Fortress Of Freedom Board

[Maurice Ali]

[Maurice Ali]

Wow, what is that - like three acts in less than two weeks? So we are slowing things down a bit.....




The new website for ZX/81 is:


https://zx81.ca





That is a screen capture above but doesn’t show the title which is what you will get when you send the website link over messaging apps like Facebook Messenger. In fact most cellphone browsers don’t show the title except in the tabs if there is enough room. But the search engines display it on their pages so it so important. In a day or two I’ll make an index page and then link it to the FOF Records main page with links to start it moving up the ranks.




But too many acts right now - so we just deal with that for the time being. Just take it easy! Easy - because what is the rush - we are still sort of locked down because of the pandemic. In Toronto we are still in a stage where you can’t eat in a fast food place. The Starbucks in the mall near my house doesn’t open till 11am and even then you have to wear a mask! So I haven’t been there all week - so I’ll pass by today, get the mocha and cheese stick - run out the mall in hot weather, eat they cheese and drink the mocha walking around outside. Then check out the action inside and go home. It’s not the same as before - this is work - but it’s as close as I can get to my previous life.



Life and death go on as usual. I say death because the spectre of death is around some of us more than others. Certainly some of our musicians are motivated by the possibilities and rushing out music as we speak. Others sense their mortality and want some form of legacy of who they are, and since we are pushing out concepts they believe in -‘and our concepts may make it into the history books (along with their music) - they may as well hitch their wagon to our star. Even I worry about mortality and what happens if I kick the bucket or retire, or whatever. There is no sure thing in life. That is one reason why I’m so “easy going“ with my gang, they are all part of a grande experiment, and if the ideas stick they all go down in history with it!



I do run companies here, but they are not for selfish or financial reasons. I don’t run this organization like you usually see. It’s all about the positive mandate and inclusion. That is why my organization is the way it is - because the world is the same way - people who can’t disappear if you don’t like them, you have to all work together - warts and all - and be creative and develop human culture. That is what we are really doing at FOF! It’s a micro version of humanity, and we don’t make people disappear because we don’t like them or don’t like the optics. That is too easy and mearly hides inherent problems in human society. We are a social experiment and the people who joined are followed and given their chance to be all they can be. The record label is run no differently (but I still won’t mine some NuMetal or Hardcore - just saying.....).



That enough of a rant for now. Goodnight.....

[Maurice Ali]

I slept the afternoon away so a late one today.....


We upgraded the ZX81 website for Google ranking purposes. But mostlybhh Th e weekend is relaxing. Shane should start working with Syse on the new project. And so it goes at the record label.


Personally I had some work done to keep the squirrels out. The neighbour were having some done and I paid the dudes to reinforce the hardest to get to place at my house. I would probably be risking my life on a ladder two stories up there and that is where the squirrels would make their last stand. I also had a shingle about to fall off so they tacked that back up too. I sill need to do more yard work but only when the heat wave breakers.



Two days to go in my 20gb unlimited plan and Iwill go over so I will get to see throttling first hand. Th e bigger question is how I went from 13.5gb a month to over 20gb a month doing the same thing. I think the phone is transmitting more stuff out than in. You should be concerned with this too. But the internet is forever so I’ll stay quiet for now. But there is a reason to keep my Blackberry Passport and my Note 3 with the removable battery.....


I think I’ll watch a movie tonight!



Goodnight.....

[Maurice Ali]

A quick one:



Lots of sleep and doing not much of anything. I did watch “The Interview” and as a man of the world I won’t say anything about the main story but there are two hilarious unexpected cameos:


One from Eminem coming out that he is gay!

The second one has Rob Lowe lift off his toupee showing a hideously bald head!


These come unexpectedly and so really sucker punch you with the joke! Just a side note, Shane used to compete against Eminem at rap contests when Eminem started out as “Slim Shady”, and how things change with time. But it is a trip to see Slim Shady being interviewed on City TV’s Much Music. Shane also went under another name back then and called himself “Frenzy” back in those days. Shane is now working with Syse on his material while I deal with the others for now. Anyway Sunday is back to work and paying bills. The squirrels are gone but for how long and at what cost or damage to the roof - always that.....




Slim Shady




Shane back in the day with a 15 year old Sam!


But yes, for now it’s all about the music. When we here talk about the music, it’s as producers and not consumers. I was never much as a consumer and when people talk to me about music they are up on they soon find I know nothing about what they are so versed in the consumer side - and yet I may have the phone number of their favourite act in my contacts. They just can’t figure that out in their minds. But I do know something about the production side of music over these past 15 years. But talking to them about that is like speaking Greek to them. They are too worlds apart, put a musician of merit into the conversation and they know exactly what I’m talking a about. Birds of a feather.....


Later.....



(NSFW)
https://youtu.be/j3FLExfivUc


(NSFW)
https://youtu.be/frsvWVEHowg


https://youtu.be/aFpmB8EdWD8

[Maurice Ali]

Well the weekend is done.



I slept more on Sunday so I think I’m all caught up. I will really try to get normal sleep during the week and stay on top of that, otherwise it was all about the music. I made a few tweaks to our new websites and such but with Shane with Syse and Lucifari and ZX/81 in capable hands by themselves, I will concentrate on The Brawlers next. I have a reference CD that I listened to – but we first need the session and source/mix files (probably Pro-Tools) of the EP, so we will make the trek to “Voodoo Records” during the week and secure the songs and maybe tweak it a bit from there. Voodoo Records looks like a recording studio like MetalWorks or Phase One so they should keep the files no matter what the customer does with his files.





Dan at MetalWorks




When the files are secured I want to listen to the mixed files and mastered songs. Then I’ll make the determination of whether to go as is or tweak it a bit. I told Dan back in the day that going forward I would take the mixing role away from them and let a pro do it – but in this case it would be a milder tweaking. We shall see, but I will check the position of the “master fader” and if it was left in the middle – then he is an amateur! My music production philosophy is to “let the horses run free” and by that I mean - do as little as possible to compress the files. When you have the musicians mixing they will turn down stuff to highlight their own stuff. For some reason they always want to turn it down without realizing that compressing a file makes it sound like mush. We had a guitarist called Des Leahy on the last album and listening to his guitar tracks was so awesome and beautiful that Dan quipped sarcastically that we should just put it out with the guitar tracks and nothing else (don’t put ideas in my mind Dan - just saying). But his performance got compressed as usual and Dan’s was more highlighted as usual. It can also work in reverse, as Michael always seems to turn down his vocals. I would leave them uncompressed, fresh and full bodied. He, like most artists, listen to mistakes and maybe not hitting a note right and such, but nobody else is that critical and love the pure uncompressed vocals giving the performance that clean raw and real sound! So anyway, we are getting the files and having a good listen and making some decisions this week.



What else? I need some sleep.





Goodnight.....





https://youtu.be/ujwQDTi_OTU

[Maurice Ali]

Netflix is open to pitches from Canadian producers till August 5 ( 2020).





Now, as you know, dealing with TV people has netted me the cruelest and most morally draining/gut-wrenching experiences in my life! Having said that the three campaigns got me on Global TV, got me on CTV and got a meeting and interest in the Donald Brasseur story with TVO. Global and CTV were just for broadcast but TVO was for a documentary of their own. According to their pay scale it would have netted FOF 80 grand. This was at a meeting with their top producer and the only reason she was talking to me at all was because they reviewed all the material and were interested in Don’s story. Donald Brasseur was an actual D-Day Veteran who landed on the beaches of Normandy under sniper fire and was actually injured in the battle of the Falise Gap. After the war he went into Vaudeville as a world class harmonica musician and performer playing along with the likes of Bob Hope and Al Martinio and Terry Thomas. I have a ton of this material all archived and this was right up TVO‘s educational documentary objectives.



But when she said the only material she was interested in was Don Brasseur - I cringed - as having TVO involvement would get me into that club of Canadian documentarians with real connections in broadcast. With the journalist org it could have hearalded a new career for me in the media. But as for the experiment and the advocacy it was nothing but trouble. How could I advocate when there is this big hole in the experiment that is not mine to use because I sold out to TVO? If TVO put it out as is (i.e. the complete series) that would have been fine, but they were broadcast and there are only so many slots and all the rest. All the other participants would think I sold out - not a good look! So I cringed a bit but had to decline, unless it all got on. She went on about a guy like me being resistant to making changes and so on - it would never work.....yadda, yadda, yadda. So no deal with TVO.....



But they were interested in some of the material, the pitch was for real - so now we have Netflix. Because we are still in the pandemic with not much going on in TV land for FOF, I guess I am obligated to try and so try I will. Demand will be fierce so I would be surprised if we even got a zoom chat. But I will try. They are streaming, so carrying all the material isn’t a problem like it was for TVO back in the day. A pitch could work for everyone. So I will try again. I will admit this reminds me of Howard Roark in the Fountainhead declining a big commission because he would have to compromise on something important. There is always that, but it was remarkably similar I would have to admit. The best part for me was when Roark slaps his hand on the table - it was over by then - been there and done that! Funny thing is to have actually lived that moment several times, as he did, and with the same consequences.....



As for Tuesday, I visit Voodoo Records to get the backup files for The Brawlers Ep.







https://youtu.be/ClYDwE2Obnk

[Maurice Ali]

So I did go down to Voodoo Records and got a complete backup of all files.




The main board at Voodoo Records!



This guy runs Samplitude and not Pro Tools which are common DAWs here in Toronto. I guess it’s more geared to a mastering suite, but no matter as I have the last versions to listen to - albeit with a flat EQ. So that much is done for the time being.






As for Netflix I have the links and instructions to apply and will do so. We will apply to pitch the series as that is hardest and most costly. Being already complete separates you from much of the crowd. We shall see what Netflix does.....



Now with regards to the positive mandate: The pluses are:

1. Freest mental and physical expression because it makes us happy.
2. Freest social expression to date and marry any consenting person without cultural or societal barriers because it makes you happy.
3. Freest scholastic expression to pursue education to the best of your ability because it makes you happy.
4. Freest workplace expression to pursue your career without societal barriers because it makes you happy.
5. Freest movement through all societal and political areas of participation because it makes you happy.



And on and on. It is a directive that gives everyone true self-determination. Everyone gains here from the current oppressors to the oppressed. Rich to poor, black to white, men to women or other. You name it - it works. It’s simple for everyone to understand and has that visceral element that it “feels right” because it makes us happy. So while my ordinary life is still a cesspool of everything wrong with humanity - the positive mandate is one way out. Like the pandemic, I disseminated it internationally so as to prevent being stifled in one area - now it’s everywhere even if microscopically at the present time. But like a microscopic virus its expression among humans and their behaviour should show itself sooner or later.



I know I’m right and some academic could not do this. They are still a part of society and thus cannot change it themselves in any fundamental way. You have to be a certain type of evil, a monster created by society filled with rage and revenge to what was done to him - but obedient to a moral imperative that he does good. So he holds off on simple revenge and attempts to change the world for the better. I don’t need a title or anything society hangs on you to give you authority, I take and do as I please because I can - and, I do it for the good of humanity. I am not a part of society. Sounds like a lot of epic movies, but this is my true job, this is what I do!




Goodnight....





https://youtu.be/FycrZuWcfcc

https://youtu.be/VqomZQMZQCQ

https://youtu.be/e1lyNt5km8U

https://youtu.be/gx6TBrfCW54

[Maurice Ali]

There is too much going on.....







First is that Prime took the Free Press show down for some reason or another. That is their perpgative. The Free Press is really the story of me in our organization. With it gone it’s mostly just entertainment with very few minorities in there, certainly no minorities bucking societies stereotypes. But we did get on Prime Video.


I’ll just let it be.


There are other platforms to show it. You soon learn that in the media industry, broadcasters have the right to include content as they see fit. So this isn’t about Amazon - they are to be lauded for supporting independent producers - and more about who initiated it as Amazon reviewed it an found no problems. Amazon Prime is a great platform - I made money on our videos for the first time, not only streaming minutes but people also bought shows - that really gave me a good felling....! So no matter what happens it was a great experience and looks good on the resume!



You cannot have your identity tied to someone else’s accomplishment. That is why we are also pitching it to Netflix. This is why I still have our broadcasting call sticky on our news forum. That is why FOF Entertainment Inc. was created. It’s a streaming and distribution service - and it’s all mine!



Later.....

[Maurice Ali]

So yes having someone or a group take down The Free Press show really bugged me.




The Fates!



It could have been about me, but it could have been those old “stop the war” events we covered back in the day being a bit too controversial for our friends down south. In any case I have now graduated to those filmmakers who had an angry reaction to their work. The most famous for me would be Kubrick who had A Clockwork Orange banned all over the place. I’m no Kubrick, but I did want my stuff to be watched and noticed, and now that it is - and noticed in a controversial light - should I be bitching about it? One person I talked to said “at least people watched it and were so motivated that they sent Prime video a message to take it down!” So be careful what you wish for as you might get it! Or: The Fates gave you what you wanted - just not the way you wanted it..... I would be far less pissed off of if Amazon just said it didn’t meet their standards and nixed the whole series. But this action was more deliberate and for me only - it just took a while for me to notice.



But there is a silver lining to this.....



With the pandemic there was a huge influx of TV titles onto all commercial platforms and that means there is less of a need for small indie projects anymore. They can be more selective now and this is what you are seeing at the present time. Sooner or later the hook will come out for stuff like ours and all of it will probably disappear. Streaming services will concentrate on their brand as a premiere product and their catalogue will be purged. This is bad news if your status as a filmmaker is based on who has your material. But placing your worth on the nameplate of someone else is also petty in a way. But practically, where will indie filmmakers go? Currently the lineup is like this (from best to worst):


1:HBO
2:Netflix
3:Prime Video
4:Vimeo
5:Facebook


The funny thing for me was HBO actually looking at our stuff I gave them in New York and getting a talent agent as a consolation prize. It came from them and proof they looked at it without having me in the official stream for vetting - just a curiosity there. But where do indie filmmakers go? Probably Vimeo for non-commercial stuff and Facebook for commercial material. But there is another option for me and me alone.








FOF Entertainment Inc. was set up as a streaming and download service and I incorporated it after a few years as a sole proprietorship. And there it sat until it distributed the TV series. But this may be a good time to truly launch the service and keep it there as the media landscape continues to change. Currently we have about 300 titles at FOF - that is actually a good start. They are mostly music and video - but enough that we don’t seem to be one guy with just his videos on his website. That’s right, video and music and probably online print - why not? What we will appear as is some small upstart streaming platform of no particular merit. That is the hardest part - the start up - but I have the server space to make it happen so why not? I already started checking with the CRTC as to whether we have to do anything
as a corporation on our part to make this happen - time will tell.







There is a whole bunch of other stuff to get to, but I have to start just completing one task after another and cut the “things to do” numbers down to manageable levels, so.....




Goodnight.....






https://youtu.be/JWsRz3TJDEY

[Maurice Ali]

[Maurice Ali]

Ok, Saturday I reviewed more music - and some of it remarkably good - and so we carry on with seven projects currently on the go!







The Netflix proposal for the series is sent and the pitch confirmed by Netflix. We pitched HBO and got on Prime but kept Netflix in my pocket for Netflix Canada. And it’s almost official, Prime Video is making it harder to get on. The Fortress TV Show was rejected by Prime after almost three months. No biggie as it was shown on Global TV nation-wide (so this points to a policy change and not a quality issue), but this and the delays for all others points to a possible shift in policy at Prime Video that they are getting more selective and concentrating on the brand now that they increased their catalogue with all that TV material during the pandemic.



All this points to our own streaming service and starting that up. On other streaming platforms you are held to their standards. Just now I saw a famous fashion photographer have a block of photos “disappear” in front of me probably because someone saw part of a woman’s nipple and complained! This - is the so-called “liberated world” we live in? So the streaming service under my control goes forward today.



We should have some sort of player up shortly and keep fiddling with it from there.....




Ford GT!



Finally, I was at this exotic car show and cruise this morning. I uploaded it to Dan’s Youtube Channel to increase viewership there. Dan likes fast cars so this is perfect for the channel.



Latter.....





https://youtu.be/8Echsby2FzE

[Maurice Ali]

Sort of a productive weekend.....


I finally got our first every stream on the FOF Entertainment website.





That is Tabitha (in a blond wig but the eyes are really green) singing a Christmas song as that was the only file on the server in the format for the player. Obvious the player has to be changed to handle the hundreds of songs and videos, but I wanted to have something streaming by day’s end so you get a Christmas song in late July.







But that is important as a moment as we are now off and running with the streaming service! This idea that to express yourself - but only in the confines of someone else’s rule book - is not what the positive mandate is about and having our own website under our control empowers others that here is another way forward for expression.


https://fofentertainment.com


So that got started. The player defaults to the left side of the screen so I had to use some crude code to centre it and drop the whole thing down for the cellphone use while having something presentable for desktop use. But this will all change in a while.


The movie pitch should be off to Netflix on Monday and I will finally take a break from pitching until we go back to traditional broadcasters again.



So the music and streaming should be done with by the time advocacy starts up again - that is the plan. Many would say that trying to save humanity is like trying to polish a turd, but like I said, if good people of ability don’t step up then others of less ability and morals will and take humanity to even darker places - morally I have no choice - that moral imperative again. And that is it for this update.



Oh: Let it not be lost on anyone that at what is possibly the worst moment in music history and the music industry - we - ramped up production and creativity in music to it highest level in our history! Bucking the trend since 2005: FOF and FOF Records!



Goodnight.....

[Maurice Ali]

A nothing day.....


I should change the video on the FOF Entertainment website to something in landscape mode. The Taxes - always the taxes, so may as well just start adding receipts. I’ll preen myself tomorrow.



Taking care of little things like taking family members to the mall now that it’s a bit safer. Just a reorientation after months of lockdown.




For a guy at retirement age, this ain’t that bad a look!



The car hasn’t leaked any fluid since what - almost 2 weeks? I replaced the overflow cap as an o-ring self-destructed and was surprised how cheap it was to get a replacement. So after three years nothing happened to the car except replacing a rad cap and buying some rad fluid - just in case. Sooner or later that pump will go. The engine noise at start up in the winter has been gone for months so I’ll just go ”0” weight in the fall. The engine is tight and I never added oil ever in all these years. I did add some rad fluid to hit a mark yesterday so I can keep an eye on it, but this was the first in over three years (still was not needed). So I have to admit this is the most reliable car I have ever owned. Never broke down on me ever. All my Mustangs before had problems and the 1989 had a fuel pump that had you stranded for like 20 minutes at a time. And don’t get me started on the Roadmaster.


But this Mustang has been solid. Any problems were my fault for being so fidgety about things. I should have kept driving the thing instead of letting it sit at the dealer. That was my mistake as I would have noticed how irregular it was. This was me and not the car. The brakes may soon need work but that is maintenance. The battery is fine but I may replace it before winter. Even if the water pump is doing fine I may just replace that too later on as preventative maintenance. The air-conditioner actually works well on my car but supposedly is failure prone. Whatever - so far so good and that is the update on the reliable Mustang Ford does not sell anymore.



I took this photo in Manhattan - yes he exists!


One funny thing: I was wondering how the “soup nazi” was doing during the pandemic - of all things! I actually visited his place during my UN trips. A Seinfeld character that actually exists in Manhattan! Just funny that I wondered about him.....




Goodnight.....





https://youtu.be/M2lfZg-apSA

[Maurice Ali]

I have started the taxes.



Personal taxes then the corporate ones. I was going to go online but will stay with paper for one more year.



As for streaming I’ll try to upload a proper music video to the FOF Entertainment home page. Right now it has Droops Holiday performing with women in tight fitting clothing dancing around and - whatever. However the streaming seems to be working. So now all we need is a better player.....



As for advocacy it is a wasted year for sure. I did get some traction behind the scenes in February for the worldwide vote at the United Nations and have one more trick up my sleeve for the vote when things get back to normal. As for the Positive Mandate: That was deceminated in 2019 to UN delegates around the world on all major continents, most just staring at me when I finished as I looked around. That was me disseminating the idea like a virus. I was “patient zero” and the idea most definitely was disseminated on to the world stage at that time. I even had a professional photographer take some photos of me as he must of figured something was happening and took some shots as you can see the flash in the video ( I just wished I was a more engaging or more handsome subject).




Not leading man material in the looks department!


What I am getting at is that “that“ moment may, in the passage of time, have been “the” moment of my life. Time will tell but from germination of the idea to the experiment and the advocacy leading up to and including dissemination - that moment was the achievement of it all!



It sucks to think the best moment of your life may possibly behind you. Like a personal best you will never achieve again. It kind of sucks, but I remember I asked The Fates that if they give me anything give me this! It happened, and within minutes my luck all went bad and stayed bad for a long time. I does mark an achievement that I offered humanity a concept to right the wrong that was done to me. My ability to express myself at work was suppressed. My ability to express myself in academia was suppressed. My ability to express myself socially in order to date and have a family was suppressed. And on and on. The positive mandate solves all this and more. This was my life’s work, so it does put you in a funk, after the fact.



It’s a unique life and going forward is just legitimatizing the concept and speeding up acceptance if it is accepted - but I did my part! All sorts of things could happen to scuttled acceptance of the positive mandate. But I forced my will on the world as best as anyone could - it almost sounds like science fiction how I could do this with everything against me. How often does that happen?


Yup, it almost sounds like sci-fi, and if the positive mandate is adopted to a possible sentient AI - it will be science-fiction but without the fiction! The concept is that broad.....




Goodnight.....




https://youtu.be/R1ApwdSu4Wg

[Maurice Ali]

I’m testing a new player that should do all I want - and now comes tweaking. First is that video time out. But I think this is it.




What else.....




Pissed off at Covid 19 and how it put the brakes to the advocacy. I didn’t speak in February but trying to do that did have an impact. The glances thrown my way with the smirks from UN delegates said everything. But it did prove I was now a player on the world stage. They are just doing what they always did, in many ways this is a game and I have to learn to play it better.....


The worldwide vote is the future and a new form of global governance, so I don’t expect immediate acceptance. But it sure looks like I am one, if not the first, to actively push it at the United Nations with a model cellphone app to prove it could be done! The positive mandate likewise is the best global policy going forward for humanity - the fact I can offer it to the scientific community as the base engram for a possible Sentient AI proves it as a rational and emotive mandate - I know I’m right! The world is yours (as corny as that sounds) if you have a vision of the future for humanity, at least they will listen.....



Of course pushing this agenda in New York does make you wonder if you could be a possible “mark”. Again, my past suggests that I am at least able to defend myself, or certainly mitigate any alerts of nefarious risk to myself by knowing first hand where the danger may be. Again, just part of my training when I left normal society that offered me nothing and entered the fringe society that for some strange reason let me in, made me one of their own and showed me how society really works. Considering where I am now, I can see why “the man” decided to let me “in” in the first place. At IAIJ I am always looking for those individuals who want to change the world, but they seem to be as rare as hen’s teeth. So what do you do if you are one of the leaders of this fringe element and see this spark in this lonely disenfranchised kid? You decide to take him in - optics be dammed - and teach him what you know and were taught to you.



In this group were all sorts from big business men to high ranking people in the military to politicians and on and on - this secret society l now belonged to. I even ended up lobbying The Senate for them through a political party of theirs. So I guess if you see the right stuff come along for the taking and you yourself are getting up in age - you take that person in! I once saw this one guy in this group march on Parliament Hill to protest new legislation with sniper rifles trained on them - it makes an impression!







No matter, I left with my own ideas and not for my own community or nation - but for the entire world. My policies don’t discriminate and offer all good. I am my own man as the old saying goes. But as I get older I start to empathize and understand others more.



Man, I’m on a rant..... So I’ll leave that there - I had an unusual upbringing from my birth on and something maybe paying off. All those old men who I befriended and befriended me are long gone now. But I wonder what they would think about the plays I am making now.....



Goodnight.....






https://youtu.be/3VtfqAym5sQ



https://youtu.be/JSCid-iOoe0