Bernie's Basement Blog

Mitt Romney is out of touch

2012-02-01T22:32:00.002-05:00

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney made the comment to CNN that "I'm not concerned about the very poor." Soledad O'Brien asked Romney about the perception that he doesn't understand average Americans. Here's Romney's full quote.

"This is a time people are worried. They're frightened. They want someone who they have confidence in. And I believe I will be able to instill that confidence in the American people. And, by the way, I'm in this race because I care about Americans. I'm not concerned about the very poor. We have a safety net there. If it needs repair, I'll fix it."

Huh? He goes from reassuring to taking a potshot at poor people. But think about the other things he's said. Tried to bet former candidate Rick Perry, ten thousand dollars. Almost all Americans don't have that kind of money. Described concerns about the gap between wealthy and the middle income people as politics of "envy" to his "I like to fire people" even though he was referring to health insurance companies. These comments indicate he doesn't understand working people. MSNBC article.

Here's Ed Schultz's report.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Jon Stewart on Mitt Romney's company, Bain Capital

2012-02-01T22:20:00.002-05:00

Wondered what Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney's former company Bain Capital did? Here's Jon Stewart of the Daily Show's humorous take. Oh, just in case you want to know, he uses the term leveraged buyout. (LBO) Here's the wikipedia article for LBOs.

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The Politicians Pander

2012-02-01T22:04:00.005-05:00

You know it's an election year when you see the politicians pander. From Newt Gignrich's attempt to speak Spanish to Mitt Romney's saccharin, stiff version of America to President Obama promising a woman that he would look at her husband's resume, it's ass kissing time. Jon Stewart of the Daily Show has a funny take.

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Why "Hugo" should win Best Picture

2012-01-31T00:58:00.003-05:00

I've written that "The Artist" should not get the Oscar for Best Picture. I like that movie but Hugo is the better film. And of the nine nominees for Best Picture, it deserves the prize.

Hugo is innovative. The brilliant Martin Scorsese has directed a masterpiece. His vision of this film in 3-D has catapulted the 3-D medium to high art. And Hugo is no empty exercise in filmmaking. The movie has humor and heart. It's a loving valentine to the magic of movies. So Academy members, I urge you to vote for Hugo.

Why "The Artist" should not be Best Picture

2012-01-31T00:22:00.004-05:00

Three years ago, The Hurt Locker went up against Avatar for the Academy Award for Best Picture. And The Hurt Locker won. By the reaction of rabid Avatar fans, you would have thought Hurt Locker's director Kathryn Bigelow shot Avatar's director James Cameron. Yet, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences made the right decision.

So this year, why am I writing that, the nominated film, The Artist, should not win Best Picture? I mean I'll probably incur the wrath of The Artist fans just like the Avatar fans went after supporters of The Hurt Locker. First, I don't hate "The Artist." In fact, I rated it as one of the best films of 2011. Well, it's because the winner of the Best Picture Oscar must stand the test of time. While The Artist is passionate and entertaining, it's also conventional. We've seen the plot of this movie before with its story of the rise and fall of a silent film star. There's nothing new, bold or innovative about The Artist. So members of the Academy, please consider another film for Best Picture.

Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert on Newt Gingrich's debate attacks

2012-01-26T23:09:00.003-05:00

Last week at a South Carolina debate, Newt Gingrich demolished CNN moderator John King over a question about the allegation that Gingrich wanted an open marriage with his second wife. Well, Jon Stewart of the Daily Show called out Gingrich's hypocrisy and Stephen Colbert also had fun with it. Check out the funny videos below.

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog at the 2008 RNC

2012-01-23T02:22:00.004-05:00

Hey, it's a Presidential election year. And now that Newt Gingrich has won the South Carolina Republican Presidential primary, let's revisit Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog's report at the 2008 Republican National Convention. We run into some old friends such as Tim Pawlenty or TPAW and see Newt Gingrich. Plus get ready for some funny stuff from Anderson Cooper.

Part One

Link to Part One.

Part Two

Triumph the Insult Comic Dog visits RNC by jgillardi

Underworld: Awakening 3D Review

2012-01-22T14:08:00.009-05:00

Let me begin with the question of whether you should see Underworld: Awakening in 3D. I'm going to thank the directors Måns Mårlind and Björn Stein and whoever else for shooting this movie in 3-D. If you are going to release a film in 3-D, shoot it in 3-D. The result of shooting Underworld: Awakening was that the directors and director of photography were able to adjust the lighting for many of the dark scenes. You won't hear me complaining about this 3D movie being too dark.

But that being said, Underworld: Awakening 3-D effects are pedestrian. Yeah, I'm spoiled by Martin Scorsese's Hugo. Marlind and Stein just don't take full advantage of the medium. There's no emphasis on foreground and background. The CGI effects work though. That's just to say it is barely special in 3D. If you're a fan of the series, see this in 3D. If you don't care about the series, don't sweat the 3D version; feel free to see it in 2D.

Months after the events in Underworld: Evolution (2006), vampire Selene (Kate Beckinsale) finds that humans are hunting down Vampires and Lycans in the "Purge." While trying to rescue her lover Michael, she gets captured and frozen in cryogenic suspension at a biological research company called Antigen. Selene escapes and sees the visions by a little girl named Eve (India Eisley) who also escaped Antigen. She tracks down Eve and they flee to to a coven of Vampires. Selene and Eve find themselves hunted by Antigen.

It took four writers to compose the screenplay. They were Len Wiseman, John Hlavin
J. Michael Straczynski, and Allison Burnett. Yet the movie is only 88 minutes long. There's nothing in the story to make you root for anyone. For example, you will figure out who Eve is, long before Selene does. And there was no compassion among characters anywhere. I only felt sorry for Eve because she was a little girl. There were silly moments too. Seriously, humans defeating vampires? Feel free to comment on this but really. I mean vampires have that whole undead thing working. Plus they have superhuman strength. Then there was a "nuke the fridge" moment. A Lycan throws a elevator down a shaft at Selene. She fires her guns at the bottom of the elevator so when it hits her, the bottom of the elevator has been destroyed. Yeah, like that can happen with today's physics.

Måns Mårlind and Björn Stein's direction is also blunt and colorless like Selene's pale complexion. Hold on. It took two guys to direct this movie? It's only 88 minutes. Anyway, there's an attack by Selene on the Antigen headquarters. I'm thinking this could be a Matrix like moment. Instead, it's bland and unlike The Matrix, it lacks grace. And the Lycans move like fifties stop motion animation. Still, the movie wasn't boring just pedestrian.

Underworld: Awakening will please fans of the series, Twilight and vampire lovers. But it's nothing special, it's just a pleasant time waster. The grade is B minus.

Why Liberals Love Newt Gingrich

2012-01-21T19:58:00.005-05:00

As Newt Gingrich is winning the South Carolina Republican Presidential Primary, it's being reported by MSNBC that Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz is celebrating. One wonders why a liberal Democrat would celebrate the victory of a conservative Republican. Here's why.

It's clear that the Republican Party has moved so far right that it no longer represents a large portion of the population. Yes, they kicked ass in 2010. But that's because students and minorities don't vote in midterm elections. Once the conservative Republicans tried to cram down their right-wing policies, the populace arose in mighty democratic wave. Just ask Wisconsin governor Scott Walker who may get recalled and Ohio governor John Kasich who had an anti-union law passed only to see it repudiated.

Watching the GOP debates, one gets one thing from them. The Republicans are an angry and mean bunch. They've cheered for the death of an uninsured man, jeered a gay soldier and Fox News' Juan Williams for asking Newt Gingrich a question over his controversial remarks he made about African Americans and food stamps. Later, at a Gingrich event, a woman congratulated Gingrich for "putting" Williams in his place. I've previously argued that conservative Republicans have become racist.

Which brings us back to Newt Gingrich and his controversial remarks. In New Hampshire, Gingrich let this bomb fly that he would go to the NAACP and talk about "why the African-American community should demand paychecks and not be satisfied with food stamps." Of course Gingrich doesn't let the facts get in the way, since most people on food stamps are white.

So why is Gingrich so popular among Republicans? I agree he excellent in debates if you like a guy who's mean and attacks his political opponent as the enemy of America. But he reflects the racial views of the Republican Party. For example, California Orange County Republican Central Committee member, Marilyn Davenport sent an email with a picture of Obama's head on a chimp. South Carolina GOP activist Rusty DePass said First Lady Michelle Obama to an ancestor of an escaped gorilla. Comparing African Americans to apes is another old racist theme. Then there is Gingrich himself bringing up the image of African Americans as welfare queens. Prior the food stamps comment, Gingrich said that President Obama may follow a "Kenyan, anti-colonial" worldview. Forget the fact that Obama spent very little time in Kenya and that was to merely visit.

But it's not just the Republican racial views that may be repugnant to most Americans. Gingrich puts down GOP rival Mitt Romney as a "Massachusetts Moderate." This absolutely works in favor of getting the nomination. The party has got rid of its moderates. Gone are the Gerry Fords, Nelson Rockefellers and even Barry Goldwaters of the party. They are replaced by the fundamentalist Tea Party. While a majority want to see a progressive tax plan, the party refuses to budge on any tax increase on the extremely wealthy to cure the budget deficit. While most woman want to maintain the right to choose, there are now Republicans that demand no exceptions ot abortion along with their anti-abortion stand. And while thousands decry the greed of Wall Street, the Republican Party wants to go back to the deregulation of the George W. Bush years. And Newt Gingrich is the party's true believer.

So that's why liberals are loving the fact that Newt Gingrich may be the GOP Presidential nominee. The Republicans have a candidate who is as far right as they are. And farther right away from the great portion of the population that doesn't see life they way the Republicans do. Gingrich as the Republican candidate can only lead to the reelection of President Barack Obama.

Here is the most recent piece by Jon Stewart of the Daily Show on the GOP's Newt Gingrich.

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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Sex, Christians and Colbert

2012-01-19T04:06:00.003-05:00

Stephen Colbert did a very funny video on a Christian online dating service. And he also covered a story about a pastor who is urging his married flock to have sex for seven straight days. Check it out.

The Colbert Report
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How a Super PAC can get around the no coordination rule

2012-01-19T03:48:00.003-05:00

I questioned whether possible Presidential candidate Stephen Colbert was coordinating with his Super PAC. You see Colbert urged South Carolina primary voters to cast a vote for Herman Cain as a proxy for Colbert. Colbert's Super PAC ran an ad endorsing that idea. And no coordination is allowed under the law.

Well, I stand corrected. Colbert teaches another lesson. He says a Super PAC can notify the candidate of what it's going to do as long as the candidate doesn't endorse it. Check out Colbert's piece below.

The Colbert Report
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Is Stephen Colbert coordinating with his Super PAC?

2012-01-17T20:32:00.003-05:00

First, there's this Huffington Post column by Howard Fineman that proposes Jon Huntsman left the race because Stephen Colbert was beating him! Now Colbert can't run for the Republican nomination for President in South Carolina because he can't get on the ballot and there's no place for write ins. So, yesterday he suggested voters cast their choice for former candidate Herman Cain who's still on the ballot. But then today, his Super PAC or let me say now it's Jon Stewart's Super PAC has just produced an ad suggesting that. Coordination? Can't do that, it's illegal. Check out the Colbert's piece and the ad below. You got to love the civics lesson on possible Super PAC coordination with candidates.

The Colbert Report
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Burger King has new french fries

2012-01-16T21:10:00.003-05:00

Today, I got the chance to taste Burger King's new french fries. Back in April, I rated french fries of the big three. Burger King, Wendy's and McDonald's. I gave the nod to McDonald's. So how does the new Burger King french fry change things?

The new Burger King french fries are of a thicker cut. That means there's more potato per fry. But it seems to me the fry still has a potato based starch that covers the fry. It makes them stiff and overwhelms the potato taste. Now I'm not against coating a french fry. See Arby's curly fries. But this starch adds nothing to the taste and detracts from the potato. I will say that it's an improvement since you can taste more potato than the thin cut fries.

I can't recommend the new Burger King fry as so much better than Wendy's or McDonald's . In fact, the more I eat Wendy's natural cut fry, the more I like them. Some of you may prefer Wendy's french fry over McDonald's.

The Real Stephen Colbert

2012-01-16T04:53:00.002-05:00

You don't get Stephen Colbert out of character that much. So within the last year, there were two news outlets that got to pull the curtain and expose the man behind it. In June of last year, NPR's Fresh Air did an interview with the real Stephen Colbert. Here's that piece. Just recently, the New York Times did a piece on Colbert. Here it is.

Jon Stewart's Super PAC releases commercial attacking Romney

2012-01-16T04:39:00.004-05:00

Okay, Stephen Colbert's Super PAC, er, I mean Jon Stewart's Super PAC has just released this commercial attacking GOP Presidential candidate Mitt Romney. It's narrated by John Lithgow, who has played a serial killer in Dexter. That role is part of the gag for the commercial.

The Colbert Report
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Best Film of 2011

2012-01-15T22:18:00.006-05:00

It's time for the third annual Basement Blog Best Film of the Year. Yes, it's the award that Hollywood looks forward to every year. I keeed. I keeed. Anyway, without further delay, the nominees are: The Artist, The Debt, The Descendants, Hugo and War Horse.

And the winner for the 2011 Basement Blog Best Film of the Year is:

HUGO. Director Martin Scorsese has created a 3-D masterpiece. He sets a new standard for 3-D cinema. But the movie is more than a special effects extravaganza. It's a loving valentine to the magic of movies. Hugo is a classic that will stand the test of time.

Best Science Fiction Film of 2011

2012-01-15T21:45:00.003-05:00

It's time for the third annual Basement Blog Science Fiction Film of the Year. The nominees are Battle: Los Angeles, Paul, Real Steel, Source Code, and X-Men: First Class. And the winner of the 2011 Basement Blog Best Science Fiction Film is:

SOURCE CODE. It was intelligent and exciting. It felt like a big budget movie of a Twilight Zone episode. It's a classic.

The Artist Review

2012-01-14T19:26:00.003-05:00

There's a quote from Mark Twain. He allegedly said, "When the end of the world comes, I want to be in Cincinnati because it's always twenty years behind the times." The film "The Artist" opened in the United States on November 25, 2011. But it just opened here in Cincinnati yesterday on January 13, 2012. Maybe Mark Twain was right. I'll just say that I'm glad I made time for this film. Better late than never or at least I got to see it before the end of the world.

The Artist starts out in the year 0f 1927. Silent film actor George Valentin (Jean Dujardin) is what we would call today a superstar. He's adored by women from all over America. During a public interview, a young female fan literally stumbles into him. She's Peppy Miller, (Bérénice Bejo) an aspiring actress. A photograph of her kissing Valentin on the cheek is captured by Variety. That picture gets her noticed at Kinograph studios where she gets her first job as a dancing extra. The studio head Al Zimmer (John Goodman) wants to fire her because she has pushed Valentin's movie off the front page. But it's Valentin who insists she get a job on his movie. It's here during a dance scene that we see a romantic spark between Valentin and Miller.

But times are about to change. Kinograph decides to make movies with sound and dialogue. With the change to cinema, Zimmer tells Valentin that people will demand newer and younger stars. Valentin refuses to believe this. Meanwhile, Miller's career begins to rise. Valentin makes a silent movie that bombs and when the Great Depression occurs, he loses everything. Miller is now her own superstar.

Director and screenwriter Michael Hazanavicius has created a conventional show business movie. He makes up for this by bold, expressionistic visuals. But the big hook is that The Artist is a silent, black and white movie just like the movies made by its protagonist Valentin.

If you are going to make a silent movie in the twenty first century, there's got to be two areas that must be strong to keep the audience's interest. They are the music and the acting. First, let me talk about the music. Ludovic Bource wrote the score. As I write this, there's a controversy since Hazanavicius decided to use small portion of music from Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo." One of the stars of "Vertigo", Kim Novak, claims it was akin to a rape. Kim, I love you but that argument is over the top. The use of "Vertigo" music was a homage to that movie. And unfortunately, it takes away from The Artist's composer's excellent work. Bource's score is impressionistic, sweeping and beautiful. It deserves an Oscar nomination.

As for the acting performances, both Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo exude charisma on the screen and with each other. There's real chemistry between the two. They make you want to watch them. You care about them. And Bejo's character whose first name is Peppy is aptly named. She has real energy as a singer and dancer.

The Artist is a valentine to the magic of Hollywood film making. It's delightful. The grade is A.

Stephen Colbert's civics lesson

2012-01-13T20:49:00.005-05:00

Last night, Stephen Colbert gave America a civics lesson. You see he has a Super PAC which he uses to satirize Super PACs and conservative politicians. Well, Colbert wants to run for President but he can't run the Super PAC. You see Super PACs can't coordinate with candidates. It's against the law. To demonstrate that that it's suspect that Super PACs don't coordinate with the candidates, he transfers his Super PAC to Jon Stewart. Folks, just look at the what's happening in the Republican Presidential nomination race. It's hard to believe that Super PACs don't coordinate with candidates, even if not directly. Anyway, check out his riotous video pieces.

The Colbert Report
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Stephen Colbert geeks out

2012-01-12T02:55:00.003-05:00

Conservatives went nuts when they found out that President Obama had a Halloween party for children of the U.S. troops. The reason they went nuts? It had Hollywood connections, such as having Johnny Depp appear and dressed like the Mad Hatter to greet guests. When Stephen Colbert found out that Star Wars Chewbacca was there, he geeked out in a hilarious way.

The Colbert Report
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Why Republicans are out of touch

2012-01-12T02:44:00.003-05:00

Stephen Colbert used his regular segment "Tip of the Hat, Wag of the Finger" to go over Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum's ludicrous thoughts on those who don't have health insurance. His stupid idea? He doesn't believe that there are people who die because they don't have health insurance.

The Colbert Report
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CNN's "What the ...." moment

2012-01-11T15:56:00.005-05:00

I'm going to admit that I am a big Ashleigh Banfield fan. She did great news stories from Afghanistan right after the United States invaded. When she was in Cincinnati one year, I got to meet her. Got an autographed picture. Now she's with CNN doing a morning show called "Early Start." It tries to be light but they have a ridiculous segment where Ashleigh cold calls people from her Rolodex. Okay, she calls Kara Kennedy at five in the morning and asks about the sad memories of her father who was assassinated. What?! Jon Stewart of the Daily Show has some fun with it.

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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Stephen Colbert on Rick Santorum's black people comment

2012-01-10T13:46:00.003-05:00

Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum is trying to get out of saying he meant "black" people when talking about welfare. But if you listen to the tape, he is saying "black." Anyway Stephen Colbert had some fun with it last night. Check out his funny piece.

The Colbert Report
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Stephen Colbert on crazy Republican legislation

2012-01-10T13:29:00.004-05:00

Last night, Stephen Colbert covered Republican presidential candidates and commented on the GOP's Rick Perry who wants to get us back into Iraq. Colbert then makes a funny Star Trek joke. Later he covers the same crazy legislation previously mentioned in this blog, that New Hampshire is thinking about passing that would require all laws to cite the Magna Carta. Check out his funny pieces below.

The Colbert Report
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Coincidence or Miracle?

2012-01-10T03:27:00.004-05:00

If you don't know, Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow led his team to a playoff victory 29-23 over the Pittsburgh Steelers Sunday night. Tebow ended the game in overtime by throwing a perfect strike to Demaryius Thomas who ran for eighty yards to the endzone. That happened on the first play in overtime.

If that wasn't miraculous enough for you, how about this? Tebow is a devout Christian. During the 2009 BCS game against Oklahoma, Tebow had written in his eye black, John 3:16. That Bible verse is the basis for the Christian belief. So on Sunday, against the Steelers, Tebow threw for 316 yards. Want more? He averaged 31.6 yards per pass, which by the way is a NFL record. Here's the story. So, message from God? I don't know. But it's an interesting coincidence.

By the way, I'm a Christian. I'm not as devout as Tim Tebow. But John 3:16 is my favorite Bible verse. In case you haven't heard it, here is John 3:16.

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life."

Hail Barry Larkin

2012-01-09T23:06:00.004-05:00

Today, former Cincinnati Reds shortstop Barry Larkin was voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. For me, as a lifetime Cincinnati Reds fan, he was the player for my adulthood. As child, I fondly remember Reds greats like Pete Rose or Tony Perez but as an adult I can recall the details of what made Barry Larkin great. First, Barry Larkin could field his position. Tremendous range at shortstop. Cannon arm. Second, he could run. He could steal a base. Third, Larkin could hit. Larkin could hit for average. He could hit for power. If you needed a clutch hit, he was the one to deliver it. Barry Larkin was the prototype for the modern offensive shortstop. He was one of the leaders for the 1990 World Champs. (Pictured celebrating victory at the World Series; Cincinnati Enquirer.)

It's a joyful day for Reds fans. In these recession era times, the Reds fans can celebrate a player who played everyday of his baseball career in one uniform He wore the wishbone "C." He was and will be ever known as a Cincinnati Red. And now he will be enshrined at the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown as one of the greatest shortstops in baseball.

Here's the story from the Cincinnati Reds.

Here's Barry Larkin's numbers from Baseball-Reference.com

Paramount's cash grab

2012-01-08T21:43:00.005-05:00

In an interview with Collider, Star Trek 2013 director J.J. Abrams has indicated that the new Trek's conversion to 3-D was Paramount's idea. Abrams said,

"I did not fight for the 3D. It was something that the studio wanted to do, and I didn’t want to do it. And then, when I saw the first movie converted in sections, I thought that it actually looked really cool. So, I was okay with their doing it, as long as I could shoot the movie the way I wanted to, in anamorphic film, and then let them convert it. So, those who want to see it in 3D, which looked pretty cool, can do it, and those that want to see it in 2D can do that too."

So we have Paramount to blame for this fiasco. I've seen a bunch of 3D movies that have been converted from 2D and cannot recommend any of them. When it comes to 3D cinema, converted movies are inferior to those shot in 3D. See Brian Palmer's Slate article. The reason is that you can't duplicate the light, shadow and details that the 3D camera will pick up. A computer can only add so much information between the layers of a 2D film being converted.

Trekkers will pay a premium to see Star Trek (2013) in 3D. They won't get the best effort. They will get an inferior 3D product. It's just a cash grab.

Should you jump off the Bengals bandwagon?

2012-01-08T17:33:00.003-05:00

After yesterday's crushing Wild Card defeat, do the Cincinnati Bengals have hope for the future or should you jump off the bandwagon? First, let's take a look at what the Bengals have in place. They have two offensive playmakers in wide receiver A.J. Green and quarterback Andy Dalton. (Pictured.) Both will improve after a fine rookie season. They're solid at the tackle positions with Andrew Whitworth and Andre Smith. On defense, the defensive line is solid with defensive end Carlos Dunlap blossoming into a star.

The coaching was good. Yeah, you heard me. Head coach Marvin Lewis owns the three winning seasons that Bengals owner Mike Brown has had in 21 years. And this year, let's face it, the Bengals were projected by many to win two to three games. Defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer has rebuilt the defense. Yeah, it gives up too many explosive plays but that's probably a sign he won't be a head coach candidate any time soon. Offensive coordinator Jay Gruden has reinvigorated a moribund offense.

There are weaknesses everywhere. That doesn't mean the team stinks. They just need more depth and playmakers. The Bengals must answer questions at offensive guard, cornerback and safety.

So what about the future? The Bengals in 2013 will have to spend more on player salary. That's because of the collective bargaining agreement which has salary floor. So owner Mike Brown can no longer be cheap. So, why not spend some money now? More importantly, the Bengals have two first round picks for 2012 due to the Carson Palmer trade. They also have an extra second round pick for 2013 from that trade. Those picks give the Bengals hope for the future. So, Bengals Nation get excited for 2012.

The Bengals season ends

2012-01-07T20:30:00.003-05:00

Today, the Cincinnati Bengals lost their Wild Card playoff game to the Houston Texans, 31-10. Look this game was over at the end of the first half. With less than two minutes to play in the first half, Bengals QB Andy Dalton threw a pick to Texans defensive tackle J.J. Watts who took it in for a touchdown to make it 17-10. Why do I think the game ended there? Because the Bengals gave up in the second half. That was evident when Texans RB Arian Foster ran over the Bengals for a 41 yard touchdown in the fourth quarter making it 31-10. As the NBC color commentator pointed out, the Bengals have to tackle, and the Bengals let him run for a touchdown. Embarrassing.

If you're a Bengals fan, you expect this type of game. Or expect a heart breaking loss in the last minute. But what about the season? Let's face it, I expected a two to three win season. And it's hard to hate these Bengals. So my fellow Bengals fans, cry in your beer tonight, and we'll talk about whether we should have hope for the future of these Bengals tomorrow.

Oh, you crazy Republicans

2012-01-07T02:30:00.003-05:00

As the GOP race to become the presidential nominee moves to New Hampshire, Rachel Maddow discovers some insane Republican actions. First, in her video piece, she points out that Ron Paul supporters run an ad implying Jon Huntsman as being literally a Manchurian candidate since he was ambassador to China and can speak Chinese. Second, we find out that the Republican state House members of New Hampshire want a crazy law that demands that the source of their laws be the Magna Carta. I'm not kidding.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Who does Mitt Romney represent?

2012-01-07T02:23:00.002-05:00

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney keeps complaining about the slow economy as if he cares about the unemployed. But who does Mitt Romney really represent? Here's a MoveOn.org ad. Note how it uses facts and Mitt's own words.

God tells Pat Robertson who will be the next President

2012-01-06T23:42:00.003-05:00

Last night Stephen Colbert made a lot of fun of televangelist Pat Robertson who claims that God let him know who the next president will be and disclosed to him of an upcoming crisis. Folks, this crazy yutz (Roertson) ran for President in 1988. Guess which party's nomination he ran for? You got it. The Republican Party, which obviously has a long history of crazy candidates. See the recently departed Herman Cain.

The Colbert Report
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Dan Savage on Santorum

2012-01-05T02:51:00.004-05:00

Dan Savage, the guy that gave Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum and runner up in the Iowa Caucus, his um, Google problem, talks about Santorum's far right views on Countdown last night.

Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog at the Tonys

2012-01-03T03:37:00.004-05:00

Here's Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog at the Tonys in 2007. Got to applaud the stars for having being good sports as Triumph makes fun of them. Martha Plimpton, you rock. Check out this hilarious video.

Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog in Chinatown

2012-01-03T02:48:00.003-05:00

Here's Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog celebrating Chinese New Year during the Year of the Dog in Chinatown, New York. (2006)

Santorum rising

2012-01-02T22:24:00.002-05:00

Is Rick Santorum catching up to Mitt Romney and Ron Paul in the Republican Presidential Iowa Caucus? The Huffington Post is reporting a three way tie. Folks, you do know Rick Santorum has a Google problem. I just love replaying this story. Let my man Stephen Colbert tell you about Rick Santorum's Google problem.

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Leonard Nimoy sings "The Ballad of Bilbo Baggins."

2012-01-02T13:28:00.004-05:00

While I was watching "What's in Spock's Scanner, Part 2" I noticed a music video featured in it of a young Leonard Nimoy (Star Trek) singing "The Ballad of Bilbo Baggins." Thank God for YouTube. Somebody posted a version of it. And since "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" comes out this year, I thought you might enjoy this sixties piece of cheese. Love those groovy chicks.

Bengals stumble into the playoffs

2012-01-01T22:07:00.003-05:00

The Cincinnati Bengals lost to the Baltimore Ravens at home, 24-16. The stadium was full and loud. Kudos to you Bengals fans. The game came down to mistakes and two big explosive plays. The Bengals during one Ravens TD drive committed a group of penalties. Another mistake? Bengals tight end Jermaine Gresham fumbled the ball. And then there were two big long TD runs by Ravens running back Ray Rice. Game over.

But the Bengals could still could get in the playoffs as the final Wild Card if the New York Jets lost and either the Denver Broncos or the Oakland Raiders lost. All those teams lost. The Bengals are in. At least the Bengals enter the playoffs with a winning record.

It will take a small miracle for the Bengals to get into the Super Bowl. It will take a bigger one for them to win it. Hey, let's use the baseball example here. The St. Louis Cardinals stumbled into the playoffs in 2006 and 2011. The result? They won the World Series twice. So, it's possible the Bengals could win it all.

The Best Mission: Impossible Film

2012-01-01T20:14:00.005-05:00

Okay now that the last Mission: Impossible movie is out, it's time to rate them. We start with number four and countdown to the best of the series.

4. Mission: Impossible-2 (2000) First, let me praise star Tom Cruise for choosing different directors for each of the Mission: Impossible films. It gives each movie a freshness while the plots may be banal.

For the second outing, Hong Kong action master John Woo was hired to direct. This is clearly a direct opposite approach from Brian De Palma's more cerebral inaugural movie. And you would think with a story by Star Trek writers Ronald Moore and Brannon Braga and a screenplay by Robert Towne, you think you would get some brakes on Woo's over the top action sequences. But what you got was some silly dialogue. Ethan Hunt (Cruise), "We just rolled up a snowball and tossed it into hell. Now lets see what chance it has." Luther (Ving Rhames), "Hope he kills all the bugs, before the yellow dot gets to the red one." And you to some way over the top, loud action sequences and plenty of slow motion.

Still, it's entertaining. You just have to put your brain on pause. Just watch the movie okay. The grade is B.

3. Mission: Impossible: III. (2006) Alias creator J.J. Abrams is brought in to direct the third movie in the series. With the help of screenwriters Bob Orci and Alex Kurtzman (Stat Trek 2009) they create a story where we find that the main character Ethan Hunt has a love life. Abrams brings a more realistic approach to the spy genre. There's plenty of handheld camera shots which can get annoying.

All the spy stuff involves the search for a weapon called "The Rabbit's Foot." But they don't explain it. Yes, it's a big MacGuffin. Another problem? There's a big mistake in casting of the villain. Philip Seymour Hoffman is cast as the big bad arms dealer. (Owen Davian) Hoffman is a great actor. But he can't give his bad guy the menace needed. He's more like a big geek than some powerful arms dealer. And doesn't Hunt's wife played by Michelle Monaghan look like real life wife of Cruise, Katie Holmes. Just thinking.

Yet, got to love the way they start the movie with a flash forward with Davian (Hoffman) threatening Hunt's wife at gunpoint. That keeps your interest. Cool action sequences with a helicopter chase and Cruise swinging from building to building in Shanghai. Excellent use of the old music from the TV series by Oscar winner Michael Giacchino. The grade is B +.

2. Mission: Impossible-Ghost Protocol. (2011) Forget the plot that sounds like The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) Madman wants to start World War III so a stronger human may arise. See this movie for Hunt's acrobatics outside of the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. How much of this action sequence was actual, I don't know. But it looks all real. Your hands will sweat. Enjoy it for the comic relief of Simon Pegg as Benji. For that matter, I love this new IMF team with actors Jeremy Renner and Paula Patton. The grade is B +.

1. Mission: Impossible (1996) I like my action movies to have some intelligence. And while Director Brian De Palma is ofent accused of ripping off Alfred Hithcock, he and screenwriters Steven Zallian, David Koepp create a twisty spy movie.

But don't forget the action sequences. The break in at the CIA headquarters is one of the most unforgettable theft scenes in film history. And what about the action sequence on the TGV or high speed train. It's hard to tell how much of it was real. Speaking of Hitchcock, for some reason, the TGV scene reminds me of North by Northwest (1959) where Cary Grant is chased by a crop duster, perhaps it's because the heroes in both are wearing suits. Anyway, the TGV scene still has remarkable visuals. The grade is A.

Bengals management scores

2011-12-31T04:53:00.003-05:00

Wow, what a week for the Cincinnati Bengals management. First, in order to pack the stadium for Sunday's climatic showdown with the Baltimore Ravens, the Bengals told season ticket holders that they could buy extra tickets and get one free. Sounds kind of silly, after all why would season ticket holders buy more tickets when they already have seats? But it makes sense. You want Bengals fans plus it rewards season ticket holders. Anyway, it worked. The Bengals are sold out. And remember, if the Bengals win, they're in the playoffs as a Wild Card. The Bengals have a twelfth man.

Second, the Bengals lowered ticket prices for 2012. What? Not only is this good for the fan who's struggling to make ends meet but the announcement was made by owner Mike Brown's daughter, Katie Blackburn. “We have a young team trending in the right direction,” said Katie Blackburn, Bengals executive vice-president, “and we are pleased to share this new price structure with our fans in an attempt to make some seats more affordable. We have a great home schedule in 2012 and look forward to it being an exciting season that builds upon this year’s success.” From Lance McAlister's Blog. Blackburn announcing this is significant since it seems that management has figured out that the fans are pissed off at owner Mike Brown.

And speaking of Katie Blackburn, on Friday, she spent a good chunk of a hour being interviewed on 1530 Homer's Bengals Pep Rally show. When was the last time you heard any of the Brown family being interviewed in front of the fans? Never. This week, the Cincinnati Bengals have just scored the equivalent of a public relations touchdown.

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo Review

2011-12-31T03:31:00.003-05:00

Director David Fincher follows up his fine movie The Social Network (2010) with a film adaptation of Stieg Larson's novel, "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo." Fincher brings the same visual style he used in The Social Network. It features a lot of subdued light, a kind of movie drained of color. Perhaps, that's perfect since the movie takes place in Sweden during the winter. Regardless, Tattoo reflects the moral ambiguity of its main character, Lisbeth.

The film starts out with Swedish journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig) losing a libel case. Meanwhile Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara), a gifted computer hacker has done an investigative report on Blomkvist for Henrik Vanger (Christopher Plummer), a wealthy businessman. Vanger wants to hire Blomkvist to investigate the murder of his niece, Harriet which happened forty years earlier. Vanger not only promises to pay money to Blomkvist but also will help clear his name. As Blomkvist starts to unravel part of the mystery surrounding the Vanger family, he hires Salander to assist him with the investigation.

Steven Zaillian 's adapted screenplay captures Lisbeth's character and her motivations as to who she is. Where he stumbles and it's probably the source material is the complex number of clues and plot points in the movie. You're going to have to pay a lot of attention to keep up with Lisbeth and Mikael. Still, coupled with Fincher's moody direction the film keeps your interest.

It's the performances that make this film worthy. Daniel Craig is excellent as a journalist who's beaten down but seeks the truth. Christopher Plummer makes his character as one who is unafraid of exposing the skeletons in his family's history. But this film belongs to Rooney Mara. Her Lisbeth is woman who has been emotionally scarred and will not give freely love any mate. Mara lets her face do all the talking. Most of the time she is feminist rage without words. One can read her emotions by looking at her face. Mara does a number of nude scenes but it's not gratuitous. The body piercings, tattoos and punk hair style are talismans for her character. It's a courageous performance and one that deserves a Best Actress Oscar nomination.

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo strikes me as a Swedish form of film noir. The film is worth seeing for the performance of Rooney Mara. The grade is B +.

Triumph goes for it!

2011-12-29T21:53:00.005-05:00

Okay, if you've seen the previous video where Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog was at MTV's VMA for 2002, you see that the portion where he tries to sniff Jennifer Lopez's butt was cut. Well, thank God for YouTube. Here is where Triumph tries to smell Ms. Lopez's butt and explains it's the Mt. Everest for dogs. Riotous.

Triumph the Insult Comic Dog at MTV's VMA

2011-12-29T21:38:00.004-05:00

Okay, I'm guessing this Triumph video is from the 2002 MTV Video Music Awards program. Hey, I'm not into pop music. Anyway, our favorite Insult Comic Dog aka Triumph was there. Hilarious. Triumph also says this about Pittsburgh. "It's a wonderful town for me to poop on." Yes, the Steelers suck. Video below. Check it out.

Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog at the Bon Jovi Concert-Outtakes

2011-12-28T23:35:00.002-05:00

Here are some outtakes from Triumph the Insult Comic Dog's interviews at the Bon Jovi Concert. Enjoy.

War Horse Review

2011-12-26T19:59:00.005-05:00

There are times when director Steven Spielberg reinvents himself. Take for example, his movie Jurassic Park (1993) and compare it to Schindler's List (1993). Jurassic Park was your more typical Spielberg fare. Large action set pieces. But Schindler's List was more intimate. It felt like an European art film. Spielberg's War Horse is definitely another move away from the typical Spielberg approach.

War Horse is based on a children's novel of the same name by Michael Morpurgo and the play that arose from the book by Nick Stafford. The story takes place in England, where Albert (Jeremy Irvine) who teaches a thoroughbred horse to plow the family farm's land. A friendship develops between Albert and the horse which he calls Joey. Later, World War I breaks out. To pay bills, Albert's father sells Joey to a British cavalry officer, Captain Nicholls (Tom Hiddleston). Before he is deployed to France, Nicholls promises Albert that he will bring Joey back. As the war drags on, Albert joins the army.

It's not a cliche to say that War Horse is like nothing that Steven Spielberg has ever done. The film has long lovely visuals of the pastoral English countryside. Many of Spielberg's shots are reminiscent of Stanley Kubrick. They're like paintings. Yet, there are many cinematic touches. A close up of a machine gun as the British cavalry charges shows us the obsolescence of horses against modern technology. As Albert wanders through the trenches, we see dead German soldiers with gas masks on. It's a warning of the horror of a gas attack to come.

But War Horse is more than just Spielberg's brilliant visuals. Richard Curtis and Lee Hall's screenplay uses Joey as narrative device. As a horse, Joey shows remarkable courage but its his contact with each of his owners that demonstrates their humanity. And it's this humanity during the horrors of war that is the strongest anti-war message.

War Horse is a graceful film. Like Joey, it has great heart. The grade is A.

In Ohio, Newt Gingrich leads

2011-12-26T19:46:00.002-05:00

The AP and USA Today is reporting that Newt Gingrich is leading the Republican presidential pack in Ohio. Not surprising since Republicans want anybody except Mitt Romney who was a moderate. You see the Republican party has turned hard right and anything that looks moderate is toast in the party. So much for Gerry Ford wing of the GOP. Here's the AP and USA story.

Merry Christmas 2011

2011-12-25T13:41:00.002-05:00

Merry Christmas. Here' your Christmas gift. It's time for Saturday Night Live's Schweddy Balls skit.

Surely scalpers, and Bengals survive a hairy one

2011-12-24T17:12:00.008-05:00

So, I get up and hear that the attendance for today's Cincinnati Bengals game against the Arizona Cardinals was going to be terrible. I decide to go to the game. I get there and am told a scalper has a single ticket. He says, "This is at the fifty yard line." I say, "Yeah, right." "Eighty bucks." I say, "Forty." "Eighty" I walk away and give one more offer. "Fifty. Man, it's the second quarter already." "Eighty." "Dude, never mind." Okay he wasn't that surely but the guy is going to eat a ticket in the second quarter and he won't negotiate. Anyway, I go to the box office and buy the cheapest ticket. I sit in the upper deck at the north end zone.

It's the second quarter. The Bengals are up, 10-0. Bengals kicker Mike Nugent misses a field goal. Bengals cornerback intercepts a Cardinals pass by their quarterback John Skelton. Bengals drive. And then the play of the year for the Bengals and possibly the NFL happens. Bengals wide receiver streaks over the middle on a slant. He catches it and is racing for a touchdown. Right before he gets to the endzone, a Cardinals defender tries to stop him. Simpson leaps forward and somersaults over him like a gymnast. Simpson lands on his feet and sticks the landing. Touchdown! Here's the play. (Also pictured above. Video below too.) You've got to see it. Later in the quarter, the Bengals kick a field goal. Bengals 20-0 over the Cardinals.

Of course, when it comes to football there are two halves. The Bengals are in control. The Bengals defense is stifling the Cardinals offense. The Bengals go ahead 23-0. Cruising towards a win, you say. Nothing is ever easy for the Bengals.

Fourth quarter. The Bengals offense goes cold. Bengals running back Cedric Benson fumbles. That gives Cardinals QB John Skelton the chance to lead his team to a touchdown. Later in the quarter, Benson fumbles again. And before you know it, the Cardinals have scored 16 points.

Oh, oh. The Bengals look like they are going to blow one of the biggest leads in team history. And here it comes. On a fourth and five with less than two minutes, the Cardinals are in the red zone. They're down by seven points. With that little time, the Cardinals had to go for it. Skelton gets the snap and fades back. Cardinals receiver Early Ducet is wide open and streaking towards the endzone. Skelton sees him. Oh, no Bengals nation. Ducet falls down. The ball sails over him. Incomplete. MERRY CHRISTMAS CINCINNATI BENGALS AND BENGALS FANS! BENGALS HOLD ON TO WIN. Bengals 23, Cardinals 16.

How about another Christmas present? The Bengals were tied with the New York Jets for the final Wild Card. The New York Giants beat the Jets sending them to a record of 8-7. The Cincinnati Bengals won. They are 9-6 and one game ahead of the Jets. MERRY CHRISTMAS CINCINNATI BENGALS AND BENGALS FANS! If the Bengals beat the Baltimore Ravens next week on New Years Day, the Bengals will be in the playoffs.

One more game Bengals Nation. One more win and the Bengals are in the playoffs! Here are today's highlights.

Bengals receiver Jerome Simpson's gymnastic leap into the endzone.

Here's comes the sun

2011-12-23T12:31:00.004-05:00

Boy, it's been really dreary here in Cincinnati. And I know we wish for a white Christmas but with my mood and the grey skies, I was really down. So Rachel Maddow reminded us the other day that we've past the winter solstice. That means the days get longer. Yay. Here comes the sun.

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Should you see Mission: Impossible- Ghost Protocol in IMAX?

2011-12-21T23:23:00.004-05:00

Okay, you're off to see Mission: Impossible- Ghost Protocol at the movie theater. But do you see it with a regular projector or do you see the movie in IMAX and pay extra bucks? Ghost Protocol's Brad Bird gushes about filming with IMAX cameras and the quality of the picture. (Wikipedia article.) But you didn't expect him to dis own movie?

A quick word about IMAX. I'm not going to go over the technical details about IMAX and hopefully I don't sound like an ad for it. Let me just say this. IMAX theaters have a larger screen than the regular movie screen. There is greater height. The picture has greater resolution so you get a crisp, clear and clean presentation. The sound is sharper and brighter.

I've seen Ghost Protocol at a regular theater and with IMAX projection. At the IMAX theater, I was particularly attentive during the Burj Khalifa scene. This is where Bird praises IMAX as making a difference. Well, I didn't notice it. I will concede IMAX gives you a better picture but it's not worth price difference.

So, the question is answered. Not really. I did notice something that many people don't think about. Sound. Sometimes during the movie, Simon Pegg's character Benji will whisper. At the regular theater, I had trouble picking up his dialogue. At IMAX, I could clearly hear his words.

Conclusion. Since you get a better picture and you get better sound that improves your movie going experience, I recommend IMAX.

Mission: Impossible- Ghost Protocol Review

2011-12-21T04:42:00.009-05:00

Tom Cruise, star of Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol made a wise decision to use different directors for the Mission Impossible movie series. For the inaugural Mission Impossible (1996) he used Brian De Palma. His vision was of Hitchcockian film gymnastics. The next one was Mission: Impossible II (2000) directed by John Woo. He was the exact opposite. His film was in your face action. Mission: Impossible III was directed by J.J. Abrams whose documentary style gave the series a realism. Different directors makes the series fresh when a new film comes out. Now the fourth, Mission: Impossible-Ghost Protocol was directed by animation director Brad Bird. (Ratatouille)

But when it comes to the plot of Ghost Protocol, fresh does not come to mind. The IMF (Impossible Mission Force) team led by Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) is sent to the Kremlin to get files on a person named Cobalt aka Hendricks. (Michael Nyqvist) On his team are Jane Carter (Paula Patton), and Benji Dunn who was in the M:I III. (Simon Pegg) As Hunt and Dunn infiltrate the Kremlin, they learn that they are being used by Hendricks as cover for his own operation of stealing a Russian nuclear missile launch device. They abort but Hendricks detonates a bomb that destroys a large part of the Kremlin.

The Russians blame the Americans. Hunt meets with the IMF Secretary (Tom Wilkinson) and an IMF analyst Brandt. (Jeremy Renner) The Secretary tells Hunt that his team is being blamed for the bombing and they have been disavowed. Hmmmm. Sounds like the plot to the first Mission: Impossible. Anyway, the Secretary tells Hunt where he can get supplies and gives him his new mission. Stop Hendricks. After the car in which Hunt, the Secretary and Brandt gets fired upon and runs into a river, Brandt and Hunt escape. At a secret railway car, they discover that Hendricks wants to launch a nuclear missile at the United States to start a world war. After the nuclear Armageddon, a stronger, new human race would emerge. Hey that's the motivation of the villain in the James Bond film, "The Spy Who Loved Me." (1977)

And while elements of Ghost Protocol seemed to be lifted from other movies, Director Bird gives the movie a freshness. His experience in animation has given him a style which maximizes every scene. Bird doesn't need fancy camera gymnastics to convey action. He gets it from the set, whether its a desert or a parking garage. He then fills it with graceful action scenes. The result is that the screen is filled with excitement. And you must see the scenes outside the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, the world's tallest building. Cruise really looks like he's dangling outside, stories above the ground. From what I've read about he production, Cruise was actually hanging outside of the building. It's so real, your palms get sweaty.

André Nemec and Josh Appelbaum's screenplay offers plenty of action but balances that with nice doses of humor. The recurring joke is the difficulty of man to interface with technology. If there is one problem with the screenplay, it's slightly convoluted. You'll have to pay a lot of attention, particularly where the IMF tries to get the missile launch codes by scamming the bad guys.

Tom Cruise is excellent as the professional spy, Ethan Hunt. Jeremy Renner gives a performance of a man who is hiding something. Simon Pegg is pretty funny as the comic relief. Paula Patton is lovely to look at. She smolders combustible sexuality. You can't take your eyes off her in the Mumbai party scene as she tries to seduce a target. The team has chemistry and you want to see them working again, perhaps in Mission: Impossible- The Mission to Make More Money. Just kidding.

Mission: Impossible-Ghost Protocol is a thrilling spy movie. It's also a mixture of Bond and Bourne. The grade is B+.

Star Trek takes a giant step backwards

2011-12-20T20:49:00.004-05:00

TrekMovie.com is reporting that the new Star Trek movie coming out in 2013 will be converted from 2D to 3D. This is a total disaster. First, Paramount and Bad Robot delay the release from 2012 to 2013. Now, they have totally disrespected the fan base.

I have been watching 3D movies for the last three years. And I've seen a bunch of 3D conversions from 2D. I have yet to recommend that any person should spend the extra money to see a conversion. Why? First, they're even darker than a movie shot in 3D. That's because the director of photography is shooting in 2D. He doesn't take into consideration the polarization the audience must endure to watch a 3D movie in the theater. You know, you wear the dark glasses and the projector throws less light. Second, the special effects usually don't mesh. That's because the director is not thinking in 3D. So, the special effects are not special. I still want my money back for watching The Last Airbender (2010) in 3D.

Paramount must take Trekkers for granted. Other studios pay the extra money to artists to shoot in 3D. Avatar. (2009) Hugo. (2011) As a Trekker, I guess we're not as good as the fans of Avatar. Shame on you Paramount, Bad Robot and director J.J. Abrams.

The Cincinnati Reds Go For It

2011-12-20T14:43:00.005-05:00

Last Saturday, the Cincinnati Reds traded for right hand pitcher Mat Latos from the San Diego Padres. The Reds gave up Yonder Alonzo, Edinson Volquez, minor league relief pitcher Brad Boxberger, and minor league catcher Yasmani Grandal. Let's take a look at the trade.

A Heavy Price

The Reds gave up a lot in quality prospects. Yonder Alonzo is a sure thing as a major league hitter. Ysmani Grandal is a quality minor league catcher. Both were number one picks. Brad Boxberger may someday be a major league closer. Edinson Volquez is a head case but he made the All Star team in 2008. His problem is throwing strikes. Note that all of these players have guys on the roster in front of them. So the Reds are not robbing Peter to pay for Paul.

The Reds get a young starting pitcher who is 24 in Mat Latos. (Pictured.) He's been in the majors for three seasons compiling a record of 27-29 and an ERA of 3.37. He's a big guy at 6'6" which means he pitches come at you at a downward plane. He gives you innings and throws strikes. He has the stuff of a number one starting pitcher. And here's the great bonus. The Reds would control him for the next four years before he becomes eligible for free agency. That's something important for a mid-market team which can't shell out the bucks like the New York Yankees. To get a pitcher like Latos requires a lot in prospects. He's high quality and cheap in baseball terms.

Conclusion.

One of the problems with the 2011 Reds was starting pitching. Reds starters Travis Wood, Bronson Arroyo and Edinson Volquez all failed. There were other problems such as hitting with runners in scoring position. But to win in baseball you need pitching. And the getting Mat Latos addresses one Reds weakness.

The Reds have a window to win the National League Central. First, the St. Louis Cardinals have lost superstar Albert Pujols. The Milwaukee Brewers will likely lose Prince Fielder to free agency and MVP Ryan Braun will miss 50 games for a drug suspension. The Reds will have former MVP stud Joey Votto for two more years.

By getting Latos, the Reds are saying to Reds Nation, "we're going for it." Did it cost a lot? Yes. But Latos is under Reds control for four years. This is the short term strategy along with a long term strategy that a major league team needs if it is serious about winning. This trade was a positive move for he Reds if the intent was to win the NL Central.

Bengals win ugly

2011-12-19T21:48:00.003-05:00

The Cincinnati Bengals won Sunday, 20-13 against the St. Louis Cardinals. The first half was ugly. I mean the Bengals did nothing right. They were pushed around. A penalty here and there. They finally got it together in the second half. Sorry, can't really discuss it because I had to be somewhere away from the television. Here's the story from Bengals.com.

Regardless, the Bengals are back in the hunt for the final Wild Card. That's because the New York Jets got destroyed by the Philadelphia Eagles. They still need help since the Jets are ahead by tie breakers. The Bengals return home to face the Arizona Cardinals. The season ain't over yet.

Here are the video highlights to the Bengals victory over the Rams.

Don't worry, dance happy

2011-12-17T08:33:00.004-05:00

As I write this post Saturday morning, I'm sick to my stomach for a whole bunch of reasons. So, I check Lance McAlister's blog. And he posted this video from Miami University. (Oxford, Ohio) During warm ups for the football team, they play music. And an equipment manager named Chad Burns does some moves. Maybe the lesson here is to find happiness everyday, somewhere.

Jon Stewart begs GOP not to nominate Newt Gingrich

2011-12-17T08:10:00.005-05:00

Jon Stewart of the Daily Show begs Republicans not to nominate Newt Gingrich. Sorry, Jon. But the Newt represents the modern GOP. Angry. Compassionless. Check out his funny video piece below.

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Newt Gingrich's crazy comments

2011-12-14T03:03:00.006-05:00

There's a reason why Newt Gingrich is winning the race for the Republican presidential nomination. The GOP has been taken over by the far right Tea Party. Their sympathies lie with the angry white male, you know the type that loves WLW 700's Bill Cunningham. Well, Newt has said some crazy, intolerant and stupid things in the past. And those folks in the Tea Party aka the Republican Party love Newt's stuff. Chris Matthews of Hardball went over some of them. Check it out.

And Stephen Colbert takes a look at Gingrich's science fiction ideas. Take a look at it in his Tip of the Hat, Wag of the Finger. Cool Bond reference.

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Triumph with Jay Leno on the Tonight Show

2011-12-13T11:28:00.002-05:00

In 2003, Triumph the Insult Comic Dog appeared on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno. It's kind of pertinent now, since Jay Leno screwed Conan O' Brien, where Triumph debuted, out of the Tonight Show when Leno's prime time show flopped. Anyway check out his barbs at launched at Leno.

An open letter to Mike Brown, Cincinnati Bengals owner

2011-12-12T23:25:00.004-05:00

Mike Brown
President and Owner of the Cincinnati Bengals
One Paul Brown Way
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202

Dear Mr. Brown:

First let me congratulate you on your drafting of wide receiver A.J. Green and quarterback Andy Dalton. As rookies, both are producing like veteran players. Green has shown he can be a difference maker in winning games. I want to commend you for listening to your offensive coordinator, Jay Gruden, who recommended you draft Andy Dalton instead of Ryan Mallet. You also did the right thing by trading disgruntled Carson Palmer to Oakland for a first round draft pick and a second round pick in 2013 with the possibility that it could be a first round pick. You set aside your pride to do what was best for the team.

But I'm writing to tell you why your stadium is averaging 49, 619.00 per game which is the lowest in the NFL. The remarkable thing is that the Bengals are entertaining and playing winning football. Now I've heard various reasons. It's the recession. No. You sold out games in 2009, during the height of the recession. In an interview with the Cincinnati Enquirer, you got part of it right. “We have to earn back our people, they lost belief in what we were doing." Yes, that's partially correct.

However, if you listen to sports talk radio or talk to dispirited season ticket owners, you would get the same theme over and over. Mr. Brown, they're mad at you. Some say you only care about maximizing your profits and don't care about winning. I don't agree with that. I know you want to win. But the consensus is that they're dissatisfied with your role as president.

For that last twenty one years, you have been the de facto general manager. So, let's look at your term as president of the Bengals. Your record in twenty years, yielded only two winning seasons. Your decisions to retain head coach David Shula for four years, draft David Klingler, and Akili Smith were disasters. By the way, you compounded the Smith decision by refusing an offer from New Orleans Saints to trade that pick for all of the Saints draft picks. Then in 2008, against head coach Marvin Lewis' wishes, you re-signed the troubled wide receiver Chris Henry. I could go on, but it's clear there's nothing to indicate that your decision making will be consistent with a successful NFL general manager. The record demonstrates that your decision making and judgement is consistently bad. Mr. Brown, I say to you if you were judging your performance as a person looking from the outside, I would say you would fire yourself.

Mr. Brown, I don't care how much money you make. And I want you to continue to own the Cincinnati Bengals. But you owe Cincinnati. Because after your father Paul Brown was fired by Cleveland Browns Art Modell, Cincinnati gave your father a fresh start. The city allowed the Brown family to get back into football by sponsoring a NFL team and eventually built a stadium for the team. That stadium is named after your father. This city made your family rich. That's okay. What we fans want is a consistent winner.

If I may, I suggest you do the following. I believe these moves will bring back the fans. One, hire more scouts. I generously count five scouts for the Bengals but the Pittsburgh Steelers have eight. Two, hire a general manager, one who can make the wise decisions to lead to a consistent winner. Now note that you would still collect the profits and agree to any contracts. So you still maintain quite a bit of control. Those disgruntled fans would come back with the knowledge that change will happen if the general manager fails. That's hope if the Bengals suffer a bad season that it will not be a draught.

I don't want to bash you, Mr. Brown. I've been a Bengals fan since the team was founded. Like many loyal fans, I have not jumped ship. But we need hope that there will be wise decisions and hope that change will occur when needed. I am confident that if you hire a general manager you will see a rise in attendance at Paul Brown Stadium.

Sincerely,
Bernie Wong
A Bengals Fan.

Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog at the Bon Jovi concert

2011-12-12T02:35:00.002-05:00

I've got to give rock band Bon Jovi credit for taking Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog's jokes at them. It's so funny I can't describe it. And by the way the band lets Triumph sing with the band. It's classic. Hilarious. Check out the video below from 2002.

Triumph the insult comic dog - bon jovi by AC310DC

Cincinnati Bengals choke

2011-12-11T17:14:00.003-05:00

The Cincinnati Bengals lost to the Houston Texans today 20-19. And they did it in classic Bengals fashion. Epic loss. It doesn't sound that epic but trust me if you were leading all day and lose the game in the last two minutes, it's heartbreaking. If I weren't so encouraged by Bengals QB Andy Dalton and WR A.J. Green, I would be writing Bengals comedy right now.

Give the Texans credit. They lose their best player in defensive end Mario Williams, starting quarterback Matt Schaub, and stud wide receiver Andre Johnson. Yet, they find ways to win. On the other hand they lose all their best players and you lose a game you're ahead 16-3 at the end of the first half? Hold on. You let a third string rookie quarterback in T.J. Yates beat you? Oy vey.

The game was probably lost in the first quarter. Bengals running back Cedric Benson runs for 42 yards to the one yard line. False start by the Bengals offensive line and they're moved back five yards. DOH! Bengals fail to punch the ball in and must settle for a field goal. That's four points off the boards. As Bengals wide receiver Andrew Hawkins said after the game, it was play here and play there. Yeah and you also must score touchdowns when you're in the red zone. And if you let teams hang around for four quarters, you've got a chance to lose. The Texans made clutch plays. The Bengals did not. So it came down to the last two and half minutes. The Texans drive down for eighty yards. To pour salt in the Bengals wounds, two ex-Bengals beat them. Texan wide receiver Kevin Walter caught the game tying touchdown and kicker Neil Rackers kicked the extra point for the win. DOH!

A loss like this, should spell the end for the Bengals season. The wild card is slipping away. The Bengals will need help from other teams. It's hard to count the Bengals out. Guys like Andy Dalton and A.J. Green are winners. Three more games to go Bengals fans. Let's hope for a Bengals miracle.

Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog goes after on William Shatner and Tom Arnold

2011-12-11T01:16:00.004-05:00

From 1997-1998, Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog takes on Captain Kirk himself, William Shatner. There's also commentary on Tom Arnold. Love the Shatner stuff, being a Star Trek fan. Triumph's Kirk ain't all the bad. Sorry about the sound. Don't complain or else I'll poop on you. :-)

Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog from 1998

2011-12-11T00:21:00.002-05:00

Here's some more Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog with Conan O'Brien from 1998. One segment has him giving actor David Hasselhoff a hard time. This type of celebrity bashing would be Triumph's calling card. Then there is another segment of Triumph reviewing fake acts from the Westminster Dog Show.

Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog

2011-12-10T18:12:00.003-05:00

I hang out at TrekMovie.com. There you can meet screenwriter extraordinaire Bob Orci (Transformers, Star Trek) in the comments sections. Well, he's taught us to love Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog. So, I've decided to scour YouTube and find the best of Triumph.

Triumph started out on Late Night with Conan O'Brien. The first appearance was when the show did a skit about the Westminster Dog Show in 1997. From this skit we learn that Triumph is a Yugoslavian Mountain Hound. Hence his Eastern European accent. (Triumph's Wikipedia page.) And you'll get his first catchphrase, "... for me to poop on." Later on in his later performances, Triumph will say "I keed. I keed." And before I forget, Triumph is played by Robert Smigel. (TV Funhouse) Below is his first appearance, it's in part two.

Stephen Colbert makes ass of himself

2011-12-10T10:02:00.004-05:00

Stephen Colbert interviewed American ballet dancer David Hallberg couple nights ago. Hallberg then performed a bit from the Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky Well, Stephen decided to join in. Okay, it was goofy but it made me laugh hard. Check out these funny video pieces.

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Stephen Colbert's Referendum

2011-12-10T09:36:00.004-05:00

Stephen Colbert continues to push the envelope by trying to get his brand of satire into the political realm. Colbert loves to make fun of the "corporations are people" comment by Mitt Romney and its support by Citizens United v. FEC 130 S.Ct. 876 (2010) So he put together a referendum for South Carolina giving the people a choice to decide. 1) Corporations are people OR 2) Only people are people. Unfortunately, the South Carolina Supreme Court has quashed the referendum. So who does Stephen turn to help him appeal this decision? The Democrats!

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DONALD TRUMP IS BACK!

2011-12-07T05:17:00.004-05:00

Hooray. Super rich guy and circus clown, Donald Trump is back in time to meddle in presidential politics. He's sponsoring a debate with Republican presidential candidates on December 27. Or is he just trying to get publicity for his new book? And why are Republicans falling over themselves to kiss Trump's ass? Get this. After the debate he may endorse one of the clowns, er candidates. And if he doesn't like any of them. Trump might run as an independent for President! Anyway, this news is good news for the comedy industry. Just ask Jon Stewart of the Daily Show. Stephen Colbert is going to sponsor his own debate. Doubtful anyone will show. Those right-wingers are now wise to you Stephen, they know you're making fun of them. Anyway, check out their funny pieces.

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Stephen Colbert takes on crazy William Tapley

2011-12-06T12:15:00.003-05:00

The Denver International Airport has developed numerous conspiracy theories. You get the usual suspects for the paranoid. The airport has large underground areas for prisoners of the New World Order. Satanists. Masons. And now the airport features phallic symbols? Last night Stephen Colbert did a hilarious video on William Tapley who believes that the airport intentionally contains evil phallic symbols. This crazy guy really exists, it's not a Colbert skit. And get this, the nutty Tapley sings. Check out the very funny video below.

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Crazy, crazy Herman Cain, Part 5

2011-12-06T11:18:00.004-05:00

What a tragedy for late night comics. Republican candidate Herman Cain has suspended his campaign for the presidency. The public has lost one of the great sources for comedy. Herman, we're going to miss your Pokemon quoting speeches and your "leader not a reader" philosophy. Jon Stewart of the Daily Show and Stephen Colbert take one last comic shot. Check out their funny videos below.

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Is this the plot to the new Star Trek movie opening in 2013?

2011-12-05T21:59:00.006-05:00

TrekMovie.com and the Vulture Blog are reporting a rumor that the new villain for J.J. Abrams next Star Trek film is Khan. If you don't remember Khan, let me remind you. He was a genetically engineered superhuman who ruled over large portions of planet earth with other superhumans. See the original series episode called "Space Seed." (1967) Later, in the movie Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982) Khan dies while trying to kill Kirk for the death of his wife.

Okay, TrekMovie.com is also reporting that Peter Weller has been hired to play a role in the new movie. Weller is no stranger to Star Trek. In Star Trek: Enterprise he played Paxton a man who headed a terrorist organization opposed to alien-human contact. Those episodes were "Demons" and "Terra Prime." (2005)

Here's my opinion of what I think the plot of the next Star Trek movie (2013) is going to be. Paxton escapes or is released from prison. He's still anti-alien or xenophobic towards non-humans. He finds Khan and convinces him to purge earth of aliens. How does Khan do this? Probably he uses a super weapon to threaten the home worlds of the aliens and convince them to remove their citizens from earth. Maybe Khan uses the Planet Killer from the original series episode, "The Doomsday Machine." (1968)

Let me say, I hope the antagonist is not Khan. First, do we need another mustache twirling villain? This is Star Trek not Star Wars. It's science fiction. Yeah, Khan had deeper motivations than your average bad guy but he was clearly evil. Some of the best Star Trek had no villains. See the original series episode "The City on the Edge of Forever" (1967) "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home." (1986) Second, the story of Khan has already been done and it was finished up in the classic Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. (1982) Come on Bad Robot, I'm ready for a new adventure.

The Gingrich That Stole Christmas

2011-12-04T22:46:00.005-05:00

Ah, it's Christmas time. And the classic Christmas stories come out. Of course, there's a tradition of grumpy men putting down the season of peace on earth and good will to men. The Grinch. Scrooge. And now Newt Gingrich.

Newt Gingrich? Yeah. The leading Republican candidate for his party's nomination for president, Newt Gingrich has just demonstrated he could become a new grumpy and mean character in our twenty first century Christmas tale. Newt has previously said that children as young as nine should work as janitors for their schools. And on Friday, he doubled down. He said poor children have no "habit" for getting to work on Monday and that their only relation to obtaining money is to obtain it through crime. Now don't get me wrong, I concede that some of that is correct but he takes a paint brush and smears all poor people. In the video piece by Al Sharptron's TV show Politics Nation, Newt is caught on tape saying there are millionaires getting food stamps. Really? And before I forget, Gingrich in the nineties advocated that mothers on welfare give up their children to orphanages. How Dickensian.

One wonders if Gingrich will get some type of redemption as those grumpy characters in the classic Christmas tales did. Not likely. Gingrich has already backtracked his criticism of the Paul Ryan budget as right wing engineering. He's called doing a commercial with the evil Cong. Nancy Pelosi about combating global warming as "the dumbest single thing I've done." So unless we see Newt proclaim his love for humanity, it's doubtful this Christmas tale has an uplifting ending.

Let's end this post on a fun note. I've embedded some classic Stephen Colbert pieces done this year on Newt Gingrich, including the infamous over the top press release by his campaign from last spring.

Al Sharpton's MSNBC piece.

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Republicans hate intelligence and poor people

2011-12-04T21:24:00.004-05:00

If you've been following the circus that has been the Republican race for the presidential nomination, you would get a couple of threads running through it. Republicans hate intelligence and poor people. Now before you say this is just a liberal attack on conservative Republicans, let me say I will use proof to back my points.

A. Republicans hate intelligence.

Exhibit 1: Herman Cain. One time Republican presidential leader Herman Cain struggled to exhibit any knowledge of President Obama's Libya policy during an interview. Now, this was the biggest foreign policy question during the summer since it involved using American forces to topple Libyan dictator Gaddafi. Americans were initially involved but Obama let the French take over. Anyway, he later defended his ignorance in a speech, basically saying he didn't need to know everything, that's what experts were for. And the Republican audience was clapping. He then said one of the dumbest things I've ever heard. "We need a leader not a reader." Chris Matthews of Hardball jumped on that and noted that it came from "The Simpsons Movie." By the way, he later got the Taliban confused with Libya. That kind of mistake gets Americans killed.

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Exhibit 2: Karl Rove's Attack Ad against Democrat Elizabeth Warren. Former President George W. Bush's Chief of Staff Karl Rove's PAC has produced an attack ad. Watch this ad. The ad labels Warren as "Professor." Huh? Is there something wrong with being a college professor?

B. Republicans hate the poor.

Exhibit 1: Newt Gingrich. He's now in the lead for the GOP presidential nomination. And on Friday, Gingrich slammed the poor by saying that poor children have no habits of showing up for work on Monday. He slams them as not knowing how to get money except by getting it illegally. Now put that on top of his desire to end child labor laws, his comments that millionaires get food stamps, you know this guy has no conception of what it's like to be poor and looks down upon them. Oh, I forgot the goofy stuff about welfare mothers should give up their children to orphanages. That orphan stuff came from the nineties. Listen to my man Al Sharpton rail against Gingrich in his MSNBC piece.

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Exhibit 2: The Republican Party Yeah, the attack against the poor by the Republicans has been going on for decades. Remember the old welfare mothers attack? Rachel Maddow does. Check out her piece below. But recall the cheering when GOP candidate Ron Paul was asked if society should just let a person who couldn't afford health insurance die.

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Bengals not ready for prime time

2011-12-04T20:35:00.003-05:00

The Cincinnati Bengals got destroyed by the Pittsburgh Steelers, 35-7. It was over by the first half. A bad omen appeared when the Bengals drove down to goal line. Quarterback Andy Dalton threw a touchdown pass. But A.J. Green was offside. Doh! Bengals don't make the TD and had to settle for a field goal. Kick is good. No, delay of game penalty. Doh! They try again. Blocked. Doooh! Doh! Folks, I don't want t write Bengals comedy.

Everything went wrong. The Bengals defense couldn't tackle or cover. The special teams sucked. A fumble by kick off returner Brandon Tate led to a Steelers touchdown. The Steelers returned a punt for a TD with the help of a referee who refused to call an illegal block. The offensive line could not block to spring the run or protect Dalton. Right tackle Andre Smith was hurt. And Andy Dalton left the game in the fourth quarter when two Steelers fell on him.

I hope the Bengals get a video of the Steelers having a good time on the sideline. That should burn in their memories. The road to the playoffs for the Bengals is the Wild Card. But if you're a Cincinnati sports fan, you expect the sky to fall on you. At least the Cincinnati Reds won the World Series in 1990.

Elizabeth Warren COMMANDS THE ROOM

2011-12-03T19:47:00.005-05:00

Democrat Elizabeth Warren is running for Senate in Massachusetts. And the Republicans are running scared. Karl Rove's PAC has created an ad linking her to the worst elements of Occupy Wall Street and calling her "Professor." How dare she be smart?!

What leftist-pinko stuff has she done? She advocated for the creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau designed to protect consumers. It was established through the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. A law designed to stop the abuses that led to the 2008 meltdown. Well, everybody knows who she stands with. The 99%. She's now moving ahead of the Republican Scott Brown. Below is the video of MS. WARREN COMMANDING THE ROOM. I've also included Al Sharpton's report on her surging campaign.

Elizabeth Warren commands the room.

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Fixing Mass Effect 3

2011-12-02T23:24:00.005-05:00

I've previously wrote that BioWare's Mass Effect 2 was a flawed masterpiece. I've read that Mass Effect 3 will come out in March of 2012. Let's hope that they fix the following flaws from the previous game and keep certain things from previous games. Note that some of the fixes are not necessarily technical fixes.

A. Fixes.

1. Get rid of the mining. This mini-game which is necessary was so mind numbing boring that if you suffer from insomnia, it will cure it. In the first Mass Effect, it's one touch mining. Perhaps BioWare should return to that.

2. Fix the tiny text. This is primarily a problem with SDTVs. But even on HDTVs the text is small. First, BioWare should realize there are still many SDTVs out there. Now every month, those old TVs are becoming less and less but there are still a significant number out there.

The fix would be to get rid of all the empty space that Mass Effect 2 had versus text. Scenes regularly have about seventy percent wasted space with neon graphics. For example, loading screens would have tips at the bottom but the screen is about ninety five per cent graphics. I would rather read the glorious details about the Mass Effect world than stare at empty graphics.

3. Simplify weapons upgrades. While Mass Effect 2 had a more understandable upgrade system than its predecessor, the game still required you to basically buy the game guide to figure out how it worked.

What they should do is just have a simple numerical upgrade. For example, name the upgrades by weapon such as assault rifle upgrade one. Then when a player maxes out an upgrade, inform the player he need not seek more upgrades.

4. Allow the player to take off his helmet. In Mass Effect 1, you could wear or not wear your helmet during a mission. In Mass Effect 2, you cannot. I want to take off my helmet when I engage in cutscenes. I want to look at my face as I talk to other characters.

5. Add mini-games when the main missions are over. In Mass Effect 2, the game ends and you are left on the bridge of the Normandy with nothing to do. If BioWare really wants an open world game, then let the player do some mini-games. Perhaps allow him to fight on a disputed world with variable enemies coming at him each time he lands. Or have a space casino with gambling games such as poker and black jack.

6. Allow the player to replay missions. Again if BioWare wants an open world type of game, allow the player to replay missions at the end of the story.

7. Allow multiple simultaneous love interests. This would be fun. Yeah, I know the Moral Majority would hate it. But let's face it, this is a video game. And by the way, if you choose Miranda as your girlfriend, BioWare had better realize that Ashley dumped you. So, it ain't your fault over the broke relationship. Yeah, I saw what happened when you try to get two women. Video below. So why not allow the player to have both? It's the male fantasy come true. :-)

B. Keep these things from the previous Mass Effect games.

1. Improved targeting from Mass Effect 2.

2. Doable Achievements Unlike Halo 3, the Insanity difficulty for Mass Effect 2 was not ridiculous hard.

3. Maintain the action in this RPG. Yeah, I know some hate the focus of action over the RPG elements. But frankly since you can create a character, it's still a RPG. The action makes the game more dynamic.

4. Allow you to import your character from Mass Effect 2. Hey, it took me a long time to create my Shepard character to look like me. So, allow me to import him to Mass Effect 3.

5. Bring back Miranda. Yes, I want Miranda back. She's played by the beautiful Yvonne Strahovski. (Chuck) (Pictured; real actress on right.) She's a little mysterious but please keep her a good girl. At the end of the game I want her by my side. Hey, we're role playing here.

In Mass Effect, this funny scene happens when you try to choose both women.

Trailer for Mass Effect 3.

Stephen Colbert on SOPA

2011-12-02T08:45:00.004-05:00

The House of Representatives' Stop Online Piracy Act (H.R. 3261) will chill the speech on the Internet. The reason is that it allows for criminal prosecution unauthorized streaming. The fear of being thrown in jail for sharing videos and information will cripple the Internet.

Last night, Stephen Colbert did a segment on the law. I love it when he cites an FBI report that online piracy costs 200 billion dollars a year but then notes that it's not corroborated. Check out the video.

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Big Kardashian News

2011-12-01T13:52:00.004-05:00

There's big news to go along with the Congressional Super Committee's inability to find a way to cut government debt and the aspirations of the Occupy Wall Street Movement. The Huffington Post is reporting that Kourtney Kardashian is pregnant. Now who is Kourtney Kardashian? Is she an accomplished actress? No. Rocket scientist? No. Try empty celebrity that got launched by a reality show about her family. America, what is the matter with you people? Why is this woman a celebrity? What has she done? At least with sister Kim, she can say she made her own sex tape. There are times I can see why Muslim terrorists want to kill us. I keeed. I keeed.

Stephen Colbert on Newt Gingrich and Barney Frank

2011-12-01T13:08:00.003-05:00

Last night, Stephen Colbert did video stories on Newt Gingrich's lead in the GOP Presidential primary and his hypocrisy. He also did a story on the retirement of Massachusetts congressman Barney Frank. Satire and sarcasm at its finest. Check out these funny videos.

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The Master of 3D Cinema and The Best 3D Movies Revised

2011-11-29T23:59:00.005-05:00

Look out James Cameron. There's a new king of the world when it comes to making 3-D movies. It's director Martin Scorsese. His new movie Hugo which was shot in 3-D is a masterpiece. (Pictured above Asa Butterfield, Ben Kingsley) When you see Hugo in 3-D, it's clear that Scorsese kept the 3-D technique in mind with every shot. The result? You never forget that you are watching a film in 3-D. There's an occasional money shot where he throws things at you. But Scorsese elevates 3-D to an art form. Scenes pop. There's a magical feel to the movie. Gears, fish, boots, even animated drawings beg you to touch them. It's ethereal.

Previously, I've compiled a list of the top ten 3-D movies from the last ten years. It's time to revise the list in light of Martin Scorsese's Hugo. I've bumped James Cameron's Aliens of the Deep. (2005) The list already has two other Cameron moives, Ghosts of the Abyss (2003) and Avatar. (2009) So let's countdown from number ten to number one of the best 3-D movies in the last ten years.

10. Up (2009)
9. Ghosts of the Abyss (2003)
8. Beowulf (2007)
7. Tron: Legacy (2010)
6. Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
5. Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008)
4. Despicable Me (2010)
3. How to Train Your Dragon (2010)
2. Avatar (2009)
1. Hugo (2011) Here's my review of this masterpiece. Check out the scene below where a box of sketches of the fantastic come alive.

Stephen Colbert On Mitt Romney's Misleading Ad

2011-11-29T06:41:00.006-05:00

Last night Stephen Colbert took on Republican Mitt Romney's ad that has President Obama saying "If we keep talking about he economy, we're going to lose." One problem with Romney's ad, it was totally out of context since OBAMA WAS QUOTING JOHN McCAIN. Well, Stephen Colbert uses Romney's logic for great comic effect in his segment, "Tip of the Hat, Wag of the Finger."

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Star Trek IV the best original series movie?

2011-11-29T04:52:00.003-05:00

The official Star Trek website has announced that Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986) is the best original series movie. This comes on the twenty fifth anniversary of the film. I've already rated it as the best Star Trek movie of all and that includes Star Trek. (2009) Why? It had adventure, great comedy and had ideas. Save the whales, save the planet. It's the ecology, stupid. Anyway check out the trailer for the movie and go buy or rent it.

Maybe Woody Allen was right

2011-11-29T04:09:00.003-05:00

Remember when Woody Allen in Annie Hall (1977) professes his love for the Evil Queen from Disney's Snow White? (1937) It was an animated scene and funny. (YouTube link to clip.) Well, I've seen the pilot for the TV show "Once Upon A Time." The show is kind of dumb. Fairy tale characters like Snow White, Prince Charming and the Evil Queen really exist in another time. They get transported to modern day Maine. That's kind of lazy since you don't have to create characters for a show just steal them from fairy tales. I wonder if the executives at ABC were on drugs when it was pitched to them.

Anyway, the Evil Queen is played by Lana Parilla. Well, she's certainly lovely. (Picture above.) As for the show, I consider her the fairest of them all. Now that I think of it, evil women can be attractive. The Evil Queen. Megyn Kelly (Fox News
Blonde) and Right-Wing author Ann Coulter.

Cardiac Cats Win Again!

2011-11-27T16:19:00.009-05:00

Today the Cincinnati Bengals beat the Cleveland Browns, 23-20. If it's brown flush it down. Sorry for that. The Bengals have won five out of seven games trailing in the fourth quarter. Let's call them the Cardiac Cats! The Bengals were down to Cleveland, 17-7 at the half.

It was a tale of two halves. The Browns were pounding the Bengals. The Browns stopped the Bengals in a goal line stance. The Bengals had trouble tackling. Browns running back Peyton Hillis was breaking tackles. The Browns were playing football AFC North style. The Browns forced a fumble. Within one minute, the Browns turn that fumble into a touchdown. The Browns lead 17-7.

But the Bengals are used to being behind at half. The Browns went up again by ten points in the third quarter, leading 20-10. But rookie Bengals QB Andy Dalton hit tight end Jermaine Gresham for a 22 yard TD pass. Dalton has now broken the team's rookie touchdown pass record with 16 TD passes. It's 20-17 in the third quarter.

Before I get to the big play, let me just say it's team sport. The defense held when it had to. And what can I say about Bengals defensive tackle Geno Atkins. Bengals star defensive end Carlos Dunlap was down for the game. Folks, during the 2010 draft, the big stud at defensive tackle was Ndamukong Suh and seeing him wreck havoc with Detroit, you see why. But the Bengals drafted defensive tackle Geno Atkins with their fourth pick. And wow. He may not be as big as the top picks but he's quick and powerful. Geno sacked Browns QB Colt McCoy and pressured him into an interception. The Bengals now have two very good defensive tackles in Domata Peko and Geno Atkins. And don't forget about special teams. They held Browns returner Joshua Cribbs. That ain't easy. Bengals kicker Mike Nugent was clutch again.

But let's get to the fourth quarter. The Bengals tie. And when the Browns tried to go ahead with a field goal in less than two minutes to go, there was a bad snap. Missed it. If it's brown, flush it down. Um, sorry. With 58 seconds left, and the Bengals have the ball. It's third and six. QB Andy Dalton takes the snap and is getting pressure from the Browns. He throws a bomb to rookie Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green for 51 yards. Dalton goes down from a hit from a Browns player. Green catches it and takes it to the five. (Pictured above.) Watch how Green attacks the ball and pulls it down. Wow. Seconds later, the Bengals kick a field goal. They go ahead 23-20. The Bengals defense holds. Bengals win, 23-20 and sweep the Battle of Ohio.

Playoffs? Yes, Jim Mora. The Bengals have taken another step towards the postseason. Three more wins should do it. Four more wins and the Bengals are going to get in. Up next are the bums from Pittsburgh. Could we beat these bums in a laugher?

My fellow Bengals fans, here are the highlights to today's great victory.

The Descendants Review

2011-11-26T01:14:00.004-05:00

When you see the ads for Director Alexander Payne's The Descendants, you would think this movie is more of a comedy than a drama. Well, be prepared for more of a drama with small amounts of comic highlights. Does that mean you should stay away from this film. No. This movie is the "Ordinary People" for this twenty first century decade. And you would be missing one of the best films of the year.

The Descendants starts out by introducing us to Matt King. (George Clooney) He's a lawyer and a lifetime resident of Hawaii. His wife Elizabeth (Patricia Hastie) was involved in a boating accident which has made her comatose. His problem is that he is now forced to raise his two daughters, ten year old Scottie (Amara Miller) and seventeen year old Alexandra. (Shailene Woodley) Raising them is a task that he is not equipped for. Unfortunately, a doctor informs him that Elizabeth will not awake and that she is basically brain dead. Since she had a living will, the hospital will soon stop all life preserving methods.

Complicating all of this is that while Elizabeth lies comatose, are two things. Matt must dispose of acres of land which has been in his family trust. It's probably the first time the rule against perpetuities has been used as a plot device in a movie. The descendants, i.e. all of Matt's cousins eagerly await for the sale since they will make millions. Second, Matt finds out from his estranged daughter, Alexandra, that Elizabeth had been having an affair with a realtor named Brian. (Matthew Lilard)

The screenplay was written by Nat Faxon, Jim Rash and Alexander Payne. It's based on a novel called "The Descendants" by Kaui Hart Hemmings. The screenplay does an excellent job with the dialogue. The characters all say things that sound real. Payne's direction focuses on the emotions in the faces of the characters. He adeptly balances drama one second and comedy the next. Payne also makes Hawaii an integral character in the film.

A movie such as this which is a character study, needs great performances by the actors for it to set sail. And the film has them. Shailene Woodley makes her teenage Alexandra rebellious, grief stricken and later adult strong. Amara Miller doesn't overact and her ten year old Scottie is perfect. Good to see Matthew Lilard as the other man. He's desperate and a bit shallow as Brian. But this film belongs to George Clooney. If you can read a person's emotion by looking at their face without the person saying anything, that's the epitome of fine acting. Every expression on Clooney's face tells a story. Hurt. Confusion. Love. It's a greater performance than what he did in Up In the Air. (2009) George Clooney should get an Oscar nomination for his performance.

The Descendants is a slice of life type of movie. It's the story of a family facing great tragic changes. It's an engrossing and heartfelt story. The grade is A.

Hugo 3D Review

2011-11-23T22:47:00.007-05:00

Director Martin Scorsese's Hugo starts out with virtuoso 3-D camera shots of a Paris train station as it follows a young boy named Hugo Cabret. (Asa Butterfield) We see Hugo watch life in the station from within the giant clocks. And the thing that overwhelms you is the majesty of the 3-D. (3D) You feel as if you can touch the gears on the clocks. Scorsese avoids much of the throwing stuff at you cliches of 3-D cinema but he does not disdain the medium. In fact, he embraces it. Yes, you get the occasional thing thrown at you. But it's as if he set every shot with the realization that he's making a 3D film CGI snow, statues, trains, shoes, gears all pop. You don't forget that you're watching a 3-D film. And this movie is the best 3-D film ever made. All of this is owed to Scorsese's prodigious talent and his wise decision to film in 3-D. This is one movie I recommend you pay the extra bucks to see in 3-D.

Hugo takes place in the early thirties. The place is Paris, France. Hugo (Asa Butterfield) is a young orphan boy who lives in a train station. He has a skill in fixing mechanical things, a skill he got from his father. (Jude Law) Through flashbacks we learn that Hugo's father left him an automaton, a kind of gear driven robot. Unfortunately, his father cannot get the automaton to work. When the father dies, Hugo is taken to the train station by his uncle Claude (Ray Winstone) where he helps to take of the clocks. When Claude disappears, Hugo is left all alone.

Hugo's existence depends upon him stealing food from the shops in the station. He must hide from the local cop, (Sacha Baron Cohen) who likes to round up any orphan and ship them off to the orphanage. His entertainment is to watch life of the patrons from the clocks. But Hugo's goal is to get the automaton to work.

One day, Hugo tries to steal a toy from a small toy shop. He's caught by the owner, Georges. (Ben Kingsley) When the owner takes a book containing sketches of the automaton from Hugo, he follows him home. There he entices the owner's granddaughter, Isabelle (Chloë Grace Moretz) to help him recover the book. She indicates that she wants to help but also looks upon Hugo as her guide to adventure.

The performances are pitch perfect. Asa Butterfield is wonderful as Hugo, a boy searching for his meaning in life. Jude Law's performance as the loving father makes you cry when he dies. Sacha Baron Cohen is a bit cartoonish as buffonish cop but so what? I laughed at his comedy. Film legend Christopher Lee plays a kind librarian. Helen McCrory (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows) is the dedicated and loyal wife of Georges. Chloe Grace Moretz (Kick Ass?!) radiates light as the charming Isabelle. And what can I say about Ben Kingsley. He shows all the ranges for Georges. Broken. Hurt. Joyful.

Accompanying this film is the beautiful score by Howard Shore. It definitely transports you to Paris. It's lush and Impressionistic. And check out the Django Reinhardt jazz band playing in the cafe.

John Logan (Gladiator; Star Trek: Nemesis) based his screenplay on the book, The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick. Logan's work here is poetic. And director Martin Scorsese take that poetry and translates it to the screen. Scenes are more like paintings the way Stanley Kubrick did in 2001: A Space Odyssey. (1968) I don't know which sets are real or CGI but Scorsese's Paris made me fall in love with the city.

It's no secret that the character of legendary filmmaker Georges Méliès, makes an appearance in the movie. The film covers his pioneer work in making movies about fantastic places, and creatures. Yes, I consider some of it to be science fiction. We learn in the movie that Méliès was a magician before he became a filmmaker.

And it's the concept of storytelling is magic that Logan and Scorsese are conveying. You see Hugo is not just valentine to filmmaking. Part of it is. I watched in wonderment as Méliès made his movies even if by today's standards the worlds he created primitive. But in Hugo we also learn of Isabelle and Hugo's love of books. It's this unique human ability to transport one to another world with a story that is the magic. And that's what Hugo celebrates.

Hugo is a family movie. But it's more than that. It's a movie that adults will also enjoy. Martin Scorsese has created a classic. You owe it to yourself to see this film in 3-D. The grade is A +.

Republicans want to bring back child labor

2011-11-23T04:32:00.004-05:00

I used to think the Republicans wanted to take the country back to the fifties Boy, was I wrong. They want to go back to the freaking nineteenth century! Newt Gingrich, the leading Republican presidential candidate called child labor laws stupid and suggested that schools fire all the janitors save just one and have children as young as nine to do the work.

According to Rachel Maddow (video below) this is not just crazy Newt's idea. But other Republicans want to repeal certain child labor laws. She notes Republicans in the states of Maine, Wisconsin and Missouri as the ones that are targeting child labor laws.

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Flash Mob protests in front of Marcus Bachmann's clinic

2011-11-23T03:59:00.004-05:00

Last July, Marcus Bachmann's Christian counseling clinic was caught trying to convince a gay man to basically "pray away the gay." Bachmann is the husband of conservative Republican Michele Bachmann who's running for president. Marcus Bachmann also called gays "barbarians." Well a clever group of protesters decided to form a flash mob outside Bachmann's clinic and perform Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" in barbarian garb. God bless 'em. Check it out. And as a bonus, I've got the hilarious Stephen Colbert piece on Bachmann.

Stephen Colbert's funny pieces on Marcus Bachmann from last July.

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The Best Harry Potter Movie

2011-11-22T01:14:00.002-05:00

Now that the final Harry Potter movie is on Blu-Ray, it's time to countdown to the best of the complete film series. And as I have said before, there are no clunkers in the bunch. They're all good, with the top five of the series really getting their A grades.

8. "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" (2002) The problem with this one is first, Ruper Grint's over the top acting as Ron Weasley. His screaming and crying drove me nuts. Then there's the end in which Tom Riddle aka Voldemort literally describes how the basilisk is going to destroy Harry. Annoying, though I wish more description were available for "Half Blood Prince." Grade is B.

7. "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" (2005) The school called "Beauxbatons", the French all girl academy, in Triwizard competition sets back feminism two hundred years. If you have ever coached against an all girl school team, you would know in this century that the girls do not act in this frilly and demure manner. Grade is B.

6. "Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince" (2009) I love the pacing and the dialogue. It doesn't pound you in your seats with constant action. However, this movie is literally too dark. There's no need to drain the movie of color, at least from this Muggle's view. It would have helped during Harry and Dumbledore's mission in the cave to describe how they are going to get the Horcrux. Is that Harry shoving Kool-Aid down Dumbledore's mouth? Grade is B.

5. "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows-Part One"(2010) The dark forces of Lord Voldemort have taken over the world of magic. Harry and his friends are on the run and looking the remaining Horcruxes. It's tense and exciting. The grade is A-.

4. "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" (2007) Got to love that wonderfully filmed wizard fight between Voldemort and Dumbledore. It's organic and elegant and quite believable. The grade is A.

3. "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" (2001) This film offers true magic. One believes that Hogwart's exists. Everything from Quiditich to John Williams' brilliant score to a small scene of Christmas at Hogwart's exudes wonderment. The grade is A.

2. "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows-Part Two" (2011) This is the final confrontation between Harry and Lord Voldemort. It's basically a war story. Riveting. One wishes it was longer. The grade is A.

1. "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" (2004) While this is the beginning towards a darker Harry Potter film, it's the most mature. There's real warmth between Harry, Prof. Lupin and Sirius Black. This is the best mixture of comedy, action and emotion.
The grade is A.

The Red Rifle makes rookie mistakes

2011-11-20T22:59:00.003-05:00

You knew this day was going to happen. Cincinnati Bengals QB rookie Andy Dalton aka "The Red Rifle" was going to have a rookie day. He threw three interceptions against the Baltimore Ravens. Bengals lose 31-24. Okay, it was more than Dalton. The defense gave up big plays. Bad call by referee on a touchdown by tight end Jermaine Gresham eliminated that TD. And in the final two plays, the offensive line gave into three defensive linemen for a grounding penalty and a sack.

At least you can say the Bengals showed they cold fight back. They were down by seventeen points. And Andy Dalton led the team back within the last minute right before the goal line. All this was done without Dalton's favorite weapon, wide receiver A.J. Green who was hurt.

Is there such a thing as moral victories? Hard to say at this point. But in the NFL, it's wins that count. Season is not over yet. But Bengals need help to make the playoffs. Next up, the Cleveland Browns at home. If its brown, flush it down.

The Best 3D Movies

2011-11-20T17:50:00.006-05:00

Martin Scorsese has directed Hugo in 3-D (3D), so does that mean the technique will get respect from serious filmmakers? Will there be an Academy Award for Best Picture for a movie that was filmed in 3D in the future? Hard to say since a writer at Slate thinks 3-D is on the way out.

Yeah, I've complained about 3D movies as being too dark. But it's an interesting day in the history of film when you have a great and serious artist such as Martin Scorsese direct a movie in the medium of 3-D. So let's see if we can dig up the ten best 3-D movies for the last ten years. Note that there are no true conversions, i.e. movies filmed in 2D but converted to 3-D. That's because those movies are too dark since the director prepared his movie in 2D lighting without making up for the polarization. Also the effects suffer. In essence conversions stink. Also note that I like movies that really use the medium even if that means the director throws things at you. Use it or lose it. So let's countdown to the best 3D film.

10. Up (2009) A great CGI animated Pixar film without the 3-D. It only enhances the best movie of 2009.

9. Ghosts of the Abyss (2003) James Cameron in this documentary explores the real life Titanic, the subject of his 1998 blockbuster. It's a captivating look at the ship in IMAX 3D.

8. Aliens of the Deep (2005) Director James Cameron in this documentary explores the deep ocean and films some strange creatures for IMAX 3D. A precursor to Avatar.

7. Beowulf (2007) After directing The Polar Express (2004) Robert Zemeckis made this CGI animated film of the old English epic poem. Best use of motion capture so far.

6. Tron: Legacy (2010) In IMAX 3D, the medium added to the coolness of the film.

5. Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011) This bad movie is actually made better by the 3D. Add to that, it's a hybrid, i.e. part of it was filmed in 3D. Anyway the 3D effects were spectacular. It makes me wonder if they're considering filming the next Star Trek in 3D and what it will look like.

4. Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008) I was watching this movie the other day. What I find impressive is that director Eric Brevig skillfully stages almost every shot for the medium. For example, you'll notice he has the actors not standing next to each other but most of the time they're staggered. That enhances the 3D effect. Of course, there are many money shots where things are thrown at you and where it emphasizes depth.

3. Despicable Me (2010) A delightful CGI animated family comedy. With a wink of an eye, the movie pushes the 3D to absurd proportions. That makes it a lot of fun.

2. How to Train Your Dragon (2010) From the hair on the fur of the Vikings to the exciting flying sequences, this CGI animated feature is a beautiful in 3D. It's also a great movie.

1. Avatar (2009) The film that launched the craze. The move takes off when Jake undergoes his training with the Na'vi. Great sequences feature dragon flying, alien plant life and the final battle with the humans. The mixture between live action and CGI is seamless. It's Cameron's crowing achievement for his work in 3-D. If you get a chance, see this movie in IMAX 3D.

Addendum. With the release of Hugo, there's a new 3-D movie champ. Check out the revised list.

Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog takes on Occupy Wall Street

2011-11-18T23:16:00.006-05:00

Hanging out at TrekMovie.com, sometimes you will get to chat with screenwriter Bob Orci. (Star Trek) You find out that Bob likes Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog. Well, I thank Bob for reminding about the comic stylings of Trimuph. You'll also note that I occasionally use one of Triumph's catchphrases. "I keeed. I keeed." Anyway, Triumph took on the Occupy Wall Street protesters. It's very funny. Check it out.

Why you should be watching Fringe.

2011-11-18T22:33:00.003-05:00

I've complained about the movie Star Trek (2009) as being shallow especially when you look at the pedigree of the Trek TV series. Star Trek should be intelligent science fiction. Well, three of the people behind the movie, director J. J. Abrams, writers Alex Kurtzman and Bob Orci created the television series Fringe three years ago. This series is smart and deep whereas Star Trek was shallow.

Tonight's episode "Wallflower" is why you should be watching Fringe. The Fringe team of the FBI must investigate the murders of men who lose all their pigmentation when they die. The force behind it is an invisible man that resembles the cloak you saw in Predator. (1987) It's reminiscent of The X Files. And for good reason. Fringe was inspired by that show.

But the reason why you should watch this show was demonstrated in this episode. Interesting science fiction. Emotional moments. Three dimensional characters. Great acting, especially by John Noble. (Walter) He's a one man acting class. The surprising denouement of this show will leave you with a warm feeling. The only problem with the show is the serial nature of the episode. While the mystery of the episode is resolved, the show ends with a cliff hanger. I know that today's modern television wants to hook you but the difficulties of serial television are that episodes don't end and if the plot arc stinks, it wrecks the separate episodes and maybe the whole series. See Lost. The good thing is that Bob Orci, and Alex Kurtzman didn't work on Lost.

But if you love good science fiction and are looking for it on television, check out Fringe. It's one of the best television series, science fiction or not.

Crazy, crazy Herman Cain, part 4

2011-11-18T20:42:00.004-05:00

I should also label this story, "Republicans worship stupidity." Chris Matthews on Hardball did a segment of the Republican presidential candidates. One of the videos in his story shows Herman Cain embracing his stupidity on foreign policy. In fact he basically quotes a line from the Simpsons movie about being a leader not a reader. Folks, this is another reason why I'm not a Republican. The leaders of the party want to embrace ignorance, and pure unthinking emotion. Even Republican Ron Christie was amazed at this embrace of ignorance. By the way Herman Cain also mixed up Libya and Afghanistan, stating that the Taliban were Libya. Mediaite video below. Oy. That type of mistake gets Americans killed.

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Newt Gingrich surges ahead in GOP race

2011-11-17T04:38:00.003-05:00

Oy. It's time to announce the weekly Republican leader in the presidential race for the GOP nomination. According to recent polls, it's Newt Gingrich. What?! Didn't his staff quit when he went on a Greek vacation? When is Rick Santorum's turn? Anyway, here's my man Stephen Colbert's take. Bonus. Here's Colbert's piece about Gingrich's hilarious over the top press release blasting the media with a reading by John Lithgow.

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Seattle cops pepper spray 84 year old woman

2011-11-17T04:25:00.005-05:00

Dorli Rainey, an 84 year old woman and activist, went down to participate with the protests of Occupy Seattle. The Seattle police decided to pepper spray the civilians. She got nailed with the spray. You may have seen the picture of her suffering from the news. Last night, Keith Olbermann of Current TV, got an interview. She's a real voice for the people. She talks about her time in World War Germany and how the government controlled the media. She then relate that to how the our government and corporate forces control the media. God love her. She wants the voices of the people to be heard. Listen to her voice in the powerful video below. I love her motto, "Take one more step out of your comfort zone."

Political correctness runs out of control

2011-11-17T03:56:00.005-05:00

Too often conservatives rail against political correctness because it prevents them from criticizing gays, Muslims or any other non-white Anglo Saxon Protestant. But political correctness also affects liberals too. I like to think that I'm a feminist but if I incorrectly compliment a woman then I'm a sexist.

Well, the Huffington Post is reporting that an Illinois high school teacher, Rhett Felix was suspended for showing clips from the Daily Show to his kids. The show in question is from October 31. And if you look at my story "Oops, Rick Perry" you'll get the segment at the bottom. A parent compared the situation to the Penn State sex scandal. Really? There's a big difference between some sexy jokes and actual rape. My guess is that the parent doesn't like Jon Stewart's liberal views. By the way the show is on basic cable. The kids probably watch it before they go to sleep or catch it on at 6:00 p.m. The cussing is bleeped out and there's no nudity. Oy vey.

Folks, I'm not going to censor my blog for political correctness. I'll keep the blog PG-13 but I believe in the First Amendment. Plus the Daily Show and Stephen Colbert provide me with plenty of content.

Crazy, crazy Herman Cain, part 3

2011-11-16T04:55:00.004-05:00

Wow, conservative Republican Presidential candidate Herman Cain is not qualified to commander in chief. Asked to explain his position on President Obama's policy about Libya, Cain looked like a deer lost in the headlights. It was like he didn't know anything about what happened in Libya. Anyway, here's Jon Stewart of the Daily Show giving his funny take.

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A Great Colbert Report

2011-11-15T15:43:00.004-05:00

Last night was a great Colbert Report. Now you can see why a lot of people get their news from The Daily Show and Stephen Colbert. Yeah, Colbert is playing a fake conservative, just like Jon Stewart of the Daily Show isn't really a newsman. But they report on real news, they just add jokes.

Anyway, Colbert goes over Michele Bachmann's rage over the "liberal mainstream" media's snub over her campaign. Then he goes over a very important story regarding a proposed pipeline from Canadian tar sands to Texas. Called Keystone XL, this pipeline's increase to carbon gasses will mean "game over" for the climate. Of course, if you watch Fox News, they will tell you that it will create 20K, 50K, 120K to million jobs. Environmentalist Bill McKibben tells Colbert why the pipeline is bad. Then enjoy a very funny piece about vodka tampons. You heard that. And last there's an excellent interview with Thomas Thwaites, a guy who built his own toaster from scratch. Think about it. Within this one innocuous appliance, you can see modern civilized humanity. Funny and profound.

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There's bad seafood?!

2011-11-15T15:35:00.002-05:00

While I was surfing the web, I came across this article by David Zinczenko about five types of seafood I should not eat. Get it surf the web? Eh, sorry for that. Okay, this comes when where supposed to eat more seafood? Now I have to have a list of the type of fish that may have contanminents that outweigh the benefits Oy. Anyway here's the article.

"J. Edgar" Review

2011-11-13T17:44:00.007-05:00

While I was watching Director Clint Eastwood's J.Edgar, a film about the life of J.Edgar Hoover, the FBI's first director, I was reminded of the phrase that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Did Hoover abuse his power? Yes. But while some of his actions crossed the constitutional line of legality, he was not a black and white villain. Some of his actions protected the United States and forced crime detection into the twentieth century.

J. Edgar starts out in the sixties with FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover (Leonardo DiCaprio) dictating his memoirs to young FBI agents. The movie then flashes back to Hoover when he was an investigator for the U.S. Attorney General where the government was fighting bomb planting Communists. The film then flashes forward and backwards multiple times. We see his involvement with the Lindbergh kidnapping case. We see him build up the FBI and bring modern science into the field of crime detection. There are moments dealing with Attorney General Bobby Kennedy. Then there are the personal moments. We see his relations with his mother Anna, (Judi Dench); his personal secretary Helen Gandy (Naomi Watts) and his right hand man Clyde Tolson (Armie Hammer)

What the film drives home is that Hoover initially starts out with good intentions that go bad. He's fighting Communists who want to violently overthrow the United States government. But while his desire to build a modern and professional crime fighting law enforcement agency is commendable, it conflicts with his totalitarian paranoia. It's that fear of what he perceives as un-American that causes him to plant lies about Martin Luther King, Jr., spy on personal enemies and keep dirt on presidents in his files.

The performances are all excellent. Naomi Watts' Helen is portrait of a twentieth century woman. Her Helen Gandy has an inner strength. Judi Dench is the greatest actress of our time. She doesn't get many scenes but in her short time on the screen she conveys her total loyalty to J. Edgar. Armie Hammer comes from a rich and elite background. He is the great grandson of oil tycoon Armand Hammer. But he now has earned applause for his portrayal as Tolson, first as a young FBI recruit who makes Hoover sweat then as the much older agent. Then there is Leonardo DiCaprio. His Hoover is sanctimonious, paranoid and ambitious.

While the performances are fine, J. Edgar has major flaws. You see Hoover's life was shrouded in mystery. For example, there were rumors of Hoover's cross dressing and alleged homosexuality with Tolson his alleged lover. Screenwriter Dustin Lance Black (Milk) can't commit to dramatic ideas like Hoover was gay. They strongly hint at it but there's no passion between Hoover and Tolson. Another problem with the film is that it dwells way too much time on the Lindbergh kidnapping. Yeah, that case helped to build the FBI with funding from Congress. But the FBI came into noteriety from its fight with Depression era bank robbers. More could have been done with Hoover's blackmailing ability to intimidate presidents.

Criticizing Clint Eastwood is one of the last things I want to do. After all the man is a legendary filmmaker. But his direction is colorless like this film. First, let me ask Eastwood to stop writing the musical scores for his movies. Don't get me wrong, the man can write music. But surprisingly his music doesn't match the movie. His score for this film is romantic with piano accompanied by strings. But his movie is not a love story. I meant it could have been a romance if it went all in on the idea that Hoover was gay and loved Tolson. The better score for a story about a man who was the nations' top cop and was at times corrupt would be one with American themes but at times with touches of clear sarcasm. Late composer Shostakovich comes to mind when throwing in sarcasm in music.

But back to Eastwood's direction of J. Edgar. To demonstrate how dry this movie is, there's a scene where Hoover is in Attorney General Bobby Kennedy's office. There's a discussion on who the FBI should be investigating. Hoover wants to investigate a personal enemy. Kennedy doesn't agree. Hoover quietly throws out that he has evidence that Kennedy's brother, President John F. Kennedy had an affair. Basically, Hoover is blackmailing the President. The problem is that Hoover throws it out like he's talking about the weather. This scene required more dialogue with punch. It required emotion. Instead the scene fizzles.

At the end of the credits, there's a thanks to the FBI for their assistance in the making of J. Edgar. Interesting, since this film is an unflattering view of a deeply imperfect man. J. Edgar is also like its subject. Professional, but flawed. The grade is B -.