A few months ago I talked about Megan Meier, a young girl who encountered abuse from a classmate's mother via MySpace. That abuse eventually led to Megan committing suicide, and sparked a whole series of internet debates about where the fault for something like that lies and how accountable social networks should be for the actions of their users. Today Facebook announced that they will be implementing over 40 safeguards to help protect its users ...More »

Tomorrow I head east for ten days of rehearsals prior to starting the tour on the 20th at The Empire Theatre. I haven’t played with a band since November of 2005, so it should be a mixture of fun, interesting, and Jesus Christ Matt – wake up!! Most of my clothes went out last week with my gear, so I don’t have a lot to pack. Playing acoustic shows is a lot different than playing with ...More »

Okay – what the fuck is up with running the Olympic torch around the world? Don’t get me wrong; I understand the tradition of it being carried from Greece to the host country, but seriously, what’s with running the thing all over the bloody globe? Even more than that, what the fuck is up with climbing Mount Everest with the damn thing? Seriously? Here’s the route the Olympic torch has and continues to take… Here, on ...More »

People around these parts tend to take things pretty seriously, and I suppose I can’t blame anyone being that the majority of the content on the site is rather serious. Of course, me winging off to some tropical hideaway is a rather fantastical idea, and one that I wasn’t at all serious about – though who wouldn’t want to? The truth is, I just wanted to write an entry that supported Dale’s magnificent quote used ...More »

The following event is being hosted by friends of Matt's and matthewgood.org, Max & Jason of Current_. The Pangea Day Mission & Purpose Pangea Day is a global event bringing the world together through film. Why? In a world where people are often divided by borders, difference, and conflict, it's easy to lose sight of what we all have in common. Pangea Day seeks to overcome that – to help people see themselves in others – through the power ...More »

The Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004 took the lives of some 225,000 people in 11 different countries. As it stands now, the death toll in Burma is still being held at roughly 22,000, but given that much of the southern portion of the Irrawaddy delta remains underwater, it is estimated that the death toll could rise as high as 100,000 – just under one half of that of the 2004 tsunami in a single country. Burma’s ...More »

There was a time, not so long ago, that I seriously considered moving to a remote part of the world, detaching myself from every form of news media, and growing fruits or vegetables. I would, I told myself, write another book, a fiction that had nothing to do with the political, something steeped in the absurdly fantastical, and live out my days under the sun and stars of a place too distant to be affected ...More »

As time passes, and we continue to grow and develop as a species, despite our many achievements, be they in the arts or architecture or flight, one accomplishment will remain the most important in human history no matter what occurs in the years ahead. We may, in the future, cure Cancer and AIDS, put a person on Mars, or even find a way to curb the planet’s food crises. But despite all of these things, ...More »

Absolutely no one, and I mean no one, does it better than Tom Waits. No guest lists, no merchandise at his shows – just music. Music and genius… More »

New reports out of Burma have placed deaths caused by the cyclone that recently hit the country at upwards of 10,000 people, far greater than figures initially released. Some 24 million people live in the five regions of the country that were hit. There have also been reports that that 80% of Laputta has been completely destroyed. If this doesn’t make you throw up in your mouth, nothing will. It is utterly fucking sick. ...More »