This is, in all honesty, one of my favorite websites, please enjoy. I've spent more time than is probably healthy perusing it for, yes, fun.
Friday, October 9, 2009
Fighting Them There So We Don't Have To Fight Them Here
Looks like last night's bombing of the moon was a success! Obama acts like a supervillain and then gets a prize for peace. What's the world coming to?
My .02
Just my thoughts on the story of the day, no links:
1. The Nobel Peace Prize has always been a way to make a political statement, and this year is no different. This year they could have renamed it the Nobel Prize For Not Being George W. Bush, and there's nothing wrong with that. Bush was a terrible president, especially in the field of foreign policy. He made one of the worst foreign policy calls in the country's history, and shunned countries that didn't cooperate with his mistake. To those who whine about how Obama has "nothing to show" for his policy aims I would say he's had nine months. Bush had eight years and all he could do was wreck everything and then wait out the clock and hand his problems off to the next guy.
2. This award is premature though, and I think he will take a hit for it domestically, but it wont do any harm internationally.It's a little sad that the "loyal opposition" couldn't at least issue a pro forma press release congratulating him before they began to lay into him (I stand corrected). I can hear the "Obama's off accepting awards in Norway when he should be worried about jobs" talking points already.
3. Although it's been confirmed that he will go to Oslo to accept the award so the point is moot, I definitely think it would have been a bad idea to decline the prize. It would have just been seen as a slap in the face, not a gesture of humility.
4. I'm a liberal arugula-eating europhile elitist, so I'm glad to have the type of president who wins Nobel Peace Prizes.
5. Bill Clinton must not be having a good day.
1. The Nobel Peace Prize has always been a way to make a political statement, and this year is no different. This year they could have renamed it the Nobel Prize For Not Being George W. Bush, and there's nothing wrong with that. Bush was a terrible president, especially in the field of foreign policy. He made one of the worst foreign policy calls in the country's history, and shunned countries that didn't cooperate with his mistake. To those who whine about how Obama has "nothing to show" for his policy aims I would say he's had nine months. Bush had eight years and all he could do was wreck everything and then wait out the clock and hand his problems off to the next guy.
2. This award is premature though, and I think he will take a hit for it domestically, but it wont do any harm internationally.
3. Although it's been confirmed that he will go to Oslo to accept the award so the point is moot, I definitely think it would have been a bad idea to decline the prize. It would have just been seen as a slap in the face, not a gesture of humility.
4. I'm a liberal arugula-eating europhile elitist, so I'm glad to have the type of president who wins Nobel Peace Prizes.
5. Bill Clinton must not be having a good day.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
We Shall Split the Public Option In Half
Looks like we're getting a lot closer to getting a Health Care Reform bill out of the Senate. Liberal and conservative Democrats have found a compromise they can live with, and I think overall it's not a bad one. From what I understand, people who did not receive health insurance from their employer and have to shop for it on the insurance exchange would have the choice of a public option unless the state they reside in chooses to opt out of it. This allows us to use the "states as laboratories" method to test the effectiveness of a public option. There are enough big liberal states (like California and New York) that will likely include it, so it has a chance of having a real effect on costs overall, and may cow insurance companies into behaving less disgustingly. At the same time, the "keep the government out of my Medicare!" crowd can make a point by voting it down in their respective states. If Ben Nelson and Olympia Snowe sign onto this than it's pretty much a done-deal and there will be enough votes to break a filibuster and send a bill to the conference committee to be reconciled with the House bill. Then the real work begins...
EDIT: To be clear, this would be a federally administered public option that the states could opt out of if they so choose, not a public option administered by individual states. That idea would be a non-starter because without the heft of the federal government, a public option would not be big enough to have the desired effect of reducing health care costs by negotiating Medicare-plus-whatever rates.
EDIT 2x: Good analysis here and here. Naturally there are lots of details to be worked out.
EDIT: To be clear, this would be a federally administered public option that the states could opt out of if they so choose, not a public option administered by individual states. That idea would be a non-starter because without the heft of the federal government, a public option would not be big enough to have the desired effect of reducing health care costs by negotiating Medicare-plus-whatever rates.
EDIT 2x: Good analysis here and here. Naturally there are lots of details to be worked out.
Polanski Supporters Heart Obama
There you have it. It's as if Obama drugged and raped the girl himself. Makes me sick, really.
MONTROSE: One of America's Top 10 Neighborhoods
I'm not sure how much heft the American Planning Association carries, but it's nice to be noticed. There's no other place I'd rather live in Texas than the 'trose.
I could talk about the reasons why this neighborhood deserves this and more recognition, but I'd rather discuss the reader comments in the linked article. It makes me happy that the word "Montrose" still strikes fear into the hearts of homophobes and slack-jawed yokels across the greater Houston metropolitan area. Just when I think maybe Montrose is getting a little too gentrified, these idiots reassure me.
I Would Go Out Tonight, But I Haven't Got A Stitch To Wear
Hump Day is over! Friday afternoon will soon be upon us.
Here's to a fun and debauched weekend!
I leave you with The Smiths, fronted by that beacon of non-threatening heterosexuality, Morrissey:
Jonah Goldberg=Dumbass
If you entertain the possibility for even a nanosecond that Bill Ayers ghost-wrote one of Barack Obama's books, you are an idiot...or Jonah Goldberg, but I guess the two aren't mutually exclusive. Barack Obama's oeuvre is about as G-rated as it gets, and about as far from the general tone of the Weathermen as possible.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
AFI - New Video, "Medicate"
This may sound bad to some of our contributors, but AFI, and specifically, Davey Havok (lead singer of the band), have never appeared more hetero than here on their new video. This is a very good thing.
If you recall, I did a live play-by-play review of AFI's new album, Crash Love...drunk. And, even though I gave it lower marks than 2006's December Underground at the time, I now recant that statement and say this is AFI's best work since Sing The Sorrow, and no, this is not because of the new video (entirely). I've had time to listen to the new album, and it's very good. When December Underground came out, I had to finish crying before I could listen again, because I was so disappointed.
Where before, Davey Havok was a mythical being, shroud in makeup and costume, the new video for the single "Medicate" from their newest album, presents us, the fans, with yet another image of Davey, but unlike the hyper real fantasy that was Davey on December Underground, we are actually given a life like impression on who Davey is. He's very Morrissey here, and completely awesome.
From the beginning, any AFI fan will instantly see that we are not looking at a makeup clad singer, but an actual person. And, surprise, Davey is actually a very dapper gentleman. It's important to recognize that Mr. Havok is not young any more. He's far past his Crimson Ghost days, and well better than his three inch eyelash days of December Underground. And what has he given us? A handsome man in a two piece, well fitting suite with golden shoes. I was astonished, for the good.
No makeup, a bit of, dare I say it, stubble - it looks as though our Davey has finally accepted that he's a man, and not a boy. Word's still out on Jade, who's rockin' the Jon and Kate, Plus 8 haircut of said Kate.
And how awesome is it that Hunter, the bassist, is getting his face plastered all over this thing, after getting basically pushed aside in December Underground.
I don't know why I'm gushing like this, but I'm just so excited about AFI's future, and this video is a definite step in the right direction.
If you recall, I did a live play-by-play review of AFI's new album, Crash Love...drunk. And, even though I gave it lower marks than 2006's December Underground at the time, I now recant that statement and say this is AFI's best work since Sing The Sorrow, and no, this is not because of the new video (entirely). I've had time to listen to the new album, and it's very good. When December Underground came out, I had to finish crying before I could listen again, because I was so disappointed.
Where before, Davey Havok was a mythical being, shroud in makeup and costume, the new video for the single "Medicate" from their newest album, presents us, the fans, with yet another image of Davey, but unlike the hyper real fantasy that was Davey on December Underground, we are actually given a life like impression on who Davey is. He's very Morrissey here, and completely awesome.
From the beginning, any AFI fan will instantly see that we are not looking at a makeup clad singer, but an actual person. And, surprise, Davey is actually a very dapper gentleman. It's important to recognize that Mr. Havok is not young any more. He's far past his Crimson Ghost days, and well better than his three inch eyelash days of December Underground. And what has he given us? A handsome man in a two piece, well fitting suite with golden shoes. I was astonished, for the good.
No makeup, a bit of, dare I say it, stubble - it looks as though our Davey has finally accepted that he's a man, and not a boy. Word's still out on Jade, who's rockin' the Jon and Kate, Plus 8 haircut of said Kate.
And how awesome is it that Hunter, the bassist, is getting his face plastered all over this thing, after getting basically pushed aside in December Underground.
I don't know why I'm gushing like this, but I'm just so excited about AFI's future, and this video is a definite step in the right direction.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
If Only We Had a Good Rail System In This City...
...Maybe Miss B would have made it to the Galleria.
I Kinda Want a Cigarette
New Anti-Smoking Ads Warn Teens 'It's Gay To Smoke'
It's like the PSA love child of Rob Reiner and James Dobson.
Because its serious business, that's why.
I'm sure most on the flip side have already seen this and find it sincere and heartfelt, but I couldn't help but laugh, maybe that makes me a nihilist? Just wait for around the 3 minute 20 second mark, truly compelling stuff.
And now this one. It's a good contrast to first video, more on tone and style than topic, but I'm digging the message.
Head on over here, for the amusing article that made me do this.
And then this one too!!!!
And now this one. It's a good contrast to first video, more on tone and style than topic, but I'm digging the message.
Head on over here, for the amusing article that made me do this.
And then this one too!!!!
EDIT: I can't find the 80% support for the public option the thrid video is talking about, but I did find this one say 46% support it...
VIDEO GAMES: Brutal Legend!
Because it's an incredibly slow news day, I decided I should get word out on the much anticipated video game "Brutal Legend" that will be released a week from today (10.13.09). For anyone who even dabbles slightly in videogameitry this is very, very good news.Fans of 2005's awesomely entertaining "Pychonauts," a story a
bout a boy who sneaks his way into a summer camp for the psychically gifted only to find himself trouping through a wonderland of metaphysical landscapes and characters to save the day, will be excited to learn (as if they didn't already) that Brutal Legend will finally make it to shelves at a store near you. This after much legal infighting regarding licensing and whatnot after the original publisher, Vinendi Games, was swallowed by Activision, and thereafter summarily dropped, only to be picked up for publication by the juggernaut publisher EA games, as has been reported by gamer magazines following the spat for the last few years.
bout a boy who sneaks his way into a summer camp for the psychically gifted only to find himself trouping through a wonderland of metaphysical landscapes and characters to save the day, will be excited to learn (as if they didn't already) that Brutal Legend will finally make it to shelves at a store near you. This after much legal infighting regarding licensing and whatnot after the original publisher, Vinendi Games, was swallowed by Activision, and thereafter summarily dropped, only to be picked up for publication by the juggernaut publisher EA games, as has been reported by gamer magazines following the spat for the last few years.Brutal Legend has reportedly been in production since 2005, all the while, fans o
f Tim Schafer, the video game genius behind the game, have been waiting patiently. With each project, Schaefer brings his unique and playful, if dark, signature to his work that is both visually engrossing and provides engaging gameplay. Beyond Pyschonauts and the forthcoming Brutal Legend, Schafer is responsible for the much loved "Grim Fandango," motorcycle romp, Full Throttle, and kiddy pirate tale, The Secret to Monkey Island, among others titles.In Schafer's latest, the player controls Eddie Riggs, a roadie for metal bands, who finds himself sucked into a world of awesome metal - metal music that is. I can recall seeing screen shots and brief trailers that were leaked over the years, and they only left me wanting more.
Think I'm being dramatic? Well, you're probably right, but the thought of being able to wield an axe (i.e. electric guitar) and play face melting solos (literally making the skin slide off the face of my enemies because of the sheer power of my awesomely powerful power chords) gets me giddy even now.
Voice work on the game is headed by Jack Black, Ozzie Osbourne, and Tim Curry, and other metal artist and celebrities (including Black's Tenacious D cohort, and talented guitarist, Kyle Glass), make cameo appearances. It is also reported that over 100 metal songs from over 70 artists, both well known and not so well known, will make up the soundtrack to the game.
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