong with our dressing room?!
Cause my shit is lookin smaller than a decimal
See I know how to rap, see it's simple but
All I did was read a Russell Simmons book
So I'm more intact, tryna get on the map
Doing jumpin jacks whiling get whipped on my back

[Verse - Kuniva & (Kon Artis)]
Look at Em little punk ass thinking he the shit
(Yeah I know man find himself takin on a flick)
Hey I thought we had an interview with DJ Clue
(Eminem: No I had an interview, not you two)
You gon be late for soundcheck
(Man I ain't going to soundcheck)
And our mics are screwed up (and his always sound best!)
(You know what man, I'm a say something)
(Hey yo Em!) (Eminem: You got somethin to say?!)
(Man nothing) I thought you bout to tell him off, what's up?
(Man I'm a tell him when I feel like it, man shut up)
(And you ain't even back me up when we supposed to be a crew)
Man I was bout to talk right after you, I swear
(Aww man whatever) I swear man

[Chorus - Eminem]
These chicks don't even know the name of my band
But they're all on me like they wanna hold hands
Cause once I blow they know that I'll be the man
All because I'm the lead singer of my band

[Verse - Proof]
They say the lead singers rock, but the group does not
Went from sold out arenas to the amusement parks
I'm gon let the world know that Proof is hot
I should cut his mic off when the music starts
(Eminem: Hey yo it's.. )
Ready to snap on a dumbass fan
Every time I hear (Hey dude I love your band!)
We ain't a band bitch, we don't play instruments
So why he get 90 and we only get 10 percent?
And these guys acting funny every area code
(Eminem: Proof carry my bag) bitch carry your own
Can't make it to the stage, security in my way
(Who the fuck are you? Where's Obie and Dre?!)

[Verse - Bizarre]
God damn it, I'm sick of this group
Time for me to go solo and make some loot
I told you I made the beats and wrote all the raps
Till Kon Artis - slipped me some crack
'Lose Yourself' video I was in the back
'Superman' video I was in the back
For the media, I got some suggestions
Fuck Marshall! ask us the questions
Like who's D12? how we get started? (What about Eminem?)
Bitch are you retarded?!
Anyway, I'm the popularest guy in the group
Big ass stomache, bitches think I'm cute (hey sexy!)
50 told me to do situps to get buff
Did two and a half and then couldn't get up
Fuck D12! I'm outta this band
I'm gonna start a group with the real Roxanne

[Eminem Singing]
Girl why cant you see your the only one for me
And it just tares my ass apart to know that you dont know my name
(Man fuck this!) *punch*

[Chorus - Bizarre]
These chicks don't even know the name of my band (ha ha!)
But they're all on me like they wanna hold hands (fuck Marshall!)
Cause once I blow I know that I'll be the man (yeah)
All because I'm the lead sing...

[Bridge - Eminem] (9x)
My band! my band! my band!

[Bizarre]
The hottest boy band in the world - D12!

[Eminem as a Salsa singer]
I'm the lead singer of my band
I get all the girl's to take off their underpants
And the lead singer of my band, my salsa
Makes all the pretty girl's want to dance
My salsa, look out for my next single it's called 'My Salsa'
My salsa, salsa, salsa, salsa, my salsa
Makes all the pretty girls want to dance
And take off their underpants
My salsa makes all the pretty girls wanna dance
And take off their underpants, my salsa
Where'd everybody go?



la scherzosa just lose it è una summa dello stile di eminem: ritmo e tema che richiama una canzone precedente, e che è parodia delle hit pop alla britney spears (ed in questo caso anche della sua super hit lose yourself!), skit e suoni in coda alle rime, cambi di voce, canto in falsetto, perversioni nel finale di ritornello e la sua finta voce grossa da pazzo.



"Just Lose It"

[Intro]
[Eminem making sounds:]
Down, down, down, down, down, down, down, down, down, down!
Ok..
Guess who's back?
Back again
Shady's back
Tell a friend
Whaaaaaaaa

Now everyone report to the dance floor
To the dance floor, to the dance floor
Now everyone report to the dance floor
Alright Stop!.....Pajama time

[Verse 1]
Come here little kiddies, On my lap
Guess who's back with a brand new rap?
And I don't mean rap as in a new case of child molestation accusation
(HA-HA-HA-HA-HA)
No worries, papa's got a brand new bag of toys
What else could I possibly do to make noise?
I done touched on everything, but little boys
That's not a stab at Michael
That's just a metaphor, I'm just psycho
I go a little bit crazy sometimes
I get a little bit out of control with my rhymes
Good God, dip, do a little slide
Bend down, touch your toes and just glide
Up the center of the dance floor
Like TP for my bunghole
And it's cool if you let one go
Nobody's gonna know, who'd hear it?
Give a little "poot poot", it's OK! [Fart Sound]
Oops my CD just skipped
And everyone just heard you let one rip

[Chorus]
Now I'm gonna make you dance
It's your chance
Yeah boy shake that ass
Oops I mean girl girl girl girl
Girl you know you're my world
Alright now lose it
(HA-HA-HA-HA-HA)
Just lose it
(HA-HA-HA-HA-HA)
Go crazy
(HA-HA-HA-HA-HA)
Oh baby
(HA-HA)
Oh baby, baby
(HA-HA)

[Verse 2]
Well, it's Friday and it's my day
Just to party all the way to Sunday
Maybe 'til Monday, I dunno what day
Everyday's just a holiday
Crusin' on the freeway
Feelin' kinda breezy
Got the top down, lettin' my hair blow
I dunno where I'm goin'
All I know is when I get there
Someone's gonna "touch my body"

Excuse me miss, I don't mean to sound like a jerk
But I'm feelin' just a little stressed out from work
Could you punch me in the stomach and pull my hair?
Spit on me, maybe gouge my eyes out? (Yeah)
Now, what's your name girl?
What's your sign?
[Dr Dre] "Man, you must be up out your mind"
DRE! (HA-HA)
Beer Goggles! Blind!
I'm just tryna unwind now I'm

[Chorus]
Now I'm gonna make you dance
It's your chance
Yeah boy shake that ass
Oops I mean girl girl girl girl
Girl you know you're my world
Alright now lose it
(HA-HA-HA-HA-HA)
Just lose it
(HA-HA-HA-HA-HA)
Go crazy
(HA-HA-HA-HA-HA)
Oh baby
(HA-HA)
Oh baby, baby
(HA-HA)

[Verse 3]
It's Tuesday and I'm locked up
I'm in jail and I don't know what happened
They say I was running butt naked
Down the street screaming
(HA-HA-HA-HA-HA)
Well I'm sorry, I don't remember
All I know is this much
I'm not guilty
They said, "Save it, boy we gotcha you on tape
yellin' at an old lady 'Touch my body!'"

Now this is the part where the rap breaks down
It gets real intense, no one makes a sound
Everything looks like it's 8 Mile now
The beat comes back and everybody lose themselves
Snap back to reality
Look it's B.Rabbit!
Yo you signed me up to battle!?
I'm a grown man!
Chubba chubba chubba chubba chubba chubbie
I don't have any lines to go right here so, chubba teletubbie!
Fella's (WHAT?!) Fella's (WHAT?!)
Grab you left nut, make your right one jealous (what?)
Black girls
White girls
Skinny girls
Fat girls
Tall girls
Small girls
I'm callin' all girls
Everyone report to the dance floor
It's your chance for a little romance or
Butt squeezin' it's the season
Just go (HA-HA-HA-HA)
It's so appeasin'

[Chorus]
Now I'm gonna make you dance
It's your chance
Yeah boy shake that ass
Oops I mean girl girl girl girl
Girl you know you're my world
Alright now lose it
(HA-HA-HA-HA-HA)
Just lose it
(HA-HA-HA-HA-HA)
Go crazy
(HA-HA-HA-HA-HA)
Oh baby
(HA-HA)
Oh baby, baby
(HA-HA)

[Outro]
UmMmMmm touch my body
UmMmMmm touch my body
Ooh boy just touch my body
I mean girl just touch my body


in '97 bonnie and clyde, il testo è a sorpresa. marshall parla con sua figlia neonata, lei non lo comprende, ma le parla col sorriso di una cruda verità.



"'97 Bonnie and Clyde"

Just the two of us.. (8X)

[Eminem]
Baby your da-da loves you (hey)
And I'ma always be here for you (hey) no matter what happens
You're all I got in this world
I would never give you up for nothin
Nobody in this world is ever gonna keep you from me
I love you

C'mon Hai-Hai, we goin to the beach
Grab a couple of toys and let da-da strap you in the car seat
Oh where's mama? She's takin a little nap in the trunk
Oh that smell (whew!) da-da musta runned over a skunk
Now I know what you're thinkin - it's kind of late to go swimmin
But you know your mama, she's one of those type of women
that do crazy things, and if she don't get her way, she'll throw a fit
Don't play with da-da's toy knife, honey, let go of it (no!)
And don't look so upset, why you actin bashful?
Don't you wanna help da-da build a sand castle? (yeah!)
And mama said she wants to show how far she can float
And don't worry about that little boo-boo on her throat
It's just a little scratch - it don't hurt, her was eatin
dinner while you were sweepin and spilled ketchup on her shirt
Mama's messy isn't she? We'll let her wash off in the water
and me and you can pway by ourselves, can't we?

Just the two of us.. (2X)
And when we ride!
Just the two of us.. (2X)
Just you and I!
Just the two of us.. (2X)
And when we ride!
Just the two of us.. (2X)
Just you and I!

See honey.. there's a place called heaven and a place called hell
A place called prison and a place called jail
And da-da's probably on his way to all of em except one
Cause mama's got a new husband and a stepson
And you don't want a brother do ya? (Nah)
Maybe when you're old enough to understand a little better
I'll explain it to ya
But for now we'll just say mama was real real bad
She was bein mean to dad and made him real real mad
But I still feel sad that I put her on time-out
Sit back in your chair honey, quit tryin to climb out (WAHH!)
I told you it's okay HaiHai, wanna ba-ba?
Take a night-night? Nan-a-boo, goo-goo ga-ga?
Her make goo-goo ca-ca? Da-da change your dia-dee
Clean the baby up so her can take a nighty-nighty
Your dad'll wake her up as soon as we get to the water
Ninety-seven Bonnie and Clyde, me and my daughter

Just the two of us.. (2X)
And when we ride!
Just the two of us.. (2X)
Just you and I!
Just the two of us.. (2X)
And when we ride!
Just the two of us.. (2X)
Just you and I!

Wake up sweepy head we're here, before we pway
we're gonna take mama for a wittle walk along the pier
Baby, don't cry honey, don't get the wrong idea
Mama's too sweepy to hear you screamin in her ear (ma-maa!)
That's why you can't get her to wake, but don't worry
Da-da made a nice bed for mommy at the bottom of the lake
Here, you wanna help da-da tie a rope around this rock? (yeah!)
We'll tie it to her footsie then we'll roll her off the dock
Ready now, here we go, on the count of free..
One.. two.. free.. WHEEEEEE! (whoooooshhhhh)
There goes mama, spwashin in the wa-ta
No more fightin wit dad, no more restraining order
No more step-da-da, no more new brother
Blow her kisses bye-bye, tell mama you love her (mommy!)
Now we'll go play in the sand, build a castle and junk
But first, just help dad with two more things out the trunk

Just the two of us.. (2X)
And when we ride!
Just the two of us.. (2X)
Just you and I!
Just the two of us.. (2X)
And when we ride!
Just the two of us.. (2X)
Just you and I!

Just the two of us.. (4X)

[Eminem]
Just me and you baby
is all we need in this world
Just me and you
Your da-da will always be there for you
Your da-da's always gonna love you
Remember that
If you ever need me I will always be here for you
If you ever need anything, just ASK
Da-da will be right there
Your da-da loves you
I love you baby



il capolavoro assoluto di eminem, secondo me, è guilty conscience. è teatrale, è una storia raccontata in rima, con immagini (pensiero: sognavo un tempo di farne una versione da proporre in strada, proprio con gli attori!) piuttosto evocative. e dre è proprio il compare perfetto per fare la buona coscienza.



"Guilty Conscience"
(feat. Dr. Dre)

[sound of static]

[announcer]
Meet Eddie, twenty-three years old.
Fed up with life and the way things are going,
he decides to rob a liquor store.
("I can't take this no more, I can't take it no more homes")
But on his way in, he has a sudden change of heart.
And suddenly, his conscience comes into play...
("Shit is mine, I gotta do this.. gotta do this")

[Dr. Dre]
Alright, stop! (Huh?)
Now before you walk in the door of this liquor store
and try to get money out the drawer
You better think of the consequence (But who are you?)
I'm your motherfuckin conscience

[Eminem]
That's nonsense!
Go in and gaffle the money and run to one of your aunt's cribs
And borrow a damn dress, and one of her blonde wigs
Tell her you need a place to stay
You'll be safe for days if you shave your legs with Renee's razor blade

[Dr. Dre]
Yeah but if it all goes through like it's supposed to
The whole neighborhood knows you and they'll expose you
Think about it before you walk in the door first
Look at the store clerk, she's older than George Burns

[Eminem]
Fuck that! Do that shit! Shoot that bitch!
Can you afford to blow this shit? Are you that rich?
Why you give a fuck if she dies? Are you that bitch?
Do you really think she gives a fuck if you have kids?

[Dr. Dre]
Man, don't do it, it's not worth it to risk it! (You're right!)
Not over this shit (Stop!) Drop the biscuit (I will!)
Don't even listen to Slim yo, he's bad for you
(You know what Dre? I don't like your attitude..)

[sound of static]

("It's alright c'mon, just come in here for a minute")
("Mmm, I don't know!")
("Look baby..")
("Damn!")
("Yo, it's gonna be alright, right?")
("Well OK..")

[announcer]
Meet Stan, twenty-one years old. ("Give me a kiss!")
After meeting a young girl at a rave party,
things start getting hot and heavy in an upstairs bedroom.
Once again, his conscience comes into play... ("Shit!")

[Eminem]
Now listen to me, while you're kissin her cheek
and smearin her lipstick, I slipped this in her drink
Now all you gotta do is nibble on this little bitch's earlobe..
(Yo! This girl's only fifteen years old
You shouldn't take advantage of her, that's not fair)
Yo, look at her bush.. does it got hair? (Uh huh!)
Fuck this bitch right here on the spot bare
Til she passes out and she forgot how she got there
(Man, ain't you ever seen that one movie _Kids_?)
No, but I seen the porno with SunDoobiest!
(Shit, you wanna get hauled off to jail?)
Man fuck that, hit that shit raw dawg and bail..

[sound of static]
[pickup idling, radio playing]

[announcer]
Meet Grady, a twenty-nine year old construction worker.
After coming home from a hard day's work,
he walks in the door of his trailer park home
to find his wife in bed with another man.
("WHAT THE FUCK?!?!")
("Grady!!")

[Dr. Dre]
Alright calm down, relax, start breathin..

[Eminem]
Fuck that shit, you just caught this bitch cheatin
While you at work she's with some dude tryin to get off?!
FUCK slittin her throat, CUT THIS BITCH'S HEAD OFF!!!

[Dr. Dre]
Wait! What if there's an explanation for this shit?
(What? She tripped? Fell? Landed on his dick?!)
Alright Shady, maybe he's right Grady
But think about the baby before you get all crazy

[Eminem]
Okay! Thought about it, still wanna stab her?
Grab her by the throat, get your daughter and kidnap her?
That's what I did, be smart, don't be a retard
You gonna take advice from somebody who slapped DEE BARNES??!

[Dr. Dre]
What'chu say? (What's wrong? Didn't think I'd remember?)
I'ma kill you motherfucker!

[Eminem]
Uhhh-aahh! Temper temper!
Mr. Dre? Mr. N.W.A.?
Mr. AK comin' straight outta Compton y'all better make way?
How in the fuck you gonna tell this man not to be violent?

[Dr. Dre]
Cause he don't need to go the same route that I went
Been there, done that.. aw fuck it...
What am I sayin? Shoot em both Grady, where's your gun at?

[gun fires, is cocked, and re-fired]



chiudo con la celeberrima "lose yourself". è la colonna portante di 8mile, ed un pezzo encomiabile da tutti i punti di vista. vorrei sottolineare che le rime e le metriche sono davvero complesse, perchè il flow è davvero veloce e denso. non so comunque se, in sede di registrazione, eminem abbia velocizzato un pochino le sue tracce vocali. l'ho sentita live ed in effetti il fiato non gli manca, però tante volte nei pezzi più scherzosi (vedi il precedente trittico) eminem sembra davvero andare troppo veloce per un qualsiasi essere umano.



"Lose Yourself"

Look, if you had one shot, or one opportunity
To seize everything you ever wanted-One moment
Would you capture it or just let it slip?

His palms are sweaty, knees weak, arms are heavy
There's vomit on his sweater already, mom's spaghetti
He's nervous, but on the surface he looks calm and ready
To drop bombs, but he keeps on forgettin
What he wrote down, the whole crowd goes so loud
He opens his mouth, but the words won't come out
He's choking, how everybody's joking now
The clock's run out, time's up over, bloah!
Snap back to reality, Oh there goes gravity
Oh, there goes Rabbit, he choked
He's so mad, but he won't give up that
Easy, no
He won't have it , he knows his whole back's to these ropes
It don't matter, he's dope
He knows that, but he's broke
He's so stagnant that he knows
When he goes back to his mobile home, that's when it's
Back to the lab again yo
This this whole rhapsody
He better go capture this moment and hope it don't pass him

[Hook:]
You better lose yourself in the music, the moment
You own it, you better never let it go
You only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow
This opportunity comes once in a lifetime yo

The soul's escaping, through this hole that it's gaping
This world is mine for the taking
Make me king, as we move toward a, new world order
A normal life is boring, but superstardom's close to post mortem
It only grows harder, only grows hotter
He blows us all over these hoes is all on him
Coast to coast shows, he's know as the globetrotter
Lonely roads, God only knows
He's grown farther from home, he's no father
He goes home and barely knows his own daughter
But hold your nose cause here goes the cold water
His hoes don't want him no mo, he's cold product
They moved on to the next schmoe who flows
He nose dove and sold nada
So the soap opera is told and unfolds
I suppose it's old partner', but the beat goes on
Da da dum da dum da da

[Hook]

No more games, I'ma change what you call rage
Tear this motherfucking roof off like 2 dogs caged
I was playing in the beginning, the mood all changed
I been chewed up and spit out and booed off stage
But I kept rhyming and stepwritin the next cypher
Best believe somebody's paying the pied piper
All the pain inside amplified by the fact
That I can't get by with my 9 to 5
And I can't provide the right type of life for my family
Cause man, these goddam food stamps don't buy diapers
And it's no movie, there's no Mekhi Phifer, this is my life
And these times are so hard and it's getting even harder
Trying to feed and water my seed, plus
Teeter totter caught up between being a father and a prima donna
Baby mama drama's screaming on and
Too much for me to wanna
Stay in one spot, another day of monotony
Has gotten me to the point, I'm like a snail
I've got to formulate a plot fore I end up in jail or shot
Success is my only motherfucking option, failure's not
Mom, I love you, but this trailer's got to go
I cannot grow old in Salem's lot
So here I go is my shot.
Feet fail me not cause maybe the only opportunity that I got

[Hook]

You can do anything you set your mind to, man


ci sarebbero anche stan (stranamente delicata, a detta di chi non conosce eminem), the way i am (la canzone che ha dato il via diatriba sulla sua bontà d'animo), like toy soldiers (un pizzico cacofonica a mio avviso, ma eminem si arrischia su un ritmo davvero impossibile e va avanti in maniera anche molto convincente - ma attenzione: è la rullata che segue il suo flow), kim (ascoltarla conoscendo il testo è uno strazio), mosh (la più impegnata politicamente).



"Like Toy Soldiers"

Step by step, heart to heart, left right left
We all fall down...

[Chorus]
Step by step, heart to heart, left right left
We all fall down like toy soldiers
Bit by bit, torn apart, we never win
But the battle wages on for toy soldiers

[Verse 1]
I'm supposed to be the soldier who never blows his composure
Even though I hold the weight of the whole world on my shoulders
I am never supposed to show it, my crew ain't supposed to know it
Even if it means goin' toe to toe with a Benzino it don't matter
I'd never drag them in battles that I can't handle unless I absolutely have to
I'm supposed to set an example
I need to be the leader, my crew looks for me to guide 'em
If some shit ever just pop off, I'm supposed to be beside 'em
Now the Ja shit i tried to squash it, it was too late to stop it
There's a certain line you just don't cross and he crossed it
I heard him say Hailie's name on a song and I just lost it
It was crazy, this shit way beyond some Jay-z and Nas shit
And even though the battle was won, I feel like we lost it
I spent too much energy on it, honestly I'm exhausted
And I'm so caught in it I almost feel I'm the one who caused it
This ain't what I'm in hip-hop for, it's not why I got in it
That was never my object for someone to get killed
Why would I wanna destroy something I helped build
It wasn't my intentions, my intentions was good
I went through my whole career without ever mentionin' ...
Now it's just out of respect for not runnin' my mouth
And talkin' about something that I knew nothing about
Plus Dre told me stay out, this just wasn't my beef
So I did, I just fell back, watched and gritted my teeth
While he's all over t.v. down talkin' a man who literally saved my life
Like fuck it i understand this is business
And this shit just isn't none of my business
But still knowin' this shit could pop off at any minute cuz

[Chorus]

[Verse 2]
There used to be a time when you could just say a rhyme
And wouldn't have to worry about one of your people dyin'
But now it's elevated cuz once you put someone's kids in it
The shit gets escalated, it ain't just words no more is it?
It's a different ball game, callin' names and you ain't just rappin'
We actually tried to stop the 50 and Ja beef from happenin'
Me and Dre had sat with him, kicked it and had a chat with him
And asked him not to start it he wasn't gonna go after him
Until Ja started yappin' in magazines how he stabbed him
Fuck it 50 smash 'em, mash 'em and let him have it
Meanwhile my attention is pullin' in other directions
Some receptionist at The Source who answers phones at his desk
Has an erection for me and thinks that I'll be his ressurection
Tries to blow the dust off his mic and make a new record
But now he's fucked the game up cuz one of the ways I came up
Was through that publication the same one that made me famous
Now the owner of it has got a grudge against me for nothin'
Well fuck it, that motherfucker can get it too, fuck him then
But I'm so busy being pissed off I don't stop to think
That we just inherited 50's beef with Murder Inc.
And he's inherited mine which is fine ain't like either of us mind
We still have soldiers that's on the front line
That's willing to die for us as soon as we give the orders
Never to extort us, strictly to show they support us
We'll maybe shout 'em out in a rap or up in a chorus
To show them we love 'em back and let 'em know how important it is
To have Runion Avenue Soldiers up in our corners
Their loyalty to us is worth more than any award is
But I ain't tryna have none of my people hurt and murdered
It ain't worth it I can't think of a perfecter way to word it
Then to just say that I love ya'll too much to see the virdict
I'll walk away from it all before I let it go any further
But don't get it twisted, it's not a plea that I'm coppin'
I'm just willin' to be the bigger man
If ya'll can quit poppin' off at your jaws well then I can,
Cuz frankly I'm sick of talkin'
I'm not gonna let someone elses coffin rest on my conscience cuz

[Chorus]



Ad Hailie, sua figlia.



"Mockingbird"

[Intro- Spoken:]
Yeah
I know sometimes things may not always make sense to you right now
But hey, what daddy always tell you?
Straighten up little soldier
Stiffen up that upper lip
What you crying about?
You got me

[Verse 1:]
Hailie, I know you miss your mom and I know you miss your dad
Well I'm gone but I'm trying to give you the life that I never had
I can see you're sad, even when you smile, even when you laugh
I can see it in your eyes, deep inside you want to cry
Cuz you're scared, I ain't there
Daddy's with you in your prayers
No more crying, wipe them tears
Daddy's here, no more nightmares
We gon' pull together through it, we gon' do it
Laney, uncle's crazy, aint he?
Yeah but he loves you girl and you better know it
We're all we got in this world
When it spins, when it swirls
When it whirls, when it twirls
Two little beautiful girls
Lookin' puzzled, in a daze
I know it's confusing you
Daddy's always on the move, mamma's always on the news
I try to keep you sheltered from it but somehow it seems
The harder that I try to do that, the more it backfires on me
All the things growing up his daddy that he had to see
Daddy don't want you to see but you see just as much as he did
We did not plan it to be this way, your mother and me
But things have gotten so bad between us
I don't see us ever being together ever again
Like we used to be when we was teenagers
But then of course everything always happens for a reason
I guess it was never meant to be
But it's just something we have no control over and that's what destiny is
But no more worries, rest your head and go to sleep
Maybe one day we'll wake up and this will all just be a dream

[Chorus:]
Now hush little baby, don't you cry
Everything's gonna be alright
Stiffen that upper lip up little lady,
I told ya Daddy's here to hold ya through the night
I know mommy's not here right now and we don't know why
We feel how we feel inside
It may seem a little crazy, pretty baby
But I promise momma's gon' be alright

[Verse 2:]
It's funny
I remember back one year when daddy had no money
Mommy wrapped the Christmas presents up
And stuck 'em under the tree and said some of 'em were from me
Cuz daddy couldn't buy 'em
I'll never forget that Christmas I sat up the whole night crying
Cuz daddy felt like a bum, see daddy had a job
But his job was to keep the food on the table for you and mom
And at the time every house that we lived in
Either kept getting broken into and robbed
Or shot up on the block
And your mom was saving money for you in a jar
Tryna start a piggy bank for you so you could go to college
Almost had a thousand dollars till someone broke in and stole it
And I know it hurt so bad it broke your momma's heart
And it seemed like everything was just startin' to fall apart
Mom and dad was arguin' a lot so momma moved back
On the Chalmers in the flat one bedroom apartment
And dad moved back to the other side of 8 Mile on Novara
And that's when daddy went to California with his CD and met Dr. Dre
And flew you and momma out to see me
But daddy had to work, you and momma had to leave me
Then you started seeing daddy on the T.V. and momma didn't like it
And you and Laney were to young to understand it
Papa was a rollin' stone, momma developed a habit
And it all happened too fast for either one of us to grab it
I'm just sorry you were there and had to witness it first hand
Cuz all I ever wanted to do was just make you proud
Now I'm sittin in this empty house, just reminiscing
Lookin' at your baby pictures, it just trips me out
To see how much you both have grown, it's almost like you're sisters now
Wow, guess you pretty much are and daddy's still here
Laney I'm talkin' to you too, daddy's still here
I like the sound of that, yeah
It's got a ring to it don't it?
Shh, momma's only gone for the moment

[Chorus]

[Verse 3:]
And if you ask me too
Daddy's gonna buy you a mockingbird
I'mma give you the world
I'mma buy a diamond ring for you
I'mma sing for you
I'll do anything for you to see you smile
And if that mockingbird don't sing and that ring don't shine
I'mma break that birdie's neck
I'd go back to the jewler who sold it to ya
And make him eat every carat don't fuck with dad (haha)



la canzone che ha creato più scandalo, con un eminem davvero arrabbiato.



"The Way I Am"

[Eminem]
Whatever..
Dre, just let it run
Aiyyo turn the beat up a little bit
Aiyyo.. this song is for anyone.. fuck it
Just shut up and listen, aiyyo..

I sit back with this pack of Zig Zags and this bag
Of this weed it gives me the shit needed to be
The most meanest MC on this -- on this Earth
And since birth I've been cursed with this curse to just curse
And just blurt this berserk and bizarre shit that works
And it sells and it helps in itself to relieve
All this tension dispensin these sentences
Gettin this stress that's been eatin me recently off of this chest
And I rest again peacefully (peacefully)..
But at least have the decency in you
To leave me alone, when you freaks see me out
In the streets when I'm eatin or feedin my daughter
To not come and speak to me (speak to me)..
I don't know you and no,
I don't owe you a mo-therfuck-in thing
I'm not Mr. N'Sync, I'm not what your friends think
I'm not Mr. Friendly, I can be a prick
If you tempt me my tank is on empty (is on empty)..
No patience is in me and if you offend me
I'm liftin you 10 feet (liftin you 10 feet).. in the air
I don't care who is there and who saw me destroy you
Go call you a lawyer, file you a lawsuit
I'll smile in the courtroom and buy you a wardrobe
I'm tired of arguin' (of arguin')..
I don't mean to be mean but that's all I can be is just me

[Chorus: Eminem]

And I am, whatever you say I am
If I wasn't, then why would I say I am?
In the paper, the news everyday I am
Radio won't even play my jam
Cause I am, whatever you say I am
If I wasn't, then why would I say I am?
In the paper, the news everyday I am
I don't know it's just the way I am

[Eminem]
Sometimes I just feel like my father, I hate to be bothered
With all of this nonsense it's constant
And, "Oh, it's his lyrical content -
- the song 'Guilty Conscience' has gotten such rotten responses"
And all of this controversy circles me
And it seems like the media immediately
Points a finger at me (finger at me)..
So I point one back at 'em, but not the index or pinkie
Or the ring or the thumb, it's the one you put up
When you don't give a fuck, when you won't just put up
With the bullshit they pull, cause they full of shit too
When a dude's gettin bullied and shoots up his school
And they blame it on Marilyn (on Marilyn).. and the heroin
Where were the parents at? And look where it's at
Middle America, now it's a tragedy
Now it's so sad to see, an upper class ci-ty
Havin this happenin (this happenin)..
Then attack Eminem cause I rap this way (rap this way)..
But I'm glad cause they feed me the fuel that I need for the fire
To burn and it's burnin and I have returned

[Chorus]

[Eminem]
I'm so sick and tired of bein admired
That I wish that I would just die or get fired
And dropped from my label and stop with the fables
I'm not gonna be able to top on "My Name is.."
And pigeon-holed into some pop-py sensation
To cop me rotation at rock'n'roll stations
And I just do not got the patience (got the patience)..
To deal with these cocky caucasians who think
I'm some wigger who just tries to be black cause I talk
With an accent, and grab on my balls, so they always keep askin
The same fuckin questions (fuckin questions)..
What school did I go to, what hood I grew up in
The why, the who what when, the where, and the how
'til I'm grabbin my hair and I'm tearin it out
Cause they drivin me crazy (drivin me crazy).. I can't take it
I'm racin, I'm pacin, I stand and I sit
And I'm thankful for ev-ery fan that I get
But I can't take a SHIT, in the bathroom
Without someone standin by it
No I won't sign your autograph
You can call me an asshole I'm glad

[Chorus (except change first word "And" to "Cause")]



vabè. kim è decisamente la più tosta di tutte. non so se l'ha mai cantata live e comunque è uno strazio ascoltarla.



"Kim"

[Eminem]
Aww look at daddy's baby girl
That's daddy baby
Little sleepy head
Yesterday I changed your diaper
Wiped you and powdered you.
How did you get so big?
Can't believe it now your two
Baby you're so precious
Daddy's so proud of you
Sit down bitch
If you move again I'll beat the shit out of you

[Eminem]
(Eminem as Kim)
(Okay)
Don't make me wake this baby
She don't need to see what I'm about to do
Quit crying bitch, why do you always make me shout at you?
How could you?
Just leave me and love him out the blue
Oh, what's a matter Kim?
Am I too loud for you?
Too bad bitch, your gonna finally hear me out this time
At first, I'm like all right
You wanna throw me out? That's fine!
But not for him to take my place, are you out you're mind?
This couch, this TV, this whole house is mine!
How could you let him sleep in our bed?
Look at Kim
Look at your husband now!
(No!)
I said look at him!
He ain't so hot now is he?
Little punk!
(Why are you doing this?)
Shut the fuck up!
(You're drunk! You're never going to get away at this!)
You think I give a fuck!
Come on we're going for a ride bitch
(No!)
Sit up front
(Well I can't just leave Haley alone, what if she wakes up?)
We'll be right back
Well I will you'll be in the trunk

[1] - So long, bitch you did me so wrong
I don't wanna go on
Living in this world without you

[Repeat 1]

You really fucked me Kim
You really did a number on me
Never knew me cheating on you would come back to haunt me
But we was kids then Kim, I was only 18
That was years ago
I thought we wiped the slate clean
That's fucked up!
(I love you!)
Oh God my brain is racing
(I love you!)
What are you doing?
Change the station I hate this song!
Does this look like a big joke?
(No!)
There's a four year old boy lyin' dead with a slit throat
In your living room, ha-ha
What you think I'm kiddin' you?
You loved him didn't you?
(No!)
Bullshit you bitch don't fucking lie to me
What the fuck's this guy's problem on the side of me?
Fuck you asshole, yeah bite me
Kim, KIM!
Why don't you like me?
You think I'm ugly don't you
(It's not that!)
No you think I'm ugly
(Baby)
Get the fuck away from me, don't touch me
I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU!
I SWEAR TO GOD I HATE YOU
OH MY GOD I LOVE YOU
How the fuck could you do this to me?
(Sorry!)
How the fuck could you do this to me?

[Repeat 1 (2x)]

Come on get out
(I can't I'm scared)
I said get out bitch!
(Let go of my hair, please don't do this baby)
(Please I love you, look we can just take Haley and leave)
Fuck you, you did this to us
You did it, it's your fault
Oh my God I'm crackin' up
Get a grip Marshall
Hey remember the time we went to Brian's party?
And you were like so drunk that you threw up all over Archie
That was funny wasn't it?
(Yes!)
That was funny wasn't it?
(Yes!)
See it all makes sense, doesn't it?
You and your husband have a fight
One of you tries to grab a knife
And during the struggle he accidentally gets his Adam's apple sliced
(No!)
And while this is goin' on
His son just woke up and he just walks in
She panics and he gets his throat cut
(Oh my God!)
So now they both dead and you slash your own throat
So now it's double homicide and suicide with no note
I should have known better when you started to act weird
We could've...HEY! Where you going? Get back here!
You can't run from me Kim
It's just us, nobody else!
You're only making this harder on yourself
Ha! Ha! Got'cha!
(Ahh!)
Ha! Go ahead yell!
Here I'll scream with you!
AH SOMEBODY HELP!
Don't you get it bitch, no one can hear you?
Now shut the fuck up and get what's comin to you
You were supposed to love me
{*Kim choking*}
NOW BLEED! BITCH BLEED!
BLEED! BITCH BLEED! BLEED!

[Repeat 1 (2x)]



includo le seguenti per completezza.



"Cleanin Out My Closet"

Where's my snare, I have no snare in my headphones, there ya' go, yeah, yo', yo'...

Have you ever been hated or discriminated against, I have, i've been protested and demonstrated
against, picket signs for my wicked rhymes, look at the times, sick is the mind of the
motherfuckin' kid that's behind, all this commotion, emotions run deep as ocean's explodin',
tempers flaring from parents, just blow 'em off and keep goin', not takin' nothin' from no one,
give 'em hell long as i'm breathin', keep kickin' ass in the mornin', an' takin' names in the
evening, leave 'em with a taste as sour as vinegar in they mouth, see they can trigger me but
they'll never figure me out, look at me now, I bet ya' probably sick of me now, ain't you mama,
i'ma make you look so ridiculous now...

[CHORUS]

I'm sorry mama, I never meant to hurt you, I never meant to make you cry, but tonight i'm
cleanin' out my closet, {one more time}, I said i'm sorry mama, I never meant to hurt you, I
never meant to make you cry, but tonight i'm cleanin' out my closet...

I got some skeletons in my closet and I don't know if no one knows it, so before they thrown me
inside my coffin and close it, i'ma expose it, i'll take you back to '73, before I ever had a
multi-platinum sellin' Cd, I was a baby, maybe I was just a couple of months, my faggot father
must have had his pantie's up in a bunch, cause he split, I wonder if he even kissed me goodbye,
no I don't on second thought, I just fuckin' wished he would die, I look at Hailie and I
couldn't picture leavin' her side, even if I hated Kim, I grit my teeth and I'd try, to make it
work with her at least for Hailie's sake, I maybe made some mistakes but i'm only human, but i'm
man enough to face them today, what I did was stupid, no doubt it was dumb, but the smartest
shit I did was take them bullets out of that gun, cause id'a killed 'em, shit I would have shot
Kim and him both, it's my life, i'd like to welcome y'all to the Eminem show...

[CHORUS]

Now I would never diss my own mama just to get recognition, take a second to listen who you
think this record is dissin', but put yourself in my position, just try to envision witnessin'
your Mama poppin' prescription pills in the kitchen, bitchin' that someone's always goin'
through her purse and shits missin', going through public housing systems, victim of
Munchausen's syndrome, my whole life I was made to believe I was sick when I wasn't 'til I grew
up, now I blew up, it makes you sick to ya' stomach, doesn't it, wasn't it the reason you made
that Cd for me, ma, so you could try to justify the way you treated me, ma, but guess what, your
gettin' older now and it's cold when your lonely, and Nathan's growing up so quick, he's gonna
know that your phoney, and Hailie's getting so big now, you should see her, she's beautiful, but
you'll never see her, she won't even be at your funeral, see what hurts me the most is you won't
admit you was wrong, bitch, do your song, keep tellin' yourself that you was a mom, but how dare
you try to take what you didn't help me to get, you selfish bitch, I hope you fuckin' burn in
hell for this shit, remember when Ronnie died and you said you wished it was me, well guess
what, I am dead, dead to you as can be...

[CHORUS]



"Mosh"

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America
And to the Republic for which it stands
One nation under God
Indivisible with liberty and justice for all...
It feels so good to be back..

I scrutinize every word, memorize every line
I spit it once, refuel, re-energize and rewind
I give sight to the blind, my insight through the mind
I exercise my right to express when I feel it's time
It's just all in your mind, what you interpret it as
I say to fight, you take it as I'mma whip someone's ass
If you don't understand, don't even bother to ask
A father who has grown up with a fatherless past
Who has blown up now to rap phenomenon that has
Or at least shows no difficulty multi-task
And in juggling both perhaps mastered his craft
Slash entrepreneur who has helped launch a few more rap acts
Who's had a few obstacles thrown his way through the last half
Of his career typical manure moving past that
Mr. kisses ass crack, he's a class act
Rubber band man, yea he just snaps back

[Chorus:]
Come along follow me as I lead through the darkness
As I provide just enough spark that we need to proceed
Carry on, give me hope, give me strength
Come with me and I won't steer you wrong
Put your faith and your trust as I guide us through the fog
To the light at the end of the tunnel
We gonna fight, we gonna charge, we gonna stomp, we gonna march
Through the swamp, we gonna mosh through the marsh
Take us right through the doors (c'mon)

All the people up top on the side and the middle
Come together lets all bomb and swamp just a little
Just let it gradually build from the front to the back
All you can see is a sea of people some white and some black
Don't matter what color, all that matters we gathered together
To celebrate for the same cause don't matter the weather
If it rains let it rain, yea the wetter the better
They ain't gonna stop us they can't, we stronger now more than ever
They tell us no we say yea, they tell us stop we say go
Rebel with a rebel yell, raise hell we gonna let em know
Stomp, push, shove, mush, Fuck Bush, until they bring our troops home (c'mon)

[Chorus]

Imagine it pouring, it's raining down on us
Mosh pits outside the oval office
Someone's tryina tell us something,
Maybe this is God just sayin' we're responsible
For this monster, this coward,
That we have empowered
This is Bin Laden, look at his head noddin'
How could we allow something like this without pumping our fists
Now this is our final hour
Let me be the voice in your strength and your choice
Let me simplify the rhyme just to amplify the noise
Try to amplify the times it, and multiply by six...
Teen million people, Are equal at this high pitch
Maybe we can reach alqueda through my speech
Let the president answer a higher anarchy
Strap him with an Ak-47, let him go, fight his own war
Let him impress daddy that way
No more blood for oil, we got our own battles to fight on our own soil
No more psychological warfare, to trick us to thinking that we ain't loyal
If we don't serve our own country, we're patronizing a hero
Look in his eyes its all lies
The stars and stripes, they've been swiped, washed out and wiped
And replaced with his own face, Mosh now or die
If I get sniped tonight you know why,
Cause I told you to fight.

[Chorus]

And as we proceed,
To Mosh through this desert storm,
In these closing statements, if they should argue
Let us beg to differ
As we set aside our differences
And assemble our own army
To disarm this Weapon of Mass Destruction
That we call our President, for the present
And Mosh for the future of our next generation
To speak and be heard
Mr. President, Mr. Senator
Do you guy's hear us...hear us...[laughing] (Hailie)



beh, penso comunque che un pezzo come "fack" poteva risparmiarselo, è proprio pessimo.
"ass like that" suona un pochino come "thong song" di sisqo, con eminem con quell'accento da arabo (...?!) ma i temi son ben diversi. è una critica alla società americana, con citazioni di fatti tra cui l'anoressia delle sorelle olsen, e anche il vino "jesus juice".



"Ass Like That"

[Chorus]
The way you shake it, I can't believe it
I ain't never seen an ass like that
The way you move it, you make my pee pee go
Doing, doing, doing

I don't believe it, it's almost too good to be true
I ain't never seen an ass like that
The way you move it, you make my pee pee go
Doing, doing, doing

The way she moves she's like a belly dancer
She's shaking that ass to that new nelly jam, I
Think someones at the door
But I don't think I'm gonna answer
Police saying "freeze"
Doing, doing, doing
What do you mean freeze?
Please, I'm a human being, I have needs
I'm not done, not till I'm finish peeing
I am not resisting arrest, I am agreeing Mr. Officer
I'm already on my knees
I can't get on the ground any further, it's impossible for me
And do not treat me like a murderer, I just like to pee, pee, pee
Yes, I make r&b, I sing song it go
Ring-a-chong, a-ching-chong-chong-chong-ching
Psych, I joke, I joke, I kidd, I kidd
If I offend I'm sorry, please, please forgive
For I am Triumph, the puppet dog, I am a mere puppet
I can get away with anything I sing, you will love it

[Chorus]

Jessica Simpson, looks oh so temptin'
Nick I ain't never seen an ass like that
Everytime I see that show on MTV my pee pee goes
Doing, doing, doing

Mary-Kate and Ashley used to be so wholesome
Now they're getting older, they're starting to grow bum bums
I go to the movies and sit down with my pop corn
Police saying "freeze"
Doing doing doing
What do you mean freeze?
Geez, I just got my seat
I have ticket, look, I put away my zipper zipped
Please do not remove me from this movie theater please
I did not even get to see Mary-Kate shower scene
I didn't mean to be obscene or make a great big scene
And don't treat me like I'm pee wee herman, this movies PG
Mr. Officer, I demand to see my attorney
I will simply plead innocent, cop a plea and be free
Free, yes, free, right back on the streets
What you mean my lawyer's with Michael, he's too busy?
I am Triumph, Britney Spears has shoulders like a man
And I can say that and you'll laugh cuz that is a puppet on my hand

[Chorus]

Hilary Duff is not quite old enough so
I ain't never seen a butt like that
Maybe next year I'll say ass and she'll make my pee pee go
Doing, doing, doing

The way she moves she dances like a go-go
In that video she sings get out your bozo
I need a new boyfriend, hi my name is JoJo
Police saying "freeze"
Doing, doing, doing
What do you mean freeze?
My computers would be seized and my keys to my ranch
I just baked cookies Mr. Officer, looky, take a whiff of these
Here, I make Jesus juice, take a sip of this
Nobody is safe from me, no not even me
I don't even know if I can say the word pee pee, pee
On the radio, but I think I did
Janet, is that a breast, I think I just saw a tit
Psych, I joke, I joke, I kidd, I kidd
I don't think my joke is working, I must flee quick
Get to the chopper, everybody get out
I am not Triumph, I am Arnold, get down

[Chorus]

So Gwen Stefani, will you pee pee on me please?
I ain't never seen an ass like that
Cuz the way you move it, you make my pee pee go
Doing, doing, doing

What the fuck is wrong with you? (ha!)



"Puke"

[Intro]
(noises)
There I go...
Thinkin' of you again...

[Chorus]
You don't know how sick you make me,
You make me fuckin' sick to my stomach,
Everytime I think of you I [puke].
You must just not know, uo-uo-uo-uo-uo-uoh,
You may not think you do but you do,
Everytime I think of you I [puke].

[Verse 1]
I was gonna take the time to sit down and write you a little poem,
But off of the dome would probably be a little more,
More suitable for this type of song, woah.
I got a million reasons off the top of my head that I can think of,
Sixteen bars, this ain't enough to put some ink to,
So fuck it, I'ma start right here, I'll just be briefer,
'bout to rattle off some other reasons.
I knew I shouldn't go and get another tattoo,
Of you on my arm, but what do I go and do?
I go and get another one, now I got two, oo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo.
Now I'm sittin' here, with your name on my skin,
I can't believe I went and did this stupid shit again,
My next girlfriend, now her name's gotta be Kim, shi-i-i-i-i-i-it.
If you only knew how much I hated you,
For every-motherfuckin'-thing you've ever put us through,
Then I wouldn't be standin' here cryin'over you
boo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo-hoo.

[Chorus]
You don't know how sick you make me,
You make me fuckin' sick to my stomach,
Everytime I think of you I [puke].
You must just not know, uo-uo-uo-uo-uo-uoh,
You may not think you do but you do,
Everytime I think of you I [puke].

[Verse 2]
I was gonna take the time to sit down and write you a little letter,
But I thought a song would probably be a little better,
Instead of a letter, that you'd probally just shred up, yup.
I stumbled on your picture yesterday and it made stop and think of,
How much of a waste it'd be for me to put some ink to,
A stupid piece of, paper I'd rather let you see how,
Much I fuckin' hate you in a freestyle.
You're a fuckin' coke head slut I hope you fuckin' die,
I hope you get to hell and satan sticks a needle in your eye,
I hate your fuckin' guts, you fuckin' slut I hope you die, die-ie-ie-ie-ie-ie-ie.
But please don't get me wrong, I'm not bitter or mad,
It's not that I still love you, it's not 'cuz I want you back,
It's just that when I think of you it makes me wanna yack, a-a-a-a-a-a-AK,
But what else can I do, I haven't got a clue,
Now I guess I just move on, I have no choice but to,
But everytime I think of you now all I wanna do
Is pu-u-u-u-u-u-uke

[Chorus]
You don't know how sick you make me,
You make me fuckin' sick to my stomach,
Everytime I think of you I [puke].
You must just not know, uo-uo-uo-uo-uo-uoh,
You may not think you do but you do,
Everytime I think of you I [puke].

[Outro]
{Puke noises again :) }
God damn
Fuckin' bitch



"Superman"

[Dina Rea:]
Mmmhh

[Eminem:]
You high baby?

[Dina Rea:]
Yeahh...

[Eminem:]
Yeah?

[Dina Rea:]
hahaha..Talk to me...

[Eminem:]
You want me to tell you somethin?

[Dina Rea:]
Uh huh...

[Eminem:]
I know what you wanna hear...
'Cuz I know you want me baby I think I want you too...

[Dina Rea:]
I think I love you baby...

[Eminem:]
I think I love you too...
I'm here to save you girl
Come be in shady's world
I wanna grow together
Let's let our love unfurl
You know you want me baby
You know I want you too
They call me Superman
I'm here to rescue you
I wanna save you girl
come be in Shady's world...

[Dina Rea:]
oh boy you drive me crazy...

[Eminem:]
Bitch you make me hurl...

[Eminem:]
They call me Superman
Leap tall hoes in a single bound
I'm single now
Got no ring on this finger now
I'll never let another chick bring me down
In a relationship save it bitch, babysit? you make me sick
Superman aint savin shit, girl you can jump on shady's dick
Straight from the hip, cut to the chase
I'll ***TELL THE MUTHA FUCKIN*** slut to her face
Play no games, say no names, ever since I broke up with what's her face
I'm a different man, kiss my ass, kiss my lips, bitch why ask?
Kiss my dick, hit my cash, i'd rather have you whip my ass
Don't put out? i'll put you out
Won't get out? i'll push you out
Puss blew out, poppin shit
Wouldn't piss on fire to put you out
Am I too nice? buy you ice
Bitch if you died, wouldn't buy you life
What you tryin to be, my new wife?
What you Mariah? fly through twice
But I do know one thing though
Bitches they come, they go
Saturday through sunday monday
Monday through sunday yo
Maybe i'll love you one day
Maybe we'll someday grow
Till then just sit your drunk ass on that fuckin runway hoe...

[Chorus:]
'Cuz I can't be your superman
Can't be your superman
Can't be your superman
Can't be your superman
I can't be your superman
Can't be your superman
Can't be your superman
Your superman, your superman...

[Eminem:]
Don't get me wrong
I love these hoes
It's no secret
Everybody knows
Yeah we fucked
Bitch so what?
That's about as far as your buddy goes
We'll be friends
I'll call you again,
I'll chase you around every bar you attend
Never know what kind of car i'll be in
[Woman Screaming]
We'll see how much you'll be partying then
You don't want that
Neither do I
I don't wanna flip when I see you with guys
Too much pride
Between you and I
Not a jealous man, but females lie
But I guess that's just what sluts do
How could it ever be just us two?
Never loved you enough to trust you
We just met and I just fucked you
But I do know one thing though
Bitches they come they go
Saturday through Sunday monday
Monday through Sunday yo
Maybe I'll love you one day
Maybe we'll someday grow
'Till then just sit your drunk ass on that fuckin runway hoe...

[Eminem & Dina Rae Over Chorus 2x]

[Eminem:]
I know you want me baby
I think I want you too...

[Dina Rea:]
I think I love you baby...

[Eminem:]
I think I love you too
I'm here to save you girl
Come be in shady's world
I wanna grow together
Lets let our love unfurl
You know you want me baby
You know I want you too
They call me Superman
I'm here to rescue you
I wanna save you girl
Come be in shady's world...

[Dina Rea:]
Oh boy you drive me crazy...

[Eminem:]
Bitch you make me hurl.

[Eminem:]
First thing you said...

[Eminem As Women:]
I'm not phazed,
I hang around big stars all day,
I don't see what the big deal is anyway,
You're just plain ol' Marshall to me...

[Eminem:]
Ooh yeah girl run that game...

[Eminem As Women:]
Hailie Jade...I love that name,
Love that tattoo...what's that say?
'rot in pieces' aww that's great...

[Eminem:]
First off you don't know Marshall
At all so don't grow partial
That's ammo for my arsenal
I'll slap you off that bar stool
There goes another lawsuit
Leave handprints all across you
Good lordy-wody you must be gone off that water bottle
You want what you can't have
Ooh girl that's too damn bad
Don't touch what you can't grab
End up with two back hands
Put Anthrax on a Tampax and slap you till you can't stand
Girl you just blew your chance
Don't mean to ruin your plans
But I do know one thing though
Bitches they come they go
Saturday through Sunday Monday
Monday through Sunday yo
Maybe I'll love you one day
Maybe we'll someday grow
'Till then just sit your drunk ass on that fuckin runway hoe...

[Eminem & Dina Rae Over Chorus 2x]

[Eminem:]
I know you want me baby
I think I want you too...

[Dina Rea:]
I think I love you baby...

[Eminem:]
I think I love you too
I'm here to save you girl
Come be in Shady's world
I wanna grow together
Lets let our love unfurl
You know you want me baby
You know I want you too
They call me Superman
I'm here to rescue you
I wanna save you girl
Come be in shady's world...

[Dina Rea:]
Oh boy you drive me crazy...

[Eminem:]
Bitch you make me hurl.

[Chorus 2x B/W Dina Rea Singing]



"When I'm Gone"

[Introduction]
Yeah...
It's my life...
My own words I guess...

[Verse 1]
Have you ever loved someone so much, you'd give an arm for?
Not the expression, no, literally give an arm for?
When they know they're your heart
And you know you were their armour
And you will destroy anyone who would try to harm 'her
But what happens when karma, turns right around and bites you?
And everything you stand for, turns on you, despite you?
What happens when you become the main source of her pain?
"Daddy look what I made", Dad's gotta go catch a plane
"Daddy where's Mommy? I can't find Mommy where is she?"
I don't know go play Hailie, baby, your Daddy's busy
Daddy's writing a song, this song ain't gonna write itself
I'll give you one underdog then you gotta swing by yourself
Then turn right around in that song and tell her you love her
And put hands on her mother, who's a spitting image of her
That's Slim Shady, yeah baby, Slim Shady's crazy
Shady made me, but tonight Shady's rocka-by-baby...

[Chorus]
And when I'm gone, just carry on, don't mourn
Rejoice every time you hear the sound of my voice
Just know that I'm looking down on you smiling
And I didn't feel a thing, So baby don't feel no pain
Just smile back
And when I'm gone, just carry on, don't mourn
Rejoice every time you hear the sound of my voice
Just know that I'm looking down on you smiling
And I didn't feel a thing, So baby don't feel no pain
Just smile back...

[Verse 2]
I keep having this dream, I'm pushin' Hailie on the swing
She keeps screaming, she don't want me to sing
"You're making Mommy cry, why? Why is Mommy crying?"
Baby, Daddy ain't leaving no more, "Daddy you're lying
"You always say that, you always say this is the last time
"But you ain't leaving no more, Daddy you're mine"
She's piling boxes in front of the door trying to block it
"Daddy please, Daddy don't leave, Daddy - no stop it!"
Goes in her pocket, pulls out a tiny necklace locket
It's got a picture, "this'll keep you safe Daddy, take it withcha'"
I look up, it's just me standing in the mirror
These fuckin' walls must be talking, cuz man I can hear 'em
They're saying "You've got one more chance to do right" - and it's tonight
Now go out there and show that you love 'em before it's too late
And just as I go to walk out of my bedroom door
It's turns to a stage, they're gone, and this spotlight is on
And I'm singing...

[Chorus]
And when I'm gone, just carry on, don't mourn
Rejoice every time you hear the sound of my voice
Just know that I'm looking down on you smiling
And I didn't feel a thing, So baby don't feel no pain
Just smile back
And when I'm gone, just carry on, don't mourn
Rejoice every time you hear the sound of my voice
Just know that I'm looking down on you smiling
And I didn't feel a thing, So baby don't feel no pain
Just smile back...

[Verse 3]
Sixty thousand people, all jumping out their seat
The curtain closes, they're throwing roses at my feet
I take a bow and thank you all for coming out
They're screaming so loud, I take one last look at the crowd
I glance down, I don't believe what I'm seeing
"Daddy it's me, help Mommy, her wrists are bleeding,"
But baby we're in Sweden, how did you get to Sweden?
"I followed you Daddy, you told me that you weren't leavin'
"You lied to me Dad, and now you make Mommy sad
"And I bought you this coin, it says 'Number One Dad'
"That's all I wanted, I just want to give you this coin
"I get the point - fine, me and Mommy are going"
But baby wait, "it's too late Dad, you made the choice
"Now go out there and show 'em that you love 'em more than us"
That's what they want, they want you Marshall, they keep.. screamin' your name
It's no wonder you can't go to sleep, just take another pill
Yeah, I bet you you will. You rap about it, yeah, word, k-keep it real
I hear applause, all this time I couldn't see
How could it be, that the curtain is closing on me
I turn around, find a gun on the ground, cock it
Put it to my brain and scream "die Shady" and pop it
The sky darkens, my life flashes, the plane that I was supposed to be on crashes and burns to ashes
That's when I wake up, alarm clock's ringin', there's birds singin'
It's Spring and Hailie's outside swinging, I walk right up to Kim and kiss her
Tell her I miss her, Hailie just smiles and winks at her little sister
Almost as if to say..

[Chorus/Outro]
And when I'm gone, just carry on, don't mourn
Rejoice every time you hear the sound of my voice
Just know that I'm looking down on you smiling
And I didn't feel a thing, So baby don't feel no pain
Just smile back
And when I'm gone, just carry on, don't mourn
Rejoice every time you hear the sound of my voice
Just know that I'm looking down on you smiling
And I didn't feel a thing, So baby don't feel no pain
Just smile back...

[Curtains closing and sounds of clapping]



"Sing For The Moment"

[Verse 1]
These ideas are nightmares to white parents
Whose worst fear is a child with dyed hair and who likes earrings
Like whatever they say has no bearing, it's so scary in a house that allows
no swearing
To see him walking around with his headphones blaring
Alone in his own zone, cold and he don't care
He's a problem child
And what bothers him all comes out, when he talks about
His fuckin' dad walkin' out
Cause he just hates him so bad that he blocks him out
If he ever saw him again he'd probably knock him out
His thoughts are whacked, he's mad so he's talkin' back
Talkin' black, brainwashed from rock and rap
He sags his pants, do-rags and a stocking cap
His step-father hit him, so he socked him back, and broke his nose
His house is a broken home, there's no control, he just let's his emotions
go...

[Chorus]
{C'mon}, sing with me, {sing}, sing for the years
{Sing it}, sing for the laughter, sing for the tears, {c'mon)
Sing it with me, just for today, maybe tomorrow the good Lord will take you
away...

[Verse 2]
Entertainment is changin', intertwinin' with gangsta's
In the land of the killers, a sinner's mind is a sanctum
Holy or unholy, only have one homie
Only this gun, lonely cause don't anyone know me
Yet everybody just feels like they can relate, I guess words are a
mothafucka they can be great
Or they can degrade, or even worse they can teach hate
It's like these kids hang on every single statement we make
Like they worship us, plus all the stores ship us platinum
Now how the fuck did this metamorphosis happen
From standin' on corners and porches just rappin'
To havin' a fortune, no more kissin' ass
But then these critics crucify you, journalists try to burn you
Fans turn on you, attorneys all want a turn at you
To get they hands on every dime you have, they want you to lose your mind
every time you mad
So they can try to make you out to look like a loose cannon
Any dispute won't hesitate to produce handguns
That's why these prosecutors wanna convict me, strictly just to get me off
of these streets quickly
But all they kids be listenin' to me religiously, so i'm signin' cd's while
police fingerprint me
They're for the judge's daughter but his grudge is against me
If i'm such a fuckin' menace, this shit doesn't make sense Pete
It's all political, if my music is literal, and i'm a criminal how the fuck
can I raise a little girl
I couldn't, I wouldn't be fit to, you're full of shit too, Guerrera, that
was a fist that hit you...

[CHORUS]

[Verse 3]
They say music can alter moods and talk to you
Well can it load a gun up for you , and cock it too
Well if it can, then the next time you assault a dude
Just tell the judge it was my fault and i'll get sued
See what these kids do is hear about us totin' pistols
And they want to get one cause they think the shit's cool
Not knowin' we really just protectin' ourselves, we entertainers
Of course the shit's affectin' our sales, you ignoramus
But music is reflection of self, we just explain it, and then we get our
checks in the mail
It's fucked up ain't it
How we can come from practically nothing to being able to have any fuckin'
thing that we wanted
That's why we sing for these kids, who don't have a thing
Except for a dream, and a fuckin' rap magazine
Who post pin-up pictures on their walls all day long
Idolize they favorite rappers and know all they songs
Or for anyone who's ever been through shit in their lives
Till they sit and they cry at night wishin' they'd die
Till they throw on a rap record and they sit, and they vibe
We're nothin' to you but we're the fuckin' shit in they eyes
That's why we seize the moment try to freeze it and own it, squeeze it and
hold it
Cause we consider these minutes golden
And maybe they'll admit it when we're gone
Just let our spirits live on, through our lyrics that you hear in our
songs and we can...

[CHORUS X2]



"Hailie's Song"

[Intro - Spoken]
Yo, I can't sing it
I feel like singin'
I wanna fuckin' sing
Cuz I'm happy
Yeah, I'm happy
Ha Ha
I got my baby back
Yo, check it out

[Verse 1 - Sung]
Some days I sit, starin' out the window
Watchin' this world pass me by
Sometimes I think theres nothin' to live for
I almost break down and cry

Somtimes I think I'm crazy
I'm crazy, oh so crazy
Why am I here, am I just wasting my time?

But then I see my baby
Suddenly I'm not crazy
It all makes sense when I look into her eyes

[Chorus]
Somtimes it feels like the world's on my shoulders
Everyone's leanin' on me
Cuz sometimes it feels like the world's almost over
But then she comes back to me

[Verse 2 - Sung]
My baby girl [Hailie laughs] keeps gettin' older
I watch her grow up with pride
People make jokes, cuz they don't understand me
They just don't see my real side

I act like shit don't phase me,
Inside it drives me crazy
My insecurities could eat me alive

But then I see my baby
Suddenly I'm not crazy
It all makes sense when I look into her eyes

[Chorus]

[Verse 3 - Rapped]
Man, if I could sing, I'd keep singing this song to my daughter
If I could hit the notes, I'd blow something as long as my father
To show her how I feel about her, how proud I am that I got her
God, I'm a daddy, I'm so glad that her mum didn't abort
Now you probly get this picture from my public persona
That I'm a pistol-packing drug-addict who bags on his momma,
But I wanna just take this time out to be perfectly honest
Cuz there's a lot of shit I keep bottled that hurts deep inside o' my soul,
And just know that I grow colder the older I grow
This boulder on my shoulder gets heavy and harder to hold
And this load is like the weight of the world
And I think my neck is breaking should I just give up,
Or try to live up to these expectations?
Now look, I love my daughter more than life in itself,
But I got a wife that's determined to make my life livin'hell
But I handle it well, given the circumstances I'm dealt
So many chances, man, it's too bad, coulda had someone else
But the years that I've wasted are nothing to the tears that I've tasted
So here's what I'm facin':
3 felonies, 6 years of probation
I've went to jail for this woman, I've been to bat for this woman
I've taken bats to peoples backs, bent over backwards for this woman
Man, I shoulda seen it comin', why'd I stick my penis up in?
Woulda ripped the pre-nup up if I'd seen what she was fuckin'
But fuck it, it's over, there's no more reason to cry no more
I got my baby, baby the only lady that I adore, Hailie
So sayonara, try tomorra, nice to know ya
My baby's travelled back to the arms of her rightful owner
And suddenly it seems that my shoulder blades have just shifted
It's like the greatest gift you can get
The weight has been lifted

Now it don't feel like the world's on my shoulders
Everyone's leanin' on me
Cuz my baby know's that her daddy's a soldier
Nothin' can take her from me

[Outro - Spoken]
Woo!
I told you I can't sing.
Oh well, I tried
Hailie, 'member when I said
If you ever need anything, daddy will be right there?
Well guess what?
Daddy's here.
And I ain't goin'nowhere baby
I love you! (kiss)

ho selezionato alcuni versi di nazim hikmet (1902-1963) per me memorabili.

---

alcuni conoscono bene le varie specie
delle piante, altri quelle dei pesci.
io conosco le separazioni.
alcuni enumerano a memoria i nomi
delle stelle: io delle nostalgie.

---

ho ingannato le mie donne
non ho sparlato degli amici
dietro le loro spalle
ho bevuto ma non sono stato un bevitore
ho sempre guadagnato il mio pane
col sudore della mia fronte
che felicità
mi sono vergognato per gli altri e ho mentito
ho mentito per non far pena agli altri
ma ho anche mentito
senza nessun motivo
ho viaggiato in treno in areoplano in macchina
i più non possono farlo
sono stato all'Opera
i più non ci vanno non sanno
nemmeno che cosa sia
e dal '21 non sono entrato
in certi luoghi frequentati dai più
la moschea la sinagoga la chiesa
il tempio i maghi le fattucchiere
ma mi è capitato
di far leggere la mia sorte
nei fondi di caffè
le mie poesie sono pubblicate
in trenta o quaranta lingue
ma nella mia Turchia
nella mia lingua turca
sono proibite
il cancro non l'ho ancora avuto
non è necessario che l'abbia
non sarò primo ministro
d'altronde non ne ho voglia
anche non ho fatto la guerra
non sono sceso nei ricoveri
nel mezzo della notte
non ho camminato per le vie
sotto gli aerei in picchiata
ma verso i sessant'anni mi sono innamorato
in una parola compagni
anche se oggi a Berlino sono sul punto
di crepare di tristezza
posso dire di aver vissuto
da uomo
e quanto vivrò ancora
e quanto vedrò ancora
chi sa.

---

Alla vita

La vita non è uno scherzo.
Prendila sul serio
come fa lo scoiattolo, ad esempio,
senza aspettarti nulla
dal di fuori o nell'al di là.
Non avrai altro da fare che vivere.

La vita non é uno scherzo.
Prendila sul serio
ma sul serio a tal punto
che messo contro un muro, ad esempio, le mani legate,
o dentro un laboratorio
col camice bianco e grandi occhiali,
tu muoia affinché vivano gli uomini
gli uomini di cui non conoscerai la faccia,
e morrai sapendo
che nulla é più bello, più vero della vita.

Prendila sul serio
ma sul serio a tal punto
che a settant'anni, ad esempio, pianterai degli ulivi
non perché restino ai tuoi figli
ma perché non crederai alla morte
pur temendola,
e la vita peserà di più sulla bilancia.

---

Foglie morte

Veder cadere le foglie mi lacera dentro
soprattutto le foglie dei viali
soprattutto se sono ippocastani
soprattutto se passano dei bimbi
soprattutto se il cielo è sereno
soprattutto se ho avuto, quel giorno, una buona notizia
soprattutto se il cuore, quel giorno, non mi fa male
soprattutto se credo, quel giorno, che quella che amo mi ami
soprattutto se quel giorno mi sento d'accordo con gli uomini e con me stesso
veder cadere le foglie mi lacera dentro,
soprattutto le foglie dei viali d'ippocastani.

---

Il mio secolo non mi fa paura

Il mio secolo non mi fa paura,
il mio secolo pieno di miserie e di crudeltà
il mio secolo coraggioso e eroico.
Non dirò mai che sono vissuto troppo presto
o troppo tardi.
Sono fiero di essere qui, con voi.
Amo il mio secolo che muore e rinasce
un secolo i cui ultimi giorni saranno belli:
il mio secolo splenderà un giorno
come i tuoi occhi.

---

Il più bello dei mari

Il più bello dei mari
è quello che non navigammo.
Il più bello dei nostri figli
non è ancora cresciuto.
I più belli dei nostri giorni
non li abbiamo ancora vissuti.
E quello
che vorrei dirti di più bello
non te l'ho ancora detto.

---

Il raggio è riempito di miele

Il raggio è riempito di miele
i tuoi occhi son pieni di sole.
I tuoi occhi, mia rosa, saranno cenere
domani, e il miele continuerà
a riempire altri raggi.

Non mi fermo a rimpiangere i giorni passati
- salvo una certa notte d’estate –
e anche l’ultima luce dei miei occhi azzurri
ti annuncerà lieti giorni futuri.

Un giorno, madre natura dirà: “Mia creatura
hai già riso, hai già pianto abbastanza”.
E di nuovo, immensa
sconfinata, ricomincerà
la vita, senza occhi, senza parola, senza
pensiero...

---

L’addio

L’uomo dice alla donna
t’amo
e come:
come se stringessi tra le palme
il mio cuore, scheggia di vetro
che m’insanguina le dita
quando lo spezzo
follemente.

---

Mehmet

Da una parte gli aguzzini ci separano come un muro.
Dall'altra questo cuore sciagurato mi ha fatto un brutto scherzo,
mio piccolo,
mio Mehmet,
forse il destino m'impedirà di rivederti.
Sarai un ragazzo, lo so,
simile alla spiga di grano:
biondo, snello, alto di statura.
Ero così quand'ero giovane.
I tuoi occhi saranno vasti come quelli di tua madre,
con dentro talvolta uno strascico amaro di tristezza.
Avrai una bella voce,
la mia era atroce.
La tua fronte sarà chiara.
Le canzoni che canterai spezzeranno i cuori.
Sarai un conversatore brillante.
In questo ero maestro anch'io,
quando la gente non m'irritava i nervi.
Dalle tue labbra colerà il miele.
Ah Mehmet,
quanti cuori spezzerai!
Non dare pena a tua madre.
Tua madre, forte e dolce come la seta,
sarà bella anche all'età delle nonne,
come il primo giorno che la vidi.
Aveva 17 anni,
sulle rive del Bosforo.
Era il chiaro di luna,
era il chiaro del giorno,
era simile a una susina dorata.
Tua madre un giorno, come al solito, ci siamo lasciati:
a stasera!
Era per non rivederci mai più.
Tua madre nella sua bontà
la più saggia delle madri.
Non ho paura di morire, figlio mio.
Eppure malgrado tutto
a volte trasalisco di colpo.
Contare i giorni difficile.
Non ci si può saziare della vita, Mehmet,
non ci si può saziare.
Non vivere a questo mondo come un inquilino.
Vivi su questa terra come se fosse la casa di tuo padre.
La nostra terra, la Turchia,
un bel paese tra gli altri paesi,
e i suoi uomini,
quelli di buona lega,
sono lavoratori pensosi e coraggiosi
e atrocemente miserabili.
Tu, il futuro,
lo vedrai coi tuoi occhi,
lo toccherai con le tue mani.
Io forse morirò lontano dalla mia lingua,
dalle mie canzoni,
dal mio sale ,dal mio pane,
sentendo la nostalgia di tua madre e di te.
Mehmet, piccolo mio,
me ne vado. Sono calmo.
La vita che si disperde in me si ritroverà in te,
per lungo tempo.

---

Nelle mie braccia tutta nuda

Nelle mie braccia tutta nuda
la città la sera e tu
il tuo chiarore l’odore dei tuoi capelli
si riflettono sul mio viso.

Di chi è questo cuore che batte
più forte delle voci e dell’ansito?
è tuo è della città è della notte
o forse è il mio cuore che batte forte?

Dove finisce la notte
dove comincia la città?
dove finisce la città dove cominci tu?
dove comincio e finisco io stesso?

---

non so se tutti i muti sono anche dei sordi
ma certo la maggior parte dei ciechi sono dei ciechi con gli occhi aperti
e le luci dei tram cadono nei loro occhi aperti
ma loro non si rendono conto che la luce cade nei loro occhi.

---

Il tuo viso arrossisce di collera e di vergogna.
Non sei obiettivo, no, al diavolo,
ma triste
di una tristezza tua propria,
una tristezza con le mani e i piedi legati,
come se fossi ancora in prigione,
e giù in guardina sentissi i gendarmi battere i contadini.

---

Ti ho sognata

Ti ho sognata
mi sei apparsa sopra i rami
passando vicino alla luna
tra una nuvola e l'altra
andavi, e io ti seguivo
ti fermavi e io mi fermavo,
mi fermavo, e tu ti fermavi,
mi guardavi e io ti guardavo
ti guardavo e tu mi guardavi
poi tutto è finito.

---

Ti sei stancata di portare il mio peso

Ti sei stancata di portare il mio peso
ti sei stancata delle mie mani
dei miei occhi della mia ombra
dei miei tradimenti
le mie parole erano incendi
le mie parole erano pozzi profondi
le mie parole erano stanchezza, noia serale,
un giorno improvvisamente
sentirai dentro di te
il peso dei miei passi
che si allontanano esitando
quel peso sarà quello più grave.

---

Durante tutto il viaggio la nostalgia non si è separata da me
non dico che fosse come la mia ombra
mi stava accanto anche nel buio
non dico che fosse come le mie mani e i miei piedi
quando si dorme si perdono le mani e i piedi
io non perdevo la nostalgia nemmeno durante il sonno

durante tutto il viaggio la nostalgia non si è separata da me
non dico che fosse fame o sete o desiderio
del fresco nell'afa o del caldo nel gelo
era qualcosa che non può giungere a sazietà
non era gioia o tristezza non era legata
alle città alle nuvole alle canzoni ai ricordi
era in me e fuori di me.

Durante tutto il viaggio la nostalgia non si è separata da me
e del viaggio non mi resta nulla se non quella nostalgia.

---

Rubai

È l'alba. S'illumina il mondo
come l'acqua che lascia cadere sul fondo
le sue impurità. E sei tu, all'improvviso
tu, mio amore, nel chiarore infinito
di fronte a me.

Giorno d'inverno, senza macchia, trasparente
come vetro. Addentare la polpa candida e sana
d'un frutto. Amarti, mia rosa, somiglia
all'aspirare l'aria in un bosco di pini.

Chi sa, forse non ci ameremmo tanto
se le nostre anime non si vedessero da lontano
non saremmo così vicini, chi sa,
se la sorte non ci avesse divisi.

È così, mio usignolo, tra te e me
c'è solo una differenza di grado:
tu hai le ali e non puoi volare
io ho le mani e non posso pensare.

Finito, dirà un giorno madre Natura
finito di ridere e di piangere
e sarà ancora la vita immensa
che non vede non parla non pensa.

---

Senza nessuna ragione qualcosa si rompe in me

Senza nessuna ragione qualcosa si rompe in me
e mi chiude la gola
Senza nessuna ragione sobbalzo ad un tratto
lasciando a mezzo lo scritto
senza nessuna ragione nella hall di un albergo
sogno in piedi
senza nessuna ragione l'albero sul marciapiede
mi batte in fronte

senza nessuna ragione un lupo urla alla luna
iroso infelice affamato
senza nessuna ragione le stelle scendono a dondolarsi
sull'altalena del giardino
senza nessuna ragione vedo come sarò nella tomba
senza nessuna ragione nebbia e sole nella mia testa
senza nessuna ragione mi attacco al giorno che inizia
come se non dovesse finire mai più
e ogni volta sei tu
che sali dalle acque.

---

Ti amo come se mangiassi il pane

Ti amo come se mangiassi il pane
spruzzandolo di sale
come se alzandomi la notte bruciante di febbre
bevessi l'acqua con le labbra sul rubinetto
ti amo come guardo il pesante sacco della posta
non so che cosa contenga e da chi pieno di gioia
pieno di sospetto agitato
ti amo come se sorvolassi il mare per la prima volta in aereo
ti amo come qualche cosa che si muove in me quando il
crepuscolo scende su Istanbul poco a poco
ti amo come se dicessi Dio sia lodato son vivo.

---

Ciò che ho scritto di noi

Ciò che ho scritto di noi è tutta una bugia
è la mia nostalgia
cresciuta sul ramo inaccessibile
è la mia sete
tirata su dal pozzo dei miei sogni
è il disegno
tracciato su un raggio di sole
ciò che ho scritto di noi è tutta verità
è la tua grazia
cesta colma di frutti rovesciata sull'erba
è la tua assenza
quando divento l'ultima luce all'ultimo angolo della via
è la mia gelosia
quando corro di notte fra i treni con gli occhi bendati
è la mia felicità
fiume soleggiato che irrompe sulle dighe
ciò che ho scritto di noi è tutta una bugia
ciò che ho scritto di noi è tutta verità.

Non t'amo come se fossi rosa di sale, topazio
o freccia di garofani che propagano il fuoco:
t'amo come si amano certe cose oscure,
segretamente, tra l'ombra e l'anima.

T'amo come la pianta che non fiorisce e reca
dentro di sé, nascosta, la luce di quei fiori;
grazie al tuo amore vive oscuro nel mio corpo
il concentrato aroma che ascese dalla terra.

T'amo senza sapere come, né quando, né da dove,
t'amo direttamente, senza problemi né orgoglio:
così ti amo perché non so amare altrimenti

che così, in un modo in cui non sono io e non sei tu,
così vicino che la tua mano sul mio petto è mia,
così vicino che i tuoi occhi si chiudono col mio sonno.

scene come l'odierna, con il record mondiale dei 100 metri, mi commuovono.

usain bolt vince con umiltà, senza strafare, allargando le braccia ben prima del traguardo, guardandosi attorno e sorridendo. gli altri erano davvero troppo dietro, ma lo sapeva da se: quando ascolti il vento sibilare nelle orecchie lo sai se stai andando veloce.

di nome e di fatto, perchè bolt vuol dire freccia, fulmine, vuol dire muoversi rapidi e anche, come avverbio, direttamente. e chissà quanto ci avrebbe messo se si fosse spinto al limite.

ecco il video.

Tutto quel che si dovrebbe sapere sullo spirito olimpico, metafora del ricorso storico e dell'essere umano.
Grandi storie e grandi delusioni olimpiche, storie di gioia e di doping, storie di morte e di stupore, storie di persone normali che non hanno retto la pressione della notorietà, o che messe alla prova, davanti al mondo intero, ce l'hanno fatta.

L’australiano Steven Bradbury, pattinatore su ghiaccio che gareggiò nelle Olimpiadi Invernali di Salt Lake City 2002, “marchiato” dagli esperti come un pippone esagerato, si era qualificato per miracolo alle eliminatorie.
Come nelle storie più assurde, Bradbury riusciva a passare il turno grazie alle cadute degli avversari, che lui evitava essendo (fortunosamente) distaccato di svariati secondi.
Il giovane australiano aveva in passato subito due gravissimi infortuni (recisione dell’arteria femorale tramite il pattino di un avversario e una frattura del collo) che però non hanno smontato la grande passione per il pattinaggio su ghiaccio. L’australiano vince, incredulo, urlando "Oh my fucking God!", la medaglia d'oro, dopo aver visto i ruzzoloni degli avversari.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqyntxRwxUY

---

Alle olimpiadi di Sidney, un giocatore di pallavolo ha voluto gareggiare nei 100 metri stile libero per avere l’opportunità di ricevere sponsorizzazioni e costruire un centro sportivo nel suo paese. La gara è incredibile: i suoi avversari vengono squalificati per una partenza non valida (forse concordata visti i fini sociali) ed Eric Moussambani ha tutto il tempo di fare due vasche con uno stile non proprio impeccabile.
Niente record del mondo, niente medaglia d’oro ma è riuscito nell’impresa!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=woYG6Uq6OVU

---

Per la serie africani sulla neve, alle olimpiadi invernali di Albertville un atleta marocchino, pur di dimostrare al mondo l'esistenza del proprio paese, decide di portare a termine il super gigante, seppur una caduta dopo l'altra (a fine video). E non ridere, c'è più dignità in una sconfitta, che nella più maestosa delle vittorie.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZ0VUu4rmOA

---

Dave Wottle fu invece vincitore degli 800 metri a Monaco nel 1972, con una storica rimonta. Lui correva sempre con il cappellino bianco.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7FnvQdtEIo

---

Agente di polizia e guardia del corpo personale dell'imperatore Haile Selassie, Abebe Bikila (è invalso ormai l'uso di seguire la norma etiope nominando prima il cognome - Abebe - e poi il nome - Bikila-), nato a Mout in Etiopia, divenne un eroe nazionale dopo aver vinto la medaglia d'oro nella XVII Olimpiade. Ai Giochi di Roma nel 1960, la leggenda vuole che Bikila corse e vinse l'intera distanza della maratona senza scarpe. In realtà partì con le scarpe; avendo avuto però problemi ad una di esse durante il percorso decise di continuare senza calzature.

Quattro anni dopo Bikila si presentò in condizioni di forma peggiori alle Olimpiadi di Tokyo 1964. Era stato operato di appendicite sei settimane prima della gara e perse tempo da dedicare agli allenamenti. In questa occasione gareggiò con le scarpe, e vinse nuovamente. Bikila divenne il primo campione olimpico a bissare la vittoria nella maratona, stabilendo anche il miglior tempo mondiale sulla distanza.

Ai Giochi Olimpici estivi del 1968, tenutisi a Città del Messico, Bikila subì le conseguenze dell'altitudine, degli infortuni e dell'età. Fu costretto a ritirarsi dalla gara prima della fine.

Nel 1969, Bikila stava guidando nei pressi di Addis Abeba quando ebbe un incidente. Rimase paralizzato dal torace in giù. Non si riprese mai dall'incidente e morì, alla giovane età di 41 anni, per un'emorragia cerebrale. Lo stadio nazionale di Addis Abeba gli è stato dedicato in suo onore.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7ZLB1-Ofyw

---

L'atleta britannico Derek Redmond gareggiava per una medaglia ai 400 metri di Barcelona 1992, ma uno stiramento gli impedì di continuare la gara pochi secondi dopo la partenza. Invece di accasciarsi e chiamare il massaggiatore, ha deciso con grande dignità, e piangendo, di concludere la gara. La folla esultava in suo omaggio.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDsigCRtoyg

---

Jesse Owens conquistò il mondo nell'epoca dei pregiudizi razziali, durante le Olimpiadi volute da Hitler nel 1936 a Berlino. Odiato e disprezzato, vinse 4 medaglie d'oro, davanti ad una folla attonita.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDkaOSGDweU

---

Ai giochi di Monaco del 1972, Mark Spitz vinse 7 medaglie, stabilendo 7 record del mondo: 100 metri stile libero, 200 metri stile libero, 100 metri farfalla, 200 metri farfalla, 4 x 100 metri stile libero, 4 x 200 metri stile libero e la staffetta 4 x 100 metri.

Questo incredibile risultato fu offuscato dall'uccisione di 11 israeliani. Spitz fu riportato di corsa a casa, in quanto considerato in pericolo viste le origini ebree. Subito dopo i giochi di Monaco, si ritirò dal nuoto.
Ed ora c'è Michael Phelps: lui di medaglie ne ha prese addirittura 8.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ccyuse50B5M
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emzsB1b2cWw

---

Stoccolma, 1912. Il 14 luglio si corre la Maratona, 40,2 chilometri (per rendere ufficiali i 42,195 km, cioè la distanza che separa il Castello di Winsdor dallo Stadio Olimpico di Londra 1908, bisognerà aspettare il 1921). Per evitare un altro caso Dorando Pietri, l’organizzazione non si premura di evitare che i podisti si sentano male, ma fa in modo che nessuno possa avvicinarsi agli atleti. Hai visto mai che qualcuno dovesse soccorrere il vincitore a pochi metri dal traguardo? Tant’è, vietati ciclisti al seguito, massaggiatori e dirigenti ai bordi della strada, ma con brillante decisione si parte alle 13.48, con 32 gradi all’ombra e pochissimi punti di ristoro previsti durante il percorso.

Si parte da Stoccolma, si arriva a Sollentuna e si torna indietro. Il tracciato non è pavimentato, c’è tanta polvere e due italiani. Uno, in particolare, Carlo Speroni, ha 17 anni e si ritira a 5 chilometri dal traguardo, quando è in corsa per una medaglia, in preda ai crampi. Correrà fino a Parigi 1924, sarà pluricampione e pluriprimatista italiano dei 10.000, diventerà massaggiatore della Pro Patria. Lo stadio di Busto Arsizio è intitolato a lui. In fondo, comunque, può dirsi fortunato. A non tagliare il traguardo infatti sono in 34. Un portoghese al km 30 si accascia al suolo su una collinetta, colto da insolazione. Si chiama Francisco Lazaro, ma di alzarsi e camminare non se ne parla. Come da regolamento, non ci sono soccorsi. Lo ritroveranno in preda a febbre e convulsioni, lo rianimeranno, ma il mattino dopo ne annunceranno la morte.

E gli altri non arrivati? Tutti trovati, tranne uno. E’ il giapponese Siso Kanakuri. Si mobilita pure la polizia, ma non c’è niente da fare. Non ritirato, ma disperso. Nel tempo, il suo nome divenne una leggenda e i suoi avvistamenti avvenivano a cadenza periodica. C'è chi racconta ai giornali di averlo visto in compagnia di due ragazze svedesi senza alcuna voglia di tornare in Giappone, chi giura di averlo visto correre per le strade di Rotebro, cercando di ritrovare la strada per lo stadio Olimpico. Potevano almeno dirgli che i Giochi erano finiti, visto che molta meno delicatezza si usò poi con i giapponesi trovati nei bunker a svariati anni dalla fine della seconda guerra mondiale.

Ma la Maratona di Kanakuri, in effetti, non era finita. Nel 1962 il direttore di un giornale di Stoccolma, probabilmente in vena di punizioni, decide di inviare un reporter in Giappone con l’ordine di non tornare senza aver trovato Kanakuri. E che cosa faceva uno che si era perso da 50 anni? Insegnava, naturalmente, geografia. Il reporter, infatti, lo trovò in una scuola pubblica della città di Tamana. Al giornalista, Kanakuri raccontò come andarono le cose: a metà gara, vinto dal caldo, aveva lasciato il percorso in cerca di aiuto. Trovò ospitalità presso una famiglia svedese, che lo ristorò con succo di lampone e gli procurò un letto per riposare, un abbigliamento adatto e un biglietto del treno per tornare a Stoccolma. E lui, imbarazzato per non aver portato a termine la gara, tornò in Giappone in nave e in incognito, senza dire niente a nessuno. Non immaginava certo che il giapponese scomparso era diventato una leggenda svedese. Nel 1967, a 76 anni, Kanakuri fu invitato in Svezia. Inaugurò un grande magazzino a Rotebro, poi fu portato allo stadio Olimpico di Stoccolma. Tra gli applausi della folla, tagliò il traguardo. Tempo del vincitore, il sudafricano Kennedy McArthur, 2 ore, 36 minuti e 54 secondi. Tempo dell’ultimo classificato: 55 anni.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7iZfpm6E3zk

---

Helsinki, 1952. La guerra di Corea è in pieno svolgimento, la guerra fredda inizia anche nello sport, con l’Unione Sovietica che viene ammessa ai Giochi. L’Italia scende in piazza per la legge truffa e porta alla rassegna olimpica dei miti dello sport nazionale come Edoardo Mangiarotti, Cesare Rubini, Renzo Nostini, futuri allenatori di primatisti mondiali come Carlo Vittori (che fu eliminati ai quarti nei 100, con 10”9, e poi guidò Mennea al Mondiale e all’oro olimpico dei 200), futuri attori di grido come Carlo Pedersoli.

Nella stessa vasca dove il futuro Bud Spencer, che comunque rimane il primo italiano ad essere sceso sotto il minuto nei 100 stile libero, viene eliminato in semifinale (anche nella staffetta 4x200 sl), il 30 luglio si disputa la finale dei 400 stile libero. Il favorito è il re delle lunghe distanze, l’hawaiiano Ford Konno, che naturalmente batte bandiera americana. Sembra poter controllare la gara, nonostante a partire in testa sia il francese Jean Boiteaux. Che prende un certo vantaggio, al punto che Konno sembra poter controllare un po’ meno la questione. Poi si riprende, rimonta, nell’ultima vasca il sorpasso sembra certo, ma non avviene. Boiteaux resiste dopo uno straordinario testa a testa, vince in 4’30”07, sei centesimi in meno rispetto al favorito. Record olimpico, tra l’altro.

Jean non ci crede, esulta, sbatte i pugni sull’acqua. Ma non è lui a fare gli schizzi più grandi, perché si ritrova travolto dal tuffo di un uomo di mezza età, completamente vestito, che prima di tuffarsi non si toglie neanche il cappello. Lo abbraccia, ricambiato. L’uomo che si è tuffato in acqua è il padre di Boiteaux e quell’abbraccio va oltre un oro olimpico. I due, infatti, erano in lite perché Boiteaux senior ostacolava pesantemente la relazione sentimentale del figlio. Junior, però, gli aveva strappato una promessa: in caso di vittoria a Helsinki, il padre avrebbe dato il benestare per le nozze. Che si celebrarono, a Marsigliese suonata.

Siccome nulla accade per caso, vale la pena sottolineare un paio di curiosità. Quello di Boiteaux rimase il primo oro olimpico del nuoto francese per 52 anni, prima di quello conquistato nei 400 stile libero femminili ad Atene da Laure Manaudou, una che per le sue relazioni sentimentali non chiede il permesso a nessuno, neanche al suo fidanzato del momento. Già che ci siamo, detto del padre di Jean Boiteaux, sapete come si chiamava la madre? Bibienne, che partecipò ai Giochi del 1924 e del 1928, da nubile non si chiamava quindi Federica, ma di cognome faceva Pellegry. Non ditelo alla Manaudou.

Post scriptum: la Manadou (oro ad Atene nel 2004 nei 200 e nei 400 stile libero, ottava la finale dei 400 stile libero e settima quella dei 100 dorso a Pechino 2008), dopo l'oro nei 200 di Federica Pellegrini, dirà: "E' tutto molto stressante. Per una come me che ha fatto grandi risultati, arrivare qui e non raggiungere questa finale non va bene. Ci sono molte persone che avrebbero dovuto vincere delle medaglie, come Federica sui 400 stile".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_99L0-SZVUY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jbSXU9PPOw

---

Melbourne 1956. L’Ungheria è la favorita del torneo di pallanuoto. In semifinale, il 6 dicembre, affronta un altro squadrone, l’Urss. Solo che tre settimane prima i carri armati sovietici hanno invaso la ribelle Ungheria. 25 mila morti da una parte, 7 mila dall’altra, 250 mila profughi. Una tragedia, quando la guerra fredda è più calda che mai. L’Ungheria, a dir la verità, aveva annunciato di non partecipare ai Giochi, ma poi a sorpresa si presentò. Intanto, Olanda e Spagna rinunciarono per protesta contro la presenza sovietica, la Svizzera rimase perché non si trovava più un aereo per tornare indietro, mentre Egitto, Libano e Iraq si fermano per protestare contro la presenza di Israele. Nel villaggio olimpico, l’Ungheria issa la bandiera della guerra d’indipendenza contro l’Austria, roba di un secolo prima. La ginnasta Agnes Keleti viene informata della morte della madre, il marciatore Somogy scopre da un giornale che la moglie è una profuga.

In questo clima, ecco Ungheria-Urss. Tecnicamente, non è una semifinale, ma la gara decisiva del girone. La partita è preceduta da minacce da parte dei dirigenti sovietici verso i giocatori ungheresi. Se c’è una cosa che gli ungheresi sanno fare bene, ancora oggi, è giocare a pallanuoto. Lo fecero e vinsero 4-0. Ma se c’è una cosa che caratterizza la pallanuoto è il gioco duro. Che può diventare durissimo. Non c’era la tv, ma c’erano i fotografi. Quando Valentin Prokopov, dell’Urss, colpì con un pugno Ervin Zador, rompendogli lo zigomo, la piscina divenne una grande bandiera rossa. Gli arbitri assistevano impotenti, interrompendo continuamente il gioco, mentre la caccia all’uomo continuava. Il pubblico era composto in gran parte di esuli ungheresi e sommerse di fischi la nazionale sovietica, mentre i giocatori ungheresi, alcuni dei quali sanguinanti, uscirono tra gli applausi. E poi, naturalmente, vinsero il loro quarto oro olimpico, battendo in finale la Jugoslavia. I giocatori, poi, furono invitati negli Stati Uniti. Sei di loro ottennero asilo politico e non tornarono in patria prima del 1990, tranne lo Zador, che rimase a vivere negli Stati Uniti. Diritti umani, guerre e Olimpiadi. 52 anni fa.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ag19hj2HhLU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLoA5yLZ4l4

---

Parliamo di Seul 1988, ma cominciamo da Berlino 1936. Nella Maratona vince il giapponese Kitei Son, con 2 ore 29 minuti e 19 secondi, recordo olimpico. Al terzo posto si piazza il suo connazionale Shoryu Nan. Il primo si è segnalato avendo corso ben sette maratone nel 1935 e il Giappone, terra dove la corsa di lunga distanza è quasi una religione, non se l’è lasciato sfuggire. Il secondo (o meglio, il terzo) ha battuto Son nella prova di qualificazione, ottenendo quindi il diritto ad andare a Berlino. Sul podio, però, quando suona l’inno giapponese, i due chinano il capo. Niente pugno chiuso, niente protesta. Il giorno dopo, un quotidiano di Seul pubblica la foto del podio ritoccata, con la bandiera giapponese cancellata. Il fatto è che Kitei Son in realtà si chiama Sohn Kee-Chung, ed è nordcoreano, come Shoryu Nan, che in realtà si chiama Nam Sung-Yong. La Corea, però, dal 1910 è una colonia giapponese e quindi entrambi hanno dovuto partecipare con un nome… nipponizzato. Che c’entra tutto ciò con la cerimonia d’inaugurazione? C’entra, perché nel 1988 l’ultimo tedoforo fu proprio Sohn Kee-Chung, l’ex Kitei Son, che aveva 73 anni ed entrò nello stadio olimpico con la fiaccola indossando la divisia della Corea.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wbJdiT6TPN0

---

Barcellona 1992. L’ultimo tedoforo, il cestista San Epifanio, con la fiamma accende il dardo dell’arciere Antonio Rebollo, atleta paraolimpico. Il braciere, infatti, si trova lontano, sopra le tribune, dal lato opposto. Va acceso lanciando una freccia infuocata. E’ l’unica fonte di luce, in quel momento, quando nello stadio tutto è spento. La freccia parte, si infila nel tripode, la fiamma si accende. Tripudio. “Se qualcuno poteva sbagliare, questi era l’arco, non certo io” dice, trionfante, Rebollo. Peccato che una troupe televisiva di “Sky News” sia appostata fuori dallo stadio e il giorno dopo mostri il filmato: la freccia ha mancato il bersaglio, è finita “lunga”, sorvolando il tripode e cadendo fuori dalle tribune. Il braciere, però, si è acceso lo stesso. La tv (spagnola) non aveva mostrato la parte finale della traiettoria, inquadrando subito la fiamma. La tv (americana) ha semplicemente preso un’altra angolazione. E così la tv smascherò se stessa. Per la cronaca, Rebollo non era neanche tanto male, e vinse una medaglia d’argento.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dg_weauz1eI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5gZeT4TVds
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fca-MbAKOV0

---

Non solo Pierre de Coubertin non ha mai detto che l’importante era partecipare e non vincere. Non lo pensava neanche. Intanto, partiamo dalla frase, che effettivamente fu pronunciata dall’inventore delle Olimpiadi moderne, ma solo citando un altro personaggio. Nello specifico, si tratta del vescovo anglicano Ethelbert Talbot, della diocesi di Pennsylvania, che nel corso della cerimonia tenuta nella cattedrale di Saint Paul di Londra, in onore dei partecipanti ai Giochi del 1908, a sua volta aveva citato a modo suo la prima lettera di San Paolo ai Corinzi. “Non lo sapete – scriveva il Santo – che nelle corse allo stadio, tutti corrono, ma uno solo conquista il premio? Correte anche voi in modo da conquistarlo”. Il vescovo aveva invertito il concetto, che per San Paolo era una metafora di quanto fosse difficile accedere al Regno dei Cieli, e De Coubertin lo raccolse al volo. Il Barone, infatti, era preoccupato dall’esasperata rivalità che a Londra era scoppiata tra Usa e Gran Bretagna.

Gli americani si erano risentiti di non aver visto la bandiera a stelle e strisce tra quelle che ornavano lo Stadio Olimpico, e allora fecero sfilare il portabandiera con il vessillo rivolto verso il basso. Poi accusarono gli inglesi di aver barato nella finale del Tiro alla Fune e se i “padroni di casa” celebrarono così tanto Dorando Pietri è anche (soprattutto?) perché dopo la squalifica del garzone emiliano, la vittoria andò a un americano, John Hayes. Nella finale dei 400 metri, l’episodio più clamoroso. L’americano Carpenter, il vincitore, fu accusato di aver invaso la corsia dello scozzese (che gareggiava per la Gran Bretagna) Halswelle, impedendogli il sorpasso nel rettilineo finale. Alcune foto lo dimostrarono, Carpenter fu squalificato e la finale fu ripetuta 2 giorni dopo, con le corde a delimitare le corsie. Ma gli altri qualificati, due americani, si rifiutarono di partecipare per solidarietà con Carpenter e così Halswelle vinse correndo da solo, in 50 secondi.

Insomma, per mitigare il tutto, De Coubertin provò a dire che l’importante non era vincere, ma partecipare. E aggiunse che “lo sport è prima di tutto lotta dura per la vittoria. E’ ambizione di fare più degli altri, volontà di pervenirvi”. Bè, il primo ad avere questa volontà era lui stesso. Per scoprirlo, ci vollero altri 4 anni. Ai Giochi di Stoccolma 1912, infatti, si svolgevano anche delle Competizioni d’arte: architettura, scultura, pittura e letteratura. In quest’ultima, vinse l’opera “Ode allo Sport”, scritta dai tedeschi Gorge Hohrod e Martin Heschbach. Niente di entusiasmante. “Oh sport, piacere degli dei, elisir della vita…” è l’incipit. Perché vince, allora? Semplice, perché il presidente della giuria è anche l’autore dell’opera. Sì, Pierre de Coubertin. Che nel 1909 aveva già pubblicato un testo con lo pseudonimo di Hohrod, che poi in tedesco vuol dire “Alto Rodano”. Eschbach, invece, altro non è che il nome di un paese dell’Alto Rodano (appunto), vicino al quale è nata la moglie di de Coubertin, Marie Rothan. Pensavate che il principio secondo il quale chi porta il pallone può rifare le squadre finché la sua non vince fosse nato all’Oratorio? Invece no, l’ha inventato il fondatore delle Olimpiadi moderne.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzcQW5WZ2dA

---

Montreal, 1976. Pentathlon moderno. Non quello antico, inventato nel 708 avanti Cristo, che prevedeva corsa, salto in lungo, lancio del giavellotto, lancio del disco e lotta. Ma quello inventato da Pierre De Coubertin in persona, che oltre alla corsa prevede nuoto, tiro, equitazione e scherma. L’Unione Sovietica, sempre sul podio da Melbourne 1956, stavolta è in difficoltà e ristagna al quarto posto, momentaneamente fuori dal podio, seguita dalla Gran Bretagna. Le due squadre si affrontano nella prova di scherma, dove l’Urss è guidata da Boris Onishchenko, oro a squadre e argento individuale a Monaco 1972, argento a squadre a Città del Messico 1968, vari altri titoli (compreso quello di Maestro Emerito dello Sport) e una serie di risultati nella scherma migliorati improvvisamente dal 1970, a 33 anni. Stavolta, però, ne ha 39.

Quando Onishchenko affronta Adrian Parker, che ha 14 anni in meno di lui ed è pure proprietario di una etichetta discografica, gli inglesi notano qualcosa che non va. La spia che segnala il bersaglio valido colpito dall’ucraino sembra accendersi prima che la stoccata vada a segno. Quando in pedana sale James Fox, il “sembra” sparisce: la spia si accende sicuramente prima della conclusione dell’assalto, e segnala il bersaglio valido colpito dal sovietico. A quel punto, la Gran Bretagna presenta ricorso e chiede che venga esaminata la spada di Onishchenko, che nel frattempo continua con un altro attrezzo. Un’ora dopo, la giuria, presieduta da un italiano, emette il verdetto: Onishchenko è squalificato. All’interno dell’elsa, nell’impugnatura, è presente infatti un pulsante in grado di azionare il congegno elettronico che segnala il bersaglio valido, anche se il bersaglio non è stato colpito.

Scandalo, inutile dirlo, ma lo diciamo lo stesso. Nessuno sa se magari è dal 1970 che il sovietico utilizza questo espediente, ma di sicuro nessuno intende fargliela passare liscia. Squalificato, radiato, privato del titolo di Maestro Emerito di Sport, cacciato dal villaggio olimpico, non fu mai più visto al di fuori dei confini dell’Urss. Per campare, farà il tassista. La Gran Bretagna, intanto, si ritrova quarta, ma grazie a una clamorosa prestazione nella corsa di Parker, proprio quello danneggiato dal trucco di Onishchenko, si aggiudica l’oro. Intanto, la stampa inglese conia il termine “Dis-onishcenko” per ribattezzare l’ormai ex Maestro Emerito e quella americana, con la penna di Art Buchwald, usa il suo caso per rafforzare la tesi dell’inaffidabilità dei sovietici in termini di disarmo.

Un americano, però, ne combinerà una simile. Di Onishchenko, infatti, è piena la storia dello sport. Nel 2003, quando all’idolo del baseball americano Sammy Sosa si ruppe la mazza, si rivelò che il battitore l’aveva riempita con un’anima di sughero. Era più leggera, più maneggevole e in grado di lanciare la pallina più lontano. Donald Crowhurst, nel 1969, fu più sottile e più tecnologico, quasi come Onishchenko. Partecipando allla regata in solitario attorno al mondo, senza scalo, pensò bene di fermarsi nelle isole Azzorre. Via radio, però, riusciva a continuare la sua gara, comunicando agli organizzatori la sua posizione. Resta “coperto” in fondo al “gruppo”, ma per una serie di sventure tutti gli avversari che lo precedevano si ritrovarono fuori gara uno dopo l’altro e lui si ritrovò al comando. Troppo. Qualche giorno dopo, il suo trimarano fu ritrovato alla deriva, senza il suo occupante. Non aveva retto lo stress, si era suicidato, si scoprì più tardi. Lo stress uccide, il sughero fa volare, e il pugno può far più male della spada. Nel 1983, infatti, Billy Ray Collins, imbattuto peso welter, viene massacrato dal carneade Luis Resto e riporta danni permanenti agli occhi. Possibile? Sì, dato che l’allenatore di Resto, Panama Lewis, aveva tolto l’imbottitura dai guantoni del suo pugile. Oggi, con il nuovo sistema di punteggi per gli incontri di boxe ai Giochi Olimpici (i tre giudici devono premere contemporaneamente il pulsante affinché il punto venga assegnato), gli sarebbe bastato un congegno elettronico nascosto nel guantone. Peccato ci abbia già pensato Onishchenko nel 1976. O dal 1970?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boris_Onischenko
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZNrqPD_nSo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7e2xHDZu8s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wI1RB6JYgfU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHhEfEB82ug

---

Anche se la storia ci racconta che da quando l’atleta americano Dick Fosbury trionfò a Città del Messico 1968 con il salto dorsale, il “Fosbury Flop”, tutti presero progressivamente ad abbandonare il salto ventrale, imitandolo. Lui, in fondo, di se stesso dice: “Non sono mai stato un grande saltatore. Ho solo avuto una grande idea”. Altrimenti, ammette, non avrebbe mai vinto l’oro olimpico. L’idea, però, non era nuova. Esiste una foto, infatti, portata alla luce nel 2000 dal giornalista Rial Cummings, datata 24 maggio 1963. Uno studente del Montana, Bruce Quande, 15enne, supera l’asticella posta a circa 1 metro e 70 saltando di schiena. Vince, ma dopo un paio di semestri abbandonerà l’atletica. Ha invece una lunga carriera la canadese Debbie Brill, ottava a Monaco 1972 e quinta a Los Angeles 1984 (a Mosca 1980, non ci fosse stato il boicottaggio, probabilmente avrebbe partecipato e vinto). A 13 anni, però, cioè nel 1966, salta già di schiena, con tanto di rincorsa laterale, da studentessa della British Columbia. A differenza di Quande, ha l’idea di aver inventato qualcosa e si preoccupa subito di dare un nome alla sua creatura, chiamandola “Brill Bend”, curva alla Brill. All’epoca, a dire il vero, Fosbury in allenamento già provava il salto che alla fine ha preso il suo nome “solo” perché gli ha consentito di vincere un’Olimpiade. Oggi gira il mondo, lotta contro un brutto male, e parla della sua invenzione. Quande ha 60 anni, è un pensionato, e vive ancora nel Montana.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfpC_WwxiDM

---

Ebbene sì, l’origine della Maratona è un falso. Siamo sì nel 490 a.C., con i persiani, guidati da Dario I, che approdano nella baia di Maratona, a circa 40 chilometri da Atene, minacciando di conquistarla. Il generale ateniese Milziade manda quindi un messaggero-corridore di professione, Filippide, a Sparta per chiedere l’aiuto dei più acerrimi rivali. Secondo il racconto di Erodoto (praticamente contemporaneo agli eventi), Filippide percorre i 250 chilometri che separano le due città in meno di 2 giorni e subito dopo torna indietro per riferire a Milziade che gli sparatani non possono entrare in guerra prima della luna piena, perché interromperebbero le celebrazioni in onore di un loro dio. Durante la strada del ritorno, il dio Pan appare a Filippide, promettendogli il suo aiuto. Milziade decide comunque di attaccare i persiani e, pur avendo un numero nettamente inferiore rispetto ai nemici, li batte e li vede scappare in preda alla paura. Anzi, al “panico”, termine coniato in onore del dio Pan, che infuse una innaturale paura alle armate persiane. Il primo a parlare di un messaggero giunto ad Atene per gridare “Abbiamo vinto!” e poi morire, senza mai nominare Filippide, fu Plutarco, 500 anni dopo Erodoto e i tanti storiografi che confermarono la versione originale. La storia arrivò ancor più romanzata a Pierre De Coubertin, nel 1894, su segnalazione di uno storico francese, Michel Bréal. Egli si rifaceva al poemetto “Philippides” composto nel 1879 da un poeta inglese, Robert Browning, secondo il quale Filippide, dopo il tragitto Atene-Sparta-Atene, combattè a Maratona e corse fino ad Atene per annunciare la vittoria. Nessuno verificò e il 29 marzo 1896, su un percorso di circa 40 chilometri molto simile a quello su cui ha vinto Stefano Baldini nel 2004, Spiridon Louis vinse la prima edizione della Maratona. Dal 1982, invece, si corre la “Spartathlon”, gara di 250 chilometri per podisti estremi che parte da Atene e arriva a Sparta. La gara, quella sì, che celebra davvero la doppia impresa di Filippide. Che non solo aveva corso 250 chilometri in meno di 2 giorni, ma era riuscito anche a mettere d’accordo, almeno nelle intenzioni, ateniesi e spartani.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6q3Gpsba9w

---

Il sito del Coni, che celebra, giustamente, tutte le medaglie olimpiche vinte dallo sport italiano, menziona anche un bronzo conquistato ad Anversa 1920 nel Tiro alla Fune. L’Italia vince la prima gara per il forfait dell’avversario, perde 2-0 con l’Olanda e a sua volta dà forfait contro gli Stati Uniti. L’Olanda, intanto, perde contro la Gran Bretagna, che vince l’oro. Ma chi ha vinto l’argento? Secondo uno dei pochi rapporti ufficiali esistenti, seconda è arrivata l’Olanda. Poche righe più sotto, però, l’argento viene assegnato agli Stati Uniti, che dopo il forfait dell’Italia avrebbero dovuto gareggiare proprio contro gli olandesi. Nel frattempo, però, gli arancioni avevano lasciato Anversa. Per anni, quindi, si è creduto che l’argento fosse stato assegnato agli Stati Uniti e il bronzo all’Italia. Ma uno studioso belga, rintracciando alcuni esponenti della squadra olandese e fotografandoli con la medaglia d’argento di Anversa, pose fine alla questione. La medaglia fu effettivamente assegnata all’Olanda e il Cio lo ha ufficializzato nel 1968. Nessuno, invece, potè mai fotografare uno tra Arnolldo, Calzolai, Carpi, Forno, Rambozzi, Schiappapietra, Tonani e Zotti, cioè i componenti della squadra italiana, con la medaglia di bronzo. Quella medaglia, infatti, era ed è degli Stati Uniti e solo il sito del Coni continua ad assegnarla all’Italia.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brSO_5q2-Bo

---

Cerchiamo di dimenticare Marion Jones, Ben Johnson e Tonya Harding.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_R9esnDzp0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq4KrymPtXY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Tu86YxqP1c
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cbyi1S1nDiI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOaqh_50vRc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rOXJllaCAI

---

Dieci è il risultato perfetto. C'è stato un momento nella storia olimpica che tutti ricorderanno come "il dieci". Perfetto.
Nadia Elena Comaneci è nata il 12 Novembre 1961 ad Onesti, in Romania.
Ed ecco cosa sono i rom per me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5gR0g8lHIs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4n0x1hijHE

This post has meant to be the English version of my "Olympic Spirit: 20 great stories, with 33 videos and 53 thoughts", but I ended up with different stories.

Olimpic spirit is a metaphor of history repeating and human makind.

---

To become an Olympic hero, it takes more than athleticism. Whether they were cross-dressing their way to the podium or somersaulting with one leg, these athletes deserve infinite points for style. Some of them lost big-time, but all of them won our twisted little hearts.

1. The Weightlifter Who Beefed Up at a Japanese Internment Camp

A scrawny, asthmatic child, Tamio Kono developed his weightlifting physique in the most unlikely place - a Japanese internment camp. During World War II, he and his family were forced from their home in San Francisco and moved to a detention center in the California desert. For three and a half years, they endured brutal conditions along with other Japanese immigrants. Although the situation was terrible, the climate wasn’t. The desert air agreed with Tamio’s lungs, and he started lifting weights to pass the time.

After the war, Kono kept training, and within a decade, he was the lynchpin of the U.S. national weightlifting team. Despite his family’s detention, he proudly lifted for the Americans. Using his freakish ability to raise and lower his weight quickly, Kono helped the team fill gaps in its roster. During his career, Kono lifted competitively at weights ranging from 149 lbs. to 198 lbs. To bulk up, he’d devour six or seven meals a day, and to slim down, he’d “starve” himself with three meals a day. He won his first gold as a lightweight during his Olympic debut in 1952, his second as a light heavyweight in 1956, and then a silver as a middleweight in 1960. All in all, he set seven Olympic records and 26 world records. Plus, he went on to become Mister Universe three times. Not bad for a boy who’d once been a 105-lb. weakling.

---

2. Riding to Glory Without the Use of Her Legs

In 1944, Danish horseback rider Lis Hartel contracted polio while pregnant. Although the illness left her almost totally paralyzed, she gave birth to a healthy baby girl. She also kept training for her event—equestrian dressage. By 1947, she was riding again, even though she couldn’t use the muscles below her knees. Despite needing help mounting and dismounting her horse, she competed for Denmark at the 1952 Games, winning a silver medal in a sport that was almost entirely dominated by men. In an indelible image of Olympic sportsmanship, Swedish gold medalist Henri Saint Cyr helped Hartel onto the platform at the awards ceremony. In the following years, Hartel kept on riding and won another silver at the 1956 Games.

Other Honorable Mentions in Competing Without Your Entire Body

• The One-Handed Gunner: Hungarian rapid-fire pistol champ Karoly Takacs was known for his steady right hand. But while he was serving in the army in 1938, a grenade accident destroyed it. Undeterred, he taught himself to shoot with his left hand and won gold medals at the 1948 and 1952 Olympics.

• The One-Legged Gymnast: At the 1904 Olympics in St. Louis, American gymnast George Eyser grabbed one bronze, two silvers, and three gold medals—all while competing with a wooden leg.

---

3. The Boxer Who Turned Down Millions for Communism

Cuban boxer Teofilo Stevenson burst onto the heavyweight scene at the 1972 Munich Games by knocking down his first opponent in just 30 seconds. He was a force in the ring, and commentators often joked that the “honor” of facing him should go to the loser—not the winner—of previous matches.

After Stevenson cakewalked his way to the gold in 1972, boxing promoters clamored for the Cuban to go pro, but he resisted. He believed passionately in the Cuban revolution and preferred to fight on behalf of his country. After he nabbed another gold at the 1976 Montreal Games, promoters became even pushier. Stevenson passed up millions of dollars and was hailed as a national hero for his convictions. Then he picked up his third straight gold in 1980, at age 28. After retiring, Stevenson worked as a boxing consultant in Cuba, earning about $400 a month. When asked about all the money he turned down, he often replied, “What is a million dollars against 8 million Cubans who love me?”

---

4. The Human Torpedo Gets to Keep His Day Job

Although professional athletes can compete in certain Olympic events today, the modern Games were founded on the purity of amateurs competing solely for the glory. However, this often forced star athletes out of the competition just for taking money to make ends meet. Legendary track-and-field champion Jim Thorpe, for example, lost his amateur status for earning $35 a week in minor-league baseball games.

Italian gymnast Alberto Braglia’s “professional” adventures were even more pitiable. After winning the all-around gymnastics gold at the 1908 Games, Braglia hit upon hard financial times. So, he turned to the place best-suited for small, athletic fellows—the circus. Performing as the Human Torpedo, Braglia delighted audiences across Europe with his daredevil stunts. In the process, he broke his shoulder and several ribs.

Irked by his stint in the circus, Italy’s governing body for gymnastics declared that Braglia had forfeited his amateur status. Just like that, his Olympic days were over. Fortunately, cooler heads realized that being a human torpedo wasn’t quite the same as being a professional gymnast, and Braglia regained his amateur status in time for the 1912 Games in Stockholm. There, the Italian wonder picked up two more golds. After the Games, he returned to the circus, where he enjoyed a long and successful career.

---

5. Losing a Race to Save a Life

At the 1988 Games in Seoul, Canadian sailor Lawrence Lemieux was moving along at a quick clip, even though the seas were exceptionally rough. About halfway through the race, he seemed to have a firm grip on the silver medal when disaster struck.

Lemieux heard the cries of two Singaporean sailors competing in a different event nearby. One of them was clinging desperately to his boat, which had capsized under the 6-ft. waves. The other had drifted 50 feet away, swept off by the currents. Instead of staying in his race, Lemieux set course for the sailors and pulled them out of the water. His hope for a medal all but dashed, Lemieux waited for rescue boats to arrive. By the time they did, he’d fallen to 23rd place. But Lemieux’s bravery did not go unrewarded. The Olympic committee gave him the Pierre de Coubertin medal, a special award for sportsmanship.

---

6. Bearing the Weight of a Nation on a Broken Kneecap

The Japanese men’s gymnastics team won gold at every Olympic Games from 1960 to 1972. So when the 1976 Games began, capturing a fifth straight gold was a matter of national pride.

Things started to come apart, however, when gymnast Shun Fujimoto felt something pop in his leg during the floor exercise. He knew he’d broken his kneecap, but hesitated to tell his coaches for fear of being pulled from competition. Knowing that his team needed every tenth of a point to win, Fujimoto decided to downplay the injury. He dusted himself off and hopped on the pommel horse, scoring a 9.5 despite the searing pain in his knee. Fujimoto later credited his injury with helping him to focus, because he knew the slightest error could have caused permanent damage. “I was completely occupied by the thought that I could not afford to make any mistakes,” he said.

Following the pommel horse was Fujimoto’s strongest event—the rings. For his dismount, he flew through the air in a triple-somersault and made a near-perfect landing with clenched teeth and tears in his eyes. The judges awarded him a 9.7, a personal best. After sticking the landing, Fujimoto collapsed from pain. Even then, he only withdrew from the competition after doctors told him he would risk permanent disability by continuing. Fujimoto’s teammates rallied around their friend’s gutsy performance and edged out the Soviets for the gold.

---

7. Cassius Clay Tosses His Medal into the Ohio River

Before Cassius Clay became Muhammad Ali, he was a cocky 18-year-old boxer at the 1960 Games in Rome. His masterful performance in the ring won him the gold, but his friendliness and chatty demeanor won him the hearts of journalists. Hoping to capitalize on Clay’s loose tongue, the Soviet press tried to bait him into talking trash about America. One Soviet reporter asked him how he felt about being barred from certain restaurants back home, and Clay quickly responded, “Russian, we got qualified men working on that problem. We got the biggest and the prettiest cars. We get all the food we can eat. America is the greatest country in the world.”

After Clay returned home to Kentucky, he proudly wore his gold medal around his neck. But his American pride didn’t last long. In Louisville, a whites-only restaurant refused to serve him, and a white gang made the mistake of trying to attack him. After the incidents, the medal lost its luster for Clay. According to popular legend, he reacted by abruptly chucking it into the Ohio River. Four decades and one Civil Rights movement later, the Olympic committee gave Ali a replacement medal during the 1996 Games in Atlanta.

---

8. Slow and Steady, with a Break for Wine

While planning the first modern Games in Athens in 1896, French historian Michel Breal wanted to come up with an event that linked the competition to its ancient roots. He suggested a footrace that was the distance from Athens to Marathon, because a messenger had once supposedly sprinted between the two cities to spread news of a Greek military victory. The Greek people were captivated by the notion of a race with such strong ties to their country’s history, and they become obsessed with dominating the event.

While the other nations barely prepared for the competition, the marathon-crazed Greeks held two qualifying trials to choose their entrants. Except for the Greek runners, only one other contestant had run a full marathon before the Olympic Games. On the day of the race, the lack of proper training quickly took its toll. By the halfway point, runners started dropping like flies.

After nearly three hours, fans at the finish line learned that a Greek runner named Spiridon Louis had taken the lead, despite stopping along the way for a glass of wine. Greece’s Prince George and Crown Prince Constantine got so excited that they joined Louis for his last surge to the finish line. Louis, a peasant farmer, quickly became a national hero, and his name even entered the Greek vernacular. The term egine Louis, which translates as “become Louis,” is still used to mean “run quickly.”

---

9. The Hurdler Who Made History for Muslims, Africans, and Women

Talk about Cinderella stories. After spending her childhood running through the streets of Casablanca, Morocco’s Nawal El Moutawakel used her speed to earn a track scholarship to Iowa State University, where she won four individual Big Eight titles. In 1984, she became the only woman on the Moroccan team at the Los Angeles Olympics.

Moutawakel blew away her competition in the 400-meter hurdles, handing Morocco its first gold medal. At the same time, she also became the first Muslim woman and the first African woman to win a gold medal. As she ran her victory lap with a large Moroccan flag in hand, her elated countrymen back home poured into the streets of Casablanca in the middle of the night.

As a national hero, Moutawakel has used her celebrity to help other women in sports. Although Morocco largely supported her career, she knew women in other Islamic countries weren’t so lucky. One of her greatest triumphs has been organizing a women’s 10k race in Casablanca, which now draws more than 27,000 participants. As Morocco’s Minister for Youth and Sports and a major player in the International Olympic Committee, Moutawakel led the task force that chose London as the site for the 2012 Games. She has summed up her triumphs by saying, “My athletic race was the 400-meter hurdles, but it has been a metaphor for my life … You have to get over the hurdles and keep running.”

---

10. Brazil’s Long and Winding Path to an Olympic Embarrassment

For the Brazilian team, getting to the 1932 Los Angeles Games was an Olympic trial all its own. The Brazilian government was bankrupt, and it couldn’t afford to pay for the team’s expenses. So, the athletes traveled via coffee barge, stopping at ports between Brazil and Los Angeles to peddle roasted beans. All they needed was to sell the 50,000 bags on board.

Unfortunately, the team made only $24. At the time, the tax to enter the United States was $1 per person, meaning only 24 members of the squad were able to leave the ship. The other 45 teammates had to set sail for the Pacific Northwest to try to unload the rest of the coffee.

Sadly, the athletes who did make it to the Games didn’t fare particularly well. After losing to Germany 7-3 in water polo, the Brazilian team jumped out of the pool and started pounding on the referee. The police pulled the Brazilians off the battered official, and the team was disqualified from the rest of the Olympics.

---

11. The Babe Who Ran Circles Around the Competition While Playing the Harmonica

When the Los Angeles Olympics rolled around in 1932, a 19-year-old typist named Mildred “Babe” Didrikson faced an unusual problem. The rules dictated that an athlete could only enter three track-and-field events, and Didrikson had qualified for five. So, she simply picked the ones in which she already held world records—javelin, 80-meter hurdles, and the high jump.

Her first event didn’t get off to an auspicious start. The javelin slipped from her hand and tore the cartilage in her right shoulder. For most athletes, that would have meant instant defeat, but Babe’s compromised throw sailed more than 143 feet and set a new world record. Two days later, Babe set another world record in the 80-meter hurdles. She looked poised to sweep her events, but was disqualified in the high jump competition for diving headfirst over the bar, which was illegal at the time. She had to settle for silver.

Didrikson had an outsized personality to match her athletic prowess. Reportedly, she’d greet her opponents with the taunt “Yep, I’m gonna beat you.” And during training sessions for the Los Angeles Games, she would irritate her teammates by literally running circles around them while playing her harmonica.

The Babe’s sports dominance didn’t stop with track and field. In 1935, Didrikson picked up golf, and by 1950, she’d won every available women’s title in the game. She’s still considered one of the greatest golfers of all time, male or female. Never humble, Didrikson wrote in her autobiography, “My goal was to be the greatest athlete who ever lived.”

---

12. Soviet Sisters or Communist Brothers?

No one ever questioned the athletic prowess of Tamara and Irina Press, two Russian sisters who were unstoppable in track and field. People did question their sex, though.

At the 1960 Games in Rome, the Presses became the first sisters to win gold at the same Olympics. Tamara set an Olympic record in shot put, and Irina won the 80-meter hurdles. At Tokyo’s 1964 Games, they were even more dominant. Tamara won the gold in both discus and shot put (beating her own record), while Irina won the first women’s Olympic pentathlon.

Given their hulking stature and mannish features, rumors started to spread about their gender. Rivals derisively labeled them “the Press Brothers.” But the whispers turned into shouts after the International Amateur Athletic Federation announced that it would begin gender testing at the 1966 European championships. Both sisters promptly withdrew from the event and disappeared from competitive track and field.

The Western media gleefully interpreted their retirement as a tacit confession. A Soviet spokesman dismissed the accusations as jealousy and claimed the sisters had stayed home to care for their ailing mother. The truth remains an Olympic mystery.

Olympic Cheating: The Creativity Prize

This Old Sword: We’ve all heard of marathon runners hitching rides and athletes dosing up on performance enhancers, but who knew Olympic chicanery could come in the form of hacking? During the fencing competition at the 1976 Games in Montreal, the electronic scoring system started giving Soviet Boris Onishchenko credit for hits even when he didn’t make contact with his opponent. Turns out, the clever comrade had rewired his sword with a hidden circuit breaker so that he could give himself points at the touch of a button.

---

13. And One Heartwarming Moment in Japanese Sportsmanship

At the 1936 Berlin Games, Japanese pole vaulters Shuhei Nishida and Sueo Oe tied for second place. The teammates were offered the opportunity to have a jump-off for the silver medal, but the two friends declined out of mutual respect for one another. For the purposes of Olympic records, Oe agreed to the bronze while Nishida took the silver.

Upon their return to Japan, the teammates came up with a different solution. The pair had a jeweler cut their medals in half and fuse them back together, creating half-silver, half-bronze pendants. The “Medals of Friendship,” as they’re now known in Japan, are enduring symbols of friendship and teamwork.

Several games out there claim to be educational. Some are more or less so, depending on how one defines the term “educational”. The list of potential platforms for creating educational videogames is long. Many a fine game has been coded in a variant of BASIC or C, for instance. This list tends to focus on platforms for games created by university researchers and governmental organizations. In that regard, I make a value judgment by inferring that, in general, a game created by a governmental entity, a museum, or university personnel tends to be more “educational” than others.

Anyway, that’s my bias in creating this list. I’d love to hear additional ideas or justifications for inclusion regarding a platform I’ve left out.

1. Neverwinter Toolkit

Commentary: Many solid educational videogames have been developed to run on one of the iterations of Neverwinter Nights using the Aurora Neverwinter Toolkit. Many of these have been designed by teachers for their classrooms, and not released to the general public.
The game itself is completely modifiable, making it fairly easy to manipulate for desired educational outcomes.

Teachers can insert dialogue, send students on quests to hunt for artifacts or other virtual ephemera, and set up pedagogical situations within the game. Although it’s a full 3-D virtual interactive environment (VIE), complete with anthropomorphically correct avatars, its runtime requirements are relatively light.

Example: Revolution continues to be the defining mod for Neverwinter Nights, showing what’s possible on the platform.

Although it’s getting old (ca. 2004), Revolution continues to draw interest from academics and others.

Main Site: http://nwn.bioware.com/builders/

---

2. Civilization III

Commentary: Professors and teachers have long been enamored with the idea of using games in the Civilization series for teaching history and social studies. Even better is the idea of modifying the game so that students can garner specific objectives. Nebulous concepts such as characteristics leading a people group toward dominance over their neighbors, as well as more concrete concepts such as locating settlements near water to help ensure success, are transmitted to players in the game. Modifying Civilization III is encouraged by its parent, Firaxis Games, with players urged to upload their maps and mods to the main site.

Example: The History Canada Game from Canada’s National Historical Society and The Historica Foundation shows how a country’s history can be explored through gaming.

Main Site: http://www.civ3.com/mods.cfm

---

3. Flash

Commentary: When it comes to creating an educational game for a museum or government agency’s online site, Flash is the program of choice. As popular as it is, there are beaucoup sites with Flash games, some purporting to be educational. Unfortunately, many are very low on learning quotients, requiring little more than thoughtless arcade skills.

On the other hand, many museums and governmental agencies have added excellent educational games to their sites that teach kids something, and promote the organizations’ goals at the same time.

Example: America’s CryptoKids is a collection of Flash games and activities from the US National Security Agency.

The site shows how government and museum sites can create games in Flash to attract younger audiences online.

Main Site: http://www.adobe.com/

---

4. Java

Commentary: If you’re going to make a serious game for the Web or other applications, and you don’t want to use Flash, then Java, the cross-platform language from Sun, remains an excellent choice. A major plus is the language is ideal for mobile phones and other devices, as well as for many types of computing platforms.

Example: The National Library of Virtual Manipulatives from Utah State University offers a variety of online Java applets designed to convey mathematical concepts. Originally funded with an NSF grant, the site now offers a CD version by mail.

Main Site: http://java.sun.com/

---

5. XNA for the Xbox & Windows

Commentary: A relative newcomer to this group, Microsoft’s XNA is designed to create games for Windows and the Xbox. In a huge usage boost late last year, Microsoft released XNA free to universities and college students.

According to their promotional department, over 300 universities worldwide have adopted XNA as a platform for teaching programming skills. Although it has only been freely available for a few months, look for this platform to become heavily used by universities to create educational games in the future.

Example: The XNA Creators’ Club has a role playing starter kit, Role-Playing Game, that allows developers to easily drop in content.

Main Site: http://www.xna.com/

This is not such a great day for mulling things over: now it's the time for decisive action! Even if you're not totally sure about what you are doing, you need to fake it until you do. Your brain is excellent at coming up with new schemes, but maybe not so excellent at understanding how to pull them together. To make it happen, you need to ask a friend for help. So get out, grab a willing accomplice, and stir up some new adventures. See what happens.

for sure, bro.

su su.. svelti eh? svelti, veloci, piano, con calma… non v’affrettate, eh? poi non scrivete... subito poesie d’amore, eh? che sono le più difficili... aspettate almeno almeno un’ottantina d’anni.

scrivetele su un altro argomento… che ne so… su... su... sul mare, il vento, un termosifone, un tram in ritardo ecco… che non esiste una cosa più poetica di un’altra! eh? avete capito? la poesia non è fuori, è dentro… cos’è la poesia, non chiedermelo più, guardati nello specchio, la poesia sei tu.

...e vestitele bene le poesie! cercate bene le parole… dovete sceglierle! a volte ci vogliono otto mesi per trovare una parola! sceglietele. che la bellezza è cominciata quando qualcuno ha cominciato a scegliere. da adamo ed eva: lo sapete eva, quanto c’ha messo prima di scegliere la foglia di fico giusta?! “come mi sta questa, come mi sta questa, come mi sta questa...”: ha spogliato tutti i fichi del paradiso terrestre! innamoratevi!

se non vi innamorate è tutto morto… morto! tutto è! vi dovete innamorare e tutto diventa vivo, si muove tutto. dilapidate la gioia, sperperate l’allegria... siate tristi e taciturni, con esuberanza: fate soffiare in faccia alla gente la felicità! e come si fa? …fammi vedere gli appunti che mi son scordato… questo è quello che dovete fare! non sono riuscito a leggerli! mò mi sò dimenticato! per trasmettere la felicità, bisogna essere felici, e per trasmettere il dolore, bisogna essere... felici. siate felici!

dovete patire, stare male, soffrire... non abbiate paura a soffrire, tutto il mondo soffre! eh? e se non avete i mezzi non vi preoccupate, tanto per fare poesie una sola cosa è necessaria: tutto. avete capito? e non cercate la novità… la novità è la cosa più vecchia che ci sia… e se il verso non vi viene da questa posizione, da questa, da così beh: buttatevi in terra! mettetevi così! ecco… ohooo… è da distesi che si vede il cielo… guarda che bellezza…perché non mi ci sono messo prima?

cosa guardate? i poeti non guardano: vedono. fatevi obbedire dalle parole… se la parola "muro", "muro!" non vi da retta, non usatela più per-otto-anni, così impara! che è questo? bhooo non lo so! questa è la bellezza, come quei versi là che voglio che rimangano scritti li, per sempre. forza, cancellate tutto che dobbiamo cominciare. la lezione è finita.