Floating Down the River at a Slow and Easy Pace, but I Can Sense the Undertow

Yesterday, I contacted my trustee about getting some money to offset the steadily mounting costs of re-establishing myself. No reply as yet, but it's only been a day. This morning, I filled out the Intent to Vacate forms on my apartment. They should've been completed before the move, but it all happened so suddenly, and my mother was in a hurry, and so, they were neglected. I have to fax them as soon as my mother returns from shopping for a new sink. Money might be too tight to properly renovate a trailer home, but it's no sweat to put in new sinks and countertops in the upstairs and an entire kitchen in the basement.

In bandom, I've potentially entered a wank about Rammstein on Feuergotter. Apparently, a European fan has taken umbrage with American fans pointing out that there is a world beyond Europe. It "pissed her off". I'm not sure why; I can only surmise that she's of the opinion that those North American fen who are critical of the band's protracted neglect of them should just sit back and like it, bitches, because they're just small change in the grand financial scheme of things.

Or maybe she's just pissed because it's a nasty business when people piss on your country as insignificant or lesser. Yanks and Europeans have been peen-jousting for years, with the Europeans pointing to their superior cultural and intellect and the Americans touting their prowess in warfare and their ability to wrench the last penny from the death-spasmed fist of a dead man. It's juvenile and a disservice to both cultures. It needs to stop. Americans aren't somehow less deserving of Rammstein's considerations because they've been afforded markedly fewer opportunities to get their mad squee, and European fans aren't better because they have.

So, I waded in with the following opinion:

You're right; I do feel hard done by, and I don't appreciate European fans, who've been cozened by the band for years, telling me I oughtn't. Yes, Rammstein's primary audience is in Europe, and as such, they should concentrate their efforts there. But that doesn't mean they should grossly neglect another market. If Rammstein is "just Rammstein", i.e., a business, then the goal of a business is to reach as many customers as possible, even those customers in the undesirable American boonies.

If they can't be assed to throw their American fans a bone every eight years, then they should stop marketing to us at all. No more albums here, no more t-shirts or videos or half-assed promises to play for us "eventually". Stop being entertainment cockteases. Put out or go away.

But they won't. You know why? Because they want the money, and because they seem to like rubbing our noses in their smug superiority. Well, some do, any road. Till seems indifferent, Richard embraced the U.S. temporarily, and I've never heard Olli say mum on the subject, but Flake has a big damn mouth.

Shaking hands and signing autographs is, OMG, too damn hard? Too damn bad. I'm tired of Rammfen defending the band's sneering, dismissive attitude as part of their mystique and sanctified awesomeness. If a regular business treated us with the ill-concealed contempt displayed by Rammstein and its management, we'd rightly call them assholes and take our money elsewhere, but because it's Rammstein, we lap it up and swear we don't mind, please hit us again and wait, let me get naked for the buggering, because we don't want to be seen as a disloyal fan.

Well, I guess I'm a bad fan, because I expect a little mutual respect from them. It's not as hard and unfair as the apologists seem to think. Give me an updated website, inform me of upcoming events and promotions, give me a chance to see you live every once in a while, and for fuck's sake, stop acting so violated and hard done by if I should want to shake your hand and say thank you for the music.

Let's see how long it takes for the fapping to begin.

Floating Down the River at a Slow and Easy Pace, but I Can Sense the Undertow

Yesterday, I contacted my trustee about getting some money to offset the steadily mounting costs of re-establishing myself. No reply as yet, but it's only been a day. This morning, I filled out the Intent to Vacate forms on my apartment. They should've been completed before the move, but it all happened so suddenly, and my mother was in a hurry, and so, they were neglected. I have to fax them as soon as my mother returns from shopping for a new sink. Money might be too tight to properly renovate a trailer home, but it's no sweat to put in new sinks and countertops in the upstairs and an entire kitchen in the basement.

In bandom, I've potentially entered a wank about Rammstein on Feuergotter. Apparently, a European fan has taken umbrage with American fans pointing out that there is a world beyond Europe. It "pissed her off". I'm not sure why; I can only surmise that she's of the opinion that those North American fen who are critical of the band's protracted neglect of them should just sit back and like it, bitches, because they're just small change in the grand financial scheme of things.

Or maybe she's just pissed because it's a nasty business when people piss on your country as insignificant or lesser. Yanks and Europeans have been peen-jousting for years, with the Europeans pointing to their superior cultural and intellect and the Americans touting their prowess in warfare and their ability to wrench the last penny from the death-spasmed fist of a dead man. It's juvenile and a disservice to both cultures. It needs to stop. Americans aren't somehow less deserving of Rammstein's considerations because they've been afforded markedly fewer opportunities to get their mad squee, and European fans aren't better because they have.

So, I waded in with the following opinion:

You're right; I do feel hard done by, and I don't appreciate European fans, who've been cozened by the band for years, telling me I oughtn't. Yes, Rammstein's primary audience is in Europe, and as such, they should concentrate their efforts there. But that doesn't mean they should grossly neglect another market. If Rammstein is "just Rammstein", i.e., a business, then the goal of a business is to reach as many customers as possible, even those customers in the undesirable American boonies.

If they can't be assed to throw their American fans a bone every eight years, then they should stop marketing to us at all. No more albums here, no more t-shirts or videos or half-assed promises to play for us "eventually". Stop being entertainment cockteases. Put out or go away.

But they won't. You know why? Because they want the money, and because they seem to like rubbing our noses in their smug superiority. Well, some do, any road. Till seems indifferent, Richard embraced the U.S. temporarily, and I've never heard Olli say mum on the subject, but Flake has a big damn mouth.

Shaking hands and signing autographs is, OMG, too damn hard? Too damn bad. I'm tired of Rammfen defending the band's sneering, dismissive attitude as part of their mystique and sanctified awesomeness. If a regular business treated us with the ill-concealed contempt displayed by Rammstein and its management, we'd rightly call them assholes and take our money elsewhere, but because it's Rammstein, we lap it up and swear we don't mind, please hit us again and wait, let me get naked for the buggering, because we don't want to be seen as a disloyal fan.

Well, I guess I'm a bad fan, because I expect a little mutual respect from them. It's not as hard and unfair as the apologists seem to think. Give me an updated website, inform me of upcoming events and promotions, give me a chance to see you live every once in a while, and for fuck's sake, stop acting so violated and hard done by if I should want to shake your hand and say thank you for the music.

Let's see how long it takes for the fapping to begin.