Thu, December 22

Mermaid Park

A charming and entertaining story about a young girl's summer among the mermaids. (Read more.)

26 comments with related links

Wed, December 21

Presidential Address—8:17 AM

I just finished reading a transcript of President Bush's Oval Office address on the subject of Iraq from Sunday night. (Typical me, I had no idea this was even on until my sarcastic partisan blogs started sniping about it this week.)

It was actually a moving and thoughtful speech, which would be very meaningful if people listened to his words rather than parsing them for political points. I don't think he came across as "contrite" as some journalists have said; I think at this point, if anyone in his administration acknowledges a differing viewpoint, we're trained to see it as some huge admission of fault. It's great that he understands things aren't going well over there. (I guess he watches CNN after all, just not the first two days after Katrina.) I just don't think admitting the obvious is the same as apologizing. (Also, he referred to himself as the president or "Mr. President" a number of times – I think he's trying to remind us who's in charge.)

I happen to agree with Mr. President that it doesn't make sense to create an arbitrary timetable for withdrawing troops from Iraq. They should be home, as soon as possible, but their sacrifice would be pointless if we left Iraq so quickly that the terrorist element could simply take it over again. Every action at this point must be evaluated on two scores: will it help secure a lasting democracy in Iraq, and will it bring our troops home quickly and safely?

Under the guise of "coming clean" with the American people, Bush explained the criticisms of his detractors (in his own words): that the continuing carnage in Iraq means we are losing, and we should leave. Maybe some are saying this, but it sounds to me like a convenient straw man. I interpret that carnage to mean that our original strategy has not been as successful as hoped, and the strategy should be adapted. In broad strokes, I haven't seen the president change his plan or come up with new ideas that might achieve victory sooner and with fewer lives lost. We all want the troops home as quickly and safely as possible, but only the most vituperative partisan hack would argue that they should be pulled out immediately, without regard for completing the mission they were so woefully sent in to undertake.

And also, because they'd take my onebee away from me if I spent too many words agreeing with the president without taking a cheap shot, let's parse a few words for political points:

It is also important for every American to understand the consequences of pulling out of Iraq before our work is done. We would abandon our Iraqi friends – and signal to the world that America cannot be trusted to keep its word.

In other words, it wouldn't pass "the global test." What a smug prick.

5 comments with related links

Tue, December 20

Serenity

Out on DVD today, Serenity is the final chapter in the story begun on television with Firefly. If you like adventure, intrigue, romance, or things that are awesome, this film will not disappoint. (Read more.)

2 comments with related links

Mon, December 19

God's Debris

Dilbert creator Scott Adams leads an engrossing discussion about where the universe came from and – ultimately – why. (Read more.)

1 comment with related links

Love Monkey—10:47 PM

CBS has been promoting its new show for January, Love Monkey, with Tom Cavanagh playing a quirky guy who's looking for love. (Presumably with some sort of monkey involvement.) It promises to feature music industry A&R (which I couldn't love less) and Judy Greer (whom I couldn't love more).

I know there are doubters out there, based on its nearness to some elements of Ed, but I'm way on board. I'd watch Tom Cavanagh read the phone book. I'd watch Tom Cavanagh watch Tom Bosley read the phone book.

63 comments

Sun, December 18

Definitive Proof—6:02 PM

Forget what the Raelians or the South Koreans have said. Hands down, the best current evidence that human cloning has been achieved: Colin Hanks.

1 comment

Fri, December 16

Riveting Performance Dept.—5:34 PM

I was watching some construction workers during my commute this morning (while stopped at a traffic light), and they were moving very slowly across high beams despite the sturdy tethers in place to protect them from a fall.

It made me think: high-rise construction worker would be the perfect job for retired Cirque du Soleil performers.

0 comments

Movie Math Dept.—9:22 AM

This kid from Oklahoma has come up with a formula for predicting box-office success, and he's got Hollywood studios interested. The prediction is only accurate 37% of the time (probably still beats Hollywood executives 5-to-1), and cannot account for intricacies of plot or character.

So, expect to see a lot of movies in the next four years which feature no plot or dialogue, just four "name" actors standing in front of a blank background, but with a very precisely calculated budget and a huge amount of CG effects.

Hooray, Hollywood studios! They never let us down! (By which I mean, they always live up to our expectation of being let down by them.)

0 comments with related links

Tue, December 13

Syriana

A phalanx of compelling, powerful actors deliver a series of scenes which could add up to an interesting perspective on the war on terror. It could also add up to a series of scenes. (Read more.)

2 comments with related links

Look back!—12:14 AM

"Look", the movie fanatic magazine from the makers of "Entertainment Weekly" is back. I was so fond of its test-market issue, I signed up for a subscription in advance. Now that it's out of beta, they've sent me the first issue of the new magazine.

Wow, there have been a lot of changes. They took away virtually everything I praised about the pre-release issue, most lamentably the fresh design and the "Look Back" feature. (Also missing: the rave review for The Incredibles on DVD – no surprise there, but the pages still felt a little emptier without it.) The magazine retains its sassy, movie-geek tone, but the new design is just a little less daring and a little more familiar. (The previous choice of identity font captured my attention so completely, I stole it for a design project at work.)

Just one of my favorite features has survived, but it's the most unique and precious of all: the DVD upgrade recommendations. Try as I might, I usually have a hard time waiting the requisite decade after a film's DVD release to see if some sort of amped-up "special edition" is forthcoming. Sometimes I get lucky (I heard an Office Space upgrade was in the works two years ago and held off); sometimes not (I ordered Sin City from Amazon twelve hours before EW informed me its extras were so scant that an upgrade was nearly inevitable – it comes out tomorrow). But now I have a weapon in the fight: "Look" will evaluate the rereleased DVDs, outline the changes, and let me know in unmistakable terms whether or not it's worth the upgrade. It'll take me a while to get over the loss of the magazine's better features, but the DVD reviews will provide an excellent salve while I heal.

0 comments with related links

Mon, December 12

Law & Order: Guatemala

The Survivor finale culminates in a Tribal Council in which you must present your case to the jury, and suddenly it helps to be a good backpedaler. (Read more.)

2 comments with related links

Thu, December 8

The Need for Speed—2:27 PM

I came across an article today about a Nebraska judge who found a man not guilty of reckless driving, despite his speed of 128mph. It's enough to make me want to move to Nebraska. (If it weren't so dangerously close to Kansas...)

I've been wailing about this for years, but lately it's really been bothering me. Speed limits only exist as justifications for revenue-generating tickets. If you're careful and you know what you're doing, speeding alone isn't going to be any more dangerous than following some arbitrary limit.

We should abolish speed limits everywhere, and enforce reckless driving statutes much more strictly. Going 50 in a 35 on a straightaway without bothering anybody? Fine. Going 37 in a 35, but cutting people off and swerving without a signal? Prison.

See which one results in fewer fatalities. My bet is, it's the same one that results in me getting home from work five minutes faster.

15 comments with related links and photos

Wed, December 7

Madam & Sleeve—11:51 AM

Sunday, I was watching Grey's Anatomy, because I still haven't talked myself out of it. The episode included three or four instances in which one of its young, female cast pulled on a long-sleeved T-shirt. (Over the course of the show's run, it's probably up to forty such occasions by now.)

Here's what I noticed: in every case, these women put their shirts on the same way. They shoot each arm all the way down its sleeve, leaving the entire middle of the shirt – from hemline to neck hole – compressed flat across their chests. Then, they yank the back of that arrangement up over their heads, pushing through the neck hole and tugging the rest down toward their waists. They do it this way every time, and once I thought about it, I realized they have for the entire show.

The thing is, I've never done it this way. I always put on a long-sleeved T-shirt just like its shorter-sleeved cousin. Bunch it up, tug the neck hole over my head, then push my arms up under the shirt and out the appropriate sleeves.

Seems to me, their way results in the shoulder of each sleeve being positioned at the top corner of the chest, rotated forward from where it should be. But they do it the same way every time. Is this a girl thing? Is it specific to TV, where they want the starlets' faces and cute midriffs to be obscured for the least amount of time?

6 comments with related links

Mon, December 5

Playing It Coup

The Survivor kids are getting punchy, devising all sorts of wild schemes to upend the power structure. Well, it's something to do. (Read more.)

1 comment with related links

Fri, December 2

Paradigm Shift

Some incredibly generous people have figured out what music I will like without even meeting me, and they're playing it through my computer for free. (Read more.)

12 comments with related links

Dukes of Hazzard, Unrated—12:46 PM

Warners is pimping the upcoming unrated DVD edition of Dukes of Hazzard during my lunchtime Drew Carey Show on TBS. The TV ad plays like a "Girls Gone Wild" promo, teasing us with scene after scene of jiggly breasts obscured by strategically placed video graphics.

You can believe I added it to the top of my Netflix queue.

But here's what bugs me: obviously Warners is keenly aware of the explosive market for this. So why was the original movie rated PG-13? Capitulation to the culture-war right wingers, that's why. Too bad; I probably would've seen the movie in the theatre if they'd just released the version with the boobs. Now we know who to blame for this year's box-office slump. Once again: Republicans.

(Also, omigod! Today's Drew episode features a Neil Flynn guest spot! Awesome!)

9 comments with related links

It happened!—12:18 AM

Oprah's return to Dave was a smashing success!

The two ended their so-called feud, and Oprah even presented Dave with an autographed photo of herself mingling with Uma. It was a love fest. A "Super Bowl of Love," as Dave has often described it. I'm not an Oprah viewer, and hardly a participant in her empire, but wow. What a smart, savvy, classy lady. This is probably the longest I've ever heard her talk, and I can absolutely understand how she's become the most powerful woman in all media.

And good for Dave. This sort of utterly goony "event" is exactly what his show should be doing every night. Hopefully he'll bring back the Oprah Log.

Also, if Stephen Colbert hadn't already won my eternal adoration, he'd have won it tonight when he waxed nostalgic about Olympic ice dancing: "Oh... the outfits!"

Update: Defamer's somewhat different take

7 comments

Thu, December 1

Footballer's Lies

There's a difference between lying and playing strategically, but the moral choice is seldom the successful one. In some cases, the liars can portray themselves as strategists while painting the strategists as outright liars. (Read more.)

0 comments with related links