"Holding Trevor"

The trailer for the new Here Films release starring Brent Gorski and the absolutely adorable Jay Brannan ("Shortbus")...

Fuck the Fourth Amendment

Quote of the Day:

By the time the election rolls around the only people left supporting Bush will be the Democrats in the House and Senate.

-A comment from "socalmonk" in this post from Markos Moulitsas over at DailyKos, regarding yesterday's 69-28 approval in the Senate of a bill overhauling bitterly disputed rules on secret government eavesdropping and shielding telecommunications companies from lawsuits.

This is exactly why I have decided not to cast my ballot for Nancy Pelosi this November. My representative, in her role as Speaker of the House, along with 20 Democratic Senators have caved in to a war criminal President with an anemic 28% approval rating here at home and who is well on course to be named the worst president in our nation's history. Since winning the 2006 elections, Pelosi has not been able to get her chamber to steamroll over this idiot on just about every important issue sent to the floor. As a result of her mismanagement, this FISA bill went to the Senate yesterday where it passed overwhelmingly.

You know, the Fascist-Republicans currently in the White House have wiped their asses with the Constitution since taking office. Nancy Pelosi, Dianne Feinstein, and yes, Barack Obama, did the same thing yesterday.

Obama particularly should be ashamed of himself. He's a Constitutional scholar, for crying out loud! What doesn't he get about the Constitution's protection against "unreasonable searches and seizures."

My disappointment runs deep today.

The Songs of Summer

From 1975, featuring Elton John on background vocals, here is "Bad Blood" by Neil Sedaka...


(It's still weird hearing Neil Sedaka sing "the bitch is in her smile" !

Obama / Kaine ?

The hapless Robert Novak is reporting over at the Fascist web rag Human Events that Virginia Governor Tim Kaine is at the top of Barack Obama's list of vice-presidential picks.

I personally find this hard to believe - he's only been governor for two and a half years and his foreign policy experience is zero - but with Sen. Jim Webb taking his name out of consideration (he'd rather not go through the vetting process only two years following his 2006 senate run), Kaine would help keep Viriginia in play for the Democratic ticket.

But outside of that Kaine brings nothing to the ticket. Should Obama pick him I would be very surprised.

A Woman In A Mercedes Sees A Dog and A Goat...

...and the goat got arrested.

Only in Alabama.

Mid-Week Brain Break

The Mental Health Hotline. (Hat tip: Gil.)

John McCain, Plagiarist

The slogan in John McCain's new ad is "Don't Hope For A Better Life, Vote For One." Sort of ordinary and a bit wordy, if you ask me. But there is one teensy little problem...

It's directly plagiarised from a British Conservative Party ad from the 1970's.

George W. Bush For President

Quote of the Day:

We know that George Bush was God's Candidate in 2000. We know that George Bush was God's candidate again in 2004. And George Bush has been God's president for the last 8 years. Trust in God and vote your faith. Keep America safe. Write-in George W. Bush for President in 2008.

That's right...there is a "movement" afoot to repeal the 22nd amendment to the Constitution (the one that allows only two terms as president) and begin a write-in campaign to re-elect "God's President."

I'm not joking, but I certainly hope they are!

Terrorist Attack at U.S. Consulate In Turkey

Three police officers and three assailants were killed in an attempted terrorist attack at the U.S. consulate in Instanbul, Turkey this morning. According to NBC News, several armed men opened fire on the police checkpoint at the complex's main entrance.

Istanbul Gov. Muammer Guler said, "There is no doubt that this is a terrorist attack." While no one has claimed responsibility, one of the surviving attackers was apparently trained in Afghanistan.

So glad we're in Iraq. Aren't you?

The State of American Media

On a day when terrorists attack the American consulate in Turkey and Iran test-fires nine medium and long range missles, what is this morning's CNN "exclusive?"

Popping corn with your cell phone.

The Steadicam Tracking Shot

Laboratory 101 takes a look at some of the more memorable tracking shots in movie history. My favorite is among them. Arguably the best opening scene in recent movie history, shot with one camera all the way through (I mean, the rehearsals must have taken days just to get the choreography down), check out the first three minutes of "Boogie Nights"...



The classic pool scene from the film (also done with one steadicam tracking shot) can be seen here.

Moving a bit outside of Laboratory 101's study, another great opening shot is from 2006's "Poseidon." The visual effects team on this film are credited with creating some superb effects that paved the way for such films as "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End." Done in "steadicam style" and accompanied by an amazing musical score by Klaus Badelt, every single thing in the "Poseidon" opening shot (with the exception of Josh Lucas, who was filmed jogging in front of a green screen at the Sepulveda Dam in L.A.) is computer-generated...the water, the boat, the clouds, the sun, the background passengers, the flags on the railings. It's an amazing feat of computer generated imaging! The ship and the water are so life-like one can only assume that the ILM crew lost that year's Academy Award for Best Visual Effects simply because the story was lame and the film barely broke even at the box office.

In any event, give the opening shot a look. You'll swear it was filmed on the open ocean with a real cruise ship...

The Songs of Summer

The best song of the summer of 1996..."Fastlove" by George Michael...

The First Gay VP?

So, does anyone think it's ironic that Gov. Charlie Crist (Republican-FL) suddenly got engaged this month, just weeks before Sen. John McCain is to name his running mate on the Republican presidential ticket?

The rumors of Crist's homosexuality have been running rampant for years, and if McCain names him as the vice-presidential nominee the fascist right wingers will go fuckin' nuts. From the Broward-Palm Beach New Times:

The story goes that the Florida governor frequented the Green Iguana, a bar in Tampa, back in the early 1990s when he was just starting his political career. He was less careful back then, people say, and during his partying at the Green Iguana, he was openly gay.

When I got Rick Calderoni, the bar's well-known owner, on the phone, I expected him to stonewall me about it.

He didn't.

Calderoni, who is gay, confirmed that Crist came into his bar quite often and that the two of them became friends.

Getting to the point, I asked him if he knew Crist to be gay.

"Yes," he answered bluntly. "I just wish he would come out and admit it. That would be a great thing if he did."

No word yet on whether Mark Foley or Larry Craig are on McCain's "short list."

Now More Than Ever

Reader email (from Larry):

Wayne, it is like your man, the Big O, is trying to get me to not vote for him. You see his fucking FISA letter? The arrogance is simply dripping from it. I've already bailed on Pelosi and have my Sheehan bumper stickers and buttons, but I'll be damned if I go over to Nader. I just may end up not voting for Prez come November. Talk some sense into me!

Yes...Sen. Obama has moved to the center a bit these past couple of weeks. I'll get to the FISA thing in a minute but let me tackle a few other issues first.

Iraq.

Obama has always said that the United States should be "as careful getting out as we were careless getting in." So his current positioning on Iraq shouldn't surprise anyone.

Like Obama, I (along with Larry) was among the few who were against the invasion of Iraq from the early planning stages. We should have never taken our eye off Afghanistan and Osama bin Laden. By moving resources into a country that had nothing to do with the attacks of September 11, 2001 we have allowed the Taliban to restrengthen and pissed off the entire region so thoroughly that America is less safe now than it was when President Bush took office.

That said, while it is essential that we get our troops out of there (for many reasons, not just that we shouldn't have gone in to begin with), withdrawal can not be done in one swift move. Moving American troops out in phases is the only way to keep the region semi-stable. Pull everyone out right now and let the region dissolve into chaos? The world wouldn't stand for it.

Sen. Obama should be taken at his word that he'll remove American troops from Iraq. Whether it's done in 18 months, 24 months, or by the end of his first term as president will be determined in part by his defense secretary and the commanders on the ground. To stick to a fixed timetable regardless of the reality of the situation would make "President Obama" no better than President Bush. America and the world cannot afford another four years of that shit.

Faith-Based Programs.

I must admit, Obama's embrace of such programs caught me off guard. The separation of church and state is quite evident in the Constitution; and with the budget deficit exploding out of control, handing these private religious organizations public money flies in the face of fiscal discipline. This is a major disappointment - made less so by the fact that, unlike Bush's faith-based programs, Obama’s forbids religious charities from using public money to discriminate against new hires based of faith. But if I were a Democrat in Congress and "President Obama" sent this bill to the hill, I would vote against it.

Recent Supreme Court Rulings.

Following recent Supreme Court decisions on the subjects, Sen. Obama came out in support of the death penalty for child rapists and against the gun ban in Washington, D.C. Am I disappointed in his positions here? You bet. Am I surprised? No. Obama discusses his support of the death penalty outside of capital murder cases in his book "The Audacity of Hope." In fact, when the Supreme Court issued their 5-4 ruling against the death penalty in child rape cases I knew Sen. Obama would rail against the decision. By extension, his support of the court's decision in the D.C. gun case (striking down a 30-year old gun ban), while disappointing, didn't surprise.

FISA.

If one issue where Sen. Obama's move to the right these past few weeks has disappointed me most, this is it. The whole issue of wiretaps is a bit haywire to begin with. The telecommunications companies that are being offered immunity from prosecution in order to allow the government to listen in on private phone conversations are probably being unfairly targeted. The fascist government of Bush and Cheney have forced their hand on this issue.

That said, Obama's support of the new bill is misguided. I understand his desire to move to the center in order to gain some support in middle America (he does, after all, want to win this election), but he could have won that support by refusing to back this bill and instead propose one that would have allowed for the FISA courts to issue warrants allowing the tapping of phone lines.

Obama has said he will join Sen. Chris Dodd in an effort to strike the warrantless language from the bill when it arrives in the Senate. It will be interesting to see if he backs the bill should that effort fail.

Warrantless phone tapping flies in the face of the Constitution and under Bush/Cheney has paved the way for presidential abuse of power. Should he continue this warrantless policy once in office, this blog will rail against Mr. Obama as loudly as it has against Mr. Bush.

The Perfect President?

I am not going to agree with a "President Obama" on each and every issue. No American, whether they vote for him in November or not, is going to agree with any president 100% of the time. But with Obama, unlike Bush (and McCain), I trust him to make what he feels is the right decision based on his analysis of each respective situation. Even if I disagree with a specific decision, I will do so respectfully, knowing full well that he has signed a bill or issued an executive order based on an a full understanding of the issue at hand. After eight years of shooting from the hip - and the horrible situation that such governance has left our country - such enlightenment from our chief executive will be a breath of fresh air.

If Larry wants to abstain on the presidential line of his ballot in November, that is his right. But if he's doing so because he expects any candidate to be the perfect president then he's in for a load of disappointment. No president in the history of our great nation has made any citizen happy 100% of the time on every issue.

Case in point - key disappointments of recent Democratic presidents: Roosevelt put Japenese Americans in internment camps; Truman ordered the atomic bomb dropped on Japan; Johnson expanded the Vietnam War and then failed in his exectution of that war; Carter was about as hapless as they come; and Clinton threw his gay and lesbian supporters under the bus.

When you make your decision on Election Day, you weigh the good against the bad, mark your ballot on a wing and a prayer, and hope your candidate, should he or she win, makes you at least half as happy as you hoped.

And I still believe, in my heart of hearts, that America needs Barack Obama.

Now more than ever.

John Edwards vs. Karl Rove

They'll debate each other on 26 September at the University of Buffalo as part of the school’s Distinguished Speakers Series.

(Hat tip: Ben)

The Death of Jesse Helms

The man was pure evil, and I am among the many who don't mourn his death in any way, shape, or form.

Joe. My. God. reviews the vile life of the former Senator from North Carolina:

- On threatening the life of a sitting president: "Mr. Clinton better watch out if he comes down here. He'd better have a bodyguard."

- On gays and AIDS: "It's their deliberate, disgusting, revolting conduct that is responsible for the disease."

- On equality: "I've been portrayed as a caveman by some. That's not true. I think all men are equal, be they slants, beaners, or niggers."

- On civil rights: "The Negro cannot count forever on the kind of restraint that's thus far left him free to clog the streets, disrupt traffic, and interfere with other men's rights."

- On journalists: "The New York Times and Washington Post are both infested with homosexuals themselves. Just about every person down there is a homosexual or lesbian."

- On the Duke University students upset by Martin Luther King's assassination: "They should ask their parents if it would be all right for their son or daughter to marry a Negro."

Enough said.

Starbucks Down

Well, it seems you may have to walk one whole extra block to get that triple grande non-fat bone-dry cappuccino...

Starbucks said on Tuesday it plans to close 600 under performing U.S. stores and cut up to 12,000 full- and part-time positions, as it copes with an economic downturn and increasing competition. The coffee seller, bracing for its first full-year profit decline since 2000, has been grappling with the slowing U.S. economy and consumer spending.

But two things, seriously...

1. My sister works part time for Starbucks in an effort to supplement her teachers salary. I certainly hope this doesn't effect her.

2. This is yet another sign that the economy is in serious breakdown mode. So, when you hear someone like the hapless John Stossel say...

We are not...in recession. Get a grip, guys.

...you are forced to wonder if the psychology major who anchors ABC's "20/20" news magazine even knows what the hell he's talking about.

With record-high gas prices causing an increase in the costs of other goods such as food and services, I just don't believe the government's inflation and unemployment numbers. They seem way too low for the huge problems most Americans are having at the moment. It wouldn't surprise me a bit (A BIT) if we find out next year that the current administration fudged the numbers.

This is, after all, the administration of George W. Bush.

The Songs of Summer

Another from our current summer...the latest single from the Eagles' superb album, Long Road Out of Eden...

Enjoy "Busy Being Fabulous"...

Delta Will Charge For Free Flights

From ABC News:

Delta Air Lines Inc. said Friday it will start adding surcharges of $25 or $50 round trip on frequent flyers' free tickets to help offset soaring fuel costs.

I've been earning some pretty decent mileage flying United Airlines back and forth during this Seattle project. It wouldn't surprise me if they followed Delta on this. Without assistance from the current incompetent government, how else are these already-hobbled airlines supposed to make up for the huge increases in the cost of fuel?

Unintended Break

Sorry for the lack of posts since Friday. I was home for the weekend and spent some much needed time with Brent, Chloe, Gil, and a few other friends. And work has had my attention since I returned. Posting will continue to be sporadic through the holiday weekend, so please bear with me.