No, they are not related. First... weddings:
So, I between November 17th and January 17th, my lovely wife and I have been invited to five (5) weddings. One cousin, four friends. We have attended one of the weddings, and the second is this evening. We only RSVPed "no" to one wedding where one of our friends is getting married the same day as the other friend. And these guys are friends (or were in high school). Weird. Anyway, the point is, wedding madness. I look forward to being at the weddings, but I do not look forward to the drive later this afternoon and on December 30th and on January 16th (?)... may have gotten the date wrong on the last one.
Second... obscenity.
My friend Joe has posted on his blog a new House bill. Long story short, it is going to make Internet cafes responsible for the content of emails, especially regarding obscenities. Joe asked for a legal analysis, I provide a legal analysis (Nick = lawyer):
Firstly, pursuant to Police Dept. of City of Chicago v. Mosley, in general the First Amendment stands for the proposition that the government has no power to restrict expression because of its message, its ideas, its subject matter, or its content. With that being said, there are certain categories of speech, defined in Supreme Court case law that is not protected by the First Amendment. See, e.g. R.A.V. v. City of St. Paul. This speech includes, but may not be limited to obscenity, defamation, and fighting words. Defamation is defamation. Fighting words are words that induce violence (I have no citation for this, because it's taking me a long time to find these cases, but from what I remember of Constitutional Law class in law school, I believe the phrase "Let's fight now," is an example. Go figure).
Anyway, obscenity is where the newest House bill is targeted. There's a case out there that's almost directly on point with this issue, but regard television. Back in the day, there was a signal bleed on the Playboy channel and other such channels. In U.S. v. Playboy Entertainment Group, Inc., the Supreme Court determined first that the law forcing such signal bleeds was based on content, and as such received the strictest scrutiny of the Court. Content= strict scrutiny. Strict scrutiny says that in order for the law to be constitutional, it must be "narrowly tailored to promote a compelling state interest. It's virtually impossible for the government to win on strict scrutiny in terms of free speech. The point behind the particular law in Playboy was so that children couldn't see these shows (if I can digress... it doesn't work... children will watch what they want to watch... the only time they get caught is if their father sees the cable bill... I won't get into that). Anyway, the main point of the Playboy case was that the protection for children stemmed originally from the channels airing the content at late hours of the evening and early in the morning, as opposed to times when children were awake and watching. Therefore, there was a less restrictive means of "ensuring" children not watch these shows... i.e. showing content late was less restrictive than showing the content on a signal scramble or bleed.
Anyway, the point here is that if the Supreme Court examines this law and determines that there is a better way of doing what the law sets out to do (what this law sets out to do is beyond me), then the Court will overturn the law. I think this law gets overturned for that reason - stuff like locking up certain sites from being show unless proof of age is verified and all that should do the trick, not this criminal bill and subsequent fine.
So, Joe asked what obscenity was - First, like I indicated before, obscenities are not protected free speech. According to the Supreme Court in Roth v. U.S. (the seminal porn case... excuse the pun), “obscene material” is material which deals with sex in a manner appealing to prurient interest. The prurient interest means, basically, stuff that has no value other than to make people sexually excited (I think one of the quotes of one of the justices was "I know obscene material when I see it," but I'm not entirely sure about that).
Anyway, you know how conservatives and constitutionalists constantly rail about judicial activism? These cases go on my list - why are defamation, obscenities, and fighting words not constitutionally protected? Because some Supreme Court justice said it... it ain't in the Constitution. Same as being allowed to use condoms. Same as being allowed to have abortions. Same as being restricted from having guns. Those things aren't written in the Constitution. If you want them written in the Constitution, you have to get an amendment passed... that's what the founders had in mind. And, before you ask, "how do you know what the founders were thinking," my answer is that the founders put the freaking constitutional amendment language in there so that the constitution could be amended by the people, not amended by the damn court system.
So, hopefully that answers some questions, but, more hopefully, raises others.
Friday, December 07, 2007
Tuesday, December 04, 2007
More Good Tuesday Morning QB Politics
Here's another good snippet from ESPN.com's TMQ (a/k/a Gregg Easterbrook), and I can say I couldn't agree more.
"Clinton Also Said, "I Opposed Hiring Monica Lewinsky From the Beginning": Last week, Bill Clinton declared he opposed the invasion of Iraq "from the beginning." He just forgot to say so! Politicians of both parties, who initially either supported the attack on Iraq or said nothing, today want us to think they were opponents all along: They have the courage of their convictions in retrospect. Politicians of both parties might as well be saying, "My fellow Americans, back in 2003, I meant to take a bold, brave stand. But that slipped my mind. Instead, I did whatever was easiest, most convenient or had the least political cost. Now that opposing the Iraq war is the easy and convenient course, I want credit for the bold, brave stand I never actually took."
In addition to suddenly remembering he had always opposed the war, Clinton said something else. The context was: Should the Afghanistan and Iraq invasions have been paid for by adding to the federal deficit, or should there have been a war tax, as during the Vietnam War? Clinton's response: "Even though I approved of Afghanistan and opposed Iraq from the beginning, I still resent that I was not asked or given the opportunity to support those soldiers." That is, Clinton asserts that he takes exception to not being taxed to finance the wars.
The U.S. presence in Iraq and Afghanistan should be paid for by taxation, not by deficit spending, which cynically passes the bill along to future generations. But nothing stops a citizen from voluntarily taxing himself to support the wars! Estimates vary, but adding about 2 percent to the top income tax rate probably would have provided pay-as-you-go financing for the Iraq invasion and occupation. If Clinton feels he should have been taxed for that war, he can easily tax himself. Why doesn't he calculate 2 percent of his income since 2003 and write a check to the U.S. Treasury? Anyone is free to pay more tax than the legal minimum. For that matter, Clinton absurdly receives $191,000 annually in presidential retirement subsidies -- though Clinton is a multimillionaire who does not need the money and is not retired! If Clinton feels he is insufficiently taxed, he could simply tear the annual $191,000 check in half and cause that amount to remain in the Treasury.
Any wealthy person who claims to favor higher taxes on the rich should voluntarily donate to the Treasury whatever additional amount he or she believes the rich should pay. For Clinton, or any wealthy person, to proclaim a willingness to be taxed more but then not voluntarily tax himself, is self-promotional hypocrisy. Clinton and other rich people who make claims about favoring higher taxes on the wealthy, but then hoard their money, want to be admired for seeming to be willing to sacrifice -- without the annoying complication of actually making any sacrifice. "
I say, put your money where your mouth is Clintons and Hollywood.
"Clinton Also Said, "I Opposed Hiring Monica Lewinsky From the Beginning": Last week, Bill Clinton declared he opposed the invasion of Iraq "from the beginning." He just forgot to say so! Politicians of both parties, who initially either supported the attack on Iraq or said nothing, today want us to think they were opponents all along: They have the courage of their convictions in retrospect. Politicians of both parties might as well be saying, "My fellow Americans, back in 2003, I meant to take a bold, brave stand. But that slipped my mind. Instead, I did whatever was easiest, most convenient or had the least political cost. Now that opposing the Iraq war is the easy and convenient course, I want credit for the bold, brave stand I never actually took."
In addition to suddenly remembering he had always opposed the war, Clinton said something else. The context was: Should the Afghanistan and Iraq invasions have been paid for by adding to the federal deficit, or should there have been a war tax, as during the Vietnam War? Clinton's response: "Even though I approved of Afghanistan and opposed Iraq from the beginning, I still resent that I was not asked or given the opportunity to support those soldiers." That is, Clinton asserts that he takes exception to not being taxed to finance the wars.
The U.S. presence in Iraq and Afghanistan should be paid for by taxation, not by deficit spending, which cynically passes the bill along to future generations. But nothing stops a citizen from voluntarily taxing himself to support the wars! Estimates vary, but adding about 2 percent to the top income tax rate probably would have provided pay-as-you-go financing for the Iraq invasion and occupation. If Clinton feels he should have been taxed for that war, he can easily tax himself. Why doesn't he calculate 2 percent of his income since 2003 and write a check to the U.S. Treasury? Anyone is free to pay more tax than the legal minimum. For that matter, Clinton absurdly receives $191,000 annually in presidential retirement subsidies -- though Clinton is a multimillionaire who does not need the money and is not retired! If Clinton feels he is insufficiently taxed, he could simply tear the annual $191,000 check in half and cause that amount to remain in the Treasury.
Any wealthy person who claims to favor higher taxes on the rich should voluntarily donate to the Treasury whatever additional amount he or she believes the rich should pay. For Clinton, or any wealthy person, to proclaim a willingness to be taxed more but then not voluntarily tax himself, is self-promotional hypocrisy. Clinton and other rich people who make claims about favoring higher taxes on the wealthy, but then hoard their money, want to be admired for seeming to be willing to sacrifice -- without the annoying complication of actually making any sacrifice. "
I say, put your money where your mouth is Clintons and Hollywood.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
I'm a Sucker
For rock music with classical stylings. Sadly, one of my favorite guilty pleasures is the Metallic S&M album... wherein Metallica plays with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. I also like stuff with any sorts of string instrumentals (for example, I was into Bush's "Glycerine" before I heard it 1,000,000,000 times) or piano. Not sure why, but I feel like orchestral leanings give a song more gravitas. Anyway, I'm a sucker.
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Also
I'm trying to update my information in the right side-bar dealie.
Look for new songs, new books, new shows, new links... as soon as I actually get my work done.
Look for new songs, new books, new shows, new links... as soon as I actually get my work done.
More Reasons to Hate Politicians
Here's the link:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/15/us/politics/15dems.html?ex=1352782800&en=3caae43e856732ce&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss
The bottom line here is the extreme politicking going on (and I'm being bipartisan here, though my link regards Senator Clinton). How can someone stand for something if they change their opinion when the voters say they disagree? It would be a shame if someone like Mrs. Clinton won because she was a woman or because people "identified" with her or some other nonsense. Rather, the issues should be the issue (as Senator Clinton herself as indicated). Perhaps if she took a stance on something, it would work better for her.
Although, when Lincoln was running for president he had different speeches prepared depending on where he was in the country. For example, his take on abolition was different in New Hampshire than it was in South Carolina.
But, I digress... please try to stand for something politicians. Don't compromise your ideas or values because you might not get elected.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/15/us/politics/15dems.html?ex=1352782800&en=3caae43e856732ce&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss
The bottom line here is the extreme politicking going on (and I'm being bipartisan here, though my link regards Senator Clinton). How can someone stand for something if they change their opinion when the voters say they disagree? It would be a shame if someone like Mrs. Clinton won because she was a woman or because people "identified" with her or some other nonsense. Rather, the issues should be the issue (as Senator Clinton herself as indicated). Perhaps if she took a stance on something, it would work better for her.
Although, when Lincoln was running for president he had different speeches prepared depending on where he was in the country. For example, his take on abolition was different in New Hampshire than it was in South Carolina.
But, I digress... please try to stand for something politicians. Don't compromise your ideas or values because you might not get elected.
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Further Proof Al Gore is a Hypocrit
I can't take credit for this, unfortunately. This is from my favorite web writer, Gregg Easterbrook (a/k/a TMQ):
"Those Hollywood Searchlights Around Gore's Home Sure Eat Power: Gore wasn't the first quack to win the Nobel Peace Prize, and history suggests he will not be the last. Gore spent eight years in the White House, and in that time took no meaningful action regarding greenhouse gases. The Clinton-Gore administration did not raise fuel economy standards for cars and trucks or propose domestic carbon trading. Though Clinton and Gore made a great show of praising the Kyoto Protocol, they refused even to submit the treaty to the Senate for consideration, let alone push for ratification. During his 2000 run for the presidency, Gore said little about climate change or binding global-warming reforms. In the White House and during his presidential campaign, Gore advocated no consequential action regarding greenhouse gases; then, there was a political cost attached. Once Gore was out of power and global-warming proposals no longer carried a political cost -- indeed, could be used for self-promotion -- suddenly Gore discovered his intense desire to demand that other leaders do what he had not! It is a triumph of postmodernism that Gore won the Nobel Peace Prize for no specific accomplishment other than making a movie of self-praise. Gore caused no peace nor led any reconciliation of belligerent parties nor performed any service to the dispossessed, the achievements the Peace Prize was created to honor. All Gore did was promote himself from Hollywood, and for this, he gets a Nobel. Very postmodern.
v
First person ever to win the Nobel Prize for Self-Promotional Hectoring.An annoying complication of Gore's Nobel is that few realize the award was given jointly to him and to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, an organization well worthy of distinction. The IPCC is a group of scientists who have spent two decades studying climate change in obscurity, and in many cases without pay. The IPCC's efforts have been selfless, motivated only by concern for society. Had the Nobel Peace Prize gone solely to the IPCC, it would have been a great day.
An astonishing measure of how out-of-touch the Norwegian Nobel Committee seems is that it gave a prize to Gore for hectoring others about energy consumption in the same year it was revealed that Gore, at his home, uses 20 times the national power average. Gore's extraordinary power waste equates to about 377,000 pounds of greenhouse gases annually, or about 20 Hummer Years worth of global warming pollution. (A Hummer Year, TMQ's metric of environmental hypocrisy, is the amount of carbon dioxide emitted in a typical year of driving a Hummer.) When his utility bill made the news -- though apparently not in Oslo -- Gore responded by saying he buys carbon offsets. That takes you back to the offset problem: All offsets do is prevent greenhouse gas accumulation from increasing. If you really believe there will be a global calamity unless greenhouse gas emissions are reduced 80 percent, as Gore told the Live Earth crowd, you would buy offsets and cut your own energy use. Instead, Gore flies around in fossil-fuel-intensive jet aircraft telling others: Do as I say, not as I do!
After news of Gore's personal energy consumption broke, Gore spokeswoman Kalee Kreider told The Associated Press the utility bill was justified because "Al and Tipper both work out of their home." This raises the question -- what kind of work are they doing? Perhaps reanimating Frankenstein; in Frankenstein movies, there is always a lot of electricity crackling wastefully about. Here are other possible reasons the Gores' home requires so much energy:
• Gore is building a time machine to return to Palm Beach, Fla., in October 2000.
• The former vice president is doing everything he personally can to cause global warming, so he can claim is predictions came true.
• Gore is growing marijuana in his basement. [Note from the corporate legal department: This is strictly a joke, ESPN is not accusing Al Gore of growing marijuana. We stand by our allegation that he is a sinister kingpin of international rare-bird smuggling.]
• Members of Gore's species require high power levels to maintain human form.
• Al and Tipper don't just leave the lights on when they make out, they leave the lights on all over the house. "
"Those Hollywood Searchlights Around Gore's Home Sure Eat Power: Gore wasn't the first quack to win the Nobel Peace Prize, and history suggests he will not be the last. Gore spent eight years in the White House, and in that time took no meaningful action regarding greenhouse gases. The Clinton-Gore administration did not raise fuel economy standards for cars and trucks or propose domestic carbon trading. Though Clinton and Gore made a great show of praising the Kyoto Protocol, they refused even to submit the treaty to the Senate for consideration, let alone push for ratification. During his 2000 run for the presidency, Gore said little about climate change or binding global-warming reforms. In the White House and during his presidential campaign, Gore advocated no consequential action regarding greenhouse gases; then, there was a political cost attached. Once Gore was out of power and global-warming proposals no longer carried a political cost -- indeed, could be used for self-promotion -- suddenly Gore discovered his intense desire to demand that other leaders do what he had not! It is a triumph of postmodernism that Gore won the Nobel Peace Prize for no specific accomplishment other than making a movie of self-praise. Gore caused no peace nor led any reconciliation of belligerent parties nor performed any service to the dispossessed, the achievements the Peace Prize was created to honor. All Gore did was promote himself from Hollywood, and for this, he gets a Nobel. Very postmodern.
v
First person ever to win the Nobel Prize for Self-Promotional Hectoring.An annoying complication of Gore's Nobel is that few realize the award was given jointly to him and to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, an organization well worthy of distinction. The IPCC is a group of scientists who have spent two decades studying climate change in obscurity, and in many cases without pay. The IPCC's efforts have been selfless, motivated only by concern for society. Had the Nobel Peace Prize gone solely to the IPCC, it would have been a great day.
An astonishing measure of how out-of-touch the Norwegian Nobel Committee seems is that it gave a prize to Gore for hectoring others about energy consumption in the same year it was revealed that Gore, at his home, uses 20 times the national power average. Gore's extraordinary power waste equates to about 377,000 pounds of greenhouse gases annually, or about 20 Hummer Years worth of global warming pollution. (A Hummer Year, TMQ's metric of environmental hypocrisy, is the amount of carbon dioxide emitted in a typical year of driving a Hummer.) When his utility bill made the news -- though apparently not in Oslo -- Gore responded by saying he buys carbon offsets. That takes you back to the offset problem: All offsets do is prevent greenhouse gas accumulation from increasing. If you really believe there will be a global calamity unless greenhouse gas emissions are reduced 80 percent, as Gore told the Live Earth crowd, you would buy offsets and cut your own energy use. Instead, Gore flies around in fossil-fuel-intensive jet aircraft telling others: Do as I say, not as I do!
After news of Gore's personal energy consumption broke, Gore spokeswoman Kalee Kreider told The Associated Press the utility bill was justified because "Al and Tipper both work out of their home." This raises the question -- what kind of work are they doing? Perhaps reanimating Frankenstein; in Frankenstein movies, there is always a lot of electricity crackling wastefully about. Here are other possible reasons the Gores' home requires so much energy:
• Gore is building a time machine to return to Palm Beach, Fla., in October 2000.
• The former vice president is doing everything he personally can to cause global warming, so he can claim is predictions came true.
• Gore is growing marijuana in his basement. [Note from the corporate legal department: This is strictly a joke, ESPN is not accusing Al Gore of growing marijuana. We stand by our allegation that he is a sinister kingpin of international rare-bird smuggling.]
• Members of Gore's species require high power levels to maintain human form.
• Al and Tipper don't just leave the lights on when they make out, they leave the lights on all over the house. "
Monday, November 05, 2007
Thursday, October 25, 2007
See? SEE? SEE!?!?!?!
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21471941/
I hate this... so much. There are so many good things there (elimination of the AMT) and so many bad things. Do you know what 4% of 200K is? $8000. That's how much EXTRA someone who makes $200,001 will pay than someone who makes $199,999. Ridiculous. I hate this... so much.
By the way, my wife and I do not make more than $200,000... but may in the future. BASTA!
I hate this... so much. There are so many good things there (elimination of the AMT) and so many bad things. Do you know what 4% of 200K is? $8000. That's how much EXTRA someone who makes $200,001 will pay than someone who makes $199,999. Ridiculous. I hate this... so much.
By the way, my wife and I do not make more than $200,000... but may in the future. BASTA!
Monday, October 22, 2007
Reunion Madness
So, fun times were had by all those I spoke to after the 10 year Mechburg reunion.
Highlights included:
(1) Realizing (and I say this with all due respect and humility), I was one of the more successful Mechburg graduates in attendance.
(2) Realizing (and I say this with no respect or humility), I am still one of the more intelligent Mechburg graduates from 1997. This includes my friend Steve, who, for some reason, got so drunk he tackled another friend's wife, compared the weight of said friend's wife with my wife's weight, and then spilled ice on my wife (at which time, it was time to go).
(3) Watching people not recognize Joe. This may have been my number one favorite thing. The guy is the same person as he was in high school, perhaps more world-wizened, but otherwise basically the same. He just looks different. But, seriously, so much fun.
(4) Watching an old flame try to avoid me and my wife and play games that she played in high school/college (a/k/a "I'll ignore Nick and then maybe he'll fawn over me"). And me not caring or playing in return. And then the interaction between her and my wife. Priceless. Let's just say, I thank the lord that I'm with who I'm with.
(5) Watching the curmumdeonly Guadeloupe work the room like Bill Clinton. He really needs to run for office. "Dude, I don't want to go to the damn reunion." Sure, Andrew, sure... whatever you say buddy.
(6) Talking to a girl from school who I didn't remember except that I knew she ran track in high school and she was short and skinny... in high school. She was about my size and played the same rugby position as me. Oh, and she said something about how her fiancee hooked up with someone on her rugby team... wow, that was uncomfortable.
(7) Let me put it this way... there's a girl from my class who has posed naked. She was there. And we weren't being coy about identifying her.
Anyway, it was a great time. Good to see people I haven't seen in years. Even my wife had a great time.
Highlights included:
(1) Realizing (and I say this with all due respect and humility), I was one of the more successful Mechburg graduates in attendance.
(2) Realizing (and I say this with no respect or humility), I am still one of the more intelligent Mechburg graduates from 1997. This includes my friend Steve, who, for some reason, got so drunk he tackled another friend's wife, compared the weight of said friend's wife with my wife's weight, and then spilled ice on my wife (at which time, it was time to go).
(3) Watching people not recognize Joe. This may have been my number one favorite thing. The guy is the same person as he was in high school, perhaps more world-wizened, but otherwise basically the same. He just looks different. But, seriously, so much fun.
(4) Watching an old flame try to avoid me and my wife and play games that she played in high school/college (a/k/a "I'll ignore Nick and then maybe he'll fawn over me"). And me not caring or playing in return. And then the interaction between her and my wife. Priceless. Let's just say, I thank the lord that I'm with who I'm with.
(5) Watching the curmumdeonly Guadeloupe work the room like Bill Clinton. He really needs to run for office. "Dude, I don't want to go to the damn reunion." Sure, Andrew, sure... whatever you say buddy.
(6) Talking to a girl from school who I didn't remember except that I knew she ran track in high school and she was short and skinny... in high school. She was about my size and played the same rugby position as me. Oh, and she said something about how her fiancee hooked up with someone on her rugby team... wow, that was uncomfortable.
(7) Let me put it this way... there's a girl from my class who has posed naked. She was there. And we weren't being coy about identifying her.
Anyway, it was a great time. Good to see people I haven't seen in years. Even my wife had a great time.
Friday, October 19, 2007
They Need to Make This Movie!!!
Exclamation points indicate emphasis.
So, go to this link:
http://halo3.msn.com
And enjoy the wonderfulness that is Halo. Let me tell you, between the ridiculously spine-tingling advertisement for Halo 3 and this short length movie, Halo is rising in my book. If anything, they need to do a TV show. I read that the Halo movie got cut for going over budget ($136 million). Do they have any idea that if they just use the story in the games, the movie will be chock full of goodness? Stupid Hollywood.
So, go to this link:
http://halo3.msn.com
And enjoy the wonderfulness that is Halo. Let me tell you, between the ridiculously spine-tingling advertisement for Halo 3 and this short length movie, Halo is rising in my book. If anything, they need to do a TV show. I read that the Halo movie got cut for going over budget ($136 million). Do they have any idea that if they just use the story in the games, the movie will be chock full of goodness? Stupid Hollywood.
Thursday, October 18, 2007
What Kind of Music is This?
I've been trying to figure out if these bands are rock, folk, some combination of the two, maybe punk, maybe emo (blech)... Maybe YOU can help!
Modest Mouse (emo?), The Killers (garage rock), Wolfmother (arena rock?), Smog (industrial metal?), Kings of Leon (emo?). I don't know.
The problem (and by problem, I do not mean to liken this to, say, the war in Iraq) is this - I really have gotten into these bands lately (adult rock? adult alternative) and I guess my music tastes have evolved somewhat. Let's go through history with a sampling of my favorite bands:
(1) Pre-High School - Genesis, Eric Clapton, Doors, Led Zeppelin, basically whatever my parents' listened to (yes, my parents have good taste in music)
(2) 9th/10th grade - Snoop Dog and Dr. Dre, Pearl Jam - grunge and rap. What a combo
(3) 11th/12th grade - Korn, Helmet, Clutch, Cypress Hill, Wu-Tang Clan, Prodigy, Chemical Brothers, Dr. Octagon (and his ilk), White Zombie, Rage against the Machine - heavier metal, rap, electronica (or whatever it's called). Influence by friends (the metal by Joe and Guadalupe, the electronica by 2Pure) takes precedence here. I still listen to most of this.
(4) College - Pearl Jam, Dave Matthews Band, Tool, and all the metal and rap groups listed above. I stopped with the electronica nonsense. Listened to more "college" music. Got very much into songs, rather than bands and/or albums. Things like the Thong Song and that song with the lyrics "North Carolina, c'mon and raise up, take your shirt off, twist it round your hand, spin it like a helicopter." This is when I learned that I am actually a good dancer.
(5) Law school - Tool, Lloyd Banks, and a bunch of bands you've never heard of. With the evolution of my younger brother's band and music tastes, I got into some other stuff. Like punk, like folk. Interesting stuff. My roommate in law school was in to rap music (specifically Eminem, 50 Cent, and Lloyd Banks... which necessitated my liking that music... I could write a book on my lawschool roommate, but suffice it to say, he was from Allentown, wore Sean Jean, drank a ton of beer, and was like #3 in his law school class... very interesting guy). Anyway, I digress...
(6) Post-Law school - Queen, Tool, A Perfect Circle, Alkaline Trio, those bands I listed first, Led Zeppelin, 90s rock, Pearl Jam, Clutch, some others. This is very eclectic... thanks to Yahoo Music, which, really, I should get money for plugging so much. I'm just listening to everything theses days.
After reading all that nonsense, what is the point? I think my point is that the bands I listen to now are similar to what I've listened to my whole life. I don't listen to much rap anymore, excepting Cypress Hill, Wu-Tang, Lloyd Banks, Snoop, and the old school kind of rap. I hate any new "poppy" music. I listen to classic rock (but my tastes there lie with Zeppelin, Queen, Clapton/Cream, Genesis... that's about it). I love the industrial metal/bluesy rock (Clutch, Tool, et. al.). I also like the weird-rock that comes out now and again (The Killers, Kings of Leon, Modest Mouse, Alkaline Trio, etc.). So, the point is that my tastes in music have not really evolved (I would argue that is because I had great taste in music to begin with), except that I've gotten rid of a lot of the bunk I used to listen to (like Petey Pablo and Dr. Octagon). It's always interesting to talk about the music tastes of people. My brother is a great example (he's obsessed with folksy rock and punk). Another great example is my wife (Beatles, Police... that's about it). Not sure if there's a place where you can go, input some names of bands, and then the place determines what kind of person you are. THAT would be interesting.
Modest Mouse (emo?), The Killers (garage rock), Wolfmother (arena rock?), Smog (industrial metal?), Kings of Leon (emo?). I don't know.
The problem (and by problem, I do not mean to liken this to, say, the war in Iraq) is this - I really have gotten into these bands lately (adult rock? adult alternative) and I guess my music tastes have evolved somewhat. Let's go through history with a sampling of my favorite bands:
(1) Pre-High School - Genesis, Eric Clapton, Doors, Led Zeppelin, basically whatever my parents' listened to (yes, my parents have good taste in music)
(2) 9th/10th grade - Snoop Dog and Dr. Dre, Pearl Jam - grunge and rap. What a combo
(3) 11th/12th grade - Korn, Helmet, Clutch, Cypress Hill, Wu-Tang Clan, Prodigy, Chemical Brothers, Dr. Octagon (and his ilk), White Zombie, Rage against the Machine - heavier metal, rap, electronica (or whatever it's called). Influence by friends (the metal by Joe and Guadalupe, the electronica by 2Pure) takes precedence here. I still listen to most of this.
(4) College - Pearl Jam, Dave Matthews Band, Tool, and all the metal and rap groups listed above. I stopped with the electronica nonsense. Listened to more "college" music. Got very much into songs, rather than bands and/or albums. Things like the Thong Song and that song with the lyrics "North Carolina, c'mon and raise up, take your shirt off, twist it round your hand, spin it like a helicopter." This is when I learned that I am actually a good dancer.
(5) Law school - Tool, Lloyd Banks, and a bunch of bands you've never heard of. With the evolution of my younger brother's band and music tastes, I got into some other stuff. Like punk, like folk. Interesting stuff. My roommate in law school was in to rap music (specifically Eminem, 50 Cent, and Lloyd Banks... which necessitated my liking that music... I could write a book on my lawschool roommate, but suffice it to say, he was from Allentown, wore Sean Jean, drank a ton of beer, and was like #3 in his law school class... very interesting guy). Anyway, I digress...
(6) Post-Law school - Queen, Tool, A Perfect Circle, Alkaline Trio, those bands I listed first, Led Zeppelin, 90s rock, Pearl Jam, Clutch, some others. This is very eclectic... thanks to Yahoo Music, which, really, I should get money for plugging so much. I'm just listening to everything theses days.
After reading all that nonsense, what is the point? I think my point is that the bands I listen to now are similar to what I've listened to my whole life. I don't listen to much rap anymore, excepting Cypress Hill, Wu-Tang, Lloyd Banks, Snoop, and the old school kind of rap. I hate any new "poppy" music. I listen to classic rock (but my tastes there lie with Zeppelin, Queen, Clapton/Cream, Genesis... that's about it). I love the industrial metal/bluesy rock (Clutch, Tool, et. al.). I also like the weird-rock that comes out now and again (The Killers, Kings of Leon, Modest Mouse, Alkaline Trio, etc.). So, the point is that my tastes in music have not really evolved (I would argue that is because I had great taste in music to begin with), except that I've gotten rid of a lot of the bunk I used to listen to (like Petey Pablo and Dr. Octagon). It's always interesting to talk about the music tastes of people. My brother is a great example (he's obsessed with folksy rock and punk). Another great example is my wife (Beatles, Police... that's about it). Not sure if there's a place where you can go, input some names of bands, and then the place determines what kind of person you are. THAT would be interesting.
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
See, This is What I'm Talking About
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21272238/
The article tries to ascertain what is middle class? For example, middle class is considered a couple that makes about $100,000 a year. In case you didn't realize, the Democrats are mandating tax increases for persons making more than about $150,000 a year (see my proof in previous postings). So, are the Dems advocating raising taxes on the middle class? Of course not, they only want to raise taxes on the rich. Please.
This is why I do not understand why people in the middle class (or anyone for that matter) falls for the half-truths of the Democratic Party. They want to raise taxes on the middle class, not cut them. I guess it depends on how you define middle class. I guess "middle class" as defined by one party based on the 1950s definition. Gotta love politics.
The article tries to ascertain what is middle class? For example, middle class is considered a couple that makes about $100,000 a year. In case you didn't realize, the Democrats are mandating tax increases for persons making more than about $150,000 a year (see my proof in previous postings). So, are the Dems advocating raising taxes on the middle class? Of course not, they only want to raise taxes on the rich. Please.
This is why I do not understand why people in the middle class (or anyone for that matter) falls for the half-truths of the Democratic Party. They want to raise taxes on the middle class, not cut them. I guess it depends on how you define middle class. I guess "middle class" as defined by one party based on the 1950s definition. Gotta love politics.
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Irish Music and Stephen King
No, they are not related (that I know of).
I've taken to listening to Irish music, mostly for the bagpipes. Of course, Dropkick Murphy is in my regular rotation, but so is Van Morrison (who knew?) and Silly Wizard. Not so much rocking like Dropkick Murphy, but celtic to the core.
Stephen King... let's just say your great opus, The Dark Tower, is ending on quite a whimper. While it is not entirely fair to say, as I haven't finished the last book, you spent a lot of time developing a lot of plotlines and themes in the previous six books, but in this one you wrap things up in a rather slapdash (and extremely quick way). SPOILER ALERT. Why are you killing off two major characters (so far) within 100 pages of each other? I don't care about killing off these characters, in fact I like when writers unexpectedly do so. But, for the love of Roland, it seems to slapdash (I like that word today). Additionally, when you address the reader directly with phrases like "Would it surprise you to know..." it turns me off. Especially when you use that particular phrase at least three times. Tell the freaking story dude. My final gripe is this - develop some backstory. We need some sort of "origins" story or perhaps, like Tolkein, you can do another book describing the history of the world (but, please, make it better than Tolkein's).
I will spend the evening working, listening to Irish music, and reading the Dark Tower and trying not to put the book down before finishing.
One more thing... can I get some Greek music on Yahoo music??? I'm in an ethnic mood. All I can hear is Irish tunes and Punjabi MC... give me some Greek music!!!
I've taken to listening to Irish music, mostly for the bagpipes. Of course, Dropkick Murphy is in my regular rotation, but so is Van Morrison (who knew?) and Silly Wizard. Not so much rocking like Dropkick Murphy, but celtic to the core.
Stephen King... let's just say your great opus, The Dark Tower, is ending on quite a whimper. While it is not entirely fair to say, as I haven't finished the last book, you spent a lot of time developing a lot of plotlines and themes in the previous six books, but in this one you wrap things up in a rather slapdash (and extremely quick way). SPOILER ALERT. Why are you killing off two major characters (so far) within 100 pages of each other? I don't care about killing off these characters, in fact I like when writers unexpectedly do so. But, for the love of Roland, it seems to slapdash (I like that word today). Additionally, when you address the reader directly with phrases like "Would it surprise you to know..." it turns me off. Especially when you use that particular phrase at least three times. Tell the freaking story dude. My final gripe is this - develop some backstory. We need some sort of "origins" story or perhaps, like Tolkein, you can do another book describing the history of the world (but, please, make it better than Tolkein's).
I will spend the evening working, listening to Irish music, and reading the Dark Tower and trying not to put the book down before finishing.
One more thing... can I get some Greek music on Yahoo music??? I'm in an ethnic mood. All I can hear is Irish tunes and Punjabi MC... give me some Greek music!!!
Monday, October 15, 2007
Monday, October 08, 2007
More News You Can't Use
(1) I am going to the 10-year high school reunion. Maybe it will be a good time. Basically, it hinges on whether Guadalupe goes. If he goes, all is right with the world. I'm only partially kidding and I think Norris and I strong-armed him into going. Not sure if Keke is going (i.e. bringing her fiancee, who I have yet to meet).
(2) Runaways was okay. I don't mean to imply that I did not like the series. It just wasn't as good as I thought it would be.
(3) I'm waiting for the Dark Tower to come out in hardcover format, in which case I will purchase it and cherish it (once I've finished reading the actual series).
(4) I play Marvel: Ultimate Alliance as Spiderman, Iron Man, Hulk, and Wolverine (to be replaced by Daredevil). I also enjoyed the Marvel X-Men Legends games. Beat them a while ago, but they are quite fun.
(2) Runaways was okay. I don't mean to imply that I did not like the series. It just wasn't as good as I thought it would be.
(3) I'm waiting for the Dark Tower to come out in hardcover format, in which case I will purchase it and cherish it (once I've finished reading the actual series).
(4) I play Marvel: Ultimate Alliance as Spiderman, Iron Man, Hulk, and Wolverine (to be replaced by Daredevil). I also enjoyed the Marvel X-Men Legends games. Beat them a while ago, but they are quite fun.
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Coach Dies
I just found out that my old high school football coach, Rich Lichtel, died last week. He was 60. Died of prostate cancer which was diagnosed in 2000.
I played football all four years in high school, though I never started a single varsity game. I was too small, not strong enough, and way too slow. However, Coach Lichtel always talked to me, always respected my opinions, and always seemed to care. I don't mean to sound cliched with that. My most impressive memory of him was when I was applying to colleges. I was talking to him about where I applied and mentioned that I was probably going to the University of Pennsylvania. Unbeknownst to me, he called the head coach at Penn and told him about me (long story short, I was too small, not strong enough, and way too slow). The point here is that this guy called my college to ask if they wanted me to play football, even though I had never started a game for Mechanicsburg. That's just the kind of guy he was.
I played football all four years in high school, though I never started a single varsity game. I was too small, not strong enough, and way too slow. However, Coach Lichtel always talked to me, always respected my opinions, and always seemed to care. I don't mean to sound cliched with that. My most impressive memory of him was when I was applying to colleges. I was talking to him about where I applied and mentioned that I was probably going to the University of Pennsylvania. Unbeknownst to me, he called the head coach at Penn and told him about me (long story short, I was too small, not strong enough, and way too slow). The point here is that this guy called my college to ask if they wanted me to play football, even though I had never started a game for Mechanicsburg. That's just the kind of guy he was.
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
News You Can't Use
I did get an X-Box 360... it is extremely wondrous. I'm currently in my first season as the Eagles (1-1... beat Green Bay handily, lost to the Redskins on a 11-yard TD run by Ladell Betts in the last 10 seconds). You have to tweak a lot of the junk in there or else all you'll do is throw INTs and fumble the ball. For Ultimate Alliance I greatly enjoy being the Hulk (who, instead of picking guys up over his head like others, just grabs them in his right hand... fantastic).
I'm on the last book of the Dark Tower series (The Dark Tower, ironically). It's quite good. However, competing with Mr. King is the first three hardcovers of the Runaways. I'm a comic book addict, but I have to say, I'm a little disappointed in the series. It was supposed to be a breakthrough title for Marvel... I think it's kind of good, but not great. Call me a fanboy, but give me the X-Men any day... Ultimate X-Men to be exact. I really hope they don't do away with the Ultimateverse.
Other than that... logging a ton of hours at work, hanging out with the beautiful wife when we're not working. I have my first football game this week for the firm... looking forward to "full contact on the line." I've also been on a gym kick recenlty. Long story short, there is a bet between my brother, my father, and me to see who can lose the highest percentage of weight before January 1, 2008. I'm losing. I've lost 1 pound in a year. Not for trying... that's right... the word "lack" is not in that phrase. Anyway, I think part of the problem is beer, part of the problem is food, and part of the problem is that I run for 15 minutes and then left for 30 minutes. One might say, "that should be reversed." To which I reply, "I don't lift, I don't go to the gym."
That's all I got. No witty (or bad) political commentary (although with the war in Iraq getting out of hand, you'd think the Dems would withhold some loot from the prez). No sports predictions. Maybe by the end of the year I will hopefully tell youse why.
I'm on the last book of the Dark Tower series (The Dark Tower, ironically). It's quite good. However, competing with Mr. King is the first three hardcovers of the Runaways. I'm a comic book addict, but I have to say, I'm a little disappointed in the series. It was supposed to be a breakthrough title for Marvel... I think it's kind of good, but not great. Call me a fanboy, but give me the X-Men any day... Ultimate X-Men to be exact. I really hope they don't do away with the Ultimateverse.
Other than that... logging a ton of hours at work, hanging out with the beautiful wife when we're not working. I have my first football game this week for the firm... looking forward to "full contact on the line." I've also been on a gym kick recenlty. Long story short, there is a bet between my brother, my father, and me to see who can lose the highest percentage of weight before January 1, 2008. I'm losing. I've lost 1 pound in a year. Not for trying... that's right... the word "lack" is not in that phrase. Anyway, I think part of the problem is beer, part of the problem is food, and part of the problem is that I run for 15 minutes and then left for 30 minutes. One might say, "that should be reversed." To which I reply, "I don't lift, I don't go to the gym."
That's all I got. No witty (or bad) political commentary (although with the war in Iraq getting out of hand, you'd think the Dems would withhold some loot from the prez). No sports predictions. Maybe by the end of the year I will hopefully tell youse why.
Monday, September 17, 2007
Another Interesting Thought
Since when is someone (or a couple) making $250,000 per year considered a "high earner." This, according to Msn.com. Presidential candidate and erstwhile senator from New York, Mrs. Clinton is planning on funding her "universal" healthcare plan by rolling back the current president's tax cuts for these "high earners." Mr. Edwards is planning on a total repeal of the tax cut. Senator Obama plans on letting the tax cuts expire.
Must... contain... anger... at... clear... bias... and... mis... information... campaign.
Sorry, can't do it.
You know how ridiculous my taxes are? I live in a freaking townhouse. I don't live in a mansion. I drive a Hyundai. My wife drives a Hyundai. We don't guzzle gas, we don't smoke cigars, we don't have $100 bills stacked in our wallets. I work approximately 70 hours a week. My wife works 80 hours a week. We have student loans that rival some countries' GDPs. If I had less taxes, you know what I would do? I'd buy a nicer house, I'd pay off my car, I'd invest in the stock market... I wouldn't purchase a gold-plated bathtub or take ski trips to Vale. I understand the tax burden on Bill Gates. I don't understand the tax burden on little old Nick. Leave me alone. I hate you.
Must... contain... anger... at... clear... bias... and... mis... information... campaign.
Sorry, can't do it.
You know how ridiculous my taxes are? I live in a freaking townhouse. I don't live in a mansion. I drive a Hyundai. My wife drives a Hyundai. We don't guzzle gas, we don't smoke cigars, we don't have $100 bills stacked in our wallets. I work approximately 70 hours a week. My wife works 80 hours a week. We have student loans that rival some countries' GDPs. If I had less taxes, you know what I would do? I'd buy a nicer house, I'd pay off my car, I'd invest in the stock market... I wouldn't purchase a gold-plated bathtub or take ski trips to Vale. I understand the tax burden on Bill Gates. I don't understand the tax burden on little old Nick. Leave me alone. I hate you.
Interesting Thought
I heard something interesting the other day. You know how reputable news organizations make statements like this: "Record numbers of Americans do not have health insurance."?
How come reputable news organizations do not make statements like this: "Record numbers of Americans have health insurance."? Especially since the latter statement is a true one.
Just wondering.
How come reputable news organizations do not make statements like this: "Record numbers of Americans have health insurance."? Especially since the latter statement is a true one.
Just wondering.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Updating Songs
I have some updates on songs I'm listening to, including:
(1) A remix of a great song ("The Oustider (Resident Renholder Mix)")
(2) A blast from high school ("Earth People")
(3) A remake of a song by Michael ("Billie Jean")
(4) And a new song that caught my ear, as it were ("Demon Tied to a Chair in my Brain")
(1) A remix of a great song ("The Oustider (Resident Renholder Mix)")
(2) A blast from high school ("Earth People")
(3) A remake of a song by Michael ("Billie Jean")
(4) And a new song that caught my ear, as it were ("Demon Tied to a Chair in my Brain")
Tuesday, September 04, 2007
Guilty Pleasures - The Activities Edition
So, I have a number of guilty pleasures - food (any), beer (lately, Old Rasputin... which is like drinking crude oil), and any number of activities/hobbies. Here's a list... check out #7 for why:
(1) Fantasy football. I'm in 3 leagues... work, law school guys, and my brother's league. Is that overkill? Depends on how many leagues YOU are in.
(2) Comic books. I read about comics and read comics all the time. I mostly get trades (just finished some of the Civil War books from Marvel... the main story is good, the rest is blah).
(3) X-Box 360. Specifically, Madden 2008 and Utlimate Alliance.
(4) Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle Earth and Empire Earth II. Two real-time strategy games. LOTR is simplistic, but quite hard. EEII is ridiculously complex and also quite hard.
(5) Reading. I like to read "normal" books. I'm currently in the midst of Stephen King's Dark Tower series (book 6 suckers!). I have a stack of other books to read, including the Dark/New Sun series by Gene Wolfe. I read the first series, in my top 5 best books of all time. Not quite #1 (that's reserved for The Stand) or #2 (1984).
(6) Watching TV. In the fall time I watch 24, the Eagles, Heroes, Lost. In the summertime I caught myself watching a heck of a lot of Bravo (thank you wife), including Top Chef, America's Next Top Model, Flipping Out, and any and all Law & Orders (my favorite is CI... D'onfrio is fantastic). I also am forced to watch home improvement shows and that show with the little people on TLC. Again, thank you wife.
(7) Making lists. Seriously, I love it. Part of my fascination with fantasy football is the list-making (the other part being football). Hence this list.
(1) Fantasy football. I'm in 3 leagues... work, law school guys, and my brother's league. Is that overkill? Depends on how many leagues YOU are in.
(2) Comic books. I read about comics and read comics all the time. I mostly get trades (just finished some of the Civil War books from Marvel... the main story is good, the rest is blah).
(3) X-Box 360. Specifically, Madden 2008 and Utlimate Alliance.
(4) Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle Earth and Empire Earth II. Two real-time strategy games. LOTR is simplistic, but quite hard. EEII is ridiculously complex and also quite hard.
(5) Reading. I like to read "normal" books. I'm currently in the midst of Stephen King's Dark Tower series (book 6 suckers!). I have a stack of other books to read, including the Dark/New Sun series by Gene Wolfe. I read the first series, in my top 5 best books of all time. Not quite #1 (that's reserved for The Stand) or #2 (1984).
(6) Watching TV. In the fall time I watch 24, the Eagles, Heroes, Lost. In the summertime I caught myself watching a heck of a lot of Bravo (thank you wife), including Top Chef, America's Next Top Model, Flipping Out, and any and all Law & Orders (my favorite is CI... D'onfrio is fantastic). I also am forced to watch home improvement shows and that show with the little people on TLC. Again, thank you wife.
(7) Making lists. Seriously, I love it. Part of my fascination with fantasy football is the list-making (the other part being football). Hence this list.
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Open Letter to Steven Grant
Dear Mr. Grant:
You write interesting, informative, and entertaining articles at Comic Book Resources. Your latest article (http://www.comicbookresources.com/columns/?column=10) can be described as interesting, informative, and entertaing. However, I would posit that this article (and others) are also misleading.
(1) Your political leanings are well documented, and I do not mean to disparage your right to free speech. However, I would like to rebut, or at least challenge some of your statements. For example, you maintain that there is a secret plot by the current adminitstration to institute martial law of some kind in the United States. While I agree with you that this is one of the worst administrations in the history of our country, I challenge your theories as alarmist and generally misguided. Generally speaking, "the Ghost" has the best interests of the United States at heart. Beyond that, the administration, even if it did not have the best interests of the country at heart, does not have the wherewithal or the pull with the general public to institute martial law in this country. Why would that even be a realistic statement for you to make? I understand your frustration and general anger with the president, but I do not understand your alarmist and fairly fantastical attitude towards the future of the country. If I may be so bold, we will have a new president fairly soon, and that new president will likely be from the other side of the aisle, so to speak. Your writing on this and other such issues is both ridiculous and beneath you. Please continue with the political rhetoric, but stay away from this horrible attempt to scare everyone with unrealistic expectations.
(2) While I personally have an affinity for Rudy Guiliani, and, as such, am horribly biased, I find your demeaning of him to be in bad taste. You call him a lying, manipulative scumbag and indicate that he wants everyone to be loyal to the United States. I challenge you to come up with a list of ten names, preferably presidential candidates, who are not lying, manipulative, and/or a scumbag. I also challenge you to come up with a list of ten names of persons in and around politics that do not wish everyone living in this country to be loyal to this country. It seems to me that loyalty is kind of part of how we are. I think you can be both loyal and not support an administration. It seems you think Mr. Guiliani thinks that you cannot. That seems very strange, and, frankly, stupid of you. Again, I think this is rhetoric best left to the crazies who think that the Republican right is out to get them. Perhaps you belong in that group, but I'd like to think you don't. You also indicate that Mr. Guiliani is capitalizing on his role in 9/11. I would also like to point out, that of Mr. Guiliani's many opponents, at least one, Mrs. Clinton, is quite adept at spinning events in her favor, including, but not limited to, voting for the war in Iraq. While I do not have hard evidence to that fact at my fingertips, I would vehemently argue that the Village Voice is not really hard evidence of anything, but rather the type of tripe (ha, that's a good one) that generally permeates writing that leans far left or far right.
(3) Your readers and you yourself seem to find that the movie 300 is feeding us "jingoistic" and "right-wing" propaganda. I think this is a respectable view in some instances, but you fail to mention a few pertinent facts. First, the Spartans might be seen by some as not representative of the United States per se. Rather, they can be seen to represent, say, the Afghans or the Iraqis. So, there's that. Second, the Spartans are hardly a group of people that many in the United States would identify with. For example, they forsake and kill innocent babies, they shun deformed men, they relegate women to the back, and they, generally speaking, participate in quite a bit of violence towards each other. This is not something that 99% of Americans would identify with. Additionally, I tend to think that right-leaners would not see the movie because of the sex and violence inherent therein. Such right-wingers tend to shun movies of that ilk.
(4) Another problem with your analysis of the 300 movie lies with your friendship with Frank Miller. As far as I can tell, Mr. Miller's book and the movie were fairly similar in terms of rhetoric. Yet you seem to defend Mr. Miller and attack the movie. I'm not certain why that makes sense.
(5) Finally, and this is something that does not begin or end with, you, you have overemphasized the effect a movie will have on society. Additionally, you have taken themes out of the movie that, frankly, are probably not there. I watched the movie for three reasons: (1) I read the comic and liked it, (2) the movie had the requisite amount of violence and war; and (3) I'm Greek. None of these reasons indicate that I watched the movie to be politically moved or to develop my jingoistic or right-leaning attitudes. I watched the movie because it LOOKED good. Not because it sounded good. The narrative was fairly simplistic (as was the comic book's, I might add), and there were no themes of note (although "freedom" was spoken of at length). Being a history major, I found that it was woefully inaccurate in terms of its potrayal of Greeks and ancient warfare. But, again, that's not why I saw the movie. Finally, I'm uncertain why you link the movie to the Republican Party. As far as I know, the right-leaning, close-minded, mean, violent, and stupid are quite underrepresented in Hollywood. And, certainly, the left-leaning, free-thinking, kind, gentle, and intelligent are quite well represented. Perhaps the latter had a hand in making this movie. Perhaps it is them you should be chastising.
I will continue to enjoy your articles. I enjoy the ridiculousness of your political leanings, sure. I enjoy your elitist attitudes when it comes to writing, drawing, and publishing comics, specifically your inclination to assume stupid until proven published. But, I mostly enjoy your take on comics, and your reviews of same. Please keep up the... work.
Sincerely,
The Beast
You write interesting, informative, and entertaining articles at Comic Book Resources. Your latest article (http://www.comicbookresources.com/columns/?column=10) can be described as interesting, informative, and entertaing. However, I would posit that this article (and others) are also misleading.
(1) Your political leanings are well documented, and I do not mean to disparage your right to free speech. However, I would like to rebut, or at least challenge some of your statements. For example, you maintain that there is a secret plot by the current adminitstration to institute martial law of some kind in the United States. While I agree with you that this is one of the worst administrations in the history of our country, I challenge your theories as alarmist and generally misguided. Generally speaking, "the Ghost" has the best interests of the United States at heart. Beyond that, the administration, even if it did not have the best interests of the country at heart, does not have the wherewithal or the pull with the general public to institute martial law in this country. Why would that even be a realistic statement for you to make? I understand your frustration and general anger with the president, but I do not understand your alarmist and fairly fantastical attitude towards the future of the country. If I may be so bold, we will have a new president fairly soon, and that new president will likely be from the other side of the aisle, so to speak. Your writing on this and other such issues is both ridiculous and beneath you. Please continue with the political rhetoric, but stay away from this horrible attempt to scare everyone with unrealistic expectations.
(2) While I personally have an affinity for Rudy Guiliani, and, as such, am horribly biased, I find your demeaning of him to be in bad taste. You call him a lying, manipulative scumbag and indicate that he wants everyone to be loyal to the United States. I challenge you to come up with a list of ten names, preferably presidential candidates, who are not lying, manipulative, and/or a scumbag. I also challenge you to come up with a list of ten names of persons in and around politics that do not wish everyone living in this country to be loyal to this country. It seems to me that loyalty is kind of part of how we are. I think you can be both loyal and not support an administration. It seems you think Mr. Guiliani thinks that you cannot. That seems very strange, and, frankly, stupid of you. Again, I think this is rhetoric best left to the crazies who think that the Republican right is out to get them. Perhaps you belong in that group, but I'd like to think you don't. You also indicate that Mr. Guiliani is capitalizing on his role in 9/11. I would also like to point out, that of Mr. Guiliani's many opponents, at least one, Mrs. Clinton, is quite adept at spinning events in her favor, including, but not limited to, voting for the war in Iraq. While I do not have hard evidence to that fact at my fingertips, I would vehemently argue that the Village Voice is not really hard evidence of anything, but rather the type of tripe (ha, that's a good one) that generally permeates writing that leans far left or far right.
(3) Your readers and you yourself seem to find that the movie 300 is feeding us "jingoistic" and "right-wing" propaganda. I think this is a respectable view in some instances, but you fail to mention a few pertinent facts. First, the Spartans might be seen by some as not representative of the United States per se. Rather, they can be seen to represent, say, the Afghans or the Iraqis. So, there's that. Second, the Spartans are hardly a group of people that many in the United States would identify with. For example, they forsake and kill innocent babies, they shun deformed men, they relegate women to the back, and they, generally speaking, participate in quite a bit of violence towards each other. This is not something that 99% of Americans would identify with. Additionally, I tend to think that right-leaners would not see the movie because of the sex and violence inherent therein. Such right-wingers tend to shun movies of that ilk.
(4) Another problem with your analysis of the 300 movie lies with your friendship with Frank Miller. As far as I can tell, Mr. Miller's book and the movie were fairly similar in terms of rhetoric. Yet you seem to defend Mr. Miller and attack the movie. I'm not certain why that makes sense.
(5) Finally, and this is something that does not begin or end with, you, you have overemphasized the effect a movie will have on society. Additionally, you have taken themes out of the movie that, frankly, are probably not there. I watched the movie for three reasons: (1) I read the comic and liked it, (2) the movie had the requisite amount of violence and war; and (3) I'm Greek. None of these reasons indicate that I watched the movie to be politically moved or to develop my jingoistic or right-leaning attitudes. I watched the movie because it LOOKED good. Not because it sounded good. The narrative was fairly simplistic (as was the comic book's, I might add), and there were no themes of note (although "freedom" was spoken of at length). Being a history major, I found that it was woefully inaccurate in terms of its potrayal of Greeks and ancient warfare. But, again, that's not why I saw the movie. Finally, I'm uncertain why you link the movie to the Republican Party. As far as I know, the right-leaning, close-minded, mean, violent, and stupid are quite underrepresented in Hollywood. And, certainly, the left-leaning, free-thinking, kind, gentle, and intelligent are quite well represented. Perhaps the latter had a hand in making this movie. Perhaps it is them you should be chastising.
I will continue to enjoy your articles. I enjoy the ridiculousness of your political leanings, sure. I enjoy your elitist attitudes when it comes to writing, drawing, and publishing comics, specifically your inclination to assume stupid until proven published. But, I mostly enjoy your take on comics, and your reviews of same. Please keep up the... work.
Sincerely,
The Beast
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Nick's Movie Reviews - 300
So, I watched 300 on Friday night. My wife went with her sisters to the Beyonce concert, so I had the house to myself until about 1 AM.
Initially, I was told by a co-worker that it was "great." My brother told me, "it sucked," mostly because of the horrendous storyline and dialogue.
Needless to say, I loved it... it was the kind of movie that you can sit there and enjoy the ridiculousness of it. I have read the graphic novel, which was okay (I like my comics to have some kind of extensive dialogue and I'm not that impressed by great art). The movie itself was un-freaking-believable in terms of the epic violence, blood, and general visuals. They evidently shot it in a combined Sin City and Gladiator style, which was extremely effective. I enjoyed the motion capture violence of the whole thing. The acting was fine for this kind of movie. I enjoyed seeing my boy McNulty from The Wire, but he had a small part. I didn't really have any sympathy for the characters, which is fine, because this was not that kind of movie.
I have to criticisms in an otherwise excellent war/action flick, both from a history-major standpoint:
(1) Spartans (and Greeks generally) only fought in phalanx formation. They did not use swords as a group, they did not fight like the Roman legions. I understand that, visually, it looks better in a movie to have sword-fighting one-on-one (especially with the Immortals). However, I believe it would have been just as good to continue the phalanx fighting (a la the first battle scene). That's how we Greeks rolled back in the day.
(2) The whole freedom B.S. annoyed me immensely. Sparta was a republic, sure. But all that stuff in the beginning about weeding out the malformed, etc.... that was true. So, let's do away with all the freedom and equality nonsense. It was about fighting for your city-state, I guess. There was no fighting for freedom. I really hated that stuff. When one makes a movie like 300, one does not have to appeal to the U.S. reasoning for fighting (i.e. freedom, justice, equality). You can deal with those issues in Saving Private Ryan. It's my same critique with Braveheart, possibly the greatest movie ever made. Why have William Wallace shout freedom, when the war was really about who gets to rule Scotland - a Scottish king or an English king.
Anyway, I understand, for visual reasons (on the first one) and business reasons (on the second one) why they did what they did. All in all, 300 was just what I expected it to be and I was not disappointed.
Initially, I was told by a co-worker that it was "great." My brother told me, "it sucked," mostly because of the horrendous storyline and dialogue.
Needless to say, I loved it... it was the kind of movie that you can sit there and enjoy the ridiculousness of it. I have read the graphic novel, which was okay (I like my comics to have some kind of extensive dialogue and I'm not that impressed by great art). The movie itself was un-freaking-believable in terms of the epic violence, blood, and general visuals. They evidently shot it in a combined Sin City and Gladiator style, which was extremely effective. I enjoyed the motion capture violence of the whole thing. The acting was fine for this kind of movie. I enjoyed seeing my boy McNulty from The Wire, but he had a small part. I didn't really have any sympathy for the characters, which is fine, because this was not that kind of movie.
I have to criticisms in an otherwise excellent war/action flick, both from a history-major standpoint:
(1) Spartans (and Greeks generally) only fought in phalanx formation. They did not use swords as a group, they did not fight like the Roman legions. I understand that, visually, it looks better in a movie to have sword-fighting one-on-one (especially with the Immortals). However, I believe it would have been just as good to continue the phalanx fighting (a la the first battle scene). That's how we Greeks rolled back in the day.
(2) The whole freedom B.S. annoyed me immensely. Sparta was a republic, sure. But all that stuff in the beginning about weeding out the malformed, etc.... that was true. So, let's do away with all the freedom and equality nonsense. It was about fighting for your city-state, I guess. There was no fighting for freedom. I really hated that stuff. When one makes a movie like 300, one does not have to appeal to the U.S. reasoning for fighting (i.e. freedom, justice, equality). You can deal with those issues in Saving Private Ryan. It's my same critique with Braveheart, possibly the greatest movie ever made. Why have William Wallace shout freedom, when the war was really about who gets to rule Scotland - a Scottish king or an English king.
Anyway, I understand, for visual reasons (on the first one) and business reasons (on the second one) why they did what they did. All in all, 300 was just what I expected it to be and I was not disappointed.
Wednesday, August 01, 2007
Dilemma
So, long story short, my wife went into the hospital (no emergency) for headache diagnosis and treatment. So I was in and out of the office this entire week (and we were on vacation last week), visiting her at the hospital and whatnot. Anyway, she's doing much better now and is going to get released on Friday most likely.
In other news, I was promoted to senior associate at my firm... kudos to me.
The dilemma is this - my wife recently informed me that I MUST go to the promotion party on Thursday. Two reasons not to go: my wife is in the hospital and I haven't really worked that much this week. Two reasons to go: my wife is fine and told me to go and it's my promotion party.
My solution to the dilemma is to see how things play out at the hospital tonight, see if Jenn can convince me to attend, and play it from there. Wish me luck.
In other news, I was promoted to senior associate at my firm... kudos to me.
The dilemma is this - my wife recently informed me that I MUST go to the promotion party on Thursday. Two reasons not to go: my wife is in the hospital and I haven't really worked that much this week. Two reasons to go: my wife is fine and told me to go and it's my promotion party.
My solution to the dilemma is to see how things play out at the hospital tonight, see if Jenn can convince me to attend, and play it from there. Wish me luck.
Friday, July 20, 2007
This Guy's Hypocrisy Also Knows No Bounds
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/07/20/politics/main3079710.shtml
The good Senator was a member of the KKK, by the way.
Also, I thought the deepest levels of Hell were reserved for child molestors, rapists, and murders... not for a football player who owned land upon which dogs were forced to fight.
Not passing judgment, just saying...
The good Senator was a member of the KKK, by the way.
Also, I thought the deepest levels of Hell were reserved for child molestors, rapists, and murders... not for a football player who owned land upon which dogs were forced to fight.
Not passing judgment, just saying...
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Shakes on a Plane
So, I had to go to Vegas for work Monday/Tuesday. Coming back home, I'm sitting in a cozy seat with no one next to me. All of the sudden I hear behind me one of the flight attendants say, "You're not driving home right?" There is this 2o-something woman behind me pounding beers like a champ because she's "afraid of flying." So, we're about to land and she's swearing and screaming to God at the top of her lungs. The Russian couple next to her are trying to calm her down, to no avail. As she gets up to run off the plane, I say... (now keep in mind, I had about 5 hours of sleep and there was the time change and I was still wearing a suit)... loudly, "maybe if you're afraid of flying, you shouldn't fly." Unfortunately, I don't think she was paying attention.
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Public Service Announcement
Just to let my one to two readers know, I regularly update my side bar with books, music, and the like. I like to think I have impeccable taste in reading. I also have moderate to good taste in music, although my brother would argue I listen too much to the radio. I listen to Yahoo Music and the Comcast Digital Radio on TV, so I think my interests have become more cultured.
Anyway, I digress - check out the sidebar frequently.
Anyway, I digress - check out the sidebar frequently.
Don't Let the Name Scare You
So DC Comics has decided to enter the foray of online comics with http://www.zudacomics.com/ (aka Zuda Comics). The name is horrendous. However, it sounds like they will allow creator owned properties to be placed on the website and voted on by the readers. The best comics will become regular posts on the website and DC has indicated that it may choose people to become regular comic creators (i.e. print comics). This sounds all too good to be true. My problem now is finding someone that can draw... or learning to draw myself. BLAST!
Friday, July 06, 2007
Violence Inherent in the System
So, I've been researching the Bible for one of my book/comic ideas. I found a passage, that I won't quote, but it talks about the Assyrian siege of Jerusalem in Kings. Okay, let me say a couple of things: first, Kings is all about warfare and violence... constant killing, defenstration (throwing someone out a window... I learn something new every day), murdering of whole cities and nations, torture, etc., etc. So, anyway, the Assyrians are laying siege to Jerusalem and an angel comes down and kills 185,000 Assyrians with the remainder fleeing back to Assyria. Okay, I'm fine with the angel and the killing seems normal, but what struck out to me was the idea that sometime in 2500 BC, there was an army of more 185,000 soldiers. That's like a modern army. I didn't even know there were 185,000 people in Assyria, much less 185,000 soldiers. Ridiculous.
Monday, July 02, 2007
Why Does He Do Things Like This
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19570081/?GT1=10150
While I am not surprised, I am perturbed. Oh well... I guess that's how the president rolls.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Clinton_pardons_controversy
For once I'd like to see someone linked to a president get their comeuppance.
While I am not surprised, I am perturbed. Oh well... I guess that's how the president rolls.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Clinton_pardons_controversy
For once I'd like to see someone linked to a president get their comeuppance.
It's Official
I've decided to start writing again. I've been kicking around ideas since high school. Got a lot of stuff down on Word in college, but I've sinced lost all that stuff. My sister found it a while back, thought it was good, but I never retrieved it.
So, anyway, I started writing again. I've got my short story ideas (4 to be exact) sitting in a word doc, and I have parts written. I've got an enormous spreadsheet with a bunch of comic-book type things, but I just started writing a, what I call, brief history of super-powered individuals. And I developed my answer to the question, "why do people have powers," without resorting to "they're all mutants." Finally, I have a ton of background on my fantasy world, but that keeps changing on a daily basis.
So, I started to actually write. That's kind of the point of this post. As opposed to getting my ideas down, without actually writing any plot, dialogue, etc. So, maybe I'll have something to put on this site soon.
So, anyway, I started writing again. I've got my short story ideas (4 to be exact) sitting in a word doc, and I have parts written. I've got an enormous spreadsheet with a bunch of comic-book type things, but I just started writing a, what I call, brief history of super-powered individuals. And I developed my answer to the question, "why do people have powers," without resorting to "they're all mutants." Finally, I have a ton of background on my fantasy world, but that keeps changing on a daily basis.
So, I started to actually write. That's kind of the point of this post. As opposed to getting my ideas down, without actually writing any plot, dialogue, etc. So, maybe I'll have something to put on this site soon.
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Ten Best (after their first album... of course)
In the continued pursuit of procrasination (I've worked six days a week, 8-12 hours a day since January... step off), I've decided to make a list of the ten best Pearl Jam songs. Admittedly, I have not listened to Pearl Jam exclusively in a long time, but they remain one of my three favorite bands (the others being Tool and Queen).
(1) "Dissident" Vs. - This song epitomizes what Pearl Jam was to me. "Was" is the operative word here. Eddie used to have a raucous voice, now tempered by wine and age. He screams, McCready and Gossard duel with their guitars (which, in my opinion was THE reason PJ is great).
(2) "Rearviewmirror" Vs. - Another song that epitomizes my PJ listening career. Again, just an angry, screaming Vedder over the dueling guitars.
(3) "Yellow Ledbetter" Lost Dogs (and others) - I'm sorry, this is one of the best guitar riffs ever. Ever. I still don't know what the hell Vedder is trying to say, but I love this song. You want a horrible cover? Listen to my brother's live CD... I still have it somewhere.
(4) "Lowlight" Yield - This is a song I've grown to literally love and listen to countless times. Vedder sounds really good in this song. You can feel the pain.
(5) "Deep" Ten - The first of three songs from Ten. Ten is considered by many to be PJ's best album... I think it was Vs. But this song is the type of screaming, hyper guitar stuff that I love.
(6) "Porch" Ten - There's a part in this song where everything almost stops except for Ament's bass. That's when I pull my head back to prepare for some serious head-banging... ah, I long for the days of long hair and flannel shirts.
(7) "Alive" Ten - The only real single-single on this list. I love this song, the lyrics are fantastic. Reportedly this is the first in a triology (with "Once," and "Footsteps") about a kid who finds out his dad is dead, goes on a killing spree, and gets put in prison. Comes from Vedder's dad not being his real dad or something.
(8) "Immortality" Vitalogy - The first of three slow, intro-spective songs. Kind of anti-Pearl Jam of the 90s, but kind of what they're about now. This is the best of their "slow" songs.
(9) "Love Boat Captain" Riot Act - I'll just admit Riot Act was an horrendous album... except for this weird and wonderful song.
(10) "Present Tense" No Code - This song always gets to me. At the beginning of the second chorus, Eddie's voice begins to rise as the guitars and bass begin to rise. It's a wonderful moment in an excellent and underrated song.
Notable Ommissions
(1) "Jeremy" Ten - I literally dislike this song... immensely. Sure, it's powerful and all that... but is it really a good song? The answer is no.
(2) "Even Flow" Ten - Another song I really dislike. I change the station if this song comes in. Blech.
(3) "Daughter" Vs. - I like this song, but it got played way too much and made PJ mainstream... which kind of ruined them... just a little.
(4) "Wishlist" and "Given to Fly" - Seriously? Not good songs. Just not.
So there is the list. There are a number of live songs and soundtrack songs that PJ does ("Leatherman," "Man of the Hour," "Masters of War") that are just brilliant songs that did not deserve to go on this list. I flirted with putting "Man of the Hour" and "Masters of War" on there, but I didn't want to bump any album songs.
(1) "Dissident" Vs. - This song epitomizes what Pearl Jam was to me. "Was" is the operative word here. Eddie used to have a raucous voice, now tempered by wine and age. He screams, McCready and Gossard duel with their guitars (which, in my opinion was THE reason PJ is great).
(2) "Rearviewmirror" Vs. - Another song that epitomizes my PJ listening career. Again, just an angry, screaming Vedder over the dueling guitars.
(3) "Yellow Ledbetter" Lost Dogs (and others) - I'm sorry, this is one of the best guitar riffs ever. Ever. I still don't know what the hell Vedder is trying to say, but I love this song. You want a horrible cover? Listen to my brother's live CD... I still have it somewhere.
(4) "Lowlight" Yield - This is a song I've grown to literally love and listen to countless times. Vedder sounds really good in this song. You can feel the pain.
(5) "Deep" Ten - The first of three songs from Ten. Ten is considered by many to be PJ's best album... I think it was Vs. But this song is the type of screaming, hyper guitar stuff that I love.
(6) "Porch" Ten - There's a part in this song where everything almost stops except for Ament's bass. That's when I pull my head back to prepare for some serious head-banging... ah, I long for the days of long hair and flannel shirts.
(7) "Alive" Ten - The only real single-single on this list. I love this song, the lyrics are fantastic. Reportedly this is the first in a triology (with "Once," and "Footsteps") about a kid who finds out his dad is dead, goes on a killing spree, and gets put in prison. Comes from Vedder's dad not being his real dad or something.
(8) "Immortality" Vitalogy - The first of three slow, intro-spective songs. Kind of anti-Pearl Jam of the 90s, but kind of what they're about now. This is the best of their "slow" songs.
(9) "Love Boat Captain" Riot Act - I'll just admit Riot Act was an horrendous album... except for this weird and wonderful song.
(10) "Present Tense" No Code - This song always gets to me. At the beginning of the second chorus, Eddie's voice begins to rise as the guitars and bass begin to rise. It's a wonderful moment in an excellent and underrated song.
Notable Ommissions
(1) "Jeremy" Ten - I literally dislike this song... immensely. Sure, it's powerful and all that... but is it really a good song? The answer is no.
(2) "Even Flow" Ten - Another song I really dislike. I change the station if this song comes in. Blech.
(3) "Daughter" Vs. - I like this song, but it got played way too much and made PJ mainstream... which kind of ruined them... just a little.
(4) "Wishlist" and "Given to Fly" - Seriously? Not good songs. Just not.
So there is the list. There are a number of live songs and soundtrack songs that PJ does ("Leatherman," "Man of the Hour," "Masters of War") that are just brilliant songs that did not deserve to go on this list. I flirted with putting "Man of the Hour" and "Masters of War" on there, but I didn't want to bump any album songs.
Thursday, June 28, 2007
The Perils of Playing Catcher
Could it be that I weight 270 pounds? Could it be that I have played sports that put undue stress on my knees? Could it be a combination of the two? These are the questions I asked myself as I played catcher last night during a softball game. As I got up to throw the ball back to the pitcher, my left knee buckled. Pain? Moderate. Uncomfortability? High. The pain was quite bearable, but the uncomfortability was quite weird. I'm not sure how my leg can just stop straightening. Strange. Needless to say I continued playing and I can walk with the normal amount of pain today. Therefore, I shall not worry about my knees until the next time I squat behind homeplate.
Monday, June 25, 2007
My Implementation of the Fairness Doctrine
It has come to my attention that I may appear biased towards a certain political party (the attention was provided by myself). In the spirit of the Fairness Doctrine, I will provide the following things:
(1) I'm exceedingly angry with the lack of communication between the White House and the American people regarding a plan of action in the Iraq War... spefically what is a win, what is a loss, when are we done there. These questions continue to remain unanswered and the anger with which the White House responds to such questions is ridiculous.
(2) I'm also exceedingly angry with Republicans (specifically, certain radio talk show hosts) who have determined that the amnesty bill is a horrible breach of national security. Being the grandson of a formerly illegal immigrant, I find that the vast majority of immigrants come here to work, not to leach off of the government. They come here for a better life for themselves and their families. Cut them a damn break. And the terrorists? It's the same argument I have for keeping the right to bear arms - if you make guns illegal, the people who want to kill someone will still get them. If you put walls around the U.S., terrorists will still get in. It's not my fault if you don't like people who don't have blonde hair and blue eyes... deal with it.
(3) The Christian Coalition. I'm Catholic... I'm a practicing Catholic. I am horribly frustrated that a presidential candidate from the Republican Party must pander to this one faction of the Republican Party in order to get nominated. Guliani and I (and Ahnold) share the same political views... now, Rudy has to pander to these people to win the nomination. It disgusts me. There needs to be about four more political parties in this country. Vote Libertarian jerks!
(4) Free Speech. This is the last one and it's killing me. Not as much as the immigration thing, but it's up there. How come free speech is only free if the speech agrees with what you think? If you can't win a debate, you shouldn't be able to make the opposing view illegal. Stupid. Put whatever you want on the radio or TV. Take some personal responsibility for your kids. If they want to watch porn or the Sopranos or listen to Air America or Rush Limbaugh, they're going to... no matter what you do. So tell the kids what you will, but don't make it illegal. Dude... it's the first amendment. The FIRST!
That satisfies my fairness for the year. Continue with the liberal bashing! Huzzah!
(1) I'm exceedingly angry with the lack of communication between the White House and the American people regarding a plan of action in the Iraq War... spefically what is a win, what is a loss, when are we done there. These questions continue to remain unanswered and the anger with which the White House responds to such questions is ridiculous.
(2) I'm also exceedingly angry with Republicans (specifically, certain radio talk show hosts) who have determined that the amnesty bill is a horrible breach of national security. Being the grandson of a formerly illegal immigrant, I find that the vast majority of immigrants come here to work, not to leach off of the government. They come here for a better life for themselves and their families. Cut them a damn break. And the terrorists? It's the same argument I have for keeping the right to bear arms - if you make guns illegal, the people who want to kill someone will still get them. If you put walls around the U.S., terrorists will still get in. It's not my fault if you don't like people who don't have blonde hair and blue eyes... deal with it.
(3) The Christian Coalition. I'm Catholic... I'm a practicing Catholic. I am horribly frustrated that a presidential candidate from the Republican Party must pander to this one faction of the Republican Party in order to get nominated. Guliani and I (and Ahnold) share the same political views... now, Rudy has to pander to these people to win the nomination. It disgusts me. There needs to be about four more political parties in this country. Vote Libertarian jerks!
(4) Free Speech. This is the last one and it's killing me. Not as much as the immigration thing, but it's up there. How come free speech is only free if the speech agrees with what you think? If you can't win a debate, you shouldn't be able to make the opposing view illegal. Stupid. Put whatever you want on the radio or TV. Take some personal responsibility for your kids. If they want to watch porn or the Sopranos or listen to Air America or Rush Limbaugh, they're going to... no matter what you do. So tell the kids what you will, but don't make it illegal. Dude... it's the first amendment. The FIRST!
That satisfies my fairness for the year. Continue with the liberal bashing! Huzzah!
Friday, June 22, 2007
Solar Powered Amplifiers?
How do they provide power and transportation for such a large event?
http://liveearth.msn.com/?
I can't stand hypocrisy. What I hate more than hypocrisy is hypocrisy combined with preaching. Practice what you preach, then preach. We jump all over (rightfully so) Christian ministers who cheat on their wives, but we politely ignore Hollywoodland and their self-righteous hypocrisy... AENEMA!!! - wash it all away.
http://liveearth.msn.com/?
I can't stand hypocrisy. What I hate more than hypocrisy is hypocrisy combined with preaching. Practice what you preach, then preach. We jump all over (rightfully so) Christian ministers who cheat on their wives, but we politely ignore Hollywoodland and their self-righteous hypocrisy... AENEMA!!! - wash it all away.
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Don't Tell Me Blues are Dead
Lyrics to Clutch's Electric Worry (I've listend to this song approximately 50 times):
Well you made me weak
and you made me moan
Well you caused me to leave,
child, my happy home
But someday baby,
you ain't worry my life, anymo'
I get satisfaction
everywhere I go
Where I lay my head
that's what I call home
Where the baron burns
oh the vision stale
Take tomorrow's cutter
give him bout the glare
Refrain: Bang bang bang bang
Vamanos vamonos
Bang bang bang
Vamanos vamanos
You told everybody
in the neighborhood
What I done to mistreat her
and that I was no good
But someday baby,
you ain't worry my life, anymo'
Doctor or lawyer
I'll never be
Life of a drifter
the only life for me
You can have your riches
all the gorgeous saved
Ain't room for one thing
in everybody's grave
REFRAIN
If I had money
like Henry Ford
Lord, I'd have me a woman
on every road
But someday baby,
you ain't worry my life, anymo'
In my cajun of the tummies
rap me on my head
Cash in at the corner
house of street cred
I get satisfaction
everywhere I go
One day baby
you worry me no mo'
REFRAIN
Well you made me weak
and you made me moan
Well you caused me to leave,
child, my happy home
But someday baby,
you ain't worry my life, anymo'
I get satisfaction
everywhere I go
Where I lay my head
that's what I call home
Where the baron burns
oh the vision stale
Take tomorrow's cutter
give him bout the glare
Refrain: Bang bang bang bang
Vamanos vamonos
Bang bang bang
Vamanos vamanos
You told everybody
in the neighborhood
What I done to mistreat her
and that I was no good
But someday baby,
you ain't worry my life, anymo'
Doctor or lawyer
I'll never be
Life of a drifter
the only life for me
You can have your riches
all the gorgeous saved
Ain't room for one thing
in everybody's grave
REFRAIN
If I had money
like Henry Ford
Lord, I'd have me a woman
on every road
But someday baby,
you ain't worry my life, anymo'
In my cajun of the tummies
rap me on my head
Cash in at the corner
house of street cred
I get satisfaction
everywhere I go
One day baby
you worry me no mo'
REFRAIN
Woke up this morning, got myself a beer
Well, no. Did you ever have a weekend that you need a weekend to recover from? I spent my Friday evening baking (with my wife) for my sister-in-law's graduation party. I spent Saturday working, Saturday night driving to the shore for dinner with my dad. Sunday morning we woke up at 7:00 AM to go to my wife's father's for breakfast, then to the graduation party. Got home Sunday night at 12:00 AM. And went to work on Monday. Blech.
Save our city!
Save our city!
Monday, June 18, 2007
It Seems His Hypocrisy Knows No Bounds
... to paraphrase Val Kilmer as Doc Holliday in Tombstone.
$40 a ticket... for a movie? Say it ain't so, Mr. Moore. Perhaps we should take you on a tour of the neighborhoods of those people devastated by increasing movie prices.
http://movies.msn.com/movies/article.aspx?news=265968>1=7701
$40 a ticket... for a movie? Say it ain't so, Mr. Moore. Perhaps we should take you on a tour of the neighborhoods of those people devastated by increasing movie prices.
http://movies.msn.com/movies/article.aspx?news=265968>1=7701
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Retort
I'd like to think Bush's vision for the Arab world looks something like this: http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/arab_democracy/images/splash.jpg
Which is why I don't like the various and sundry gleeful articles on "Bush's vision."
Which is why I don't like the various and sundry gleeful articles on "Bush's vision."
Friday, June 15, 2007
Hamas... Shmahamas
Read this headline... http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19215537/
"Hamas Takeover Shows Failure of Bush's Vision"
There are two things wrong with that statement:
(1) Why is this the president's vision and not anyone else's? Is everyone else FOR Hamas takeovers? If not, what is everyone else's plan? Oh, that's right, no one else has a plan because that would mean maybe coming under attack and having to stand for something. Politicians don't do that any more.
(2) Some will think it's just me, but doesn't that headline and the corresponding article seem almost gleeful... as if MSN wants Bush's vision to fail. What the hell is wrong with people? What happened to hope and hard work?
Blech... hard work.
"Hamas Takeover Shows Failure of Bush's Vision"
There are two things wrong with that statement:
(1) Why is this the president's vision and not anyone else's? Is everyone else FOR Hamas takeovers? If not, what is everyone else's plan? Oh, that's right, no one else has a plan because that would mean maybe coming under attack and having to stand for something. Politicians don't do that any more.
(2) Some will think it's just me, but doesn't that headline and the corresponding article seem almost gleeful... as if MSN wants Bush's vision to fail. What the hell is wrong with people? What happened to hope and hard work?
Blech... hard work.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Tales... of... INTEREST!
So, I was talking to someone at work about how I play basketball during the weekends. I started playing pickup ball in high school and continued into college, law school, and non-school life. I remember vividly my first college pick up game. My roomate (a 6'1", skinny kid) and I (a 6'0", husky kid) played against two players from the Penn women's basketball team. One of the girls, Diana, ended up being the leading scorer in Penn basketball history. Anyway, we played about 5-6 games to 11. We lost all the games. And, back then, I was fairly athletic and my roommate was an excellent basketball player. They just mopped the floor with us. In the first game, we scored 2 points. Now, in my defense, I never played organized basketball and Diana was 6'1" and nearly as husky as I was. She outrebounded me, outshot me, and generally outhustled me for two hours. And it's not like I could foul her hard because, well, she's a girl. It was quite the learning experience for me.
Monday, June 11, 2007
Why Brian Regan is great
Saw his show at the Tower Theater on Saturday night. It was fantabuloso. Two things of note: first, the Tower Theater is a fantastic place to see a show, especially if you like nostalgic things, like I do. It's in a bad section of town, but is very cozy and has a 1950s-style Americana thing going on. The second thing - observational humor is funnier when the humorist is ridiculous looking and acting. Move over Jerry Seinfeld.
Regan is a goofy, more intelligent version of Seinfeld, in my humble opinion. He does a number of things well - he uses intelligent, non-swearing language (not that I mind the swearing), he walks and talks goofily at appropriate times, and he talks about things that we all wonder about. I won't do him justice by repeating his routine, but I will note that he takes some interest in why publishers insist on putting the title of a book on every page of a book (like one would forget what book he or she was reading if not for those titles on every page). He likens it to having the title of the movie at the top of the screen. "What's... what's with all the apes. They're everywhere." (he looks up at the top of the fake screen, then back down, then up again, then back down). "Oh, the Planet of the... hence the apes." I don't know, I about pissed myself.
Regan is a goofy, more intelligent version of Seinfeld, in my humble opinion. He does a number of things well - he uses intelligent, non-swearing language (not that I mind the swearing), he walks and talks goofily at appropriate times, and he talks about things that we all wonder about. I won't do him justice by repeating his routine, but I will note that he takes some interest in why publishers insist on putting the title of a book on every page of a book (like one would forget what book he or she was reading if not for those titles on every page). He likens it to having the title of the movie at the top of the screen. "What's... what's with all the apes. They're everywhere." (he looks up at the top of the fake screen, then back down, then up again, then back down). "Oh, the Planet of the... hence the apes." I don't know, I about pissed myself.
Why Smokin' Aces was not good
Ryan Reynolds. Van Wilder (the character, not the movie) was excellent acting on Reynolds' part. But he could not save this movie. I thoroughly did NOT enjoy Smokin' Aces, except for the gratuitous violence. Especialamente the one female assassin and her high powered cannon. I had semi-high hopes for the movie. I anticipated half an hour of story followed by an hour and a half of gun battling. It was the reverse. I'll never forgive myself for watching that movie.
Friday, June 08, 2007
Another Comic for Prying Eyes
Please... I urge youse to read Kingdom Come. I generally do not like DC comics, excepting, of course, the non-mainstream stuff. But Kingdom Come might be one of the greatest examples of a comic story I've read in a while. I'm all about character creation and overarching stories. I have my own little superhero world I made up. I've created something like 400-500 characters... well organized of course... I like lists. I can't get them down in a story, but I have the background, character names, powers, etc. I just need to get them down. Anyway, I digress.
Kingdom Come - superheroes and villains abound!
Kingdom Come - superheroes and villains abound!
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Astro City
Yes, I read comic books. Step off... I play sports. I just picked up the trades of an excellent book by Kurt Busiek... Astro City. Essentially, it involves a fictional city with a ton of superheroes doing superheroic works. But, the book does not take a generic superhero approach, nor does it do any deconstruction a la The Watchmen. What Busiek does is go behind the scenes with his characters. I thought this was what would pull me in, but, in fact, I enjoy reading about superheroes that don't have long, convoluted, 50 year histories. It is quite an enjoyable read.
Friday, May 25, 2007
Clutch
Yes. A band I listened to prior to and after debates in high school. Step off... I also played football. Anyway, they have a couple newer albums that are quite enjoyable. A mix of industrial metal and blues/country. Wondrous.
Sunday, May 06, 2007
Comic Books on TV
So I read my friend Joe's review of Spiderman 3 and realized something - comic books don't translate to movies. However, they WILL translate to TV. See, for example Heroes. And basically, BSG, The Wire, and Star Trek are essentially comic books on TV. And you have Smallville... which is not a comic book, but rather a teen show. So, here's how I see a way Marvel and DC can make loads of loot (or, perhaps, more appropriately, one of the smaller comic publishers).
Marvel sells The Avengers franchise to HBO to do a 12-episode series. Twelve one-hour episodes on the beginning of The Avengers. Maybe Episode One is two hours. You have Captain America recruiting the various heroes that he wants (and throw in a couple government guys). You have Iron Man, Ant Man, and The Wasp definitely. Hell, maybe make it like the Ultimates... throw in Thor, maybe the Hulk. There are your characters. Get them into some action against a rogue nation or something in the first episode. There's your First Issue, platinum covered. For issues two through twelve - trot out any number of baddies, make up your own, who cares? Develop interpersonal relationships amongst the group, throw in some humor and politics. End the first season on a cliffhanger (The Hulk goes nuts, for example).
There's your TV show. Twelve-thirteen hours = twelve comic books. Instead of throwing in as much as possible in a two and a half hour movie. And guess what? It's on HBO... it will be well-acted and well-written. You'll have great special effects. And you can throw in the violence associated with having an unrated show on HBO.
Anyway, in the infinity to one chance that someone who runs a comic book company reads this, take the idea and run with it. I don't want credit, I just want to see it happen.
Marvel sells The Avengers franchise to HBO to do a 12-episode series. Twelve one-hour episodes on the beginning of The Avengers. Maybe Episode One is two hours. You have Captain America recruiting the various heroes that he wants (and throw in a couple government guys). You have Iron Man, Ant Man, and The Wasp definitely. Hell, maybe make it like the Ultimates... throw in Thor, maybe the Hulk. There are your characters. Get them into some action against a rogue nation or something in the first episode. There's your First Issue, platinum covered. For issues two through twelve - trot out any number of baddies, make up your own, who cares? Develop interpersonal relationships amongst the group, throw in some humor and politics. End the first season on a cliffhanger (The Hulk goes nuts, for example).
There's your TV show. Twelve-thirteen hours = twelve comic books. Instead of throwing in as much as possible in a two and a half hour movie. And guess what? It's on HBO... it will be well-acted and well-written. You'll have great special effects. And you can throw in the violence associated with having an unrated show on HBO.
Anyway, in the infinity to one chance that someone who runs a comic book company reads this, take the idea and run with it. I don't want credit, I just want to see it happen.
Nick Reviews #3 - The Wire, Season One
Yeah buddy. The best show on television... ahead of even BSG. What is there not to like about this show? How about that it is too short? Even for an entire season. It also wrapped up fairly quickly, which I did not appreciate.
A little history about how I got into this show - my roommate in law school was obsessed with getting HBO, presumably for Sopranos. But then he started watching the second season of The Wire and said, "Dude (he said dude all the time), you have to watch this show." The third season was fantastic, so I said, "hey, the first two must be great as well." So, I watched the first season. Finished two days ago.
Story/Plot - The overarching plot of The Wire is that a pain-in-the-ass cop, McNulty (AKA McNutty) starts this whole vendetta against a group of drug dealers after one of the dealer's relatives gets off after a witness lies in court. So, McNulty goes to a judge, who raises hell, and this motley crew of cops goes after the drug dealers. Law and Order right? Nope. Turn your attention to the drug dealers, a well-run, brutal group of West Baltimorians (?) who have their own problems apart from the cops - including internecine struggles and a stick-up boy named Omar. The cops go after the dealers, the dealers go after their own, and no one wins at the end. Fantastic. And here's the best part, and why I love HBO shows - it's intelligent. They don't dumb ANYTHING down for anyone. You'd better catch up quick, or your lost. I love that. Americans, by and large, are intelligent, despite what you may hear otherwise, and I like when shows acknowledge that.
Acting - Good acting all around. I believed everyone's portrayal (except for McNulty's accent... I believe the actor who plays him is English/Scottish/Australian because some accent comes out). The best actors play the drug dealers. Both Barksdales (D'Angelo playing his best Michael Corleone in GF one) and Stringer Bell (Michael Corleone in GF two, probably... maybe Sonny if he lived longer) are fantastically portrayed. The cops from the top on down are compelling characters on their own.
Lasting Appeal - I can't watch the episodes more than once... maybe a couple years from now. But, I will say, there can be umpteen sequels on this show. There are always going to be drug dealers and the cops will always come after them.
I'm starting Season Two as soon as Netflix (royalty please... for my two readers) sends me my new DVD (Monday maybe?).
A little history about how I got into this show - my roommate in law school was obsessed with getting HBO, presumably for Sopranos. But then he started watching the second season of The Wire and said, "Dude (he said dude all the time), you have to watch this show." The third season was fantastic, so I said, "hey, the first two must be great as well." So, I watched the first season. Finished two days ago.
Story/Plot - The overarching plot of The Wire is that a pain-in-the-ass cop, McNulty (AKA McNutty) starts this whole vendetta against a group of drug dealers after one of the dealer's relatives gets off after a witness lies in court. So, McNulty goes to a judge, who raises hell, and this motley crew of cops goes after the drug dealers. Law and Order right? Nope. Turn your attention to the drug dealers, a well-run, brutal group of West Baltimorians (?) who have their own problems apart from the cops - including internecine struggles and a stick-up boy named Omar. The cops go after the dealers, the dealers go after their own, and no one wins at the end. Fantastic. And here's the best part, and why I love HBO shows - it's intelligent. They don't dumb ANYTHING down for anyone. You'd better catch up quick, or your lost. I love that. Americans, by and large, are intelligent, despite what you may hear otherwise, and I like when shows acknowledge that.
Acting - Good acting all around. I believed everyone's portrayal (except for McNulty's accent... I believe the actor who plays him is English/Scottish/Australian because some accent comes out). The best actors play the drug dealers. Both Barksdales (D'Angelo playing his best Michael Corleone in GF one) and Stringer Bell (Michael Corleone in GF two, probably... maybe Sonny if he lived longer) are fantastically portrayed. The cops from the top on down are compelling characters on their own.
Lasting Appeal - I can't watch the episodes more than once... maybe a couple years from now. But, I will say, there can be umpteen sequels on this show. There are always going to be drug dealers and the cops will always come after them.
I'm starting Season Two as soon as Netflix (royalty please... for my two readers) sends me my new DVD (Monday maybe?).
Nick Reviews #2 - Battlestar Galactica Season Two
I'll put it this way - I didn't watch the last two episodes yet, before moving on to another show. It was that bad. BUT (and that's a big but), there was some great stuff as well. It's still one of the best shows I've ever seen on television and there was one episode that was the best since "Water" from the first season. I'll do the bad first:
(1) There were more episodes that did nothing to advance the story than there were episodes that advanced the story. This is a huge problem with a lot of these overarching dramas (like, say, Lost... I don't watch that show anymore). Most of these (like "Scar") were well done and would have been standout episodes on any other show, but the BSG people need to bring their A-game every time out. Even the episodes where the BSG meets the new ship... I didn't really like those as much as I thought when the first cliffhanger hit.
(2) Starbuck. I mentioned in my last review that I really disliked her character. I still really dislike her character. Even more than I did from the first season. She alternates between whiny and aggressive and I just can't take it when she's the focal point of each episode. I'm not sure why she's such a popular character (I heard a rumor that she's the one that finds Earth).
(3) Deaths and Non-Deaths. There were a couple deaths that did not make sense from a story standpoint. One of these deaths, I think, was particularly stupid. I won't mention who dies, but, suffice it to say, it involved a love triangle (square?) that really took my by surprise (and not in a good way). I know there are deaths in shows like this, and I welcome them. But, when you start killing off characters, you need to watch yourself. In 24, for example, they killed off three of my favorite characters in one season and now I'm left with zero favorites. That makes me not want to watch the show. There are also two non-deaths... and I think one of those two should have been killed off. The two guys I'm talking about are basically the same character... no harm in killing one of them.
The Good Stuff:
(1) Cylons - The Cylon-only episode was my second favorite episode after "Water". It was fantastic. I won't ruin it, except to say that this is why the show is better than a show like Star Trek - there are overarching themes.
(2) Darkness - There are a lot of dark moments in these episodes. Again, part of the thematic "sets us apart from everyone else" thing this show has going on for it.
(3) Politics - Another thing that this show has going for it - it's not just point, shoot, cry, have sex. There are things other than war with the Cylons going on.
Okay, so maybe I was too harsh at first. I'll be sure to watch those last two episodes as soon as possible.
(1) There were more episodes that did nothing to advance the story than there were episodes that advanced the story. This is a huge problem with a lot of these overarching dramas (like, say, Lost... I don't watch that show anymore). Most of these (like "Scar") were well done and would have been standout episodes on any other show, but the BSG people need to bring their A-game every time out. Even the episodes where the BSG meets the new ship... I didn't really like those as much as I thought when the first cliffhanger hit.
(2) Starbuck. I mentioned in my last review that I really disliked her character. I still really dislike her character. Even more than I did from the first season. She alternates between whiny and aggressive and I just can't take it when she's the focal point of each episode. I'm not sure why she's such a popular character (I heard a rumor that she's the one that finds Earth).
(3) Deaths and Non-Deaths. There were a couple deaths that did not make sense from a story standpoint. One of these deaths, I think, was particularly stupid. I won't mention who dies, but, suffice it to say, it involved a love triangle (square?) that really took my by surprise (and not in a good way). I know there are deaths in shows like this, and I welcome them. But, when you start killing off characters, you need to watch yourself. In 24, for example, they killed off three of my favorite characters in one season and now I'm left with zero favorites. That makes me not want to watch the show. There are also two non-deaths... and I think one of those two should have been killed off. The two guys I'm talking about are basically the same character... no harm in killing one of them.
The Good Stuff:
(1) Cylons - The Cylon-only episode was my second favorite episode after "Water". It was fantastic. I won't ruin it, except to say that this is why the show is better than a show like Star Trek - there are overarching themes.
(2) Darkness - There are a lot of dark moments in these episodes. Again, part of the thematic "sets us apart from everyone else" thing this show has going on for it.
(3) Politics - Another thing that this show has going for it - it's not just point, shoot, cry, have sex. There are things other than war with the Cylons going on.
Okay, so maybe I was too harsh at first. I'll be sure to watch those last two episodes as soon as possible.
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
Nick Reviews #1 - Battlestar Galactica Season One
I just finished watching the first season of Battlestar Galactica (BSG), and enjoyed it immensely. First, let me say that my expectations going into it were two-sided. My brother, after watching Firefly/Serenity (after I recommended that to him) recommended it to me, which means my expectation were fairly high. However, I had somewhat low expectations at the same time... this was, after all, a SciFi Channel production. So, let's say I was pleasantly surprised at the production value and acting, and was exactly where I wanted to be with the storyline, having spoken with my brother before watching it.
The two "older" characters are accomplished actors: Edward James Olmos and Mary McConnell, so I wasn't very surprised to find them doing a great job. The remaining actors did an excellent job as well, and I didn't feel like the acting was cheesey, which is a hard feat in the world of science fiction (see, Star Wars Episodes I through III).
The story is incredible, of course, though it is based on a previously written story. The background, via the excellent miniseries, sets the tone. You get the feeling, while watching, that anything can happen. And there is an excellent surprise at the end of the first season. There are numerous subplots in addition to the "escape from the bad guys/find a home" angle. There are love interests, semi-complex interpersonal relationships, and the "bad guys" point of view is well represented. Additionally, there are excellent philosophical themes: from religion and politics to humans playing God. Perhaps my favorite theme is that the Cylons' motivations are not entirely driven by a hatred for humans, rather they seem to be driven by fate and a sense of self-righteousness.
The production is fantastic (which goes to show the value of CGI and the like). And one thing that doesn't get enough attention, but that I notice is that when a character gets punched 10 times in one episode, he or she retains the cuts and bruises beyond that one episode. Nothing like realism.
There are some negatives. The characters of Starbuck and the XO are a little over the top and also could be the "wild child" and "hardass" in any TV show or movie (i.e. they are generalized characters). And this might be a personal thing with me, but I would like more back story than what has been developed.
I'm looking forward to the rest of the second season (I started that season yesterday). I recommend the series to anyone who is a fan of science fiction in any form.
The two "older" characters are accomplished actors: Edward James Olmos and Mary McConnell, so I wasn't very surprised to find them doing a great job. The remaining actors did an excellent job as well, and I didn't feel like the acting was cheesey, which is a hard feat in the world of science fiction (see, Star Wars Episodes I through III).
The story is incredible, of course, though it is based on a previously written story. The background, via the excellent miniseries, sets the tone. You get the feeling, while watching, that anything can happen. And there is an excellent surprise at the end of the first season. There are numerous subplots in addition to the "escape from the bad guys/find a home" angle. There are love interests, semi-complex interpersonal relationships, and the "bad guys" point of view is well represented. Additionally, there are excellent philosophical themes: from religion and politics to humans playing God. Perhaps my favorite theme is that the Cylons' motivations are not entirely driven by a hatred for humans, rather they seem to be driven by fate and a sense of self-righteousness.
The production is fantastic (which goes to show the value of CGI and the like). And one thing that doesn't get enough attention, but that I notice is that when a character gets punched 10 times in one episode, he or she retains the cuts and bruises beyond that one episode. Nothing like realism.
There are some negatives. The characters of Starbuck and the XO are a little over the top and also could be the "wild child" and "hardass" in any TV show or movie (i.e. they are generalized characters). And this might be a personal thing with me, but I would like more back story than what has been developed.
I'm looking forward to the rest of the second season (I started that season yesterday). I recommend the series to anyone who is a fan of science fiction in any form.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
It's Always Trafficky in Philadelphia
So Philadelphia has ridiculous amounts of traffic. Not on the NYC or LA level, but a ton of traffic nonetheless. I've gotten pretty used to commuting from South Jersey into the city. It took my a little longer to get accustomed to city traffic in the city. What I mean is, cars on Arch Street or JFK making left turns on red, cutting in front of people, going through red lights, and trying to run yours truly down in the road.
Today was a breath of fresh air. I was walking across JFK on a green light along with a number of other foot-commuters. This professional woman, who was evidently in a hurry, is trying to turn left onto 19th street while the light is red and nearly hits this guy. So the guy turns to her, slaps her car hood with his hand and says, "The light is RED!" To which she replies, haughtily, "I can make a left on red here." He starts screaming, "Look at the sign you idiot!" Sure enough, a "No Turn on Red" sign is staring her right in the face. She had the decency to look embarrassed to which he says, "What the hell is wrong with you?!? Learn how to drive! Better yet learn how to read or you're going to kill someone." This last statement occurred as I was walking next to the woman's driver's side window. So I saw her expression - she was just ashamed. Maybe she'll quit her evil, not-paying-attention-while-driving pet peeves.
This is the kind of thing that warms the cockles of my heart. The guy wasn't nasty or swearing incessantly, he just told her how it was.
Today was a breath of fresh air. I was walking across JFK on a green light along with a number of other foot-commuters. This professional woman, who was evidently in a hurry, is trying to turn left onto 19th street while the light is red and nearly hits this guy. So the guy turns to her, slaps her car hood with his hand and says, "The light is RED!" To which she replies, haughtily, "I can make a left on red here." He starts screaming, "Look at the sign you idiot!" Sure enough, a "No Turn on Red" sign is staring her right in the face. She had the decency to look embarrassed to which he says, "What the hell is wrong with you?!? Learn how to drive! Better yet learn how to read or you're going to kill someone." This last statement occurred as I was walking next to the woman's driver's side window. So I saw her expression - she was just ashamed. Maybe she'll quit her evil, not-paying-attention-while-driving pet peeves.
This is the kind of thing that warms the cockles of my heart. The guy wasn't nasty or swearing incessantly, he just told her how it was.
Thursday, March 15, 2007
The Renaissance Man
No, I'm not talking about the underrated Danny DeVito comedy. I'm talking about my father.
When I was growing up my dad was all about work. Now, he's 54 and for the past four years or so has begun developing hobbies that he never had when I was living in the house. For example, he paints. Watercolors, oils, you name it. He also sculpts on a regular basis. He goes to art shows, he goes to art classes, he buys art books. Additionally, he is currently making a bunch of different wines. He buys grapes with my uncle, he has books, etc. Basically, he's a renaissance man having a renaissance (if that makes sense).
So, I'm in the office last night at 10, wondering if I was ever going to get like that. Currently, I have few hobbies. I enjoy reading any number of fiction/non-fiction books. I play fantasy football (and now baseball). I have an addiction to a computer game (Hearts of Iron II) and an X-Box game (Madden)... although those have been lessening lately. I want to write, but it's more like I make up worlds, characters, general plots, but never but anything substantial down to paper. I play basketball and softball as well.
The point is, as work takes up more of my life (work comes second to my wife), I don't have time for stuff I used to do. So, am I going to find that at 54+ I'm going to begin to generate new hobbies or recycle old hobbies. You will never find out. But for me, it's worth thinking about.
When I was growing up my dad was all about work. Now, he's 54 and for the past four years or so has begun developing hobbies that he never had when I was living in the house. For example, he paints. Watercolors, oils, you name it. He also sculpts on a regular basis. He goes to art shows, he goes to art classes, he buys art books. Additionally, he is currently making a bunch of different wines. He buys grapes with my uncle, he has books, etc. Basically, he's a renaissance man having a renaissance (if that makes sense).
So, I'm in the office last night at 10, wondering if I was ever going to get like that. Currently, I have few hobbies. I enjoy reading any number of fiction/non-fiction books. I play fantasy football (and now baseball). I have an addiction to a computer game (Hearts of Iron II) and an X-Box game (Madden)... although those have been lessening lately. I want to write, but it's more like I make up worlds, characters, general plots, but never but anything substantial down to paper. I play basketball and softball as well.
The point is, as work takes up more of my life (work comes second to my wife), I don't have time for stuff I used to do. So, am I going to find that at 54+ I'm going to begin to generate new hobbies or recycle old hobbies. You will never find out. But for me, it's worth thinking about.
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Scrubs - Greatest TV Comedy Ever?
The answer is yes. More on that in a second.
I haven't writ anything for over a month... mainly because I've been working like a fiend. So, I'll take a break and smell the roses. I have a few topics that could take up a few days. But, first, I wanted to write about Scrubs.
Scrubs is an hysterical show and also has an "end of show lesson" thing going for it, that makes it somewhat dramatic. I literally have never seen a bad episode and I've watched Seasons One through Four on DVD. Dr. Cox, played by John C. McGinley, is hysterical. Right up there with Homer Simpson. Does Zach Braff get annoying? Sure. But the episodes are never completely about him... more about how he reacts to the staff and the staff reacts to him.
The point of all this leads me to this point - I don't watch the show on TV. WHAT? The greatest TV comedy ever and you don't watch it on TV?, one might ask. Correct. I either do not have time, or am watching Grey's Anatomy with the little wife. And I'm okay with that because I can rent the DVD next year, watch it, and not have any plot points spoiled for me because no one cares about it. My only concern is that it will get cancelled because I don't watch it, but that's stupid right? It's not like one little viewer like me is going to make a show stay on the air. I read somewhere that it's back for one or two more seasons. Fine, I'll rent them on DVD.
The point of all that, leads me to this point - someday soon, no one will watch TV shows "live" anymore. They will just rent or buy DVDs or TV "shows" to watch on their television or IPod or whatever, whenever they want. I like this idea.
I haven't writ anything for over a month... mainly because I've been working like a fiend. So, I'll take a break and smell the roses. I have a few topics that could take up a few days. But, first, I wanted to write about Scrubs.
Scrubs is an hysterical show and also has an "end of show lesson" thing going for it, that makes it somewhat dramatic. I literally have never seen a bad episode and I've watched Seasons One through Four on DVD. Dr. Cox, played by John C. McGinley, is hysterical. Right up there with Homer Simpson. Does Zach Braff get annoying? Sure. But the episodes are never completely about him... more about how he reacts to the staff and the staff reacts to him.
The point of all this leads me to this point - I don't watch the show on TV. WHAT? The greatest TV comedy ever and you don't watch it on TV?, one might ask. Correct. I either do not have time, or am watching Grey's Anatomy with the little wife. And I'm okay with that because I can rent the DVD next year, watch it, and not have any plot points spoiled for me because no one cares about it. My only concern is that it will get cancelled because I don't watch it, but that's stupid right? It's not like one little viewer like me is going to make a show stay on the air. I read somewhere that it's back for one or two more seasons. Fine, I'll rent them on DVD.
The point of all that, leads me to this point - someday soon, no one will watch TV shows "live" anymore. They will just rent or buy DVDs or TV "shows" to watch on their television or IPod or whatever, whenever they want. I like this idea.
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
The Cab Driver and Me
I had to go to a client in the city today. So I caught a cab outside the office. An older cabbie - I think African from Africa (maybe African from the Carribean) picked me up. Then he suddenly asks me, "Sir, who do you think will win the Democratic nomination for president, Hillary or Obama?" Call me a classist (is that a word?), but I did not think cab drivers, much less immigrant cab drivers, would be interested in politics. However, his question began a 10 minute political conversation that lasted until we reached the destination.
So I went in and did my thing at the client (about 10 minutes). I come back out and he's still sitting there, waiting for me (no charge). So we continue the discussion until we got back to my office. Here is what I learned from the cabbie:
(1) I should not assume every cab driver is politically unaware. I should not assume this based on the show "Heroes" which depicts two highly successful Indian scientists as cabbies in NYC (this is a joke people!).
(2) I should not assume every hardly able to speak English immigrant is politically unaware. I should already know this since my grandfather is an immigrant (been here for about 75 years) and barely speaks English, but has always been VERY politically aware.
(3) I should not assume every cab driver or every immigrant is a Democrat. This guy was (a) a Republican and (b) LOVED the President (although he did not like the way the war was going in Iraq; not that I blame him).
(4) I think my ability to understand accents (see the second sentence in #2, above) allowed me to stay with the guy through the conversation; I have a newfound appreciation for this talent of mine. Heretofore, it was useful in the context of translating our laundry lady's broken English to my wife.
Anyway, it was a breath of fresh air for me. No rhetoric was spewed from either of us. And he said, "I wish every passenger was like you." To which I replied, "I wish every cabbie was like you."
So I went in and did my thing at the client (about 10 minutes). I come back out and he's still sitting there, waiting for me (no charge). So we continue the discussion until we got back to my office. Here is what I learned from the cabbie:
(1) I should not assume every cab driver is politically unaware. I should not assume this based on the show "Heroes" which depicts two highly successful Indian scientists as cabbies in NYC (this is a joke people!).
(2) I should not assume every hardly able to speak English immigrant is politically unaware. I should already know this since my grandfather is an immigrant (been here for about 75 years) and barely speaks English, but has always been VERY politically aware.
(3) I should not assume every cab driver or every immigrant is a Democrat. This guy was (a) a Republican and (b) LOVED the President (although he did not like the way the war was going in Iraq; not that I blame him).
(4) I think my ability to understand accents (see the second sentence in #2, above) allowed me to stay with the guy through the conversation; I have a newfound appreciation for this talent of mine. Heretofore, it was useful in the context of translating our laundry lady's broken English to my wife.
Anyway, it was a breath of fresh air for me. No rhetoric was spewed from either of us. And he said, "I wish every passenger was like you." To which I replied, "I wish every cabbie was like you."
Friday, January 19, 2007
Italia
Thanks to my friend Joe who sent me a wondrous postcard from St. Peter's. As I do not know his home address, and he is a pioneering blogger, I thought he would read this. Anyway, thanks!
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Something I Will Never Understand
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,244058,00.html
Why do people feel they need to beat other people up? I understand self-defense... if someone hits you, hit them back and all that. But I do NOT understand the need to do that to the poor girl. She's already down... no need to keep hitting her. People like this need to go to prison forever. It reminds me of that scene in the move Kids (sick, sick, sick... we watched it all the time in high school). Anyway, the main characters and their friends beat the hell out of this skateboarder and didn't stop until he was mangled and unconscious on the ground. I will not understand that.
Thought I'd come back with a nice story and link. Have fun with that. Jeez.
Why do people feel they need to beat other people up? I understand self-defense... if someone hits you, hit them back and all that. But I do NOT understand the need to do that to the poor girl. She's already down... no need to keep hitting her. People like this need to go to prison forever. It reminds me of that scene in the move Kids (sick, sick, sick... we watched it all the time in high school). Anyway, the main characters and their friends beat the hell out of this skateboarder and didn't stop until he was mangled and unconscious on the ground. I will not understand that.
Thought I'd come back with a nice story and link. Have fun with that. Jeez.
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