Saturday, February 26, 2011
Quads over Quads
Been waiting for months to see this video when I heard this happened. Fundamentally played wrong by Toby Lewis with his raise on the flop but he was very lucky Robl flopped a boat. Timoshenko's face says it all.
Kanye West - All Of The Lights ft. Rihanna, Kid Cudi
For whatever you think of Kanye West, the guy is pretty talented. Not a fan of all his stuff and their are definetly better MC's out there but his production skills are top notch and kudos once again to Rihanna who may be the best pop singer out there. She is popping up on every hit song these days whether being off her latest album or singing the chorus on many Kanye, Jay-Z or Eminem song.
Also, apparently if you suffer from epilipsy you should not watch this video.
Chris Medina - What are Words
Chris Medina just seems like the coolest guy. For those who watch Idol you know the story. I won't rehash it here as Jay goes into the story during the interview portion. Kudos to Rodney Jerkins for writing a beautiful song which seems to me to have been written based on Chris's story. Really good song and performance. All proceeds go towards the Juliana Recovery fund.
Friday, February 25, 2011
2011 Oscar Picks
Best Picture - The King's Speech
Best Actor - Colin Firth (Kings Speech)
Best Supporting Actor - Christian Bale (The Fighter)
Best Actress - Natalie Portman (Black Swan)
Best Supporting Actress - Melissa Leo (The Fighter)
Best Foreign Language Film - Biutiful
Best Director - Tom Hooper (Kings Speech)
Best Animated Feature Film - Toy Story 3
Cinematography - Wally Pfister (Inception)
Art Direction - Robert Stromberg (Production Design); Karen O'Hara (Set Decoration) (Alice in Wonderland)
Costume Design - Colleen Atwood (Alice in Wonderland)
Documentary Feature - Inside Job
Documentary Short Subject - Strangers No More
Film Editing - Angus Wall and Kirk Baxter (The Social Network)
Makeup - Rick Baker and Dave Elsey (The Wolfman)
Music Original Score - Alexandre Desplat (The Kings Speech)
Music Original Song - "If I Rise" Music by A.R. Rahman; Lyric by Dido and Rollo Armstrong (127 Hours)
Short Film Animated - Day & Night
Short Film Live Action - Na Wewe
Sound Editing - Richard King (Inception)
Sound Mixing - Lora Hirschberg, Gary A. Rizzo and Ed Novick (Inception)
Visual Effects - Paul Franklin, Chris Corbould, Andrew Lockley and Peter Bebb (Inception)
Writing Adapted Screenplay - Aaron Sorkin (The Social Network)
Writing Original Screenplay - David Seidler(The Kings Speech)
Best Actor - Colin Firth (Kings Speech)
Best Supporting Actor - Christian Bale (The Fighter)
Best Actress - Natalie Portman (Black Swan)
Best Supporting Actress - Melissa Leo (The Fighter)
Best Foreign Language Film - Biutiful
Best Director - Tom Hooper (Kings Speech)
Best Animated Feature Film - Toy Story 3
Cinematography - Wally Pfister (Inception)
Art Direction - Robert Stromberg (Production Design); Karen O'Hara (Set Decoration) (Alice in Wonderland)
Costume Design - Colleen Atwood (Alice in Wonderland)
Documentary Feature - Inside Job
Documentary Short Subject - Strangers No More
Film Editing - Angus Wall and Kirk Baxter (The Social Network)
Makeup - Rick Baker and Dave Elsey (The Wolfman)
Music Original Score - Alexandre Desplat (The Kings Speech)
Music Original Song - "If I Rise" Music by A.R. Rahman; Lyric by Dido and Rollo Armstrong (127 Hours)
Short Film Animated - Day & Night
Short Film Live Action - Na Wewe
Sound Editing - Richard King (Inception)
Sound Mixing - Lora Hirschberg, Gary A. Rizzo and Ed Novick (Inception)
Visual Effects - Paul Franklin, Chris Corbould, Andrew Lockley and Peter Bebb (Inception)
Writing Adapted Screenplay - Aaron Sorkin (The Social Network)
Writing Original Screenplay - David Seidler(The Kings Speech)
HP CEO Doomed?
Very interesting blog post today by Robert Cringely. I think he makes some good points about the current state of Leo Apotheker and the fact that Meg whitman is on the board and probably looking for a real job.
http://www.cringely.com/2011/02/why-leo-apotheker-will-be-fired-from-hewlett-packard/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+ICringely+(I,+Cringely)
http://www.cringely.com/2011/02/why-leo-apotheker-will-be-fired-from-hewlett-packard/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+ICringely+(I,+Cringely)
Thursday, February 24, 2011
It's the Inequality, Stupid
Absolutely stunning charts about the gap between the rich and the poor. The fact that the tax cuts didn't pass in December is a disgrace. We need to raise the tax on the rich back up to Clinton era percentages of 39% (only a 3% increase) and raise the corporate tax or at best eliminate loopholes that allow fortune 500 companies to pay very little in taxes.
http://motherjones.com/politics/2011/02/income-inequality-in-america-chart-graph
http://motherjones.com/politics/2011/02/income-inequality-in-america-chart-graph
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Bright Eyes - "Shell Games" Video
A few weeks back I posted the song, now comes the video. The album, the "People's Key" is really good and an improvement off their last record "Cassadega." Still not as good as I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning which is a classic album but still very good.
Two Handed Bowler
As a bowler, I can't tell you how hard this is to actually do. Would be hard to switch to this for a conventional bowler as I am. Kid might have some back issues down the road but more power to him. Watch the vid.
http://rivals.yahoo.com/highschool/blog/prep_rally/post/Two-handed-bowler-wows-way-to-state-title-with-w?urn=highschool-324437
http://rivals.yahoo.com/highschool/blog/prep_rally/post/Two-handed-bowler-wows-way-to-state-title-with-w?urn=highschool-324437
Grow a pair Mr. President
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/sc-dc-0224-gay-marriage-20110223,0,5596955.story
Read this article a few times today to try and make sure I understood it. Even asked Two Clubs to verify my understanding and I was right in my understanding. Basically Obama is not going to do anything even though he thinks the law is unconstitutional. He will let the courts decide which means eventually it will get up to the Supreme Court and they will overturn or support the legislation. We know which way this will go with them voting 5-4 to ban gay marriage. The court is so political these days and they will vote down party lines with Justice Kennedy more than likely being the swing vote. The article continues to state that Obama is struggling with this issue. I have no doubt that he supports gay marriage but politically it may hurt him to be up front and support overturning this unconstitutional law. Well I call bull shit. Stand up for what is right and give them the right to marry just as you recently did by appealing don't ask don't tell. This is blatant discrimination and needs to end now.
Maybe Obama is really the Manchurian Candidate as Two Clubs stated in his post. He is siding with the conservative view point in my opinion by not trying to overturn this ban.
Read this article a few times today to try and make sure I understood it. Even asked Two Clubs to verify my understanding and I was right in my understanding. Basically Obama is not going to do anything even though he thinks the law is unconstitutional. He will let the courts decide which means eventually it will get up to the Supreme Court and they will overturn or support the legislation. We know which way this will go with them voting 5-4 to ban gay marriage. The court is so political these days and they will vote down party lines with Justice Kennedy more than likely being the swing vote. The article continues to state that Obama is struggling with this issue. I have no doubt that he supports gay marriage but politically it may hurt him to be up front and support overturning this unconstitutional law. Well I call bull shit. Stand up for what is right and give them the right to marry just as you recently did by appealing don't ask don't tell. This is blatant discrimination and needs to end now.
Maybe Obama is really the Manchurian Candidate as Two Clubs stated in his post. He is siding with the conservative view point in my opinion by not trying to overturn this ban.
Just a zip code and your name
http://abcnews.go.com/Business/register-web-dangers-profiling/story?id=12944608
Something to think about next time a store asks for your zip code.
Something to think about next time a store asks for your zip code.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
The Manchurian Candidate - Barak Hussein Obama Style
Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Two Clubs, a friend of mine who is much more eloquent and articulate in expressing his thoughts than I am. This post came about a conversation we were having as we do frequently about the President. I mentioned that my mother always said President Obama is the Manchurian Candidate. Two Clubs agreed but for different reasons. I asked him to write a blog post and he agreed to write one. Here it is.
The Manchurian Candidate, written by Richard Condon in 1959, is a great piece of pulp fiction. Originally set in the post-Korean War era, this taught political thriller establishes the idea of a foreign government using a brainwashed individual as an unaware political assassin. The story is slick and compelling. To a culture that is deeply paranoid, with delusions of the world being against them, this was a can’t miss concept. So well received was the concept that Hollywood made two films based on the book and the premise was accepted into the common lexicon for conspiracy buffs everywhere. The idea of an unaware sleeper agent being used as a political assassin has been a common narrative since the book was first published. But what if The Manchurian Candidate was real? What if, instead of the candidate being brainwashed, it was the common man who were brainwashed and the system was the one targeted for assassination?
Fast forward almost 50 years, to the 2008 United States presidential election. Front and center was a fresh young face, challenging an associate of the old guard for the Democratic Party nomination. Barak Hussein Obama was a progressive’s dream. A mixed-race community organizer, who worked his way from nothing to something. A man with a sharp intellect and a gift of oratory that would make Dale Carnegie blush, Obama was building a machine that would carry him to the top of the Democratic ticket.
During the 2008 presidential election campaign cycle Obama tapped into the hearts and minds of progressives and conservatives alike. He spoke eloquently of the once greatness of America, reminding us all of what the United States can do when we put our collective might to task. He spoke of how he was going to take America back to a time when we met challenges head on and were world leaders at all we tried. He hinted at a new New Deal, sending progressives into a tizzy and hoping for the future. Obama spoke of the needs of the nation, especially the poor, and how a national health care program was not just a desire for many, but a necessity for much of the nation. He spoke of renewal and rebuilding the crumbling infrastructure of a once proud nation. He pointed to a new green economy that would bring new high paying jobs and make America a leader again. Obama saw the same challenges that most Americans were experiencing and was willing to speak to the issues in a way that made the voters believe a politician was on the same page as them. He tapped into the pain and suffering that Americans were feeling and used that as his platform for election. Progressives and liberals believed in his rhetoric and flocked to the polls, giving Obama a convincing victory and what was supposed to be a mandate for change.
Change, the Obama campaign slogan, took little time to kick in. Almost as soon as he was sworn in the planning that pushed him past the Clinton machine began to fade. He continued to say the right things, giving progressives hope, but his actions began to show his hand. The liberals, hoping for a reincarnation of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, were left with mouths agape as Barack Obama transformed into Ronald Reagan. The only thing missing was the Brylcreem-infused pompadour and a case of dementia. All of a sudden the new president developed a love for the free market and tax cut for the wealthy friendly. Obama’s major accomplishments have all leaned in a particular direction, usually right toward banks or big business.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, while having some tax breaks for the middle class, was a wad of free cash for any business that had a government contract in place waiting for appropriations to take place. This was not a long term solution to any problem, but a quick PR rouse to cover the movement of money out of the government coffers and into the pockets of business.
The Making Home Affordable plan was a colossal failure. The banks got a whack of cash and the little guy lost their homes. All that money put out there for loans to keep people in their homes was used in other vehicles and the foreclosures continued, unabated.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act has been a boondoggle of epic proportions. The whole issue was supposed to be about providing health care services to 42 million Americans who do without. Instead of an actual discussion about the issues that are hurting health care provision and driving up the costs, it instead turned into a debate about insurance; how to and who would provide this insurance. Lost was the escalating costs and the broken system. Found was the way to funnel more money to the profit centric insurance industry.
Bush era tax cuts were identified during the campaign as target for progressives. Obama promised to eliminate these tax cuts and develop a more equitable system. When the chance to drive the final nail into the heart of the tax cuts came along, Obama blinked and instead agreed to extend the cuts for another two years, at a cost of $400 billion a year. At a time when the country is staring a record debt in the face the president gave in on Republican demands for an extension of unneeded benefits to the top 1% of Americans. This isn’t adding more to our debt, this tax cut is transferring wealth from the poor to the rich. Make no mistake, this money will be paid for. Unfortunately it will be paid for by your children, your grand children and great grand children.
At the very same time of extending Bush tax cuts, Obama promised to invest heavily in education, to meet the “sputnik moment” of this generation. In the first year he attempted to do that, but in the subsequent years all of that good will was washed away as spending cuts to education have been made on the backs of students. It will be ever increasingly difficult to respond to the “sputnik moment” when graduate students, those egg-heads who develop new technology and cure diseases, can’t afford to complete their education thanks to the reduction in Pell grants.
These are just a few examples of the outcomes of Obama “wins”. This is why I question his identity. Barak Obama masterfully campaigned as a Democrat but in reality is a Reagan Republican. He is an intelligent fellow, without doubt, so there is no way possible that he can say his negotiating tactics are representative of his intellect. No one with a brain and a left leaning agenda starts negotiations on the Republican side of every issue. There is no reason a progressive would give on these important issues when you have a majority in both the House and Senate. There is no reason to drag out important legislation when you can ram it home, like Republican presidents have done in the past. There is no reason to turn your back on the base that got you elected and could easily re-elect you in 2012. There is no reason, unless you are The Manchurian Candidate for the Republican party and are out to kill the Democratic party and all progressive movements in the United States.
The Manchurian Candidate, written by Richard Condon in 1959, is a great piece of pulp fiction. Originally set in the post-Korean War era, this taught political thriller establishes the idea of a foreign government using a brainwashed individual as an unaware political assassin. The story is slick and compelling. To a culture that is deeply paranoid, with delusions of the world being against them, this was a can’t miss concept. So well received was the concept that Hollywood made two films based on the book and the premise was accepted into the common lexicon for conspiracy buffs everywhere. The idea of an unaware sleeper agent being used as a political assassin has been a common narrative since the book was first published. But what if The Manchurian Candidate was real? What if, instead of the candidate being brainwashed, it was the common man who were brainwashed and the system was the one targeted for assassination?
Fast forward almost 50 years, to the 2008 United States presidential election. Front and center was a fresh young face, challenging an associate of the old guard for the Democratic Party nomination. Barak Hussein Obama was a progressive’s dream. A mixed-race community organizer, who worked his way from nothing to something. A man with a sharp intellect and a gift of oratory that would make Dale Carnegie blush, Obama was building a machine that would carry him to the top of the Democratic ticket.
During the 2008 presidential election campaign cycle Obama tapped into the hearts and minds of progressives and conservatives alike. He spoke eloquently of the once greatness of America, reminding us all of what the United States can do when we put our collective might to task. He spoke of how he was going to take America back to a time when we met challenges head on and were world leaders at all we tried. He hinted at a new New Deal, sending progressives into a tizzy and hoping for the future. Obama spoke of the needs of the nation, especially the poor, and how a national health care program was not just a desire for many, but a necessity for much of the nation. He spoke of renewal and rebuilding the crumbling infrastructure of a once proud nation. He pointed to a new green economy that would bring new high paying jobs and make America a leader again. Obama saw the same challenges that most Americans were experiencing and was willing to speak to the issues in a way that made the voters believe a politician was on the same page as them. He tapped into the pain and suffering that Americans were feeling and used that as his platform for election. Progressives and liberals believed in his rhetoric and flocked to the polls, giving Obama a convincing victory and what was supposed to be a mandate for change.
Change, the Obama campaign slogan, took little time to kick in. Almost as soon as he was sworn in the planning that pushed him past the Clinton machine began to fade. He continued to say the right things, giving progressives hope, but his actions began to show his hand. The liberals, hoping for a reincarnation of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, were left with mouths agape as Barack Obama transformed into Ronald Reagan. The only thing missing was the Brylcreem-infused pompadour and a case of dementia. All of a sudden the new president developed a love for the free market and tax cut for the wealthy friendly. Obama’s major accomplishments have all leaned in a particular direction, usually right toward banks or big business.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, while having some tax breaks for the middle class, was a wad of free cash for any business that had a government contract in place waiting for appropriations to take place. This was not a long term solution to any problem, but a quick PR rouse to cover the movement of money out of the government coffers and into the pockets of business.
The Making Home Affordable plan was a colossal failure. The banks got a whack of cash and the little guy lost their homes. All that money put out there for loans to keep people in their homes was used in other vehicles and the foreclosures continued, unabated.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act has been a boondoggle of epic proportions. The whole issue was supposed to be about providing health care services to 42 million Americans who do without. Instead of an actual discussion about the issues that are hurting health care provision and driving up the costs, it instead turned into a debate about insurance; how to and who would provide this insurance. Lost was the escalating costs and the broken system. Found was the way to funnel more money to the profit centric insurance industry.
Bush era tax cuts were identified during the campaign as target for progressives. Obama promised to eliminate these tax cuts and develop a more equitable system. When the chance to drive the final nail into the heart of the tax cuts came along, Obama blinked and instead agreed to extend the cuts for another two years, at a cost of $400 billion a year. At a time when the country is staring a record debt in the face the president gave in on Republican demands for an extension of unneeded benefits to the top 1% of Americans. This isn’t adding more to our debt, this tax cut is transferring wealth from the poor to the rich. Make no mistake, this money will be paid for. Unfortunately it will be paid for by your children, your grand children and great grand children.
At the very same time of extending Bush tax cuts, Obama promised to invest heavily in education, to meet the “sputnik moment” of this generation. In the first year he attempted to do that, but in the subsequent years all of that good will was washed away as spending cuts to education have been made on the backs of students. It will be ever increasingly difficult to respond to the “sputnik moment” when graduate students, those egg-heads who develop new technology and cure diseases, can’t afford to complete their education thanks to the reduction in Pell grants.
These are just a few examples of the outcomes of Obama “wins”. This is why I question his identity. Barak Obama masterfully campaigned as a Democrat but in reality is a Reagan Republican. He is an intelligent fellow, without doubt, so there is no way possible that he can say his negotiating tactics are representative of his intellect. No one with a brain and a left leaning agenda starts negotiations on the Republican side of every issue. There is no reason a progressive would give on these important issues when you have a majority in both the House and Senate. There is no reason to drag out important legislation when you can ram it home, like Republican presidents have done in the past. There is no reason to turn your back on the base that got you elected and could easily re-elect you in 2012. There is no reason, unless you are The Manchurian Candidate for the Republican party and are out to kill the Democratic party and all progressive movements in the United States.
Freakonomics
So the self proclaimed most loyal reader of this blog, the great BigHeeb91 informed me that the documentary Freakonimcs was released on Netflix. Having both books in my collection, I was eager to watch this. I started watching it on my iTouch as I downloaded the Netflix app and was streaming it at the airport. This was so cool and not bad watching on the small screen. I watched the first 40 minutes or so and then when I got home, fired up the xbox and picked up where I left off. Netflix is awesome.
Back to the documentary. It was well done having multiple segments written and directed by top documentarians such as Heidi Ewing, Alex Gibney (Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room), Seth Gordon (The King of Kong), Rachel Grady (Jesus Camp), Eugene Jarecki (The Trials of Henry Kissinger), Morgan Spurlock (Super size me). Stephen Levitt, the economist who co-wrote the books is a very smart man who has made some very controversial theories regarding social issues and economics. One of his most and one of my favorite is the linkage of Roe v Wade to the reduction in crime. The basis of the hypothesis is since abortion became legal, there were thousands of kids not born who would otherwise be unwanted and not have great childhoods which would in a lot of cases lead to a life of crime. This is not the only reason for the reduction in crime since 1989 but contributed to it according to Levitt.
Overall very well done. I recommend viewing it but first read the books!
Friday, February 18, 2011
HP TouchPad
Some good points made about the HP Touchpad.
http://scobleizer.com/2011/02/09/hp-makes-google-look-even-more-creaky/
My biggest complaint and this goes for everyone is the fact that vendors show us new devices and then six months later they are released. Don't show me something unless I can buy it within a month. This is slick looking and may become a player but by the time it is released the iPad 2 will be out and the rumor is possibly a iPad 3 by fall and without a killer app, this could be forgotten. As Scoble states all the time, "It is about the Apps!"
Adele - "Someone Like You" Live at the Brits
Man, does anyone out there right now sing any better! Album drops stateside on Tuesday and I'll be at Best Buy to buy it!
Radiohead - Lotus Flower
New album is released Saturday via their website. Gotta give them credit on sticking to their guns and not going through a record label for distribution of their work. Of course only a band of their magnitude can really do this and be successful at it.
I will sneak myself into your pocket
Invisible, do what you want, do what you want
I will sink and I will disappear
I will slip into the groove and cut me up and cut me up
There's an empty space inside my heart
Where the wings take root
So now I'll set you free
I'll set you free
There's an empty space inside my heart
And it won't take root
Tonight I'll set you free
I'll set you free
Slowly we unfurl
As lotus flowers
And all I want is the moon upon a stick
Dancing around the pit
Just to see what it is
I can't kick the habit
Just to feed your fast ballooning head
Listen to your heart
We will sink and be quiet as mice
While the cat is away and do what we want
Do what we want
There's an empty space inside my heart
And now it won't take root
And now I set you free
I set you free
Because all I want is the moon upon a stick
Just to see what it is
Just to see what gives
Take the lotus flowers into my room
Slowly we unfurl
As lotus flowers
All I want is the moon upon a stick
Dance around a pit
The darkness is beneath
I can't kick the habit
Just to feed my fast ballooning head
Listen to your heart
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