Very, very impressive. I envy them.
More stuff and info here.

Official page and one for Loose Cannons.

Even more strange and fun stuff via Ain't It Cool and Twitch.

Labels: Awesome, fun, independent film-making, kung fu, movies, youtube and other video

Yeah. There's a pun that won't be used a billion times today.

Anyway, new NIN album, The Slip, being given away as mp3s, lossless and even high def wav files at 24/96 (larger files via Bittorrent).

EW quotes that
Reznor has been in a ''prolific phase and we didn't want 'business' to get in the way of getting the art in the hands of the fans.''

NIN says;
as a thank you to our fans for your continued support, we are giving away the new nine inch nails album one hundred percent free, exclusively via nin.com.

the music is available in a variety of formats including high-quality MP3, FLAC or M4A lossless at CD quality and even higher-than-CD quality 24/96 WAVE. your link will include all options - all free. all downloads include a PDF with artwork and credits.

for those of you interested in physical products, fear not. we plan to make a version of this release available on CD and vinyl in july. details coming soon.

Go get it, if you haven't already...

It's also licensed under Creative Commons

Labels: Awesome, bittorrent, downloads, good deal, music, youtube and other video

Iron Man was great! I'm not good at writing reviews, so I'll leave it at that. It was awesome. Can't wait to buy the DVD or Blu-Ray. Though if I buy the Blu-Ray, I'll have to wait till I have a player to watch it.

Had to wait over an hour in line for my free comics at Midtown Comics (near Times Square). Not exactly local, but that's where I liked to go for comics before I started relying on Amazon.com for just about anything.

Even though purchase wasn't required, it seemed quite a few people shopped in addition to picking up their freebies (a good thing for the store) which is one reason the line was slow in moving. Another reason - a lot of fucking people on the line.

I too, made a few purchases; The Batman/Grendel compilation (didn't know this was out till recently), the latest Black Panther trade (Little Green Men), first volume of Y: The Last Man (trying something new), a 50 cent preview of Grendel: Behold The Devil, a 50 cent (given free) preview of the new Crisis mini-series called DC Universe 0, which I read on the way home (it sucks, of course) and Giant Robot magazine #53. Hadn't read that in a little while.

I won't go into the free titles except to say I got 27 free comics, which was already compiled by a store worker. Should keep me busy for a little while.

Labels: Awesome, comics, good deal, movies

What is this world coming to? I dunno, but I like it. Celebrity porno, even if they were fakes (lookalikes) is a category that deserves to be a genre unto itself, ...or is it already? At least, if it wasn't for the fact that porno producers are generally lazy. And lookalikes rarely look that much like the celeb they impersonate.

The Marilyn Monroe film is reportedly authentic (it better be for 1.5 million), but will be kept out of circulation. The Jimi Hendrix video has at least one doubter, but will be made public.

Yay!

Labels: Awesome, fun, media, porn

The Remix:



The original (AKA Worst Rap Battle Ever):



Overdue credit where credit is due dept. - Byron Crawford

Labels: Awesome, funny-ass shit, music, youtube and other video

But I do.

Labels: Awesome, comics, death, funny-ass shit, independent film-making, movies, youtube and other video

Last week I finished watching Real Kung Fu, a 20 episode TV drama series starring Yuen Biao, Gordon Liu, Leung Kar Yan, Lo Mang, Yuen Wah and Lee Hoi Seng.

The story seemed to revolve around an unambitious middle age man (Yuen Biao, who I assume is playing his age) who gets caught up in a murder mystery. When Leung Kar Yan (who used to be nicknamed "Beardy") appears as an effeminate ex-opera performer (and kung fu expert) with asthma, I figure it's just a nod to a character played by Lam Ching Ying in Prodigal Son. Even knowing that Yuen played the lead in Prodigal Son, I thought nothing more of it, since the lead character here seemed completely different.

It wasn't until an article on Kung Fu Cinema about a newer series called Wing Chun, did I start to make a connection. I was still in the middle of Real Kung Fu (from 2005), when I read that Wing Chun (2007) was a direct sequel to Prodigal Son that re-united Sammo Hung, the film's director with Yuen Biao who played Leung Jan.

Soon I'd figure out that Leung Tsan from the series I was watching was the same, though the story was different.

Leung Chan (spelling varies) was a Wing Chun expert from the 1800's/1900's. He taught the man (Chan Wah-Shun) who taught Yip Man who was Bruce Lee's teacher in Wing Chun, which I guess makes him Lee's Grand teacher. Had I not been a kung fu school drop out, I would have known this and not had to find this out on Wikipedia, but there it is.

Here's the trailer for Prodigal Son:



The opening theme for Real Kung Fu:



and a scene from Wing Chun:



The article says that Wing Chun (a 40 episode series) will be released on DVD in May by Tai Seng for a suggested retail price of sixty bucks, but it's available now from YesAsia for about forty eight bucks. Of course, it can also be found online, *ahem*. I look forward to watching it.

Labels: Awesome, downloads, DVD, kung fu, Liu Chia Hui, movies, tv, youtube and other video

From The NY Times;

Time Warner is no longer the sole proprietor of Superman.

A federal judge here on Wednesday ruled that the heirs of Jerome Siegel — who 70 years ago sold the rights to the action hero he created with Joseph Shuster to Detective Comics for $130 — were entitled to claim a share of the United States copyright to the character. The ruling left intact Time Warner’s international rights to the character, which it has long owned through its DC Comics unit.

And it reserved for trial questions over how much the company may owe the Siegel heirs for use of the character since 1999, when their ownership is deemed to have been restored. Also to be resolved is whether the heirs are entitled to payments directly from Time Warner’s film unit, Warner Brothers, which took in $200 million at the domestic box office with “Superman Returns” in 2006, or only from the DC unit’s Superman profits.

Still, the ruling threatened to complicate Warner’s plans to make more films featuring Superman, including another sequel and a planned movie based on the DC Comics’ “Justice League of America,” in which he joins Batman, Wonder Woman and other superheroes to battle evildoers.

If the ruling survives a Time Warner legal challenge, it may also open the door to a similar reversion of rights to the estate of Mr. Shuster in 2013. That would give heirs of the two creators control over use of their lucrative character until at least 2033 — and perhaps longer, if Congress once again extends copyright terms — according to Marc Toberoff, a lawyer who represents the Siegels and the Shuster estate.

Wow! That is awesome. Assuming it's not reversed on appeal.

The whole article at the NYT, plus another at Newsarama where I first read this news.

Labels: Awesome, comics, feats of strength, Heroes, nostalgia

Minoriteam

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Saw this at AfroNerd and laughed myself silly. Adult Swim is some sick shit. I don't watch that much of it cuz I don't smoke weed, but every now and then something brilliant happens over there.

Labels: Awesome, comics, funny-ass shit, tv, youtube and other video

"Condelicious, is that you?"


Well, now I'm ordering Harold And Kumar Go To White Castle. It can be gotten cheaply on Amazon. Close to the price of a rental from a few of the 3rd party vendors.

Also on the stupid but probably good list? Kung Fu Panda. It's the sequence with the chopsticks that sold me. I'd sworn off mixed animal CGI movies after Over The Hedge (and all the ones that came before). It was alright, but enough already. However I can't pass on a mixed animal CGI movie with kung fu, can I? Not if there's any actual effort being put in the fight choreography.

And Jackie Chan voices the monkey, though I don't think he can be heard in any of the trailers, yet.

Labels: Awesome, DVD, funny-ass shit, good deal, kung fu, movies, youtube

February 26th, 2008 - Added another video from YouTube...



I bet she didn't see that comin'.

Labels: Awesome, funny-ass shit, politics, tv, youtube

Old news, but new news to me. And great fucking news at that.
In addition to the releases by Dragon Dynasty and Image Entertainment (not to mention PC only rentals* from Jaman), Classic remastered Shaw Brothers movies will be made available on DVD in the U.S. by Media Blasters.

The titles;

Five Elements Ninjas AKA Super Ninjas!
Heroes Two
The Master
Challenge of the Masters
Martial Club (Oh, Hellz yeah!)
The Deadly Duo
The Brave Archer
The Ten Tigers of Kwangtung
Black Magic 2
Flag of Iron

Great selection of titles. As mentioned in this interview with Linn Haynes, it's a wonder they hadn't been hoarded by DD or Image. Martial Club (sequel to Challenge Of The Masters) is one of my all time favorite kung fu movies. Certainly the best movie starring Gordon Liu Chia Hui and Wang Lung Wei. "Fei Hong! Use your family's kung fu!"

Apparently they start coming out in the spring and will be released one per month, beginning with Heroes Two. No plans for Blu-Ray yet, despite the using Hi-Def masters.

Labels: Awesome, DVD, kung fu, Liu Chia Hui, movies, nostalgia

Spoilers below.





This is one of my favorite television moments. Mandela is questioned (in 1990) about his controversial alliances with the likes of Castro, Arafat, and Qadafi and the possible negative consequences of proclaiming these men to be his comrades. Mandela's answer literally silences Kopell to the point that he has to break the ice to move things forward. Kopell's Adam West like response is a noble, yet ineffective effort to save face, but kinda adds to the hilarity.

Labels: Awesome, funny-ass shit, Heroes, nostalgia, politics, South Africa, Truth, tv, World Affairs

There are some reasonable explanations as to why Newscorp's Rupert Murdoch and his clan had been throwing financial support to the Clinton campaign.

"Of all the presidential candidates on either side of the aisle, Clinton is the only hopeful who got Murdoch to reach into his ample wallet."

No Republicans? Hmmmm. That's odd.

My own uneducated guess would be that nothing would serve the Fox News network (which I watch) and some of his crappy papers better than to have their nemeses back in charge and back in the crosshairs.

I would prefer to have none of that. I'm voting for the O* tomorrow. If Clinton wins this Super Tuesday contest, I'm hoping John McCain locks up the Republican nomination so I can have a suitable backup. I've said before I won't vote for her even if she taps Obama to be VP and I won't vote for the O, if he taps her to be his.

*"The O" sounds cooler to me than "The O Man", which is kinda dorky. Though maybe "The O" is already reserved for Oprah. I dunno.

Speaking of The O, and cool, The Undercover Blackman highlighted this most awesome Super Obama Girl video last week. For the moment, it occupies the top right corner. Hah! Legion Of Doom.

Labels: Awesome, funny-ass shit, politics, youtube

The theme to one of Jet Li's Huang Fei Hong movies (Once Upon A Time In China series), sung by a one time Master Huang himself ( Drunken Master movies), Jackie Chan;

Labels: Awesome, China, kung fu, movies, music, Songza

Labels: Awesome, fun, japanese, movies, youtube

Labels: Awesome, holidays, music, Songza

Lot's of Katsu Shintaro's famous blind swordsman (and masseuse), Zatoichi showing up on the Kung Fu HD Channel over the past couple of weeks or so, and for a little while longer. Seeing how often they repeat movies, I'll have some time to catch up. I usually catch a flick already in progress, but I've caught a few of these already and they're just great.
Katsu in this role is a lot like Peter Falk in Columbo; kinda clumsy and sloppy looking, but still cool, because unlike the characters around him, we know about the badass lurking beneath the surface.

The second film looks much better than it did on DVD, but that's because the dvd was downright crummy. I didn't check the first which I also have on disc. So far, all of the samurai flicks on this channel have used decent film transfers. Some of the kung fu movies as well, though some of the lower-lower budget stuff (Bruce Li, etc.) was obviously deemed unworthy of re-masters.

Labels: Awesome, HDTV, japanese, kung fu, movies, youtube

More songs on MySpace.

Labels: Awesome, covers, dead links, funny-ass shit, music

I sure do. Another Dateline NBC/Perverted Justice special. Tonight. Check your local listings, fool.

Labels: Awesome, Fucking Idiots, funny-ass shit, society, tv

The newest version of this great drum machine for the PSP has been released.

From their homesite;

"With the release of version 4.0 a Bass Line synthesizer similar to a Roland TB-303 has been added to make this the most versatile homebrew drum machine for the PSP. TB-303 style features such as Accent and Slide are available, along with the real-time control of the Cutoff and Resonance you can get that authentic "Acid" sound that made the TB-303 Bass Line Synthesizer so famous.

"Version 5.0 adds Real Time Audio Effects. Included effects are: Distortion, Slicer, Filter, Delay and Monophonic Sample Mode. Effects assist in creating new and unique sounds. They assist you in getting the most out of your samples and the bass line synthesizer. With effects, Rhythm goes beyond a typical drum machine and is now a well rounded production suite."

Haven't tried it, yet, but I already know I'm gonna love it. Download it from the above link.


By the way, if you want to keep playing great programs like this on your PSP, DON'T UPGRADE YOUR FIRMWARE!!!! EVER!!! 2.7 has been realeased in Japan, and reportedly knocks out homebrew capability.

I made the mistake of upgrading to 2.6, enabling features, I've yet to make use of. I can still play homebrew on it, but it's a hassle having to wait for GTA: LIberty City Stories to load before I can do anything. Firmware 2.0 is optimal in my opinion, as it allows GTA to play as well as loading homebrew from the memory stick instead of the UMD. More info here. Many will find 1.5 better as it allows for pirated ISOs (not my thing, but if I could, I probably would) and there's a prog that will load 2.X firmware games on 1.5 PSPs.

Labels: Awesome, fun, music making, possibilities for creative expression, PSP, PSP Rhythm

Man, this guy is good. Dokaka is an a cappella-ist somewhat in the vein of Bobby McFerrin (but more of a metalhead) and that guy from the Police Academy flicks who did the special FX with his voice. I'd heard a little of his stuff in a preview for We Love Katamari, from a Playstation Underground magazine/disc, a little while back. Didn't blow me away, but I thought it was interesting. I did want to get the game, though.
The other day, I caught a small article about him in the latest issue of Wired, which I subscribe to (only ten bucks), and thought I'd check out his website. I downloaded a bunch of music, listened to some of it and was like "Holy shit!!!, This guy's fucking great!!! And he is, too. And there's a lot of music at his site. I haven't finished listening, yet.
I think every song of the week in April is gonna be a multi-track a cappella production. Obviously, they won't match the blinding brilliance that is Dokaka, but it does offer me a different way of approaching music for a little bit.

February 23rd, 2008 - there is no longer the huge collection of music that was on his site before, though, there are a couple of songs for purchase. More samples and video can be found on his MySpace.

Also playing in my PSP...

My Only Alibi (four song demo) - A guy I know at work is the lead guitarist for this band. I'm not a huge fan of emo (I think that's what this is), but all of these songs are rock solid. From the songwriting to arrangements and the musicianship. It's a little annoying to know someone about half my age who's this good, even if it's not unusual to find better musicians than myself.

Wendy And Lisa - Lolly Lolly and Are You My Baby from their 1989 CD, Fruit At The Bottom. I need to cut out the album intro from the beginning of Lolly, but otherwise I've always dug these two songs. Are You My Baby is sorta Camille/Prince in voice and production, though maby not much so, lyrically. My first two CDs were this and Living Colour's Vivid (both purchased simultaneously).

Still playing; GTA: Liberty City Stories, Donkey Kong Country, Metal Slug 2, K.E.T.M. and playing with PSPRhythm. Sony's apparently working on a PSOne emulator for the PSP so they can sell Playstation 1 games that work right off the memory stick. That sounds great, but if it comes at the cost of playing the games and programs I just mentioned (except GTA, which is safe), then I won't be participating in the inevitable firmware upgrade. The lure of being able to play Jumping Flash again, though...

Watching Romance Of The Three Kingdoms (up to "episode" 9 of 58, now).

Reading The Smiling Proud Wanderer (still on chapter one, I think), by Jin Yong (Louis Cha). Translated by Lanny Lin.

Labels: Awesome, fun, music, possibilities for creative expression, PS2, video games, wu-xia

From Youtube.com, if you have a problem seeing it here. Found via FeroxLog, who has a downloadable wmv link in this post.

Enjoy.

Labels: Awesome, funny-ass shit, religion, youtube

I tuned in last night to Joe Scarborough's MSNBC show last night to watch my favorite radio talk show host, Lionel. I got home about quarter after the show began, but didn't miss anything. Lionel's appearance wasn't until the last ten minutes or so, and while somewhat amusing, not a big deal. He was doing it during his show, and it was interesting to hear the same exchanges from the other side when I listened to the podcast of last night's radio show, this morning, on the way to work.

An unexpected bonus was seeing one of my favorite bloggers, Grady Hendrix of Kaiju Shakedown on the show to "discuss" some ridiculous Turkish film which includes "Big Hollywood Stars", Gary Busey and Billy Zane cast as unsimpathetic Americans during the war in Iraq, or something. Busey is (from accounts) a Jewish doctor who harvests the organs of Iraqi casualties. Funny. He doesn't look Jewish. He kinda looks like Nick Nolte's mugshot, if Nolte would open his mouth a little bit and breath through it.

Anyway, it wasn't pretty. Hendrix was pit against that guy from The Catholic League whom you may've seen on other shows like this, and he (William Donohue) was in mad dog form. Hendrix managed to keep his wits about him, kinda, but the exchange and Scarborough's douchebaggery reminded me why I don't normally watch this crap. Not every day, anyway. You know, sometimes.

Click here to read Mr. Hendrix's account of the behind the scenes goings on at Scarborough Country. There's also a link to the video, if you scroll down on that page.

January 14th, 2008 - Those links are dead. Fortunately, I emailed the text to a friend which I still have, so here it is. Not the video, though.
---------------------------------------------------------

WHERE'S MY COOKIE?

They told me there’d be cookies. That’s what the producers promised me. “Oh, you’re in Media 3? We’ve got great cookies there.” But when I showed up what did I find? Three lone chocolate cjhip cookies on a paper plate sitting at the reception desk like something left out for Santa Claus. With only three cookies I couldn’t bring myself to take one, it would be like taking the last piece of cake. These cookies weren’t a yummy treat. These cookies were a trap for the unwary. Sort of like the show itself.

When a producer called me on Thursday morning and asked me to be on MSNBC’s “Scarborough Country” that night I figured “why not?” I’m a relentless whore for attention and the glamour of being on television has seduced weaker minds than mine. There was no pay involved but they would send a car to pick me up and bring me home like I was some kind of high-class call girl.

The segment was about a new Turkish movie, VALLEY OF THE WOLVES: IRAQ which is basically a Turkish Rambo where the bad guys are the Americans in Iraq, played by Gary Busey and Billy Zane. Zane plays an evil US soldier who sounds like a Christian version of Ron O’Neal’s Colonel Bella in RED DAWN. Gary Busey plays a doctor at Abu Ghraib listed on the movie’s official website as “a Jew” who harvests organs from dead Iraqis and sells them on the black market. For Busey this is a step up from his role in last year’s GINGERDEAD MAN and for Zane, well after he slapped around Kate Winslett in TITANIC doesn’t everyone think he’s evil anyways?

The day was spent being fattened up like a lamb for the slaughter. A producer called and told me that host Chuck Scarborough “responds well to facts” and that the other guest was going to be William Donahue, president of the Catholic League. The make-up woman told me my skin was very well moisturized and problem-free.

“Ooh,” she cooed. “It’s so rare to find a gentleman who is comfortable with skin care.”

While I waited I called every number in my cell phone to calm my nerves but no one was home, not even my mother. Actually I did talk to two of my sisters but I’m not sure it helped. I love my sisters but they’re way too smart for their own good.

“Keep your mouth closed so you don’t look like stupid,” said one. “Don’t touch your face or clear your throat. It’s called ‘respiratory avoidance’ and it makes it look like you’re lying.”

Great. Respiratory avoidance. Another thing to worry about. My other sister was even more encouraging. “Either it’s going to be really funny, or else you’re going to get destroyed on national TV. I can’t wait!”

I don’t have cable, not because I’m smart but because I would never get anything done if I had easy access to the Home Shopping Network, so sitting in the bathroom-sized lounge while I waited to go on the air was the first chance I had to see the show.

The host, Joe Scarborough, was talking about the Murder in Massachusetts but it wasn’t his intensity or his “power fingers” that riveted me, it was his vast, immobile forehead. How much willpower does it take to keep one’s forehead completely motionless? Was it Botox? An ancient martial arts technique? I still don’t know, but I do know that Joe Scarborough will never be trapped inside a burning building because he can always batter his way to safety with his mighty forehead.

The talking heads would finish their segments and then come back to the teeny weeny little lounge to get their coats. On TV they were all bug-eyes and weird teeth like some race of earnest goblins, but in person they looked completely normal. The camera was like a funhouse lens twisting their faces into caricatures. At that point I knew my goose was cooked since my face is already twisted into a caricature. To have it further distorted on TV would be like pouring gasoline on a roaring bonfire.

Before I could panic a producer bustled in and took me to a tiny broom closet. There were a few lights clipped to the ceiling and a pull-down backdrop of New York behind me. There wasn’t even a camera, just a lens on the wall. A long, dildo-like earpiece, covered in alcohol, was inserted into my right ear; an experience akin to getting a Wet Willie that just won’t stop. William Donahue was down the hall in another broom closet, and Joe Scarborough was in Washington DC presumably in a broom closet of his very own.

“Look into the lens,” the producer said. “Don't ever look away from the lens. And try not to let them bulldoze you.” And then I was shut in. My only connection to the show was the Wet Willie, which was barking instructions at me: “Don’t look away from the lens. Sit up!” In the background I could hear Scarborough’s voice talking about anti-American extremists and that’s when I realized what I was: the designated extremist.

Suddenly he was talking to me. Between not slouching, trying to keep my hands away from my face, avoiding clearing my throat and staring directly into the lens I barely heard what he was saying. But it was exactly what I had figured: they were out to crucify Gary Busey and Billy Zane. They “had a problem” with Zane and Busey’s career choices. I’m sure Gary Busey’s agent can empathize.

The first thing I said was that as a patriotic American I believed in freedom of speech and of association and that these guys could do whatever they wanted as long as it wasn’t illegal even if I didn’t agree with it. Then Bill Donohue launched into a tirade and I interrupted him.

“I think it’s important for the viewers to know that none of us have actually seen this movie,” I said.

“Shut up, pal,” Donohue snarled. Then he said that most actors would sodomize their mothers to get a paycheck. Trust the Catholic to bring up sodomy right off the bat, the less charitable side of my nature thought. Then they sprung the trap. The movie was anti-Semitic. How could I defend anti-Semites?

To hear William Donahue, the man who had appeared on this very same show a while back to say, “Hollywood is controlled by secular Jews who hate Christianity in general and Catholicism in particular,” getting upset about anti-Semitism was like getting punched so hard by Superman that I had ripped through the fabric of space and time and landed in Bizarro World. My wife is Jewish and if she’s representative of Jews in general, I think they’re more than capable of defending themselves.

Then Scarborough brought the end game. “So you’re telling me that if Errol Flynn made a movie in the 30’s that was pro-Nazi you wouldn’t have a problem with that?” Nazis are to debate what the atom bomb was to World War II: the end. When Nazism comes up in a conversation a bell should ding and everybody should be allowed to go home. If the only way to defend your position is to resort to the Nazi analogy then you need to accept that you can't actually defend your position.

But I failed. I was weak. I answered him. “No, I wouldn’t. I think he has a right to do what he wants no matter how objectionable I find it.” Then Scarborough said it. The other conversation killer. “Whatever.” I was stunned. This was a political debate and he had just said “Whatever”? The word that makes parents see red. The word that is the conversational nuclear option for tweens?

“Whatever? What are you guys?” I asked “A couple of teenage girls?” I began to laugh and threw the “whatever” W but the camera had cut away and the conversation was over. I would like to take this moment to apologize to teenage girls. I know teenage girls and Donahue and Scarborough are no teenage girls. The producer dashed into the room, “That was great, that was great,” she said, sponging blood from the walls. “Look, you should know that Bill Donohue is in these same offices so you might run into him. I’m just warning you.”

I scrammed. A friend called my cell phone and as we chatted the elevator door opened and I was confronted with an impassable wall of garbage. Bill Donahue sprung up behind me and I froze.

“That’s the service elevator,” he said. “The one you want is around the corner.”

I hung up and went and waited for the elevator with him.

“That was fun,” I told him. “Next time they should just dig a pit and let us wrestle for it.” He laughed and shook my hand.

“Usually I’m the one they tell to shut up. I almost never have to tell the other guy to shut up. You just have to start yelling and get in there first.”

And then we had a very nice elevator ride, both of us pumped up on adrenaline and laughing and chatting. And I have to say that he was a very decent fellow, offering some tips and saying that he thought it went well. And that’s when I realized: this was professional wrestling. Public discourse has become a sport where everyone takes on a personality and acts outrageously because they want to be invited back. It wasn’t about debating the topics, it was about making yourself the best guest possible.

Who knows if Bill Donahue believes the things he says? But they’re good TV and that’s why he says them. Even if he responds to this post who knows if it’s how he really feels or if he’s merely maintaining his public image? And realizing this makes me depressed. It depresses me for the same reason the “Would you have a problem with Errol Flynn in a pro-Nazi movie” question depresses me.

What do they mean “would I have a problem”? Would I lose sleep over it? I don’t know. Henry Ford and Charles Lindbergh were both Nazi sympathizers and I don’t stay awake at night because I’m tormented by that thought. I find Nazi-ism reprehensible, but if “having a problem” means that I have to accuse Errol Flynn of incestual sodomy and scream about his career choices then no, I don’t have a problem. An individual vocally condemning racism, or any of the other isms, is making a meaningless gesture. Racism is something you choose not to paricipate in, or you choose not to encourage, it's not something you dust off your soapbox and stand on to denounce. That's like proclaiming that ice cream is yummy: it's a "duh" argument. It makes you feel righteous and gives you the illusion of being moral, but it doesn't accomplish the American ideal of bringing people together despite their differences. So within the context of the show I didn't have “a problem" with Errol Flynn in a pro-Nazi movie because "having a problem" is meaningless. That's like asking someone if they'd “have a problem" with someone who killed their parents. Of course they would, but there are people who seek to forgive those who've done them harm and engage them in a dialogue despite their personal pain and I find those individuals far more worthy of praise and far more admirable than people who begin and end with "having a problem".

But because I don’t “have a problem” I’m the one with a problem. It means I’ll never be invited back to “Scarborough Country”. And if I never get invited back, I’ll never get my cookie.

Labels: Awesome, blogs, dead links, funny-ass shit, Islam, movies, Truth, tv, World Affairs

Check it out...


Thanks: James Hudnall

Labels: Awesome, dead links, funny-ass shit, Korean

Here's episode one of the 1970's Japanese Spiderman series that I've mentioned before. This one has occasionally jokey English subtitles that, while not funny, doesn't interrupt the fun of what you're seeing. If I'm doing this right, you'll be able to play it from this post. If not, click on the title above to go to the youtube.com page that hosts it.
Thanks to Kaiju Shakedown.

January 18th, 2008 - The original video was deleted, so I've instead embedded the opening credits above.

Labels: Awesome, comics, dead links, funny-ass shit, japanese, kung fu, tv, youtube

Found out about this on Newsarama. TCM (Turner Classic Movies) are playing a bunch of films by Hayao Miyazaki every Thursday in January, starting tomorrow. His 65th birthday.

Happy Birthday, Miyazaki-Sensei!!!!

The schedule is as follows;


January 5
8:00 p.m. Spirited Away (2002) – English Dub
10:15 p.m. Princess Mononoke (1997) - English Dub
1:00 a.m. Spirited Away (2002) – Subtitled
3:15 a.m. Princess Mononoke (1997) Subtitled

January 12
8:00 p.m. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind (1984) – Dub
10:00 p.m. Castle In The Sky (1986) – Dub
12:15 a.m. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind (1984) – Subtitled
2:15 a.m. Castle In The Sky (1986) – Subtitled

January 19
8:00 p.m. My Neighbor Totoro (1988) – Dub
9:30 p.m. Porco Rosso (1992) – Dub
11:15 p.m. Whisper of the Heart (1995) – Dub
1:15 a.m. My Neighbor Totoro (1988) Subtitled
2:45 a.m. Porco Rosso (1992) – Subtitled
4:30 a.m. Whisper of the Heart – Subtitled

January 26
8:00 p.m. Only Yesterday (1991) - Dub
10:15 p.m. Pom Poko (1994) - Dub
12:30 a.m. Only Yesterday (1991) – Subtitled
2:45 a.m. Pom Poko (1994) – Subtitled.

I don't have that cable channel. Matter of fact I don't have most cable channels, but I have seen most of the above films save Pom Poko, which I'll eventually get on DVD. Pom Poko, Whisper Of The Heart and Only Yesterday are Ghibli films not directed by Miyazaki, though Whisper contains his input via character designs and whatnot.

My Neighbor Totoro is the greatest movie ever. If you haven't seen it, YOU MUST!!! I recommend the others as well, though I'm not as crazy about Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke as lots of other people are. I thoroughly enjoyed Howl's Moving Castle, though. That one is not being broadcast this month, but should appear on DVD on March 7th along with Totoro and Whisper Of The Heart.

Labels: Anime, Awesome, Heroes, movies, tv

This entry originally linked to a Kaiju Shakedown article that isn't there anymore (and I didn't quote from it - stupid), so I'm gonna connect it to this other blog that was probably referenced in the former.

Shamelessly swiped from DanWei;

In defence of Beijing's dirty words

Labels: Awesome, blogs, China, civil rights, dead links, funny-ass shit, World Affairs

Got the PSP. I got the money for Christmas, but I had to endure the mall yesterday to pick the bad boy up. Even though one can find *relatively* okay prices for 2 GB memory sticks at Amazon and elsewhere, I couldn't wait so I bought a 1GB memory stick for $99. Also bought GTA: Liberty City Stories, perhaps the only game I will need for a while. I never finished GTA 3, but playing this game for a few minutes, driving around made me feel like I'd returned to a familiar neighborhood.

I converted some videos using this tutorial. Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex episodes 9 and 10, Macross Zero 1 and 2, trailers for Mission Impossible 3 and Exodus. Two videos by Bloc Party; Banquet and Helicopter, one by Sevendust; Ugly and some PSP ready trailers from CPM.

I transferred music from Bloc Party, Prince (unreleased out-takes), Damien Marley, Best Of Kool And The Gang 1969-1976 did not go through probably due to the memory being full (this is for all intents and purposes NOT THE SAME BAND who gave us songs like Misled, Victory and other crap from the eighties) and this possibly brilliant cat named Nadir whom I first heard on Adam Curry's podcast the other day. Check out his song Slave on his website.

Also read an article about reading manga on the PSP. Tried it with MPD Psycho and so far I'm not impressed. I may need to be more familiar with navigating through graphics, but so far I don't like it. I do like being able to transfer text to jpegs (same article just mentioned) so that I can take lengthier articles with me when necessary.

All in all, this is gonna be a fun toy to play with.

Labels: Anime, Awesome, downloads, fun, holidays, music, PSP, video games

We Love The Chroni- (What?) cles Of Narnia!
Yes! The Chroni- (What?) cles Of Narnia!
We Love The Chroni- (What?) cles Of Narnia!
Pass That Chroni- (What?) cles Of Narnia!

The song's actually called Lazy Sunday and it's an SNL short. Watch it here. I've already watched it 4 times. Damn.

Found via GarageSpin. They've also got a link to the lyrics.

Disclaimer: I haven't heard much hip-hop this year.

Labels: Awesome, dead links,