Keith Olbermann blasts Trump's political visit to flood ravaged Texas

if I can be like President Trump here, I blasted him for visiting flood ravaged Texas at this time. So consider me one of the first to do so. I mean It's still raining in record setting and biblical amounts!

Well today, he made his visit. And if you know Trump, all he did was act like a leader, said nothing of importance, and praised his administration's response. Mother Jones report. At one point, he said, "What a crowd, what a turnout." There are literally people drowning and all the conservative Trump can do is treat his visit like photo-op. And check out his cap and the First Ladie's caps. Yep. Trump's hat can be bought from his campaign website. (Huffington Post) First Lady's cap states "FLOTUS." Like we really need to be told that. I'm guessing that this cap will be on sale somewhere too. Hey, Trump how about doing a video telling people where to contribute money for Texas relief? How about getting or buying boats for rescues?

Thankfully, Keith Olbermann did a video on conservative Republican Trump's Texas visit. And if you want to live, vote liberal Democrat.

Time for conservative Texas Republicans to admit their hypocrisy

Virtually all of the conservative Republican Texas congressional delegation voted against helping out the people of New Jersey and New York for the storm Sandy. And a punk like Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) is trying to justify that vote by saying the Sandy bill was loaded with pork. Wrong Ted. Almost all of it had to do with storm Sandy. (Daily Koss) You see conservatives hate public spending so much that even if it is to help people in dire need, it's very difficult if impossible to have them say yes. Yet, tax breaks for the big rich are okay.

Well, will New York and New Jersey congressmen retaliate when help is needed for the Texan hurricane Harvey? Rest easy Texans. Those easterners even Republican congressmen from New York have your back. But thanks to your conservative congressmen, they almost blew it. (Slate) Just remember, if you want to live, vote liberal Democrat.

In memory of Sam Shepard and John Glenn

Author and actor Sam Shepard passed away last month. One of his most well known performances was playing legendary test pilot Chuck Yeager in the film, The Right Stuff. (1983) The film was about the beginning of the American space program and the project Mercury astronauts. One of them was Senator John Glenn (D-Oh) He was the first American to orbit the earth. He passed away in December of 2016. God speed Sam Shepard and John Glenn. Let's pay tribute to both.

Sam Shepard as Chuck Yeager takes the NF-104 A Starfighter to space.


Looking back at John Glenn's life from PBS.

Trump is wrong to visit hurricane ravaged Texas so soon for political reasons

it's simply despicable for conservative President Trump to visit hurricane ravaged Texas on Tuesday when the storm just hit on Friday. (Politico) It's rather obvious that this is for political reasons because what can the orange skin, blonde haired Dear Leader do? He isn't Superman where he can divert all the flood water away. And by arriving in Texas, he will divert much needed law enforcement for rescue operations to protect him.

God to Conservative Republicans, "Biblical flooding to Texas was caused by climate change."

Hey, conservative Republicans. I know you didn't believe that 2005's Hurricane Katrina was made much worse by global warming or climate change. We now can say that Friday's Hurricane Harvey which hit Texas was made much, much worse by climate change. (The Guardian) What do you say after Hurricane Harvey and its Biblical rainfall and flooding? What about you President Trump after pulling out of the Paris Climate Accord?

Conservative Republicans and Trump are causing suffering and death to our people. Come election time, we need to vote conservatives out. Vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.

Alec Baldwin returns as Trump

Thank you Saturday Night Live and Alec Baldwin. They return this summer to parody last Tuesday's hate rally. Comedy never sleeps or takes a long vacation, at least while The Dear Leader is President.

Michael Che: That black guy is one crazy ....

At last week's Trump hate rally, I'm guessing everybody is wondering who is the lone black guy behind Trump with the sign that says, "Blacks for Trump." Hey, Michael Che of Saturday Night Live's Weekend Update was curious. (Video below.) He's Maurice Symonette. And according to the Huffington Post, he's one crazy mother ... Shut my mouth. For example, he believed that when President Obama was a senator that he tried to have him assassinated. Let's face it. Conservative Republican Trump can only get one black person to attend his rallies. That's what he gets for being a Nazi sympathizer.

The path forward should conservative Trump pardon Kushner and Trump Jr.

With today's political pardon of his racist buddy Joe Arpaio, it is now clear that conservative Republican President Donald Trump does not believe in the rule of law. Let's face reality. He will not let his son-in-law Jared Kushner go to jail for colluding with the Russians and attempting to set up a back channel with them that would defeat American intelligence. The same could be said for his son, Donald Jr. It would not surprise me, Trump could also pardon former campaign manager Paul Manafort and National Security Adviser Michael Flynn.

Should these political and personal pardons happen, it will be the blackest day in the history of America. We will become a nation of men not of laws. So, is there anything that can be done?

Yes. Obviously, Congress can impeach and remove Trump. Unfortunately, both houses are controlled by conservative Republicans. That being said, if it gets that bad, I believe some Republicans will join Democrats and succeed in impeaching President Trump.

Note a person who is pardoned loses his Fifth Amendment right to remain silent. Any of the parties can be now forced to testify under oath in any investigation or impeachment proceeding.

Then there is another institution that was wisely protected by our Founding Fathers through the First Amendment. The news media. This is why The Dear Leader hates the news media so much. Should Trump pardon his way out of the Russian "thing", there will be courageous Americans who will leak evidence to show how unpatriotic and corrupt, the Trump Administration is. Look to see stories on it. I also include in the news media, the publishing of books.   Look, we've got to get the truth out so Congress can remove Trump.

Finally, the President can only pardon Federal offenses. There may be state laws that Trump could be prosecuted under. Is it up to you, New York?

Trump can pardon but he can't hide. The light of truth will win.

Cowardly Trump pardons racist sheriff

Under the cover of a massive hurricane about to hit Texas, conservative Republican President Donald Trump has pardoned former Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio. He had been found guilty of disobeying a court order which mandated that he stop arresting Latinos on the mere suspicion of being in the country illegally. Arpaio's actions were racist as they were not rounding up white people. (Huffington Post.)

The obvious reason of announcing it tonight was to use the dual cover of Friday night and the hurricane to cover it up. This way, Trump's racist action would cause less tribulation. What a coward. Trump also formerly announced his ban on transgender people from joining the military. Caitlyn Jenner, do you still support Trump? Your sisters and brothers are suffering.

Logan Lucky review

Logan Lucky has gotten some good reviews. But I wonder if director Steven Soderbergh's reputation has anything to do with it. I mean was there a yearning from critics to see a Soderbergh film after an absence of four years? And if this movie fails, can we blame alleged screenwriter Rebecca Blunt? After all Hollywood Reporter has reported that she doesn't exist. Is there a motive here to blame her? Maybe the filmmakers thought it would bomb with the critics and they could say it's Blunt's fault. Then it becomes an implausible hit with the critics like Trump becoming president. How meta.

Logan Lucky is about two brothers. Jimmy Logan (Channing Tatum) has just lost his job digging under the Charlotte Motor Speedway in North Carolina. His ex-wife is going to move to Tennessee and take his daughter with her. Yeah, he is down on his luck. So, he devises a plan to rob the Speedway with his brother, Clyde Logan played by Adam Driver. (Star Wars: The Force Awakens) Clyde has lost his right arm due to light saber duel with Rey. Oops. Sorry, that's Star Wars. He lost his arm from the Iraq War. They enlist a demolitions expert named Joe Bang. (Daniel Craig) Should I laugh here? Anyway, the problem is that he's in jail and won't get out for five months. Thre are three major women roles here but they're not given much to do. But I'll cite them here. Actresses Katie Holmes, Riley Keough and Katherine Waterston. I mean Waterston plays an old high school flame of Jimmy's but it's so badly underwritten that the filmmakers should have just cut it and saved the money to pay her. Back to the plot, the Logan brothers must figure out a way to break out Bang, do the robbery and sneak him back into jail.

Let's start with what this movie does right. Director Soderbergh shoots a pretty picture. Shots are well set up.   All of the performances are great. Special nod to Daniel Craig. He pretty much steals every scene he's in. That's about it for what is right.

Here's what's wrong with this movie. Logan Lucky is trying to be a "jack of all trades" but it's "master of none." The film tries to work in three genres. First, does it work as a hillbilly heist flick? No. To make a heist movie work, you must focus on whether the protagonist is going to get away with the robbery. This movie introduces a mystery in the third act. It then uses flashbacks to explain the mystery. Those flashbacks deal with the actual heist. They suck out all the tension of the robbery when they should have been added in the sequence of the actual heist. Yeah, I get it. The mystery is trying to be an original plot thread. Doens't work. I almost fell asleep during the flashbacks. They are also confusing. Additionally, the heist relies on some wild assumptions. During a prison riot, the film depends on the warden being so vain that he won't call for outside help. Really? Two, does this movie work as a comedy? No. I know humor is a subjective thing but the jokes aren't funny. And there's not enough of them to have some of them work. Third, does this film work as an indie drama about a Southerner trying to raise his daughter in modern times? Not really. The heist stuff blocks out most of Jimmy's struggles to maintain a relationship with his daughter. And I'm amazed that Rebecca Blunt who is a woman wrote this movie. Her female characters are badly written. As I said above, there's not much for them to do here. From a feminist point of view, you would think she would make this movie about two sisters. I mean there needs to be more movies starring women. This leads me to think that maybe Ms. Blunt doesn't exist.

Logan Lucky is a dull and unfunny movie. Wait to rent this one. Then go over it to find the plot holes for fun. The grade is C plus.

The Hitman's Bodyguard review

I wonder how much Quentin Tarantino charges to polish a script. Because that's what is needed for The Hitman's Bodyguard. This movie about a hitman and his bodyguard could use Tarantino's talent in writing dialogue, jokes and clean up some of the illogical stuff.

The film shows us how Michael  Bryce (Ryan Reynolds), a high price bodyguard, loses a client, Kurosawa to a head shot fired through a jet plane's passenger window. Now this is supposed to be funny as Bryce is narrating how great he is. And it could be funny, if it weren't for the screams of Kurosawa's family. By the way, if this guy is named after Akira Kurosawa, then as an American I apologize to the late, great director. Anyway, this causes Bryce to spiral downwards to poverty and also loses his girlfriend, Interpol cop Roussel, (Elodie Yung.)

Flash forward. Ruthless Belarus dictator Dukhovich (Gary Oldman) has been nabbed for war crimes. We know he's bad because he personally executes a mother and her daughter. Apologies to Belarus. But hey, at least the filmmakers used a real country. The prosecutors at a The International Court of Justice in the Netherlands make a deal with Darius Kincaid (Samuel L. Jackson), a hitman, incarcerated in England to testify against Dukhovich. Kincaid makes a deal if they release his murderous wife, Sonia. (Salma Hayek) Roussel escorts Kincaid. They get ambushed by hitmen and she rips off her clothes revealing that she is Wonder Woman. She then beats up all the bad guys and flies Kincaid to testify. End of the movie. Um... okay, the Wonder Woman stuff doesn't happen. They do get ambushed and Roussel rescues Kincaid but she has to call in Bryce to do the escort since this is a buddy movie.

Look this is your standard male buddy action movie. Don't let the black comedy fool you. There's not enough jokes whether they be black, funny or bad to make this stand out as a black comedy. And frankly, the women in this movie could have easily been written out. They're just here to either create sentimentality or give you a reason to tell a date, that she might like this movie.

Director Patrick Hughes' earlier works included commercials and it shows. He can't keep the camera still. There are way too many handheld camera shots and fast cutting. What this does is that it makes the action confusing. And then there are lapses of logic. Bryce gets captured and is tortured. Kincaid rescues him. But we don't know how Kincaid found him. See this is where a script doctor could have been helpful.

The Hitman's Bodyguard would have been better if it focused more on the two  leads. Add even more dialogue between Kincaid and Bryce. Who can forget the hitmen discussing how the French call a Quarter Pounder from the film Pulp Fiction?   This movie is saved only by the magnetic charm of Samuel L. Jackson.    The grade is barely a B Minus.

Hey Trump, here's your thousands of protesters

I was watching conservative President Donald Trump's speech last night in Phoenix, Arizona. After about twenty minutes, he ridicules his protesters outside by questioning their size.  (MSNBC video: at 7:00 minute mark) Trump said:

"All week, they're talking about the massive crowds that are going to be outside, where are they?"

Right here. The thousands of peaceful protesters that were there on a hot day in Arizona protesting you, Mr. President. (L.A. Times) Hey conservative Republican Trump. You're beginning to sound like Baghdad Bob. Or should I say Baghdad Donald.

Trump's nebulous plan for Afghanistan war

By his standards, President Trump's speech on the Afghanistan war was civil by comparison to all of his other speeches. Huffington Post. Yet for its approximately half hour length, it said nothing. No troop levels. No time for when the United States will leave. Nothing to help the Afghan people build their country when we do leave.

There are some disturbing things to his nebulous speech. We don't know if Trump is going to add troops. There is a tradition of announcing that America will send troops.. After all, Congress must fund this. There's also an intimidation factor to the enemy. Third, the American people should know whether a love one may be going off to war. But is there a crazy plan? I'm talking about Erik Prince's ludicrous plan to privatize the war. He would use 5000 contractors instead of America's military which is the finest fighting force in the world. The Atlantic. This would be laughable if it weren't for this fact. Prince is the brother of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos. And the whole family is big Republican money. So don't put anything by the conservative blonde hair, orange skin dear leader.

Then there is what is to happen to Afghanistan. Trump said we're not going to nation build. Okay. But killing terrorists is not the full solution. The Taliban is not just a bunch of terrorists. They do have some Afghan support. Leaving after declaring victory will leave a vacuum. And the extremists will return. And one more problem. Last night, Rachel Maddow on her show indicated that Trump seemed to be  hinting that he wants to take Afghanistan's mineral wealth. This stealing is a war crime. Not to mention that the Afghans won't appreciate it. And if they hate us, Afghanistan will again be a haven for terrorists.

What we need is a new president. And as soon as possible. Trump's going to get a lot of people killed.

Farewell , Jerry Lewis

On this day of comedian and humanitarian Jerry Lewis's passing, let me tell you something you may not have heard about. He was a teacher at one of the most prestigious film schools in America, The University of Southern California. His students were George Lucas, Randal Kleiser, Peter Bogdanovich, and Steven Spielberg. (Hollywood Reporter) Lewis was a pioneer with video playback on the set. (The Guardian) He was a giant in comedy, and film. He raised billions of dollars for a cure for muscular dystrophy. His legacy will be with us forever.

Jerry could also sing. As the character "Buddy Love" in the film The Nutty Professor (1963) he sings the jazz standard "That Old Black Magic".

Farewell, Dick Gregory

Civil rights activist and comedian Dick Gregory passed away. Wikipedia Page. And check out his take on The First Amendment. God bless and thank you, Mr. Gregory.

Seth Myers on Trump's disastrous Charlottesville news conference

Here's Seth Myers with a Closer Look at conservative President Trump's horrific news conference where he goes off the rails on the Charlottesville riot. We might as well laugh because it hurts so much.

Stick Mike Pence with Donald Trump

If conservative President Donald Trump resigns or is impeached, Democrats must stick Vice President Mike Pence with him. Trump has recently demonstrated he is a racist by defending Nazis and has likely colluded with the Russians. If the Democrats are politically savvy they must attach Pence with him. That won't be hard to do. Use every interview where Republican Pence has kissed Trump's ass by obsequious devotion. Make sure he is damaged politically if Pence runs for President in 2020.

Of course, if Pence had anything to do with Russians then the mid-term elections become even more important. If the Democrats can take the House, a Democratic Speaker could become the next President if Trump and Pence have to leave before 2020.

Stick Pence with Trump like David Letterman jumping into a wall of Velcro.

Will Trump resign?

The Huffington Post is reporting that Tony Schwartz who co-wrote "The Art of the Deal" is predicting that conservative President Donald Trump will resign. He believes that the Russia investigation will do the Republican Trump in. Through his Twitter account, Schwartz argues that Trump will make deal for immunity rather than face criminal charges and resign.

A couple of things to demand from Trump if he wants immunity for resignation. And let's face it, Trump will probably get immunity for his son-in-law, Jared Kushner and son Donald Jr. Obviously Kushner must go as White house Adviser. Second, both Trumps and Kushner must admit that they colluded with the Russians. Third, they must cooperate with special counsel Robert Mueller so that he may file a report about Russian meddling with our democracy.

Conservative Trump again defends the Confederacy and knows nothing of history

Republican President Donald Trump has just tweeted bemoaning the nationwide removal of Confederate statues. CNN report. Conservative Trump wrote:

"Sad to see the history and culture of our great country being ripped apart with the removal of our beautiful statues and monuments." "You can't change history, but you can learn from it." "Robert E Lee, Stonewall Jackson - who's next, Washington, Jefferson? So foolish!" CNN report.

If there was any question that Trump is a racist, is over. He is. These statues are monuments to the Confederacy. that's the "culture" he wants to preserve. And while some may have artistic value, almost all of them were erected to honor the Confederacy. And the Confederacy's prime issue was to preserve slavery. It should be noted that removing of Confederate statues is contested by racists and Nazis. By siding with the Confederacy and Nazis, Trump has now shown he is a racist. His support of the Obama birther issue is even more evidence.

Trump also does not know history. Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson fought and killed people to tear the country apart and preserve slavery. George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, while not perfect, were the founding fathers of our great democracy.

Conservative President Trump defends Nazis

So I watched Republican President Trump's news conference on Tuesday about the Charlottesville riots. It was a whole dimension of crazy. Call it 3D crazy. It was so deranged that at first I thought his comment about some "very fine people" marched to protest the removal of the Robert E. Lee statue sounded reasonable. CNN Transcript. That is, until I thought about it. First, the protest was organized by far right racists. Second, look at videos of the march the night before the fateful Saturday riots. Those who were marching with torches were Nazis. The shouted "blood and soil." That is a Nazi motto. They also shouted, "Jews will not replace us.' (Vice News Documentary; caution this is video contains disturbing language and images. EVERY REPUBLICAN SHOULD WATCH THIS HBO VICE VIDEO.)   These people are Nazis.

President Trump stated that some  "very fine people" protested against the removal of the Robert E. Lee statue. Not true. When you march with Nazis, you are a Nazi/  . Conservative republican Donald Trump has just defended Nazis.

Trump defends the Confederacy by equating Robert E. Lee to George Washington

Yesterday, conservative President Donald Trump, showed his real self  in a press conference.   When addressing the Charlottesville  riots, Trump revealed he sympathized with the Nazis.  (Here's the CNN transcript.) Perhaps the most outrageous and egregious thing he did was to morally equate Robert E. Lee with George Washington. Here's what he said.

"You had people in that group that were there to protest the taking down of, to them, a very, very important statue and the renaming of a park from Robert E. Lee to another name.
(CROSSTALK)
QUESTION: George Washington and Robert E. Lee are not the same (inaudible)...
(CROSSTALK)
TRUMP: George Washington was a slave-owner. Was George Washington a slave-owner? So, will George Washington now lose his status? Are we going to take down -- excuse me -- are we going to take down -- are we going to take down statues to George Washington?
(CROSSTALK)
TRUMP: How about Thomas Jefferson? What do you think of Thomas Jefferson? You like him?
(CROSSTALK)
TRUMP: OK. Good. Are we going to take down the statue? Because he was a major slave-owner. Now, are we going to take down his statue? So you know what? It's fine. You're changing history. You're changing culture. And you had people, and I'm not talking about the neo-Nazis and the white nationalists, because they should be condemned totally. But you had many people in that group other than neo-Nazis and white nationalists.+

Hey President Trump, you blonde haired, orange skin idiot. Comparing Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson to George Washington and Thomas Jefferson means you see them in the same light. Robert E Lee and Stonewall Jackson fought for the Confederacy. The Confederacy wanted to tear America apart and preserve slavery. George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were Founding Fathers and created our country. Equating Lee and Jackson to Washington and Jefferson is Trump's way of supporting the Confederacy. Lee and Jackson should not be honored with monuments for fighting for slavery. And while Washington and Jefferson were flawed because they had slaves, they created our created our great democracy.

Stephen Miller should have learned diversity from Star Trek

Back on August 2, White House adviser Stephen Miller defended conservative President Trump's new policy to select English speaking people for legal immigration. CNN's Jim Acosta challenged the policy by raising the poem on the Statue of Liberty about the "huddled masses yearning to breathe free" and arguing that the administration favors immigrants from Great Britain, Australia, i.e. white English speaking countries. Miller then stated that the poem was added later to the statue and implied that it doesn't mean anything as it relates the the monument. He then accused Acosta of having a cosmopolitan bias. Which means Acosta believes in a kind of America that is a melting pot of races and ideas. Politico article.

While researching whether Miller is a racist, I found he is a Star Trek fan. Vanity Fair. I would suggest Miller follow the ideas of Star Trek. Its creator, Gene Roddenberry,  intentionally made a crew of multiple races to push diversity. (Video below.) So it's right for Star Trek, it's right for America. We are a melting pot. And diversity is our strength. Just look at the Women's Olympic Gymnastics team of 1996 and 2016 which won team Gold Medals.

Gene Roddenberry interview ABC Good Morning America, 1986; at 30 seconds made diversity of the crew a priority

Violence from the radical left is also wrong

I've expressed my opposition to Nazis and white supremacists. But here's where I agree with President Trump when he condemned all sides for the Charlottesville violence. Yes, conservative Trump messed up by not pointing out that it was a Nazi who killed a woman. He failed to condemn the Nazis for their ideas. After all, the initial protest was organized by white supremacists and Nazis. However, he is correct to criticize violence from the radical left.

Far left groups like the Antifa are right to oppose fascists and racists. But they should not use violence, or threats to shut down speech. The First Amendment protects even the fascists. By stooping to the level of the fascists, these far left groups give ammunition to them and diminish their cause.

Conservative Trump refuses to name Nazis and white supremacists as the cause of Charlottesville

Republican and Conservative President Donald Trump refused to call out Nazis and white supremacists as the cause of the violence and murder of a woman in Charlottesville, Virginia on Saturday. (Video below.) This is akin to saying that World War II was caused by all sides and refusing to call out the Germans and Japan. Let's be clear. Trump built his political presidential career on the racism of being the chief birther challenging Obama's American birth. There is a clear stream of racism in Trump.

And you conservatives still defending Trump over his refusal to call out Nazis and white supremacists,it makes a difference. I'm saying you Vice President Pence who is also a Republican and conservative. Here's a Huffington Post story with Soledad O' Brian's posting of the Nazis at the Daily Stormer celebrating Trump's response. They say "He loves us all." These Nazis feel emboldened.

Liberals must continue to fight and press Trump to condemn white supremacists and Nazis.

KKK leader David Duke was at Saturday's "Unite the Right" rally. He's at the :50 second mark.

Stephen Colbert teaches us how to love the bomb

Conservative President Donald Trump threatened North Korea with nuclear war. Yes, the blonde hair, orange skin idiot is freaking out the world with the idea of ending it with nuclear war. We need Stephen Colbert with his wit and sarcasm to make us laugh before we are killed by Trump.

The Dark Tower review

The Dark Tower is nowhere near as bad as other film critics say it is. The film is based on Stephen King's eight novels of the same name. It mixes a bunch of genres together. Fantasy. Science Fiction. Westerns. As this  is quite creative, it is also one of the problems with the movie.

The movie opens with a written statement that a Dark Tower keeps the forces of darkness from entering the universe and that a mind of a child can destroy it. Walter Padick aka The Man in Black wants to bring the darkness into the universe.  He is played by a tongue in cheek Matthew McConaughey. He gleefully wonders around the universe getting little girls to learn hate, kill children in a mind machine to see if they can bring down the tower, torture and kill people. He just twitches his nose and magic happens. Um... no that nose twitching is Bewitched.  But he might as well do that. He just says things like, "Stop breathing" and the victim does. It's so effortless that it comes off somewhat ludicrous and McConaughey knows it. He's having fun. It kind of begs the question. Padick is supposed to be a sorcerer.   Yet, he's not the devil and according to the movie he's worse. So can he be killed?

During Padick's search for the child who can bring down the tower, a New York kid named Jake Chambers (Tom Taylor) is having visions of The Gunslinger and the Dark Tower. He also has the "shine" which allows him to send telepathic messages to Jack Nicholson about "all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy." Okay, that stuff about Jack Nicholson is not in this movie but is in "The Shining."    The kid does have the "shine."  Anyway, if you can't see the role that Jake is going to play in this movie than you haven't ween any movies based on young adult novels in the last  five years. I mean it's not like the kid is going to get run over by bus five minutes into the movie.

Idris Elba is Roland Deschain aka The Gunslinger, the last of his kind. . He's uses magical six shooters which I think I heard somebody say were made from Arthur's sword, Excalibur?!  Here's a problem. The filmmakers do a terrible job of explaining this. Anyway, he's mad at Padick because he killed his father. And I think he's supposed to protect the Tower. The conflict is that Dechain wants revenge rather than keeping the universe safe. Hold on. Wouldn't killing Padick keep the universe safe? So, why do some aliens give him the guilt trip for trying to seek revenge on  Padick?

Anyway, Jake can also see aliens in New York because he supported Trump and thinks all Mexicans are bad hombres. Er... sorry about that. He can see aliens, the extraterrestrial type. Jake finds a building where he thinks The Gunslinger is at and finds a portal. He turns it on and goes through it and finds himeself on another world called Mid-World. He runs into the Gunslinger and asks him if there is going to be a Pacific Rim sequel. Yes, the sequel stuff aint' true. Anyway, Deschain figures the kid must be important to the plot and must protect him.

There are many problems with this movie. First, if you are going to mash together fantasy, science fiction and Westerns, you had better explain how somethings in your story work. I mean it seems Deschain has super abilities yet he can be killed. Padick's magic doesn't work on Deschain.  How?  And how do magic guns use real world bullets? I  mean wouldn't you need magic bullets to kill a supernatural guy like Padick? And who is Padick? If he's worse than the devil, how can he be killed? And why do almost all of the aliens look like humans? I get it that some aliens on earth use disguises. But why do the aliens look like people on Mid-World?

Director Nikolaj Arcel is skillful in delivering the dystopian visuals of Mid-World and action. The film is not boring. But as i stated there needed to be more focus on the world that the movie is about by showing us how things came to be. The kid with the shining er.. shine is not all that interesting. But Deschain's journey is. I mean the movie talks about killing with the heart, well where did Deschain get that from? Is it like using the Force?   Oh yeah before I forget.  Show the monsters.  When monsters attack, don't do it night or at least light the scene better.

If you are at the theater and can't decide on what film to see, please choose Dunkirk or Atomic Blonde. The Dark Tower should be last on your list. The grade is B minus.

Goodbye Glen Campbell

Glen Campbell passed away. God be with him. I grew up with his music. He was one of my first pop music loves. Let's honor him by posting some of his music from the periods I first heard his songs. I've also included a clip from the classic film True Grit (1969) where he saves John Wayne. There's a great line in that movie where his character while fighting death makes another heroic feat and says, "I ain't dead yet." Let's remember to live our lives and fight the obstacles like Glen did.

"Gentle On My Mind" with excellent Campbell solo.


"By the Time I Get to Phoenix" and "Galveston."


"Wichita Lineman."


Classic scene from True Grit (1969) where John Wayne faces four bad guys with the help of Glen Campbell at the end. Great score by Elmer Bernstein also.

Bill Maher exposes conservative hypocrisy about Trump and Obama

I've always said to you conservatives, "If Obama said that, you all would be marching on him" or if "Hillary Clinton did the Russian stuff we have on Trump, you all would be building the gallows for her hanging." I know you conservative Republicans.   You will defend Trump even as he does Russia's bidding.

Well, thanks to Bill Maher for this great comic piece. He shows conservative hypocrisy. Here he has an actor imitating Obama read Trump's actual words. And a warning. These ares some of conservative Trump's more adult and sexually charged comments. I'm talking the Hollywood Access tape. But if you followed  the election, you've heard them.

Conservatives, how do you feel if Obama said Trump's outrageous and terrible statements? Yeah, I see your reaction. Conservatives, put America first. Party should take a back seat to our patriotism.

Trump's bizarre comments read by Stephen Colbert's cartoon Trump

In case you missed it, Conservative President Trump had a bizarre interview with the Wall Street Journal and Stephen Colbert put some of the weirder quotes to Cartoon Trump. It's as if Trump said a person pays 12 dollars a year for health insurance. Um... sorry conservative Trump did. New York Times via Vox.

Trump shows Russia favoritism by blaming Congress for the bad relationship

Conservative President Donald Trump reluctantly signed the sanctions bill against Russia, Iran and North Korea.  He then blamed Congress for the bad relations with Russia.  Conservatives, I'm not kidding.   Here's what he said:

Our relationship with Russia is at an all-time & very dangerous  low. You can thank Congress, the same people that can't even give us HCare!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 3, 2017

The vote was for the Russian sanctions was near unanimous bi-partisan support. New York Daily News. These sanctions were for the cyber-attacks against the Democrats but in essence it was an attack on our democracy. The bill passed the House by 419-3, and the Senate by 98-2. CNN By the way, Trump signed the bill because he could not veto it as the support was so complete that any veto would have been overridden. The New York Daily News noted that Trump trashed the bill. He then set out the above tweet.

Conservative Trump has hardly criticized Vladimir Putin. He rushes to defend him. And I agree with Congressmen that the  reason there are sanctions against Russia is not because of Congress but is the fault of Putin. He's the one that's seized the Crimea, interfered militarily in Ukraine's civil war and our 2016 elections. Why doesn't Trump see that? What does Putin have on Trump?

Oh no. The Mooch is gone.

White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci aka The Mooch was canned.   He lasted only ten days.  Stephen Colbert is devastated for good reason.  There goes a good source of comedy.  Anyway, Colbert sings Bohemian Rhapsody with new lyrics for the departed.  Funny stuff from Colbert.

The Big Sick review

When Kumail Meets Emily, I mean The Big Sick is a romantic comedy that is based on Pakistani writer Kumail Nanjiani cross cultural and interracial romance with Caucasian Emily Gordon. She also co-wrote the screenplay. Now, when you see a romantic comedy get ready for the formula. Boy meets girl. Boy loses girl. Boy gets girl back assuming you want the Hollywood ending.

Kumail (played by the real Kumail Nanjiani) is a struggling Pakistani-American stand-up comedian in Chicago. During a performance, he's heckled by Emily (Zoe Kazan), a Caucasian woman. When Kumail finishes his set, he goes over to her and hits on her. Later that night, they have sex. Really. This never happens to me. There is a reason for  sex on the first meeting, I won't say impossible on the random sex act because I'm sure it happens somewhere. It's because this film probably would have been three hours long if the two waited for the third date.

Anyway, between Kumail's stand-up and his Uber driving, he is able to maintain a relationship with Emily. Kumail is also pressured by his Muslim parents, father Azmat (Anupam Kher) and mother (Zenobia Shroff) Sharmeen to marry a nice Pakistani girl. Hey it ain't going to be a bad girl. They arrange meetings with women at family dinners. You see in Kumail's culture, people are married by arrangement. And your new wife better be Muslim. It's like Fiddler on the Roof. You know where the Jewish father starts to sing "Tradition." Will I get in trouble by mixing Jews and Muslims? By the way, I can make jokes about Jews and Muslims since I'm a Chinese American. (That's a joke.)

Well, Kumail keeps his relationship with Emily a secret from his parents and that fact from Emily. All right, here it comes.  Boy loses girl.   Then girl goes into a coma.  Um... well it happens this way.  Emily gets sick and must be placed in a medically induced coma. What?! Is this thing turning into Love Story?. Guess what? I've researched this and it really happened to the real Kumail Nanjiani and Emily Gordon. (People) So there. The big, crazy plot point is actually based on something true.   But why should we be surprised at crazy stuff in real life?   We've got a guy who brags he molests women, betrayed his country for the Russians as our President of the United States.   .

Anyway, Emily's parents, Beth (Holly Hunter) and Terry (Ray Romano) arrive to care for their daughter. I don't think Romano will ever shake his character in Everybody Loves Ray unless he plays a serial killer. But God love Holly Hunter. Her Beth is a passionate, loving, Southern liberal. Yeah, they do exist.

Kudos to Nanjiani and Gordon's writing.  You want to see how talented Nanjiani is?   He plays this guy in the video game Mass Effect: Andromeda.   He's the voice of Jarun Tann, a Salarian.  You know those guys with two horns for a head and nasal voices.

But I digress. This film succeeds because of two things. First, the jokes work. The writers are unafraid of poking fun at Muslim traditions, and other topics that do not lend themselves to comedy. There are jokes about 9-11 terrorists, dog erections and being in a coma. And while some of the comedians in the movie disagree about how much  humor is in dog erection jokes, I think they can be quite funny. Second, the romance works. Emily loves Kumail. But can he overcome his cultural upbringing to embrace his love for her?

The Big Sick is very funny, and has a big heart. The grade is A.

John Oliver exposes Alex Jones

Conservative President Donald Trump is a fan of InfoWars, Alex Jones' conspiracy website. As Megyn Kelly reports, he has the ear of Trump. (Beginning and at 2:40 below.) I've embedded Kelly's interview below. Yeah, Jones sounds crazy. But head over to YouTube and check out HBO's John Olive piece, "Alex Jones." First it exposes Jones as not just a conspiracy website but one which uses the stories to sell his products. Yep, I'm not linking because Oliver's piece has a graphic anatomical diagram.

Folks, there are conservative Republicans that follow Jones. Learn the truth about this conspiracy nut. He also pushed the "Pizzagate" story which alleged that Hillary Clinton was running a child sex operation out of a pizza restaurant. (Video at 12:30) A person took that literally and went in with a gun to "investigate." Shots were fired but no one was hurt. The shooter was arrested. That is the definition of "fake news", conservative President Trump.