From the ever-sensitive NY Post (bolds my own):

A Gandhi-following, peace-loving, free-spirited vegetarian who was adopted at birth has discovered the worst possible thing a son could find out about his father – his dad is Charles Manson.

“It’s like finding out that Adolf Hitler is your father,” said Matthew Roberts, a Los Angeles disc jockey.

A curious Roberts, 41, began investigating his poisoned family tree about 12 years ago, when he contacted a social services agency, which located his mother, Terry, in Wisconsin, according to the London Sun.

His reluctant natural mom fed him bits and pieces, like his first and middle name — Lawrence Alexander — withholding his infamous surname until she could summon the courage to tell him the truth.

But Roberts pressed her for more details until she finally revealed the shocking secret, that his dad was one of the most infamous serial killers the world has ever known.

“I didn’t want to believe it,” Roberts said. “I was frightened and angry. I’m a peaceful person – trapped in the face of a monster.”

Terry told Roberts he was born after Manson raped her in a drug-fueled orgy in 1967. She gave the baby up for adoption.

Even she admits her long-lost son bears a striking resemblance to the mastermind whose family of commune followers committed nine gruesome murders in Los Angeles in 1969. Their victims included pregnant actress Sharon Tate, film director Roman Polanski’s wife.

Manson, 75, is an inmate at Corcoran State Prison in California.

After five years, Roberts’ eventually wrote to Manson, who replied with letters and postcards — eerily signed with an ugly swastika — the wartime Nazi symbol Manson has tattooed onto his menacing forehead.

Roberts said he has his own bouts with schizophrenia, but other than that, the apple fell far from the tree.

“My hero is Gandhi,” Roberts said. “I’m an extremely non-violent, peaceful person and a vegetarian. I don’t even kill bugs. I’ve had long hair all my life. I could make it go away, but I can’t let the world and their fears change me.”

Two years ago, Roberts said he received a swastika-stamped post card from Manson with a prison phone number, but Roberts never made the call.

“He’s my biological father. I can’t help but have some kind of emotional connection,” Roberts said. “I don’t want to love him, but I don’t want to hate him either.”

Great big HMM. Paternity test? No. Entire story based on the words of one LA disc jockey? Yes. And Charles Manson wasn’t a serial killer, duh.

Never mind that though, has there been an update on the Charles Manson and Phil Spector are in the same jail and BEEFING story?

— By Akira The Don on Sunday, November 29th, 2009

From the BBC:

Two rappers have been jailed for using an internet song to try to scare off witnesses to the murder of a 24-year-old man in Ealing, west London.

The video warned people who talked to police about the murder of Jason Johnson could be shot.

Ishmael McLean, 22, from Greenford, and Rowan Simon, 18, from Ealing, west London, were found guilty of acting to pervert the course of justice.

McLean was jailed for four years and Simon was jailed for 30 months.

McLean was also sentenced to a year in jail for possessing ammunition, the term to run concurrently.

The clip entitled “Wrong Team”, featured a backing chorus sung by several people with a burst of gunfire.

It was placed on YouTube with links to MySpace and Facebook profiles.

It was published on the internet following the murder of Mr Johnson, from Ealing, in November last year.

Oliver Glasgow, prosecuting, said the video to the song was clearly intended to frighten people off from speaking to the police.

Eight people, including McLean and Simon, were arrested following Mr Johnson’s shooting but were not prosecuted.

Mr Glasgow said a man claiming to be an eyewitness had been interviewed by police.

The defendants, without knowing the person’s identity, sent out a message to the community by publishing the rap on the internet.

“Its connection to this case and its chilling message were immediately obvious to the officers,” Mr Glasgow told the court.

“The video had but one purpose – to threaten any witness to this incident to frighten them to such an extent that they would refuse to co-operate with the police.

“They made it clear exactly what it was they wanted to do to them.

“Namely, kill them or to use their own words, ‘I can’t wait for the snitch to drop, I still show up at his wake just to see him off’.”

Old Bailey Judge Richard Hone said the lyrics meant: “Those who went chitter-chattering to police were themselves in danger of being shot.”

He said police investigating gun crime were faced with a code of silence.

“It is a grim prospect for British justice,” the judge added.

While it has proved rather difficult to find the offending songs online, I did find the following, in defence of the convicted, in response to Metro’s article:

LIES!!! WOT A LOAD OF RUBBISH!!! IV HEARD THE SONG AND I HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE MURDER. 2 YOUNG BROTHERS WRONGLY SENT DOWN!
Mr C, EALING, 8/10/2009 21:21

Cheers ZP for the headsup.

— By Akira The Don on Sunday, November 29th, 2009

STREAM: Morrissey On Desert Island Discs

“Life is terribly serious, I find, and I think it’s better when you face it head on.”

“I would stand on a table and sing, as a six year old.”

You know, when I was little I used to save up my Saturday job money and buy bootleg CDs of Morrissey interviews. What difference a decade makes! Today’s kids don’t know how good they’ve got it.

Amazingly enough, I really cannot relate to this man at all anymore, although Vauxhall And I still sounds near perfect to me. Perhaps this is because I am no longer an angsty hormonal teenager, or a young man wading through echoes of one. Or maybe its because I like people now.

— By Akira The Don on Sunday, November 29th, 2009

STREAM: Clipse – Freedom

I love this. Clipse are such assholes.

— By Akira The Don on Sunday, November 29th, 2009

Alert! New super-powers infused TV show.

This is basically Heroes x The Breakfast Club x Shameless, as far as I can tell.

And you know what? I thought it was pretty good. I am already fond of one of the characters, and I am the opposite of fond of another. Littles and Narstie love it. My girl hated it. Go figure.

— By Akira The Don on Saturday, November 28th, 2009

As my Twitter crew already know, I spent far too long today in Myspace, a foul and stinking land I visit rarely, clearing out junk and blamming spammers. No-name no-clue Myspace rappers and rotten shindie bands one expects, but why on earth Sway feels the need to try and post three messages on my comments section about his new single is beyond me. I banned his spamming ass anyway. POW!

There were a few nice messages in there, but I feel these people would be better served hanging out here, instead of lining Rupert Murdochs greasy pockets with ad-cash (they were trying to sell me tit-implants while I was in there, “make yourself amazing!” Fuck yourself weirdo!).  I have been saying this for years, but seriously, I think I am going to have to delete my Myspace. Just as soon as the new ATD.com is live and has the sexy front page music section we’ll be set.

I never liked Myspace. Ugly rotten, decrepid, foul, stinking gateway to the Galaxy Of Wrong. I remember a billion years ago when it was all about Friendster – those were the days. Friendster was a nice, sweet, innocent hangout, where all you had a list of friends and a testimonial board, where people would write things like, “I remember Akira when he was Adam Alphabet and he used to make my cry with his beautiful columns for PlayLouder. Love you man!” Ah, back in the day before No Homo. Truly, this decade has been like fifteen of them. Anyway, one day people started leaving messages like, “Friendster’s old! Come with me to Myspace!” And lo, everybody starting migrating to Myspace because it was “edgier” and you could change your background picture. That and, word on the street was it was a crazy pick up joint. So I went over there to see what the fuss was about, and sure enough I was getting propositioned by bottle blonde heavy metal chicks with Daddy issues within the frickin’ hour. So I deleted my page and moved along, speedy like. A year or so later I had to open a new account, as I was making music, and it was deemed commercial suicide to not have one. I wish I’d never bothered, that thing has been nothing but a foul drain on my soul.

I never liked Facebook much either. The early days, with all the poking and lobbing of sheep were annoying enough, but when it turned into Friends Reunited it really got lame. “Hey Ads, long time, you make music now, that’s wicked, I got three kids and a divorce, how’s life?” How’s life? Didn’t you used to call me a faggot and throw chips at me in the cafeteria, durkhead? Fuck outta here with that bullcrap! Then there’s all the exes. Facebook is a minefield of exes. Exes with many, many babies, and mortgages to boot. I have moved house more times than I could count, but there is no getting way from one’s past anymore. 100×100 pixel reminders at every corner, as if my Tellytubby tattoo wasn’t enough already.

There was about a month a few years ago when Facebook was all about playing Scrabulous with people, which was fun while it lasted, but those days are long gone. However, they did finally get around to making a Social Network that doesn’t involve people demanding you “comment” on their “pix” that actually adds value to my life, and that is Twitter (tadah!), which, for now at least, I find useful, fun, and entertaining. Today it has given me a number of excellent articles to read, along with a brilliant Spotify Pet Shop Boys playlist by David Quantick. I have been returning the favour by edumacating his ass about screw music and what “bumping” a song means. He has in turn been passing that knowledge in to his people, and as I type, all around the world men and women are listening to the screw remix of Trae’s Swang, and that makes me happy.

So there you go.

PS, Yes, I was always too old for Bebo.

— Friday, November 27th, 2009