I'm watching the debate on c-span right now, and Bush just said something along the lines of saying that Saddam was a threat, and that another round of sanctions wouldn't have made him disarm or disclose.
Umm, isn't it reasonably well proven at this point that he had been disarmed since the mid-90s? Mostly he was just being a dick about letting the inspectors in. Maybe he had some chemical weapons left, but the nuclear program wasn't that strong.
Also W keeps pronouncing it nuke-u-lar even though everyone around him is saying nuclear.
Bush keeps looking mighty pissed while Kerry is talking. His expressions also keep saying 'can you believe this guy? He's such a 'tard.'
I still don't think Kerry is hitting it out of the park right now.
Bush is doing a lot of skimming around the sides of questions through repeating slogans. The thing that might promote is more sound bites on the news for him. Kerry is doing long answers.
GW-"I know how this world works."
It's over now, and I still don't think that Kerry really did a great job.
Thursday, September 30, 2004
Sound Off, 9/28/04
This week's sound off is boring. I'm disappointed with you people. Lots of complaints about bad driving, and still more complaints about McMinn Central's kids not receiving annuals for something like 3 years in a row. Seems to me after the first two times you didn't get anything for your money you'd stop paying for nothing, but then I am the one who continues to use the same vending machines at work that take my money every time, so what do I know?
In other comments, it seems that the same person whose kid didn't win the fairest of the fair is still calling in every week to complain, as well as the...Well shit, a bird just flew into my window with a big ol' thunk. Just thought you'd like to know that.
I just lost my train of thought there.
This weeks winners:
I can't read either, but that doesn't stop me from buying books.
and on the Pimento Cheese debate:
Firstly, I know it is confusing, but just because the comments are written out, it doesn't mean they wrote in. The comments are called into the number in the middle of the page. Also, it was one person, not parents.
But, general griping aside, I'm with you there. Though I still think that it's the parents fault for not instilling the required love of the pimento cheese. Maybe they just need to add some Jalapeno's to them to get the kids to eat them. I'll eat near anything if you add Jalapeno's to it.
In other comments, it seems that the same person whose kid didn't win the fairest of the fair is still calling in every week to complain, as well as the...Well shit, a bird just flew into my window with a big ol' thunk. Just thought you'd like to know that.
I just lost my train of thought there.
This weeks winners:
This is for all the drivers out there that don't use their turn signals. I've just got one thing to say to you. If you can't operate your turn signals, what makes you think you can operate the rest of the car?
I can't read either, but that doesn't stop me from buying books.
and on the Pimento Cheese debate:
To the parents who wrote in about the Athens City School System serving pimento cheese, if you are the child's parent and you know they won't eat that for lunch, you need to pack the child a lunch from home.
Firstly, I know it is confusing, but just because the comments are written out, it doesn't mean they wrote in. The comments are called into the number in the middle of the page. Also, it was one person, not parents.
But, general griping aside, I'm with you there. Though I still think that it's the parents fault for not instilling the required love of the pimento cheese. Maybe they just need to add some Jalapeno's to them to get the kids to eat them. I'll eat near anything if you add Jalapeno's to it.
Democrats to Ban the Bible
Here's a link to that GOP flier telling people the Democrats want to ban the Bible.
It's true, Democrats are for the banning of the Bible. The current plan is to replace the Bible with Bill Clinton's My Life, or perhaps Stephen King's The Stand, as both are approximately the same length as the Bible.
And we're still for the banning of cauliflower and the letter p.
Thursday, September 23, 2004
Sound Off 9/21/04
Oh no, the Sound Off says there won't be any more political discussions after this edition! Oh well. Here's one for the road.
I did, because we discuss it at all the meetings. We also want to get rid of cauliflower and the letter p.
And the winner for this week is:
I really think the problem there starts in the home. Parents have to teach the children proper respect of the Pimento Cheese. For thousands of years Pimento Cheese has been a staple of the proper human diet, and the Pimento Cheese Sandwich is the ultimate culmination human achievement.
Teach the children and they will eat.
Thank you and goodnight.
I am one of those so-called self-righteous Republicans calling in response to last week's Sound Off. You seem to be so concerned about the Ten Commandments, but did you know that the Democrats are actually trying to get rid of the Ten Commandments?
I did, because we discuss it at all the meetings. We also want to get rid of cauliflower and the letter p.
And the winner for this week is:
I think the Athens school systems need to take pimento cheese off the school menu, many kids don't eat this and a lot of food (pimento cheese sandwiches) was wasted and the kids that don't eat this are still charged a regular lunch and they only eat the potato chips.
I really think the problem there starts in the home. Parents have to teach the children proper respect of the Pimento Cheese. For thousands of years Pimento Cheese has been a staple of the proper human diet, and the Pimento Cheese Sandwich is the ultimate culmination human achievement.
Teach the children and they will eat.
Thank you and goodnight.
The Commish is the Thing
Look, it's Michael Chiklis as the ever-lovin blue-eyed Thing. It looks like they decided not to go for the Animatronics, rather, they're going with plain old prothstetics to bring us the Clobberin' Time. Looks pretty close to the original lumpy orange oatmeal Kirby design rather than the more modern look.
I just hope they pull off a good film. Chiklis pulls off the crazy bad-ass vibe really well in the Shield, and I think that the hardest, but most important of the Four they'll have to get right is the Thing.
Snapper
Snapper is a film that plays on a primal childhood fear of mine, namely that a giant snapping turtle will burst out of a pile of nearby leaves and take a big bite out of my nuts.
I'm unsure if it finally made it into a film because it is a widely held fear, or, merely just a coincidence, but it is a bit worrisome nonetheless.
Disclaimers abound on the Snapper site and in the liner notes of the film that the film is not to be taken seriously, but with my turtle-nard munching phobia, I cannot help but take it as such.
They also stress that it is not a good film, but I would argue that I could go to my DVD shelves and point to many a film that is worse. Many of these with much larger budgets than $5.
Snapper manages to be both funny and terrifying to me at the same time. It gives you just enough time to begin feeling for the two fishermen before the carnage begins.
I'm looking forward to Snapper Revenge quite a bit, and I can only hope that down the road there will be such sequels as Son of Snapper, Bride of Snapper, and perhaps Curse of Snapper.
Excellent use of a cardboard puppet.
3 and 1/2 babes
Friday, September 17, 2004
Down By the Creek 2
We're getting Ivan's aftermath here in Athens, and when I woke up this morning it was a bit flooded out down at the creek.
Compare these with My earlier pictures.
Just a little bit flooded, and it's still raining.
Compare these with My earlier pictures.
Just a little bit flooded, and it's still raining.
Lucas is sorry you like all that old crap
AP: Why not release both the originals and special editions on DVD?
Lucas: The special edition, that’s the one I wanted out there. The other movie, it’s on VHS, if anybody wants it. ... I’m not going to spend the, we’re talking millions of dollars here, the money and the time to refurbish that, because to me, it doesn’t really exist anymore. It’s like this is the movie I wanted it to be, and I’m sorry you saw half a completed film and fell in love with it. But I want it to be the way I want it to be. I’m the one who has to take responsibility for it. I’m the one who has to have everybody throw rocks at me all the time, so at least if they’re going to throw rocks at me, they’re going to throw rocks at me for something I love rather than something I think is not very good, or at least something I think is not finished.
You know what, I bet if they just put out shitty copies of the original trilogy on DVD that would sell like a mofo. "...it's on VHS, if anybody wants it..." sorry you pathetic sci-fi fans bought all those crappy copies of 20 percent of a movie. It's not like I'd put some of those millions back into copies of that film so that you can spend more money on more copies of it.
To me, that means we should be able to bootleg the crap out of the original versions.
Thursday, September 16, 2004
Compensating
I saw this GI Joe knock off toy in Big Lots yesterday.
The thing that stood out to me the most was the completely oversized gun to his left. From stock to bayonet tip it is almost as tall as he is.
I would have to think that a gun that size would be a bit unweildy, not to mention the fact that it would probably kick your arm off.
I'm not asking for total realism in toys. In fact, the mold on this figure is about 100 times better than anything they used to make when I was a kid, and is better than most of the star wars figures made today, but when you make the guys pistol in scale and then throw in a gun from some other line, that just shows a lack of planning.
I also stopped to look at the generic transformers that they had, including copies of the transformers beast wars line, and a set of three gestalt bots, with the car-bot sporting a wicked 'Marlboro' windshield decal.
Ah, Hong Kong toy piracy.
Viral Campaigns
Just a little more of the political commentary, and then back to the attempts at the funny.
John Kerry is going to lose for the same reason that Al Gore did. Maybe he won't have the election stolen in the end, but Gore didn't womp the hell out of Bush for the same reason that Kerry isn't, neither one of them learned anything from Bill Clinton.
The reason that Clinton found it so easy to beat the snot out of the Bushies was that he waged an unconventional, viral campaign.
In traditional campaigns there is an incumbant and he hurls down attacks from the ramparts of the castle of his office, and if one of the besieging challengers manages to get past and over the wall, then there is a chance of a change of regime.
Clinton learned the lessons of Jerry Brown and Ross Perot and circumvented this process by reaching out to the people and talking directly to them. He made the effort to go past the gatekeepers of the media and let the people talk directly to him during the campaigns. He went on Arsenio and did the town meetings.
Gore failed because he tried to distance himself from that tactic and was unable to convince the voters with old style politicing.
Kerry is making the same mistake by simply posing for photo ops and using old fashioned PR and spin.
Dean made huge strides by bringing people into his campaign and spreading his message viraly, allowing its memes to spread on their own through the datasphere.
Kerry has no hope in winning this type of fight because Bush's people are better at it than he is.
The key is to embrace new media. Going on the Daily Show was a good step, but he still came off as a candidate on a campaign stop.
Oh well.
John Kerry is going to lose for the same reason that Al Gore did. Maybe he won't have the election stolen in the end, but Gore didn't womp the hell out of Bush for the same reason that Kerry isn't, neither one of them learned anything from Bill Clinton.
The reason that Clinton found it so easy to beat the snot out of the Bushies was that he waged an unconventional, viral campaign.
In traditional campaigns there is an incumbant and he hurls down attacks from the ramparts of the castle of his office, and if one of the besieging challengers manages to get past and over the wall, then there is a chance of a change of regime.
Clinton learned the lessons of Jerry Brown and Ross Perot and circumvented this process by reaching out to the people and talking directly to them. He made the effort to go past the gatekeepers of the media and let the people talk directly to him during the campaigns. He went on Arsenio and did the town meetings.
Gore failed because he tried to distance himself from that tactic and was unable to convince the voters with old style politicing.
Kerry is making the same mistake by simply posing for photo ops and using old fashioned PR and spin.
Dean made huge strides by bringing people into his campaign and spreading his message viraly, allowing its memes to spread on their own through the datasphere.
Kerry has no hope in winning this type of fight because Bush's people are better at it than he is.
The key is to embrace new media. Going on the Daily Show was a good step, but he still came off as a candidate on a campaign stop.
Oh well.
Wednesday, September 15, 2004
Sound Off, 9/14/04
More opinions from the fine folks of Athens and its surrounding communities.
Damn those meth-makers and their partying after the state takes away their children. I think the thing the person here answers their own question about how does this help anyone. It is a case of the state trying to help the children so they don't get accidentaly blown up, or harmed from the fumes or any of the dangers that go along with meth production. I say the people who have their children taken should party it up for the short period of time before they are carted off to jail.
I was unaware of this woman and her addiction to magnetic ribbons. I would think that would have to be one for the journals. I would have to say that you run the risk of someone taking anything off of your car that isn't stuck on with glue. That's why god invented bumper stickers not bumper magnets.
(The State) takes the children from their meth-making parents, who lose custody for a while. They wait for court date, so then these parents are child-free. With no responsibilities, they pretty much get to party on while someone else is taking care of their "responsibilites." So, tell us, how does this help anyone? Because you know, as well as I do, these parents don't just stop using or making these drugs. The kids are the ones that are hurt by all of this. I say stop smacking these parents on their hands and make them responsible.
Damn those meth-makers and their partying after the state takes away their children. I think the thing the person here answers their own question about how does this help anyone. It is a case of the state trying to help the children so they don't get accidentaly blown up, or harmed from the fumes or any of the dangers that go along with meth production. I say the people who have their children taken should party it up for the short period of time before they are carted off to jail.
This is for the woman who walked around parking lots at shopping centers helping herself to the "Support Our Troops" ribbons on other people's cars. Our community truly supports our troops and...all you are support is your...habit. I hope the judge throws the book at you, lady.
I was unaware of this woman and her addiction to magnetic ribbons. I would think that would have to be one for the journals. I would have to say that you run the risk of someone taking anything off of your car that isn't stuck on with glue. That's why god invented bumper stickers not bumper magnets.
Friday, September 10, 2004
Why GW Should Win
You know, I'm tired of all the commie-leftie-liberal bellyachin' about GW not serving in Vietnam. I mean, it's not like it was a war or something.
Read my lips, Karl Marx, it was a POLICE ACTION.
I don't see the word War in there anywhere. All that John Kerry was was a glorified policeman. A volunteer policeman at that.
Why should the nation have risked the future of one of it's brightest future presidents on a silly little squabble in some backwater third world country?
He needed to be right here, in America, doing things for America, like he was, here, in America!!!
Could he have helped run a campaign in Vietnam? I don't damn think so. Do you see any record of Kerry doing anything in politics while in Vietnam? No sir.
Last time I checked, the National Guard was a part of the military. Sounds to me like GW volunteered for duty just like Kerry says that he did. Doesn't sound to me like somebody who was dodging the draft, sounds to me like somebody who enlisted and served his country!
Could he have been nominally attending National Guard duty there in Vietnam? I don't think so Noam Chomsky. He was here, defending the homeland. Here, in America.
Not over there fighting for God knows what in a country that didn't really want us there in the first place.
What kind of idiot would go into a country all the damn way around the world, set up shop there, and fight in a civil war, just to preserve its own interests anyway?
I'll tell you who....France.
That's right, Samuel Gompers, I said it. Kerry is a France lovin, glorified policeman.
A France Lovin, Volunteer, VIETNAMESE Policeman.
And what is GW?
I'll tell you. GW is a good, honest, God Fearing, Coke Snorting, Drunk Driving, American defender, that's what he is, by GOD!!
And I won't have any namby-pamby liberal, volunteer, french-lovin', Vietnamese policeman telling me any different!
Vote for GW, by God, he isn't going anywhere near any fighting if he can help it!
Read my lips, Karl Marx, it was a POLICE ACTION.
I don't see the word War in there anywhere. All that John Kerry was was a glorified policeman. A volunteer policeman at that.
Why should the nation have risked the future of one of it's brightest future presidents on a silly little squabble in some backwater third world country?
He needed to be right here, in America, doing things for America, like he was, here, in America!!!
Could he have helped run a campaign in Vietnam? I don't damn think so. Do you see any record of Kerry doing anything in politics while in Vietnam? No sir.
Last time I checked, the National Guard was a part of the military. Sounds to me like GW volunteered for duty just like Kerry says that he did. Doesn't sound to me like somebody who was dodging the draft, sounds to me like somebody who enlisted and served his country!
Could he have been nominally attending National Guard duty there in Vietnam? I don't think so Noam Chomsky. He was here, defending the homeland. Here, in America.
Not over there fighting for God knows what in a country that didn't really want us there in the first place.
What kind of idiot would go into a country all the damn way around the world, set up shop there, and fight in a civil war, just to preserve its own interests anyway?
I'll tell you who....France.
That's right, Samuel Gompers, I said it. Kerry is a France lovin, glorified policeman.
A France Lovin, Volunteer, VIETNAMESE Policeman.
And what is GW?
I'll tell you. GW is a good, honest, God Fearing, Coke Snorting, Drunk Driving, American defender, that's what he is, by GOD!!
And I won't have any namby-pamby liberal, volunteer, french-lovin', Vietnamese policeman telling me any different!
Vote for GW, by God, he isn't going anywhere near any fighting if he can help it!
Why GW Will Win
George W. Bush will win the next election. I'm not going to vote for him, I'm going to vote against him. But he'll still win, and let me tell you why.
1. Most Americans don't care who the president is. They lead what they feel are pretty shitty lives regardless, so it doesn't really matter.
2. The Republicans are really good at character assassination and Teflon Bill Clinton was the only one who really knew how to survive it.
3. Kerry could be Jesus Christ and have a spotless war record and the Republicans would still tear him apart.
You know, those three reasons are more than enough. The Republicans don't have to steal elections anymore, they've already pulled off a coup and since they've got Jeb Bush in the chute to run in the next election, we can have sixteen straight years of Bush! Neehaw!
I just hope that the Dems have the balls to run Hillary in '08 and use the same people that ran Billy's campaign, because replacing the Bush dynasty with the Cliton is the only way I see to steer the country back from our Police State leanings.
I'm not a huge John Kerry fan, but at least he's not that evil. I think he probably means well.
I've seen people arguing that Clinton made our country look weak and that was the reason we had terrorist attacks, but I would argue that he kept the country safer than Bush without closing down on personal freedoms.
If I didn't already know that my vote for Nader in the last election really didn't matter here in Republican land, I'd regret it.
Bush is going to win, but I'm just surprised that they haven't offered up Cheney as a scapegoat to get them more points in the polls yet. Maybe they're just waiting to see if they need to spring Osama yet before giving up the co-president.
I look for the 'capture' of Osama to come any time now. Look for it about 3 to four weeks before the election.
Hey, Douglass Rushkoff is saying what I'm thinking. Looky Looky. I'm not so much voting for Kerry as against Bush, and I don't think that there's anything wrong with that. I'm against rampant neo-fascism, and I don't think it's wrong to vote for someone who I don't think represents that.
But I'm still not sure that Kerry can win. I think Gore could have, but the last election took it out of him I think. Why would a President in exile want to run for an office again that he already won once?
1. Most Americans don't care who the president is. They lead what they feel are pretty shitty lives regardless, so it doesn't really matter.
2. The Republicans are really good at character assassination and Teflon Bill Clinton was the only one who really knew how to survive it.
3. Kerry could be Jesus Christ and have a spotless war record and the Republicans would still tear him apart.
You know, those three reasons are more than enough. The Republicans don't have to steal elections anymore, they've already pulled off a coup and since they've got Jeb Bush in the chute to run in the next election, we can have sixteen straight years of Bush! Neehaw!
I just hope that the Dems have the balls to run Hillary in '08 and use the same people that ran Billy's campaign, because replacing the Bush dynasty with the Cliton is the only way I see to steer the country back from our Police State leanings.
I'm not a huge John Kerry fan, but at least he's not that evil. I think he probably means well.
I've seen people arguing that Clinton made our country look weak and that was the reason we had terrorist attacks, but I would argue that he kept the country safer than Bush without closing down on personal freedoms.
If I didn't already know that my vote for Nader in the last election really didn't matter here in Republican land, I'd regret it.
Bush is going to win, but I'm just surprised that they haven't offered up Cheney as a scapegoat to get them more points in the polls yet. Maybe they're just waiting to see if they need to spring Osama yet before giving up the co-president.
I look for the 'capture' of Osama to come any time now. Look for it about 3 to four weeks before the election.
Hey, Douglass Rushkoff is saying what I'm thinking. Looky Looky. I'm not so much voting for Kerry as against Bush, and I don't think that there's anything wrong with that. I'm against rampant neo-fascism, and I don't think it's wrong to vote for someone who I don't think represents that.
But I'm still not sure that Kerry can win. I think Gore could have, but the last election took it out of him I think. Why would a President in exile want to run for an office again that he already won once?
Thursday, September 09, 2004
Which Card of the Major Arcana
I usually don't print quiz results, but here you go, since this makes me Zoso and all.
The Hermit often suggests a need for time alone - a period of reflection when distractions are limited. In times of action and high energy, he stands for the still center that must be created for balance. He can also indicate that withdrawal or retreat is advised for the moment. In addition, the Hermit can represent seeking of all kinds, especially for deeper understanding or the truth of a situation. "Seek, and ye shall find," we have been told, and so the Hermit stands for guidance as well. We can receive help from wise teachers, and, in turn, help others as we progress. For a full description of your card and other goodies, please visit LearnTarot.com |
Which card of the Major Arcana of the Tarot are you? Enter your birthdate. |
I am The HermitSound Off For, 9/7/04
Here we go with this weeks Sound off from the DPA.
More politics this week and usual attacks on Kerry:
They tried to stop the publication of the book because it is inflammatory and libelous, and Kerry's statements on Vietnam are backed up by records, which Bush's don't seem to be.
Next is someone who doesn't make much sense...
I didn't hear Kerry's speech in Nashville, but I am not aware of the idea that respect for the president is required for respect for the nation. Quite a few Republicans had little to no respect for Clinton, but still claim respect for the Nation. I have no respect for Bush, nor do I have any for many other lawmakers, but I have respect for the ideals of the nation.
People seem to forget that this is an election campaign where people are competing, and it was not the democrats that started with the mudslinging. As Clinton said on the daily show, If all you're doing is responding to their attacks, then you're not being negative.
The key is not to stoop to dirty tactics first, and I believe going after Kerry's service record is a little, teensy weensy bit dirty.
Seems this person is a Democrat in the vein of Zell Miller.
More politics this week and usual attacks on Kerry:
Knowing he couldn't defend all of his statements on Vietnam, John Kerry and his crew tried to suppress the free speech of the Swift Boat Vets for Truth. They first threatened the publishers of "Unfit For Command" with lawsuits and they threatened TV stations for running the Swift Boat ads.
They tried to stop the publication of the book because it is inflammatory and libelous, and Kerry's statements on Vietnam are backed up by records, which Bush's don't seem to be.
Next is someone who doesn't make much sense...
I don't know what's wrong with politics today, but I just saw John Kerry in Nashville and if he has no respect for the other candidate, why should he have respect for the United States? I am a Democrat and I don't believe in what he's doing...
I didn't hear Kerry's speech in Nashville, but I am not aware of the idea that respect for the president is required for respect for the nation. Quite a few Republicans had little to no respect for Clinton, but still claim respect for the Nation. I have no respect for Bush, nor do I have any for many other lawmakers, but I have respect for the ideals of the nation.
People seem to forget that this is an election campaign where people are competing, and it was not the democrats that started with the mudslinging. As Clinton said on the daily show, If all you're doing is responding to their attacks, then you're not being negative.
The key is not to stoop to dirty tactics first, and I believe going after Kerry's service record is a little, teensy weensy bit dirty.
Seems this person is a Democrat in the vein of Zell Miller.
Sound Off Aug 31, 2004
I was shooting to start this last week, but i've got some catching up to do. In my local paper The Daily Post-Athenian, runs a feature every tuesday where they print local gripes phoned in to the paper (745-3100 ext. 1650). They usually range from the general gripes about whatever to people calling in to praise their relatives, to political 'discourse.'
Well, I've decided to bring to you what I deem are the best of the best from each week. I'm starting with last weeks paper, Aug. 31, 2004.
Firstly we have one that Tommy erroneously thought was called in by me:
But the best of the week had to be this near incoherant ranting about John Kerry:
Started out pretty strong then went all insane on the end. I still think it is interesting that people are still arguing that Vietnam was a just and necessary war.
I'd say stay tuned for next week, but I'm just going to post it next so, stay tuned till the next post!
Well, I've decided to bring to you what I deem are the best of the best from each week. I'm starting with last weeks paper, Aug. 31, 2004.
Firstly we have one that Tommy erroneously thought was called in by me:
I wonder what the chances are of getting a Mrs. Winner's Chicken Restaurant in Athens. I believe it would do well.
But the best of the week had to be this near incoherant ranting about John Kerry:
Why does John Kerry say he's reporting for duty? Why has he not been on duty? He says he wants health benefits for all Americans, but never sponsored a bill in the Senate to do such. He says he wants to ensure our national security, but missed 78 percent of his meetings on the Senate National Security Committee and sponsored a bill to cut our National Security Intelligence budget $6 billion. He says he is a war hero, but ... eyewitness reports question that. In the last 33 years, has John Kerry done anything but protest the war? What do we know of anything that he has sponsored in the U.S. Senate that has passed? Why has he not been on duty?
Started out pretty strong then went all insane on the end. I still think it is interesting that people are still arguing that Vietnam was a just and necessary war.
I'd say stay tuned for next week, but I'm just going to post it next so, stay tuned till the next post!
Mega Man v. Ghouls and Ghosts
Hey, look it's a combination of two of the hardest (but good) platformer games ever.
Megaman v. Ghouls and Ghosts, and guess what? This ones pretty damn hard as well!
It Came From Dragon Con
Zatoichi
This film definitely puts the lotion in the basket.
Takeshi Kitano, or Beat Takeshi, directs and plays the elderly blind swordsman Zatoichi, whose story is the basis of my all time favorite bad movie Blind Fury, starring Rutger Hauer.
This is one of the best samurai films that I've seen in quite a while. Zatoichi is old and broken down, but wanders into a town that is the center of a war between different clans. The plot involves intrigue, cross dressing, a ronin with a sick wife and quite a few really bloody sword fights.
The swordplay is realistically done, with quick, single strikes ending the fights, rather than drawn out Wu Shu types of fights. There are no flips off of walls, or acrobatics here, rather bloody disembowelings and whatnot.
4 babes
Old Boy
Another excellent film. This one is out of Korea. Written and directed by Chan-wook Park, it is based on a Japanese Manga by the same name.
The plot is classic Tragedy of the Greek type. It concerns Dae-Su, who is imprisoned for 15 years in a room much like a run down Howard Johnson. He isn't told why he is imprisoned, or for how long it will last. When he is let out he sets out on the road to vengeance and understanding.
Excellent, excellent film, though a bit disturbing.
4 babes
This film definitely puts the lotion in the basket.
Takeshi Kitano, or Beat Takeshi, directs and plays the elderly blind swordsman Zatoichi, whose story is the basis of my all time favorite bad movie Blind Fury, starring Rutger Hauer.
This is one of the best samurai films that I've seen in quite a while. Zatoichi is old and broken down, but wanders into a town that is the center of a war between different clans. The plot involves intrigue, cross dressing, a ronin with a sick wife and quite a few really bloody sword fights.
The swordplay is realistically done, with quick, single strikes ending the fights, rather than drawn out Wu Shu types of fights. There are no flips off of walls, or acrobatics here, rather bloody disembowelings and whatnot.
4 babes
Old Boy
Another excellent film. This one is out of Korea. Written and directed by Chan-wook Park, it is based on a Japanese Manga by the same name.
The plot is classic Tragedy of the Greek type. It concerns Dae-Su, who is imprisoned for 15 years in a room much like a run down Howard Johnson. He isn't told why he is imprisoned, or for how long it will last. When he is let out he sets out on the road to vengeance and understanding.
Excellent, excellent film, though a bit disturbing.
4 babes
When Will the Madness Stop?
Allright, I don't have any problem with George Lucas' continuing to monkey with the original Star Wars Trilogy. I really don't. If he wants to go and add in Anakin from the new Trilogy into the end of Return of the Jedi, I don't really have a problem with it.
Hell, if he wants to go in and replace actors with new ones, I don't have a problem with that either, they're his movies.
I just think that he should release the original versions to DVD. Make each of the versions available as you change them George.
The difference between these movies and their changes and something like a painting is that the earlier versions are out in the public eye, and are appreciated by people.
Walt Whitman was continually revising his Leaves of Grass right up until his death, but earlier versions of the book are still available. Renaissance painters painted over earlier paintings, but at that time there was no method of keeping the originals around.
We have this here digital technology now that allows us to keep all the versions in print.
Gah. I've revealled myself as a Star Wars Geek.
Wednesday, September 08, 2004
In The Mail Today...
You know, I had forgotten about sending off a response to Dave Sim's offer of a free copy of Cerebus to anyone who would write in and ask for one, issued through Neil Gaiman's Blog.
But what should be in my mailbox this afternoon, but a copy of Cerebus 167 signed by Gerhard and Dave Sim.
Included was a letter dated 18 August 04:
Dear Neil Gaiman Horde du Jour:
Thank you for your inquiry. For those particularly interested in how the experiment is going, I arrived at the post office at 7:30 this morning and there was one (1) advertisement. I came back here and started answering my monthly "Five Questions for Dave" from the core Cerebus audience at groups.yahoo.com/group/cerebus (or the Cerebus Yahoos as they're affectionatley known--drop by and say hello if you're clicking in the neighbourhood) which the e-mail to Gerhard every month (having voted on their top five questions) and which I answer at whatever length seems to be required. Seven pages so far and I'm halfway through question 4. Then I went back to the post office around 10:30 and there was one (1) inquiry from San Diego. So I came back here and wrote some more on my anwers for the Yahoos and the immediately following my noon prayer, the first issue of Following Cerebus (details at www.followingcerebus.com) came in. So I came back here and...finished reading Following Cerebus before opening and reading yours and 82 other inquiries. So, now I have to photocopy this form letter, sign them, wrap all of the non-Neil mail from yesterday, finish the personal letters for those who needed personal letters, finish answering the Yahoo questions and hopefully, at some point, get back to my own mail which has been coming in, with and around the Neil mail (I got within two letters of it yesterday). As previous form letter recipients have already learned (and hopefully posted), this is a much bigger reaction than I expected. As an example, back in 2000 when we sent out 1,000 "Four More Years" promotion packages to 1,000 comic book stores and ended up getting 3 replies. Last year I did an interview for Filter magazine where they printed the post office box address along with my offer to send a copy of the "Tangent" essay to anyone who sent me a letter requesting one. I got one response on that one, months later, from a young girl in Michigan on Spice Girls stationary who said how much she had enjoyed my interview in Spin. So, as near as I can figure out, this is a Neil-related phenomenon. One nice young lady identified herself today as "one of Neil's sock puppets...er, fans". That might be overstating the case, but mentally picturing the pile of envelopes, comic books, inquiries and autographed form letters Ger took over to Pak-Mail yesterday, it might not be overstating it by much. Every letter has been very polite. Even the ones who suspect they're the victims of a hoax. That really says something about Neil and his readers. Or fans. Or sock-puppets. Neil's "in-a-nice-way" sock puppets. Anyway, so far: starting Friday the 6th: one inquiry. Monday, 13, Tuesday: 110, Wednesday: 4, Thursday: 286, Friday: 57, Monday: 103, Tuesday: 95, today (as I said) 84.
This will do it, pretty much for our supply of 267's (sic). Starting tomorrow, most peole will be getting 268's. We'll keep up for as long as we can. Thanks to everyone who has promised to give Cerebus a try. That wasn't the original idea, but it certainly makes the effort worthwhile.
Sincerely,
Dave Sim
I think the massive response has less to do with Neil, but more to do with the sites that picked up the story. I saw it on one of the columns at CBR, and I know that it was on more pages than that. It's a simple matter of more eyes on the message, whereas the interview in Filter was only seen by readers of the magazine, or those who came by it second hand, the posting online had the advantage of being copied numerous time and reaching numerous audiences.
Anyway, I likes me some free swag.
Bill Clinton on the Daily Show
Here's my very own transcription of Clinton's interview with John Stewart on the Daily Show. This is part one of two. I thought this was such a good and important interview that I felt the need to transcribe it when I couldn't find a transcription online. This is part one of two.
Errors are entirely mine.
JS: Welcome back to the program, my guest tonight, a two term Democratic President, whose best-selling memoir is My Life. Please welcome to the program President Bill Clinton.
Mr. President.
Have a seat sir. Thank you for coming. Nice to see you.
BC: I'm glad to see you.
JS: Thank you so much for coming on the program.
BC: I'm glad to be here, and I'm glad you did that riff on the military attack on Kerry too.
JS: That was a rough one, wasn't it?
BC: Yeah, but they did the same thing to McCain in 2000.
JS: Same Group, am I right?
BC: The same group.
JS: Nice kids.
BC: Yeah. In support of the same crowd, I might point out.
JS: Right--who had nothing to do with it.
BC: No. They also pointed out--they had a calling operation in South Carolina--the primary in 2000--talking about how John McCain had a black baby, and they didn't want the white voters to forget it.
JS: Right. They actually meant Strom Thurmond, they just had the wrong man.
BC: Actually McCain, he would have been perfect for this other little thing you did with the Democratic Party. Actually, McCain had adopted a child from Bangladesh, but it served the callers to call him black.
JS: Is it--you see--now I see the anger when you think about these tactics. For instance, I believe you may take a swing at me.
BC: No, I like you.
JS: Oh, that's very nice of you to say. Is it--has it gotten to the point--do you believe that politics has gotten so dirty, and so--that these types of attacks have become so prevalent that this is the reason that half of the country doesn't vote or this is the reason that we don't get, maybe the officials that we deserve.
BC: No, I think people do it because they think it works.
JS: That's it, simply strategy.
BC: Absolutely, and as soon as it doesn't work, they'll stop doing it. So Senator McCain, who I admire very much, made a big mistake not bashing the Bush campaign over the attacks on his service. They implied that he betrayed the country when he was a P.O.W. and he made a huge mistake in not bashing them for that calling operation saying he adopted a black baby. It was blatantly racist. And they'll do this stuff as long as they think it works. They're--
JS: Do the Democrats--
BC: --running this add against Kerry's military record because they think it's not good for them. I mean Kerry went to Vietnam and President Bush Vice President Cheney were big hawks were like me, we didn't go. All three of us could have gone, and we didn't, and Kerry did. So it's not good for them, and so they're trying to put a chink in his armor. But it's wrong, and if they really disapproved of it they would have said they disapproved of it.
There's a reason they didn't say they disapprove of it.
JS: They would allow to go.
BC: Yeah, they do that stuff. Look what they did to Max Cleland in Georgia. They--here Max Cleland left two legs and an arm in Vietnam, and in 2002 they ran ads against him. Again he was being opposed by a man, who like me and the President and the Vice President, did not go to Vietnam.
They ran ads comparing Max Cleland to Saddam Hussein, because he didn't vote for the Homeland Security Agency Bill exactly as the President had drafted it. And the treated him like a traitor. You know why he didn't vote for it?
Because the Bill removed all Civil Service protections from 170,000 federal employees, who had nothing to do with your security. So he said I didn't leave half my body in Vietnam to come home and strip 170,000 people of their job rites, just for a cheap election year issue.
But they beat him with it, and until we stop them, they'll keep doing it.
JS: Why is it to them. Cause it's hard for me to wrap my head around the idea that the Republicans will stoop to anything but the Democrats will not. Because I feel like I imagine both sides have their foibles. Why is it that the media or the Congress, or somebody doesn't have any oversite?
Why is it that a campaign commercial doesn't need to be as truthful as, say, a toothpaste commercial?
BC: Well to be fair--and since for about the last three elections, starting in '92, actually, the newspapers began to evaluate the truth and accuracy and fairness of the ads, and they do it more often. And this ad that you featured here (the swiftboat ad) has actually been subject to quite a bit of criticism, so we are getting better at it.
But when someone comes after you, you have to go back at them.
JS: Right. Are the Democrats as good at having--you know I watched alot of these 24 hour news channels. The Republicans seem really disciplined in terms of as soon as soon as Kerry announced Edwards, we all heard first and forthmost liberal senators in the senate--we heard way out of the mainstream--we heard all kinds of facts repeated in sort of a carpet bombing kindof a manner.
Not very much from the Democrats in defense.
BC: Well we're getting better at it. I think, you know, in '92 we were very good at it. And, and it worked, I mean, whenever they hit me, I hit em back. And whenever they came up with a charge I didn't think was true, I answered back. And that's what we have to do this time.
JS: Does it blow your mind--you know I look at it now, yesterday Haliburton basically said they committed fraud--fined $7.5 million from the SEC. Vice President was in charge of Haliburton at the time that this fraud was committed. Do you ever look at that and think, Travelgate, are you serious? Do you ever look at this and think, where's the outrage of seemingly much larger and much more crucial issues?
BC: Yeah, you know not only that but Haliburton got alot of no bid contracts in Iraq, paid for by money we appropriated from Iraqi oil. And for the war.
JS: Billion--Billions of dollars. They have an offshore subsidiary in the Kamen Islands that does business with Iran.
Why aren't--b-euh-Filegate, honestly? I mean does it drive you mad, or only me?
That drives me mad.
BC: Well I think we ought to be talking about it, if we keep it a secret the media will say, the mainstream media will say, well the Democrats aren't griping about it. We need to point it out, that's one of the things that I tried to do in my convention speech and I tried to do in this book. I said look, I don't hate them the way that they hated me and the way the kind of venom they put out against Kerry in this ad .
I think they believe certain things, and I believe certain things, and most Democrats do, and we have to say we believe in different things, that leads us to different tactics and also more importantly leads us to different policies, which will affect the lives of the American people, and we can't let them have the whole debate. So when they want to--I always took it as an opportunity when they attacked me.
I thought, that's a briar patch they can throw me in any day, because then I'll engage in the debate, and you're not being negative then. If all you're doing is responding to their attacks, then you're not being negative.
JS: Yeah it's like if they throw the first punch, lights out. Get the pool cue and go at them.
BC: That's my theory.
JS: I hear you, alright, you've been great. We'll be right back with more of President Bill Clinton.
Errors are entirely mine.
JS: Welcome back to the program, my guest tonight, a two term Democratic President, whose best-selling memoir is My Life. Please welcome to the program President Bill Clinton.
Mr. President.
Have a seat sir. Thank you for coming. Nice to see you.
BC: I'm glad to see you.
JS: Thank you so much for coming on the program.
BC: I'm glad to be here, and I'm glad you did that riff on the military attack on Kerry too.
JS: That was a rough one, wasn't it?
BC: Yeah, but they did the same thing to McCain in 2000.
JS: Same Group, am I right?
BC: The same group.
JS: Nice kids.
BC: Yeah. In support of the same crowd, I might point out.
JS: Right--who had nothing to do with it.
BC: No. They also pointed out--they had a calling operation in South Carolina--the primary in 2000--talking about how John McCain had a black baby, and they didn't want the white voters to forget it.
JS: Right. They actually meant Strom Thurmond, they just had the wrong man.
BC: Actually McCain, he would have been perfect for this other little thing you did with the Democratic Party. Actually, McCain had adopted a child from Bangladesh, but it served the callers to call him black.
JS: Is it--you see--now I see the anger when you think about these tactics. For instance, I believe you may take a swing at me.
BC: No, I like you.
JS: Oh, that's very nice of you to say. Is it--has it gotten to the point--do you believe that politics has gotten so dirty, and so--that these types of attacks have become so prevalent that this is the reason that half of the country doesn't vote or this is the reason that we don't get, maybe the officials that we deserve.
BC: No, I think people do it because they think it works.
JS: That's it, simply strategy.
BC: Absolutely, and as soon as it doesn't work, they'll stop doing it. So Senator McCain, who I admire very much, made a big mistake not bashing the Bush campaign over the attacks on his service. They implied that he betrayed the country when he was a P.O.W. and he made a huge mistake in not bashing them for that calling operation saying he adopted a black baby. It was blatantly racist. And they'll do this stuff as long as they think it works. They're--
JS: Do the Democrats--
BC: --running this add against Kerry's military record because they think it's not good for them. I mean Kerry went to Vietnam and President Bush Vice President Cheney were big hawks were like me, we didn't go. All three of us could have gone, and we didn't, and Kerry did. So it's not good for them, and so they're trying to put a chink in his armor. But it's wrong, and if they really disapproved of it they would have said they disapproved of it.
There's a reason they didn't say they disapprove of it.
JS: They would allow to go.
BC: Yeah, they do that stuff. Look what they did to Max Cleland in Georgia. They--here Max Cleland left two legs and an arm in Vietnam, and in 2002 they ran ads against him. Again he was being opposed by a man, who like me and the President and the Vice President, did not go to Vietnam.
They ran ads comparing Max Cleland to Saddam Hussein, because he didn't vote for the Homeland Security Agency Bill exactly as the President had drafted it. And the treated him like a traitor. You know why he didn't vote for it?
Because the Bill removed all Civil Service protections from 170,000 federal employees, who had nothing to do with your security. So he said I didn't leave half my body in Vietnam to come home and strip 170,000 people of their job rites, just for a cheap election year issue.
But they beat him with it, and until we stop them, they'll keep doing it.
JS: Why is it to them. Cause it's hard for me to wrap my head around the idea that the Republicans will stoop to anything but the Democrats will not. Because I feel like I imagine both sides have their foibles. Why is it that the media or the Congress, or somebody doesn't have any oversite?
Why is it that a campaign commercial doesn't need to be as truthful as, say, a toothpaste commercial?
BC: Well to be fair--and since for about the last three elections, starting in '92, actually, the newspapers began to evaluate the truth and accuracy and fairness of the ads, and they do it more often. And this ad that you featured here (the swiftboat ad) has actually been subject to quite a bit of criticism, so we are getting better at it.
But when someone comes after you, you have to go back at them.
JS: Right. Are the Democrats as good at having--you know I watched alot of these 24 hour news channels. The Republicans seem really disciplined in terms of as soon as soon as Kerry announced Edwards, we all heard first and forthmost liberal senators in the senate--we heard way out of the mainstream--we heard all kinds of facts repeated in sort of a carpet bombing kindof a manner.
Not very much from the Democrats in defense.
BC: Well we're getting better at it. I think, you know, in '92 we were very good at it. And, and it worked, I mean, whenever they hit me, I hit em back. And whenever they came up with a charge I didn't think was true, I answered back. And that's what we have to do this time.
JS: Does it blow your mind--you know I look at it now, yesterday Haliburton basically said they committed fraud--fined $7.5 million from the SEC. Vice President was in charge of Haliburton at the time that this fraud was committed. Do you ever look at that and think, Travelgate, are you serious? Do you ever look at this and think, where's the outrage of seemingly much larger and much more crucial issues?
BC: Yeah, you know not only that but Haliburton got alot of no bid contracts in Iraq, paid for by money we appropriated from Iraqi oil. And for the war.
JS: Billion--Billions of dollars. They have an offshore subsidiary in the Kamen Islands that does business with Iran.
Why aren't--b-euh-Filegate, honestly? I mean does it drive you mad, or only me?
That drives me mad.
BC: Well I think we ought to be talking about it, if we keep it a secret the media will say, the mainstream media will say, well the Democrats aren't griping about it. We need to point it out, that's one of the things that I tried to do in my convention speech and I tried to do in this book. I said look, I don't hate them the way that they hated me and the way the kind of venom they put out against Kerry in this ad .
I think they believe certain things, and I believe certain things, and most Democrats do, and we have to say we believe in different things, that leads us to different tactics and also more importantly leads us to different policies, which will affect the lives of the American people, and we can't let them have the whole debate. So when they want to--I always took it as an opportunity when they attacked me.
I thought, that's a briar patch they can throw me in any day, because then I'll engage in the debate, and you're not being negative then. If all you're doing is responding to their attacks, then you're not being negative.
JS: Yeah it's like if they throw the first punch, lights out. Get the pool cue and go at them.
BC: That's my theory.
JS: I hear you, alright, you've been great. We'll be right back with more of President Bill Clinton.
Tuesday, September 07, 2004
Dragon*Con Notes
Headed down to ATL for DragonCon this weekend. Spent less money than the last time, but probably more than I should have. I didn't make it to any of Warren Ellis's signings, but I did get to go to one of his panels, which was interesting. The con was what you would expect from a guest and dealer standpoint, pretty much the same that it is every year.
I do have me some gripes though.
I remember back in the halcion days of my youth when DragonCon was located both in the Hyatt and the Mariott and in the convention center place as well. This needs to come back.
I realize it's probably cheaper and easier to hold the thing predominately in one building, but I get tired of being pressed in with sweaty fanboys for any length of time.
See, the reason I stopped going to DragonCon was this consolidation of spaces that went through in the last year that I went. The Dealer and Exhibitor rooms are waaaay too cramped. The room that they used for the dealer room and Walk of Fame has ceilings that are too low, thus trapping in the heat of the hundreds of bodies, as well as the fanboy stink.
Tommy said he overheard a dealer saying that the tables were much cheaper this year, probably due to the fact that once it gets past a certain point in the morning when everybody wakes up and shakes off the hangover and wanders down to the dealer room/walk of fame, that place fills up so bad that it makes it near impossible to stop and look at any table.
The first year they did that and the last one that I went before this, by the second day the dealers were cutting prices in half or more because of the lack of sales brought on by the cramped spaces.
See, when they had it in the convention center place down the block they put all that mess in one big room, which had a nice high ceiling and big wide-ass aisles. Plenty of room to move around and browse, and areas to get out of the way and sit down if need be.
That many people in that small a space tends to give me a headache pretty quick. Even in the more expansive areas I get a con-headache after about twenty minutes of exposure.
Contrast DragonCon with the AtlantaComicon, which has higher ceilings and wider spaces, making for a much more pleasant experience over-all.
I realize that might drive the prices up a little bit, but I think the con a better experience for all.
Tommy and I did get to the registration area just in time to miss the major rush though, which is good. You'd think that after a few years of having to deal with these problems the DragonCon organizers would come up with some solutions.
Maybe I'm the olny one that finds these things problematic.
And what's up with the Dealer room having people to stop you and check your badges, but the Exhibitor room not having any?
I do have me some gripes though.
I remember back in the halcion days of my youth when DragonCon was located both in the Hyatt and the Mariott and in the convention center place as well. This needs to come back.
I realize it's probably cheaper and easier to hold the thing predominately in one building, but I get tired of being pressed in with sweaty fanboys for any length of time.
See, the reason I stopped going to DragonCon was this consolidation of spaces that went through in the last year that I went. The Dealer and Exhibitor rooms are waaaay too cramped. The room that they used for the dealer room and Walk of Fame has ceilings that are too low, thus trapping in the heat of the hundreds of bodies, as well as the fanboy stink.
Tommy said he overheard a dealer saying that the tables were much cheaper this year, probably due to the fact that once it gets past a certain point in the morning when everybody wakes up and shakes off the hangover and wanders down to the dealer room/walk of fame, that place fills up so bad that it makes it near impossible to stop and look at any table.
The first year they did that and the last one that I went before this, by the second day the dealers were cutting prices in half or more because of the lack of sales brought on by the cramped spaces.
See, when they had it in the convention center place down the block they put all that mess in one big room, which had a nice high ceiling and big wide-ass aisles. Plenty of room to move around and browse, and areas to get out of the way and sit down if need be.
That many people in that small a space tends to give me a headache pretty quick. Even in the more expansive areas I get a con-headache after about twenty minutes of exposure.
Contrast DragonCon with the AtlantaComicon, which has higher ceilings and wider spaces, making for a much more pleasant experience over-all.
I realize that might drive the prices up a little bit, but I think the con a better experience for all.
Tommy and I did get to the registration area just in time to miss the major rush though, which is good. You'd think that after a few years of having to deal with these problems the DragonCon organizers would come up with some solutions.
Maybe I'm the olny one that finds these things problematic.
And what's up with the Dealer room having people to stop you and check your badges, but the Exhibitor room not having any?
Sunday, September 05, 2004
DragonCon Photos
Back from DragonCon, and here are a few photos that I took:
Warren Ellis, guest of honor, from the hour with Warren panel.
Warren Ellis, guest of honor, from the hour with Warren panel.
Belle, Snow White and a fairy, unaware that Maleficent is looming over them.
A balding Captain Marvel poses with Superman, Green Arrow and Black Canary.
David Carradine looking hungover.
His backpack's got jets, He's Jango the Fett.
Martin Manhunter, shopping for some crap.
Look coming up the escalator, it's Rainbow Brite.
Sid Haig of House of a Thousand Corpses and Jackie Brown.
Friday, September 03, 2004
Excerpted Kilgore Trout
From Venus On the Half Shell, by Kilgore Trout,
Regarding Arcturans:
Regarding Arcturans:
Below him, tourists and visitors from distant planets wandered around among the hot dog, beer, and curio stands. Among them were the giant tripods of Arcturus, sneering at the things Terrestrials called ancient. Their oldest buildings were one hundred thousand years old, built over ruins twice that age. The Earthmen didn't mind this because Arcturans looked so laughable when they sneered, twirling their long genitals as if they were key-chains. It was when an Arcturan praised that Earthmen became offended. The Arcturan would lift one of his tripods and spray the praisee with a liquid that smelled like rotten onions. A lot of Terrestrials had had to smile and take this, especially ministers of state. But these got what was referred to as a P.O. bonus.
Everything usually evens out.
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