Adam Yauch (1964-2012)

[weezie]

What a sad loss. Boy, I love the Beasties.

[blazindw]

Wasn't the biggest Beasties fan, but definitely loved all their hits. MCA's a big loss for the hip hop community, and it sucks that he lost his cancer battle. RIP

[CameronBornAndBred]

The Beastie Boys have always had a permanent slot on my mp3 players. Lots of folks will always think of the Beasties for their fighting for their right to party, but they are an amazingly talented group with beginnings in hard core punk that migrated into hip hop. They never stopped experimenting with their music, and are one of the rare groups to have grown with each album. Their last is one of my favorites, "Hot Sauce Committee, Part 2". They were inducted into the rock and roll hall of fame just last month.

[Billy Dat]

"Check Your Head" was definitely one of the big soundtracks of my Junior year at Duke. The only time I saw the band live was that year at the Raleigh Civic Center. Henry Rollins opened - what a scene! These guys were an epic band, and Yauch was a real positive force in the world, advocating for peace. This one hurts.

[Edouble]

The steady bass voice keeping Adrocks's treble in check in the Def Jam days, he evolved into the spiritual presence of the BBoys with songs like Stand Together and Bohisattva Vow.

Today is truly the end of an era. No more MCA = the end of my favorite band throughout high school. Rest in Peace, Adam.

[muzikfrk75]

Sadness.

I played Paul's Boutique and Check You Head to death.

[davekay1971]

I clearly remember one of my friends bringing in the Beastie Boys License to Ill cassette to high school. I was heavily into rap and that album immediately became among my favorites.

Sorry to hear about his early passing. Because..."My name is MCA. I've got a license to kill. I think you know what time it is, it's time to get ill. Now what do we have here an outlaw and his beer? I run this land you understand I make myself clear."

[cspan37421]

It's widely reported that he became a vegan at the encouragement of his Tibetan doctors. I hope that was not his plan for treating a recurrence of his cancer. Reports say that in 2009 he did do radiation, but apparently his cancer recurred a couple years later and there seems to be no mention that he was treating it with anything but a vegan diet.

It reminds me of Steve Jobs' initial response to his pancreatic cancer. My understanding is that Jobs had a treatable form of it (which is rare - it's usually not very treatable), and he delayed conventional treatment for 9 months while making dietary changes and engaging in meditation. That delay allowed the otherwise treatable cancer to spread and become much less amenable to treatment.

Sad. I was not a big fan of the Beastie Boys, but License to Ill came out during my first year or two at Duke and what better party anthem than their major hit off that album. I had heard nothing like them before - or since.

Love the Sabotage video. For Halloween, I always wanted a bad 70s mustache and wig like the ones they wore in that video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5rRZdiu1UE&ob=av2e

[moonpie23]

you gotta fight,,,,,,,,for your right....

[gus]

It's widely reported that he became a vegan at the encouragement of his Tibetan doctors. I hope that was not his plan for treating a recurrence of his cancer. Reports say that in 2009 he did do radiation, but apparently his cancer recurred a couple years later and there seems to be no mention that he was treating it with anything but a vegan diet.
[/url]

Yauch treated his cancer with surgery, radiation and chemo. Don't blame his vegan diet (which is a much healthier diet than most Americans have). The diet may have helped him feel better, but it certainly did not accelerate his illness.

Cancer is not like a cold, where you've gotten over it and then you're done. XKCD has a pretty illustration of what it actually means to have and treat cancer:

http://xkcd.com/931/

[cspan37421]

Yauch treated his cancer with surgery, radiation and chemo. Don't blame his vegan diet (which is a much healthier diet than most Americans have). The diet may have helped him feel better, but it certainly did not accelerate his illness.

Cancer is not like a cold, where you've gotten over it and then you're done. XKCD has a pretty illustration of what it actually means to have and treat cancer:

http://xkcd.com/931/

I knew this was coming eventually.

I didn't blame his vegan diet. I simply noted that news reporting - at the time I wrote the post - cited conventional cancer treatment with respect to his first occurrence in 2009, and with respect to the re-occurence, it only mentioned his diet and that it was the recommendation of his Tibetan doctors. I am not claiming he did not also undertake conventional treatment upon re-occurrence of his cancer, but the reporting is silent on it and does suggest that.

As for the pros and cons of a vegan diet (and there are some very serious cons), versus a myriad of other possible diets, that's a topic for another thread.