I privately addressed the issue of why we don’t use “public domain” classical music in the IMAO Podcast with one of our listeners that gave us feedback, but I wanted to get everyone on the same page:
Many of you already know that most classical music works by the great composers like Beethoven are in the public domain and therefore do not cost any money for us to use in a non-profit or commercial production.
However, if we used the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra’s rendition of Beethoven’s Fifth as the theme music to the IMAO Podcast, we would need to pay the performance fee (called a “royalty”) to the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra for their performance of the song in the public domain.
Just because a song is in the public domain does NOT mean anyone can use it for free. The musicians should and must get their royalties for their contribution. All of the music we use in the IMAO Podcast is “royalty-free.”
Some sharp listeners will ask “Did you pay for ‘Relax’ by Frankie Goes To Hollywood that you used in last week’s podcast?” The answer is that by having Sarah sing only a tiny fraction of the original song (along with her own lyrics) and by not using the original recording, IMAO is not required to pay royalties under the Fair Use rules of copyright law. I’m sure there are probably some lawyers at BMI and ASCAP that would split hairs over what is Fair Use…
There’s a 99% chance that we’ll have new theme music for the June 13 IMAO Podcast, written and performed by a good conservative musician and blogger. More details when they become available.
Thanks for downloading and listening to the IMAO Podcast!

Called into The Rush Limbaugh Show and am waiting to go on right now to talk about Bob Geldof…
UPDATE: I guess that was it; well, there I was on Rush’s show. Anyway, the audio from the conference call with Bob Gledof is now available, so I recommend checking it out (you get to hear me there too, and not quite as nervous because I had no idea who Geldof was).
UPDATE2: Anyone know how I can get a recording of that for posterity’s sake? Someone wouldn’t happen to be a Rush 24/7 subscriber and get the podcast, huh?
UPDATE3: Have the call as an mp3 thanks to Master Shake. Will see about making it available for the curious.

What are the issues and news items you think we here at IMAO should be covering? We strive to be your one shop stop for all important… the WalMart of the blogododecahedron.

Since Howard Dean seems so intent on making statements to alienate everyone from the Democrat Party, I thought I’d be my usual helpful self and give him some new statements to help specifically insult everyone and everything:
Stay at Home Moms
“Then there are the few women who vote Republican, pretending that staying home to take care of kids is noble just because they’re too dumb to get real jobs.”
Gun Owners and Blacks
“The reason Republicans support the NRA is because they desire to be nothing more than gun toting thugs – no offense to the African-American members of the audience who I know only carrry guns because of the harsh reality of gang life.”
Latinos
“The Republicans try to pander to you people with immigrations laws, but we Democrats give you what you really want – burritos and chimichangas. You eato. You el likey very mucho.”
Hillbillies
“I just want to tell the people of West Virginia not to be threatened by gay marriage. It will open the way to you being able to marry your sisters like you so desire.”
Italians and Union Workers
“I can see we have some Italians in the audience. I applaud you for how you use unorthodox methods to keep the unions together, and I know union workers support the mafia and all its activities in return.”
The College Educated and Homosexuals
“The Republicans think they are so great, prancing around with their college degrees like a bunch of fags.”
Monotremes
“The Republicans are out of touch and out of the mainstream like those freak platypuses that lay eggs when everyone else is having live births.”
Amphibians
“They [the Republicans] try to say we’re wishy-washy, but they’re the ones always changing positions. It’s like how a tadpole breathes through gills and then, suddenly, it’s a frog breathing through its lungs. Make up your mind, you reject of the animal kingdom!”
Noble Gases
“Republicans just won’t work with anyone; they’re like how Argon won’t chemically combine with anything else. Can that be anymore useless?”
God
“Those Republicans just can’t get anything right! They mess things up more because they just don’t really care! It’s like whoever made the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter equal 3.14 something. If He just put more time into it, it could equal exactly three, but He didn’t care!”
Rational People
“Yeargh!”

This is funny. A poster on DU starts talking sense about the idiocy of Dean, and everyone else freaks out.
Sometimes I really wonder who are these people that make up DU and how representative they are of the Democratic base. They keep running as fast as they can into brick walls, telling themselves how great their strategy is. If this is the competition for 2006, expect the Democrats to be extinct by 2008.
We need to stuff one for the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History.