Best & Worst Film Adaptations of Comic Books

Inspired by a recent email thread, I'm soliciting opinions about the best and worst film adaptations of (reasonably well-known) comic books, preferably of the costumed/super-hero variety.

1. My top three, in no particular order: Batman Begins - Christian Bale is the best Batman, period (slight edge over Keaton), and the rest of the cast is awesome also; can't believe Frank Miller didn't get script credit though, plenty of nods to Year One and Dark Knight Returns. Tank Girl - fun movie, well-integrated comic-art cut scenes. Spider-Man 2 - both of Raimi's spider-movies are excellent, I'm just picking this one b/c Doc Oc was always one of my favorite baddies. Just missed my cut: Tim Burton's Batman, X-Men 2.

2. Worst three - so many to choose from here, and I haven't even seen the Fantastic Four or Hulk yet (although I know several people who really liked Hulk). And I'm not even going to link to Catwoman. I'm gonna have to go with Superman IV, which introduced us to Nuclear Man (anyone remember him?). Batman Forever, one of Schumacher's disasters, has to be next; could acting talent be wasted any more than Tommy Lee Jones' was as Two-Face? Fortunately, not many people saw the 1990 version of Captain America, which featured J.D. Salinger's actor son Matt as Captain A(wful).

Upcoming films, which certainly have the potential to make these lists:

• Jon Favreau-directed Iron Man, starring Robert Downey Jr., due out in 2008.
• Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, 2007 release.
• Ghost Rider, starring Nicholas Cage. This could be spectacularly terrible.
• Wonder Woman, directed and written by Joss Whedon. Intriguing...
• Spider-Man 3, with Venom! I'm stoked, dudes!
• The Dark Knight, the next Nolan Batman, with Heath Ledger as the Joker (2008).
• X-Men prequel, Wolverine, 2008.
  

Tunneling

A big part of my job right now is building and running simulations to support the design of sewer overflow storage tunnels in DC. There are similar tunnel systems in Detroit, Chicago, and a handful of other places, and most of them are massive. DC is no exception; tunnel diameters from 15 to 30+ feet, depths of up to 100 feet below the surface. They're built using tunnel boring machines (TBMs), which are used for all large diameter tunneling projects these days, including road/transit tunnels.

Maybe I'm just a big engineering geek, but these things are pretty damn cool. They're custom-made for each job, taking into account desired diameter and rock/soil conditions. They not only do the drilling, but the apparatus behind the drills lines the tunnel also. And my understanding is that since they're usually expensive to extract once the job is done (plus since they're custom-made, re-use isn't likely), they're left in the ground when the drilling is complete. Eleven of these beasts were used on the Channel Tunnel.

Here's a promotional video that shows how these babies work.

The Wizard of Ounce?

OK, I'm not the biggest Wizard of Oz fan, and I've never read any of the original books, but I was still surprised that I had never heard of this take on the story.

Am I alone here, or is this a new chunk of trivia for most people?

Last Minute Shopping Idea, Courtesy of SNL

Don't know what to get that special someone this Christmas? Justin Timberlake and Andy Samberg have a suggestion (from last night's hilarious episode).

Here are a few more highlights. If NBC was smart, they'd replay this next weekend in prime time, instead of stale old Christmas cartoons (other than the Grinch, who kicks ass):

Opening Monologue Christmas Song w/Alvin & the Chipmunks

Cup-O-Soup/Homelessville

Celtic Solstice

Yesterday, Barry and I ran in the 7th Annual Celtic Solstice Five Miler in Druid Hill Park. It was a new race for both of us, and we both enjoyed it. Nice weather, fantastic course layout, and - unlike other races of mine this year - I was very pleased with the result; an overall time of 40:27, with all five mile splits faster than 8:30. No, I didn't set any land speed records, but those are decent numbers for me, and that's all that really counts, right?

Any runners or would-be runners out there, I would highly recommend this race. The course is of moderate difficulty but very manageable, the field is large but not too large (about 2K registered runners, 1500+ finishers), the premium is awesome every year, and the post-race food & beverage spread is top-notch. Plus, several people run in kilts, and there are a bagpipes player and drummer out on the course. Also, you run right past the statue of William Wallace that's at one end of Druid Hill Lake. Very Scottish. We certainly got lucky with good weather, but I personally think it still would have been fun if it were below freezing (like last year, when it snowed).

Blogger Upgrade, Tags, Site Feed

I just recently upgraded my blogger account to Blogger Beta, which lets one add tags to blog posts (among other new features). I've been slowly going through and adding tags, but when I do that it seems that the RSS feed considers it a new entry. So if use use a reader, sorry about that.

Flickr "Christmas Egg"

I saw this on Lis' blog, who got it from her friend Bill (credit where it's due, after all): Flickr's Christmas Easter Egg - egg nog, maybe? - that lets you add certain notes to photos that will show up as Santa hats and beards. Check it out on my Flickr page if you want to see it in action. [Update - it looks like you have to view an individual photo for the note to show up, it doesn't show up on the index page]

Wow, the notes feature is kinda cool unto itself, I had never used it before...

Mary Cheney

Today's Howard Kurtz column focuses on the attention given to Mary Cheney's pregnancy. His argument, right up near the front in paragraph two, is that it's unfair to her because she didn't ask to be a vice-president's daughter. I would agree - of course she didn't ask for that - but she did voluntarily work on her father's campaigns, campaigns that were based in part on willfully denying legal rights to a group of which she is a member. And while I appreciate any attempts to try to change bigoted thinking from within, it still reeks of sleeping with the enemy, dancing with the devil, et cetera [insert equally tired metaphor here]. Similar to my utter bafflement that a group like the Log Cabin Republicans can exist, it's difficult for me to be very sympathetic towards someone who's been employed by a White House political machine that courts the votes of the intolerant, who are attacking her now for exercising her right to have a kid.

Put it this way: her father is the political equivalent of Darth Vader, that makes her Leia - or Luke, I suppose. If Leia had worked for the Empire, (but secretly hoped to change it into a kinder, gentler force for evil) would any tears have been shed were she onboard the Death Star when Luke blew it up at the end of the first movie? Nope.

For All The Lovecraft/Illuminati Fans

Bring Cthulu home for the holidays! (isn't he cute?!?)

Pity the Congress

Democrats are making Congress work more days next year, so what do poor widdle Wepublicans do? They whine about it:

"Keeping us up here eats away at families," said Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.), who typically flies home on Thursdays and returns to Washington on Tuesdays. "Marriages suffer. The Democrats could care less about families -- that's what this says."

This is so tragic, I can hardly hold back the tears. These people get paid to "work" about half the hours of a typical taxpayer, and get a six-figure salary. Just when I thought that the GOP was incapable of disgusting me any further...

Are 'Good Losses' a Myth? O Christmas Tree!

I had never bought into the idea of the 'good loss', but yesterday's loss to Notre Dame might change my thinking. MD looked a lot like last year's team for good portions of the game - and that is not a compliment. Too much individual play, too many careless passes, not nearly enough 3-point defense.

We already have our Chirstmas tree this year, unlike last year's ten-days-before-Christmas purchase. There's just something very comforting about coming home from work in December, when it's already dark out, to the tree lights peeking through the blinds on the front window. It's not a big tree, but it's got a good shape, and is quite healthy considering its sundering from its roots. It could be a lot taller considering how high our first-floor ceiling is, but this isn't the year for us to be buying a $80 or $100 tree - a $50 tree suits well enough.

Terps in ESPN Power 16

Looks like I wasn't alone in being impressed by the win at Illinois two nights ago. ESPN has the Terps as the 2nd-highest ACC team in its first Power 16 of the year. Yeah, I know, that and $5 will get you a Grande Mocha Ginseng Latte at Starbucks. But still, kinda cool.

Luke Winn over at Sports Illustrated digs the Turtles also.

Venezuelan Amphetamine

When I read about Gary Williams' freshmen this pre-season, gaurd Greivis Vasquez was described as someone who plays with a lot of emotion. Uh-oh, that's sportswriter code, meaning that he makes up for a lack of talent with a lot of high-energy play, right?

Not really. Turns out, at least in the early going, that the kid has plenty of talent. And describing his game as high-energy doesn't quite do it justice, either. Anyone who watched Maryland's solid win in Champaign, Illinois last night could see it; this guy loves to play almost as much as Gary loves yelling at his players! I know, hard to believe, but true. He was also the best player on the floor in the second half last night; he was the difference in getting the win in a very hostile road environment, and with the Terps missing one of their starters. Win or lose though, he'll be fun to watch over the next few years.

Terps are 8-0, up next - Notre Dame in D.C. on Sunday.

Dusting off the Carboy

It's been years since I've done any homebrewing, but that's changed for the better in the past few weeks, as I now have a partner in brewing. Barry has already proved to be a bit impatient about the whole process - no Dad, we can't drink it yet - but it's more fun (and less work) with two people, so I think we'll be able to sustain operations and not have another three year haitus.

We've got two batches going now, a Scotch Ale that will be ready to drink just before Christmas, and a German Dunkel that will be ready...when it's ready.

Let's see, what else; the new Bond film, Casino Royale, is excellent, if a bit on the long side (2 1/2 hours).

I saw this bizzare boat docked at the Inner Harbor last night when I went running - certainly doesn't look like any boat I've ever seen before, and it runs on biodiesel. In March it begins an attempt to break the record for circumnavigating the globe by boat; the record is currently 75 days, set in 1998.

Finally, for the uninitiated - an explanation for this post's title. Here are some carboys, aka fermentation vessels.

Who's a Big Winner?

The Dems have taken back the House, and have at shot at the Senate as well. But other than the obvious winners (Dems) and big losers (GOP), who else wins, if the Democrats do their jobs? Here are my thoughts:

• The United States. I was worried after the 2004 election that the nation, collectively, wasn't too bright. It appears as though we do have the capability to vote smartly, we're just a bit slow.
• The World. Any checks on His Shruberiness' power are good for the world at large; one never knows who may be next on his hit list.
• Science & Technology. Honest, factual discussions about global warming and alternative energy sources may actually make their way to Capitol Hill!
• Nancy Pelosi. As the first female Speaker in history, she's poised to bring the radical homosexual agenda to Washington. Thank God! The radical warmongering criminal tyrannical cowboy agenda hasn't been working out too well, time to try a new direction.
• Stewart & Colbert. Their Midterm Midtacular election coverage was better than anything on CNN and MSNBC by far.
• James Carville. If not for him, that bloviating gasbag Bill "one-armed-bandit" Bennett would have displayed even more arrogance during CNN's coverage, if that's possible (how full of yourself do you need to be to write multiple books on morality? What a prick). Fortunately, Carville shut him up for a few minutes with the subtlest of jabs - a mention of an inconsequential casino ballot initiative. The Rajin' Cajun' strikes again!
  

Return of the Weekend, Electioneering Villainy

I was studying for the PE for a good two and a half months, and while I certainly wasn't in total seclusion, large portions of my weekends were eaten up. This past weekend was busy too, but in a good way; a birthday party for a former co-worker Friday night, an awesome afternoon in front of the TV Saturday afternoon, watching every minute of the Terps' big win at Clemson, and a challenging yet fun cross-country 8K on Sunday. Plus, we met my parents' new kitties, Csaba and Zigana - and introduced them to Marty - and we also got the final craptacular Star Wars prequel out of the way (no, I don't think it was better than the first two, it was just as insufferable; thankfully I'll never have to watch any of those three ever again!). This is the part where I promise photos on Flickr, but honestly, I doubt I'll get around to it anytime soon. That's just how it is.

Today is, of course, Election Day [Sponsored by Diebold - "Gee, we really hope all this crap works"]. And what better way to extend the Halloween season, than with some election day tricks? Seems that during the last few elections, it's the GOP that has been caught trying to suppress votes, while in the 60's, it was the Dems inflating votes all over the place. So which is worse, stopping a live person from voting, or ensuring that a dead citizen's vote is counted? And what do these styles of electioneering say about the respective parties? It sure would be nice if the Greens/Libertarians/etc. got in on this; then perhaps we'd have an alternative to two-party rule at some point.

Back in Business

Now that I have the PE (Professional Engineer) exam out of the way, I can get back to some writing. Unfortunately, I probably won't have much time today, so I'll just link to some solid, if somewhat intuitive, observations about next week's election, courtesy of one of the bloggers over at Balkinization.

The point about Senate over-representation by small states has always been a fascinating argument to me, because I believe that the original intent of the Constitution was to ensure that smaller states had an equal say in national affairs. But why? Why should a vote in North Dakota count much more, in terms of the make-up of the Senate, than a vote in New York? And will that advantage in small states that Republicans still be around in 50 years, as Midwest and Great Plains states' traditional industries continue to die out, concentrating populations in those states' big cities, complete with large immigrant populations and racial, ethnic, and cultural -gasp- diversity? This is based on my assumption that the charming people in fillinnameofredstate wouldn't be nearly as terrified of all those people that didn't look and act like them, if they had a few more of them living next door. Call me naive, it's just a hunch.

Charlie Brown for Congress?

I don't know, this guy's head doesn't look round enough. But he's a Dem, and is running against eight-term Republican incumbent John Doolittle, so good luck to him. Hope he wears the yellow and black shirt (he's gotta own one, right?) to his victory party.

Africa Bound!

It's a done deal - we recently sent in our deposit and purchased our plane tickets for our two-week Tanzanian safari in early '07. We're certainly excited about it, now once I get the P.E. exam out of the way, I can concentrate on outfitting for this trip. We've already got most of the clothing and other gear covered, but we're probably going to need some additional photographic equipment; extra lenses for digital cameras - for what that's worth, they're nice cameras, but not super-nice digital SLRs - and some kind of way to store digital photos so we don't have to buy dozens of memory cards and sticks. And then, of course, there's the camoflouge.

That's right, every trip can be spiced up with a little bit of ugly-Americanism. I'm planning on passing myself off as an up-and-coming soldier-of-fortune, in Africa for the first time scouting the terrain and getting to know local customs and wildlife. Then, the last half of the trip will be the training portion, where I practice my fighting skills by sneaking up on wildlife and punching and/or kicking them, and then running away.

Why no weapons, you ask? First, I don't have any. Second, try bringing them on a plane these days. But most important, what kind of soldier-of-fortune would I be if I couldn't fight a lion with my bare hands? How would I expect the UN peacekeepers to hire me on for their secret UN asskicking unit that's going to finally restore order in the Sudan? Tanzania and its carnivores will serve as my proving ground for that conflict. Wish me luck!

I Couldn't Resist

I know, no political posts for the rest of the month is what I promised, so I'll just link to this item w/o comment, and let it speak for itself. Keith Olbermann's ratings on MSNBC are up 69% since August 30, perhaps because of segments like this.

Throwback Baseball

What I dig so far about this season's playoffs - all the old dudes getting the job done:

• Tommy Lasorda's ad spots for ESPN. Corny, yes. But also sincere and funny. Who doesn't like Tommy?
• Ernie Harwell hanging out with Jon Miller and Joe Morgan in the TV booth tonight during the middle innings of the Detroit-NY game. 88 years old, and still sounds terrific - smart, quick-witted, and solid play-by-play during the fourth. Ernie was the original radio voice of the Orioles when they came back to Baltimore in 1954.
  
• The Tigers being up two games to one against the Yankees , after tonight's 6-0 victory. Kenny Rogers pitched an awesome game for Detroit, facing a NY lineup that came into the game hitting .391 against him - he obviously didn't care much for those numbers, since he shut them out for seven and two-thirds innings. Kenny Rogers?!? Didn't see that performance coming, at least not in the postseason.

What I'm not so crazy about: 3 one-sided series (thus far), with one of those already over. Kinda boring.

Hey, if the NYY end up losing this series, what are the odds that A-Rod gets traded this winter?

You Have the Right to Remain Silent

By now you've probably read about this incident in Denver between a citizen daring to speak his mind, Cheney, and the Secret Service. Freedom of Speech, meet Cone of Silence.

OK, gotta take a break from the political/legal/human-rights posts for a while; even thinking about this shit pisses me off. I'm going to try to keep it a little lighter through the rest of this month. Call it my own version of Oktoberfest - oooh, this is so bad it's good...wait for it...Blogtoberfest! Wow, that looks worse on the screen than it did in my head. Oh well.

Remember This Vote in 2008

Here are the votes on the Military Commissions Bill, which gives the executive the power to cancel a citizen's Bill of Rights protections by fiat, never mind the thumbs-up to torture. When 2008 rolls around, I hope that all potential presidential candidates who voted for this Bill are held accountable - Hagel, Frist, and especially McCain, who one would think would know better. Bush commanded them to wipe their collective asses with the Constitution, and they happily obliged, after a token show of resistance. Way to go, guys!

Battery Powered

I'm not sure what possessed me to tune in to the Baltimore-NY game last night. Masochism? After all, they had lost the night before by the humbling final of 16-5. Loyalty to the team? Maybe, but I haven't watched even parts of 20 games since the All-Star break, and have only been to 3 games this year. How many times have I mentioned them in this space all season? I think this may be the first.

But something made me flip the channel at 9:00, in time to catch Daniel Cabrera overcome a sixth inning error, his no-hitter still intact and nine outs away from reality. Did it happen? Nope. He was unperturbed by two errors and two passed balls in the seventh that gave NY a run, but with two outs to go in the ninth, an opposite-field single by Cano broke it up. What a game to watch though. Ramon "Javy Lopez, isn't he retired?" Hernandez had two homers and drove in four of the seven O's runs (hence this post's title), but it was really all about Cabrera, a pitcher who can be so dominating at times that it makes his inconsistency that much more maddening. A microcosm of the Orioles, a team with plenty of talent and potential, yet to be harnessed en masse.

'Balkinization' Blog

Dan Froomkin linked to this blog during his online chat yesterday; it's called Balkinization, and although I'm not sure who some of these guys are or how they all got together, there's lots of smart, in-depth analysis from a truly wide variety of perspectives. It does have a legal tilt though, since the blog's eponymous founder, Jack Balkin, is the Knight Professor of Constitutional Law and the First Amendment at Yale Law School.

Governor Who?

While Charm City Blogger's political reporters usually go after the hard-hitting stories, we are not above having some fun at a candidate's expense, especially if the candidate is a Republican named Chandler Woodcock (his friends call him...Chan).

Danger! High Voltage

While his Shrubberiness is seemingly having his way with Congress when it comes to spying on citizens, he's still having some trouble getting the Senate to come around to his new definition of torture. Here's where it stands now: the Geneva Conventions define torture as "outrages upon personal dignity, in particular, humiliating and degrading treatment", while Schrobbe wants that changed, for the sake of clarity, to treatment that "shocks the conscience".

Let's examine this for a minute. Aside from the clarity issue, which speaks for itself, there are several surprising revelations in this latest language. The first and most obvious: the torture experts at the CIA have not only located the consience, but have figured out how to hook electrodes to it and have incorporated it into their torture techniques! This is big news, although I doubt we'll be getting the details anytime soon. The CIA probably wants to keep these new methods to themselves for a while, before exporting them to Uzbekistan and Saudi Arabia. Perhaps in the not-so-distant future, the location of the conscience will be leaked to reporters, along with details on required voltage, and possible variances in conscience size between people of different faiths (my uneducated guess - Hindus have the largest consciences, with Catholics a close second).

Perhaps the more shocking revelation, though, is that the Torturer-in-Chief himself would prohibit these amazing new techniques! Imagine the frustration of the CIA torturers - their boss wants to take away the new toy almost as soon as it comes out of the box.

I'm no political expert, but I think that the Democrats have just had their mid-term election slogan handed to them: Republicans: Soft on the Conscience, Soft on Terror.

Political Losers

Every single candidate that I voted for in the major (competitive) races in yesterday's Democratic primary has lost or is losing! Not a terrible thing in any of the races, but still the results are a bit discouraging in 2 of the 3 races, where the status quo won out.

U.S. Senate: I voted for Mfume, but it looks like Cardin is going to win by 7 or 8 points. I'm not bothered by this at all because I think Cardin will be a fine Senator, however I did like Mfume as a guy who would stir things up a bit; Cardin seemed like more of the same, and I thought Mfume's criticism of Cardin's acceptance of almost $1 million in lobbyist money was quite valid.

Comptroller: Usually not a big race, but any election that could potentially remove crazy (senile?) incumbent Schaefer was an important one. I voted for Janet Owens, since she was polling well ahead of Peter Franchot, the guy I really wanted to vote for, but felt that it was more important for Schaefer to lose. Well, it's close but it looks like Franchot will win after all, so this is actually an ideal result.

MD-3: Long-time Baltimore Helath Commissioner Peter Beilenson was my guy, but unsurprisingly he came in second by 6 points to John, Son of Sarbanes. Sarbanes will likely be perfectly competent in the House, but there are far too many 'hereditary' seats in Congress as it is.

Weekend Fun, Pigtown Style!

On Saturday we had a rather full day; first we headed down to the Inner Harbor - ugh, so many tourists, and NYY fans no less, since the Yanks were in town - to check out the Dragon Boat Races. Kinda disappointing, actual. Basically big canoes being paddled across the harbor.

The afternoon was redeemed though, when we walked over to the Pigtown neighborhood just west of Camden Yards, to take in the annual Pigtown Festival! We arrived just before the Running of the Pigs, which I managed to capture on lo-res video (I had the regular camera with me, not the video camera). But unbelievably, the fun didn't stop there! We also caught the Pigtown Pooch Pageant, possbily the lamest - but still fun! - dog show ever; apparently dressing your dog up in a dress or other costume is the way to go. Finally, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the huge-ass piece of pineapple upside-down cake that we managed to snag for the Baltimore-bargain-basement price of $2.50!!! Look at the size of that brick of cake. We even came close to finishing it!

(Note: I had some additional photos that didn't upload to Flickr due to some problems the site was having yesterday, including a close-up of the cake...)

Bad Fundraiser Idea

I'm not quite sure what's worse, that it's a dove shoot, or that it's on 9/11. Ugh.

Big Brother is a Moron

Here's a real shocker: the RFID chips in California state legislature IDs are apparently not so secure.

This is quite a comfort, considering that the U.S. government recently started issuing e-passports with RFID technology on-board. So if you're in the market for a new passport or passport renewal, you might want to invest in some protection.

(PS - if I mysteriously disappear after this post, it's probably because BB - aka Dick Cheney - was probably not pleased about the title; see you in Room 101...)

Annapolis Ten-Miler, Year Three

I was actually about a minute slower last year than the year before (1:29:41), I think that's because my pace on the first two to three miles, before the course gets tough, was simply too slow. It was also as warm as humid as ever during race time (mid-eighties, temperature and humidity), and for some reason it really got to me mid-way through the race. All in all though, pretty happy with the time, considering I've been running less this summer with how hot it's been. I just need to continue to work on my pacing.

And here's where I have a complaint of this year's race that hasn't been a problem in previous years (this is an extremely well-organized event, for the most part): it would certainly help runners to monitor and adjust their pace if the mile markers were clearly visible throughout the course. I still don't know where mile one was, none of the mile markers were more than a few feet off the ground (several were at ground level), some were in the middle of water stations, not a good spot for them, IMO, and one was in the wrong spot by a healthy margin - I know that I didn't run mile 5 in 10:30 and mile 6 in 7:30.

They Cause Scenes

Improv Everywhere. Cool idea.

Today's Amazing & Amusing Links

An Irish company is wondering if it has a perpetual motion machine on it hands. And it's not beer/whiskey powered - suspicious.

This guy is enjoying the Washington, D.C. Mall way more than most tourists.

And finally, a World Cup-related link; the super-authentic Cristiano Ronaldo action figure!

Western Excursion

This past weekend, Jenny and I were in Florissant, Colorado for a family reunion of her mom's side of the family. Not what I would call a relaxing trip - our bed in the lodge that we stayed as was less than comfortable, plus we were hanging out with seven kids, all under the age of twelve, and most under the age of six, so that can certainly wear one down after a while - but a good time nonetheless, with gorgeous weather most of the time too. I'll have to post or link to the photos from our Sunday hike at a later date (still need to download and sort through the pics).

Amongst the plethora of entertainment options at this place - pool table, ping pong, foosball, air hockey, swimming pool - was something I had never seen before. An outdoor horseshoes-like game, we didn't even know what it was called, but Jenny's cousin Rob had played it before so at least we knew how to play. Turns out it goes by several different names (at least according to this morning's web search) - Monkey Bar Golf, Ladder Golf, and Bolo Ball are three names that I found. Bolo Ball seems to make the most sense, because this game's sole relation to golf is that golf balls are used to construct the bolos; you could easily use another type of ball.

The Candidate

(WARNING!!! Long-winded politics post below, proceed at your own peril)

In light of Dick's latest fear mongering, it got me thinking about the ideal 2006/2008 candidate - for any office - and what I really wish somebody would say (out loud!) in response to the current political climate. In a perfect world, that candidate would be a progressive Democrat, but I won't be picky; if he or she actually existed, then I could care less about party affliation. Somehow I always picture a John Edwards type, but maybe that's because he's so good in front of a crowd - Bill Clinton, but without all the baggage. Maybe it's Russ Feingold instead, maybe it's Chuck Hagel. Anyway, here's what that person's national security portion of a stump speech would sound like (bear with me, I'm not a speechwriter):

Many of you may have heard Dick Cheney's comments the other day, equating Ned Lamont's primary victory over Joe Lieberman in Connecticut last week with a victory for terrorists. I think that's it's a sad day in this country when the vice president suggests that a fair exercise in democracy is somehow aiding al Queda. Isn't this the same administration that claims that terrorists attacked this nation because they hate our freedom? The White House is going to have to make up its mind on this one, because it seems to me that they're trying to have it both ways.

This election can help put an end to this Bush administration tactic - using Fear as an instrument to scare the public into supporting a failed war, and a failed foreign policy in general. Using that Fear to bludgeon its critics, to brand them as unpatriotic. Citizens of this country don't trust their government simply because their government isn't honest with them! I hate to break it to them, but we're spending billions fighting a war that produces more terrorists, and billions more to prevent toothpaste from being brought onto an airplane. Why are we allowing this administration to force us to live in fear? Nobody's talking about this, not them, and not anyone in my party either, but all the Homeland Security funding in the world isn't going to stop another terrorist attack. All the billions spent on a pre-emptive war aren't going to guarantee a democratic Middle East.

They will no doubt use this speech to brand me as soft on security, or as giving "aid and comfort" to the enemy. But I'm just embracing a reality that they're not willing to accept - we won't ever be completely safe from determined terrorists, so let's take reasonable steps to protect our country, while still ensuring that people's rights are preserved! Reasonable steps like removing ourselves from the mess in Iraq, where every incident of torture, prisoner abuse, and stray bombs that blow up Iraqi civilians, just serves to create more terrorists. Steps like using our diplomatic muscle to bring together Israel and its neighbors for contructive negoitations, not the blind support for Israel practiced by this administration that often does more harm than good.

And what can we do with all that money that's currently going to military-industrial spending? Well, last time I checked, killers such as heart disease, cancer, even drunk drivers, have a much better success rate than terrorists. We could use some of that money to increase research into renewable energy, and the search for a technology-based solution to global warming. All real concerns and real threats, all just as worthy of our efforts, our considerable talents, and our tax money, as terrorism. That old line about "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness"? I sure don't recall any mention about pursuing that happiness under a cloud of irrational fear. This world can be a frightening place, but we can't afford to let a relatively small source of danger paralyze our lives and undermine the spirit of this country, not when there's so much else to be done.

One Beard to Rule Them All

Some clever YouTube contributor figured out why those Lord of the Rings movies were so commercially and critically successfuly.

Patio: The Saga Ends

After jackhammering, sledgehammering, hauling 6+ tons of concrete, close-quarters stone delivery, tamping, leveing, stone cutting, and more leveling, it's finally finished. Thanks once again to Barry (aka Dad) for all his help - honestly this would have happened in this calendar year without him - and to Jenny, for her moral and logistic support. Now all we need is some patio furniture and we'll be all set. Not sure if I'm that patient though; eventually we may just have a BYOC (bringyourownchair) cookout with what we have now, and worry about a table-and-chairs set, and finished flowerbeds, later. Before and after pics are below.

The Next Joker!

The rumors have been confirmed, and it's now official, from the director's mouth! Heath Ledger is certainly an interesting casting choice as the Joker in the next Nolan/Bale Batman film, The Dark Knight. I've been a fan of his ever since I first saw A Knight's Tale; hopefully he'll do the character proud. With this casting choice, Nolan continues to distance his Batman movies from the Burton films (and the tripe that followed when crap director extraordinaire, Joel Schumacher, took over).

Lingering thoughts and curiosities:

• Will the Dark Knight story borrow from existing writers the way Batman Begins borrowed from Year One? A Killing Joke story would be neat, especially since the origin of the Joker is so different than in Burton's film, and Gordon figures prominently in the plot (and when you've got Gary Oldman as Gordon, more screen time would be nice).
  
• How many films will Nolan and Bale do before calling it quits? Nolan has already hinted that he won't be around to bring Robin into the picture, so that rules out a Death in the Family storyline. That's probably just as well; in order to do that properly, it might necessitate an 'R' rating, which I don't see happening. Besides, Batman Begins was already dark enough.
• Speaking of 'dark' - when Nolan calls it quits, how about the Sin City team of Rodriguez and Frank Miller to pick up the franchise and take it in yet another direction? Based on how Sin City looked, that would be a Batman unlike anything seen before. Plus with Miller involved, it would increase the likelihood of The Dark Knight Returns coming to the big screen, which would of course be super-sweet.
  

Hottest Show on TV, Netvibes

Anyone else out there a regular Hell's Kitchen viewer? What a fantastic "reality" show, and it's all thanks to the star, Scottish celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay. He exhibits the perfect blend of cruely, profanity, and condescension. His tirades are just incredible to behold, they seem so very sincere (and terrifying).

Netvibes is a web-based aggregator that lets users subscribe to RSS feeds, mail accounts, links, photo pages, even podcasts - although I'm still sticking with iTunes, for now - all on a single web page (with multiple tabs). I've been using it for about a week now, and I like it a lot; one tab for gmail, del.icio.us links, news links and weather, one tab for all my friends' blogs, another tab for other blogs I try to keep up with, and a fourth tab for flickr pages and video links. Check it out, and please let me know if you use something similar that you really like.

Oil Safari

I've had the opportunity to read only the first chapter - yes, I actually work at the office - but this Chicago Tribune story about our oil supply is fascinating (and sobering) so far. It was reprinted in the Sun today, which led me to look for the original site (the Sun is owned by the Tribune Company).

Patio, Heat Wave, & (scumbag) John Bolton

After six or seven hours Saturday, and another five yesterday, I'm almost done with our new stone patio. I probably need another half a day though, and with the latest heat wave hitting this week, it probably won't be finished until next weekend.

Speaking of heat, it's reaching the ludicrous level this summer. Highs of 102 on Tuesday and Wednesday? If we wanted summers as shitty as this, we'd move to Vegas or Phoenix. So what's it all mean; is a heat wave really a sign of global warming? Well, not one individual incident. But collectively - yes, and get used to it (but be glad you don't live in Southern California).

Finally: the more I read/see/hear about John Bolton, the more I'm convinced that he's not only a terrible diplomat, but also probably needs to work on becoming a likable human being. His latest thoughts on the Israel-Lebanon mess deny moral equivalence to Israeli and Lebanese civilian deaths, giving more weight to the Israeli deaths. This guy is our U.N. ambassador? How the hell did that happen, that the one person in the entire executive branch who should not be chosen for that post is the guy who holds the job?

Fire Island NY

We just took a few days off to extend the (otherwise always-too-short) weekend, and drove up to our friend Tammie's family vacation house on the eastern portion of Fire Island, a barrier island just south of Long Island. Well, we didn't really drive all the way out there, because there are no roads to speak of on Fire Island - hell, the "fire department" is a fire hose and pump mounted to the back of one of those golf cart sized John Deere wagons. The weather was kinda blah for most of the stay (we have our theories about that), but still an enjoyable and relaxing trip. Nice beaches, no commerical development at all, and there are even deer running around the island, fully acclimated to people. We had plenty of food at the house, and more importantly, plenty of alcohol, including a Piña Colada concoction that included ice cream and donut holes.

On Monday we drove into Manhattan to have lunch with Ben, Jenny's brother. I've only driven in NYC once before, but that was on a weekend - midday on a weekday is a whole different experience, almost non-stop thrills! We had lunch in Harlem, which isn't too far from Ben's apartment on the Upper West Side, at a cool little soul food place. Then, after less than two hours in the city, we hit the road again. You know, I dig New York a lot and like visiting, but after every trip up there, I still come home thinking that a small big city like Baltimore is still more my speed.

Happy Planet Index

I try to catch the Wired News column by The Luddite whenever I can, and his latest column refers to an index created by the UK-based New Economics Foundation called the Happy Planet Index. For those skeptics who will look at the list and wonder how developed countries do so poorly, the description of the index is that it measures "the ecological efficiency with which human well-being is delivered around the world". Of course, like most studies of this type, there's bound to be an agenda, right? Right - the NEF discloses the sponsor, Friends of the Earth, right up front.

So is this index worth anything? I guess that depends on whether you buy into the idea that a population's well-being should be measured against consumption of resources. It's interesting that the countries most similar to the U.S. in terms of ecological footprint, according to this study, aren't Western European nations like I would have guessed, but several of the smaller Persian Gulf nations. Also somewhat surprising: Scandinavian countries aren't too far behind us in this category.

Comments at Lay's Funeral: Please Don't Go There

But alas, they did go there. You know, I'm not going to begrudge anyone having kind words being spoken at his or her own funeral; it's certainly not a forum during which equal time should be given to supporters and detractors. But these are kind words for a convicted criminal who helped bring about the economic ruin of many former employees, and then died while awaiting sentencing, vacationing in Aspen (it's a tough life for white-collar criminals!) - not exactly the answer to "What Would Jesus Do?":

The Rev. Bill Lawson, pastor of Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church, likened Lay to James Byrd, an African-American man who was dragged to death in a racially motivated murder near Jasper eight years ago.

"Ken Lay was neither black nor poor as James Byrd was," Lawson said. "But I'm angry because he was the victim of a lynching." Lawson, who also spoke at Lay's Colorado memorial service, likened the businessman to President John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., and Jesus — all of whom, the minister said, were wrongly victimized.

Super-Reality TV

Finally, a cool premise for a reality TV show. WIRED News has a brief write-up of this Stan Lee production, and here's the official website for the show. I wonder if it can join The Amazing Race and Hell's Kitchen as a reality show worthy of regular viewing. It debuts on July 27 on the Sci-Fi channel.

Last Football Post for a While

I promise, this is the last one. After this, I'm back to full-time blogging about the trite & inane, and other stuff besides politics, too!

Germany coach Klinsmann is stepping down - somewhat surprising after the love-fest between him and Germany's players and fans, but he wants to spend more time with his family in Collyfornia. Does this mean the U.S. has a shot at him? We shall see. This guy was a first-time head coach; for his next gig he could be even better, having learned from his mistakes with Germany (if, in fact, he made any).

Over on the winning side, Italy coach Lippi is also resigning. No surprise there, he did his job, and is going out on top. Now that he's set the bar as high as possible, there's no reason to stick around and potentially fail to live up to those expectations.

Zidane: The French Word for 'Thug'?

If Zidane's career indeed ended with this final, then he got exactly what he deserved. His head-butt had to have been one of the ugliest scenes in this tournament, and he managed to sabotage his team's chances of winning a second World Cup. An utterly disgraceful end for a talented and accomplished player.

It's a shame that an otherwise solid, if unspectacular match, came down to penalty kicks. But Italy is certainly a worthy champion; just enough offense throughout the Cup, and a defense that was far superior to any other team's. They now join the very top tier of world football powers, just one title below Brazil.

Third Place for Germany

Germany takes care of business in the third place game, vanquishing the side nobody seems to like, Portugal, by a final of 3-1. An exciting second half, with Bastian Scweinsteiger accounting for the first and third goals, and having a hand in the second, an own-goal off of his free kick. Both of Schweinsteiger's goals, from just outside the 18', were rockets. Kim Jung Il wished his missiles worked half as well.

Not the game Germany wanted to be in at the conclusion of the Cup, but a solid finish nonetheless. This is a young squad that's should be dangerous in South Africa (or Australia?) in 2010.

7/7/77: Happy Birthday to Jenny!

The celebration actually started eight days ago, when Em and Dave were in town and we went to an O's-Phillies game. I had called the O's a day before, and gotten Jenny's name - and upcoming age - up on the scoreboard with the other birthdays! She was (probably?) happy that her name was up there, but less than thrilled about her age being displayed, since she still had eight more days of her twenty-eighth year to enjoy.

Little-known fact: Jenny shares a birthday with fashion icon Pierre Cardin! (same day, but back in 1922)

World Cup Blues

I'm not sure it's that I'll miss it when it's over, or that both semifinal games were a bummer, compared with some really nice round of 16 and quarterfinal games. A few thoughts on the semis:

Germany-Italy: I don't think Germany went away from its attacking style, but it just ran into an excellent Italian defense. Also, I've seen a lot of Germany's matches, and the yellow card suspension of Frings definitely hurt them. Sad to see them not make it to the finals, but hopefully they'll crush those whiny bitches from Portugal tomorrow. Italy, meanwhile, played uninspired ball for the first ninety minutes, then looked like a different - exciting! - team in the overtime. The game-winning goal by Grosso was a thing of beauty, right up there, in my opinion, with my other favorite goals of the Cup: Maxi Rodriguez' long-range volley for Argentina against Mexico, Joe Cole's long strike versus Sweden for England, and Oliver Neuville's baseball-style slide against Poland for Germany (in extra time!! still my favorite). By the way, all the goals in the tourney are on the FIFA web site.

Portugal-France: I was pulling for France because the Portuguese take football drama to whole new, obnoxious levels, and because Zidane and the French midfield had played spectacularly in its prior two matches. Portugal should watch more game tape of Argentina or Italy, teams that know how to take dives; Portugal players just look ridiculous out there, flopping around on the field like there's a competition for 'dive that looks most like a seizure'. France played beautifully in beating Spain and Brazil, but unfortunately stunk it up in this match, one of the uglier games in the tournament. But yes, that was a foul on Henry, and should have been a penalty kick (I know plenty of people would argue otherwise, but I officiated this sport for five years, and it was an easy call).

France-Italy: I honestly don't care who wins at this point, I just hope it's a good match. I'd have to give the edge to Italy though, their back line is just too strong, and they have speed up front that should be able to beat the French defense at least once.

Copa Mundial Procrastination

I was all set to head out to a few stores (grocery store, Lowe's) this morning after my morning run, but there was a problem: Germany v. Sweden. Fortunately, Deutschland scored twice in the first 12 minutes, so at the 30 minute mark I hit the road. With the U.S. out, Germany is my team now, and boy are they easy to root for. They play an exciting form of football, not at all like England's matches thus far, which have been some of the most boring in the tournament. With the capricious nature of goals, why hang back and wait for opportunities? Keep attacking, like Germany does! It's not only an entertaining form of football, but I think it's sound strategy as well. I was actually quite surprised that the final was 2-0, and that the home side didn't tack on a few more goals. Their defense - what I saw of it - looked solid as well. Next match versus Argentina won't be so easy (have I mentioned that I don't give Mexico much of a shot?).

Milena pointed out that for my group play predictions, I was three for eight. Not too bad, but I was hoping for at least fifty percent. What was I thinking with the U.S. and Iran picks?!? I should have known better than to pick the Great Satan and a member of the Axis of Evil to advance out of group play.

New blog links to your right - Aunty Milly and the Calscape.

25 MPH Electric Car Doesn't Cut It

In the same way that huge SUVs can adversely affect others' safety, and also effectively limits car buying choices, this all-electric car with a top speed of 25 mph is a similarly bad idea. Just as driving an Excursion or a Suburban means that anyone who buys a small car lives in fear of getting mashed into the grille on the highway, drivers on city streets shouldn't have to worry about minor accidents caused by a car without enough power to get up hills, which have the potential to become major accidents because the car is designated as a Low Speed Vehicle (and thus is exempt from airbags). Besides, who drives the speed limit in 25 mph zones anyway? Typical speeds in these zones are 30-35 mph; 25 mph is really incredibly slow. There are humans that can run about that fast, and if a cheetah happened to be chasing you, it would be able to catch you twice and still have some speed to spare. I'm all for low-emission vehicles, but this one just strikes me as a flawed product with extremely limited usefulness. Hell, tamed cheetahs with saddles would be a better idea.

Give 'em the Boot

The U.S. World Cup squad, that is. I'm not going to comment much on the game, since I didn't get to see even a minute of it, but I think it's telling that the guys who have done well attacking the goal are guys that don't normally start for Bruce Arena - Eddie Johnson had several nice chances in the Czech game when he came in late, and Clint Dempsey started the last two games after seeing no action in the first, and scored the only goal for the U.S. (not counting the Italy own-goal) in three games. The U.S. entered the World Cup with nothing to lose, and played with a timidity that indicated otherwise. Maybe with a new coach, and with the most aggressive and creative players starting, the U.S. will have a better result in South Africa in 2010. There will be plenty of new blood then, since mainstays Reyna, Pope, McBride, and Keller will (should?) all be retired from national team play by then.

Still plenty of World Cup left though, now that the U.S. and other weak sides have been eliminated. For what it's worth, weekend matches that I'm looking forward to are Holland-Portugal and Germany-Sweden. Also, England-Ecuador smells like an upset, but I'm doubting that Mexico will give Argentina many problems.

Finally, my mom sent me this amazing futbol-related video, here's the originating web page (it's a blog, but one that actually entertains!). The video she sent me was from this guy's 2 June entry. As my friend Neal used to stay - and probably still does - mad skillz.

U.S.-Italy Relations

The U.S. earned a point by drawing with Italy yesterday in what was an even more physical game than Germany-Poland (which was one of the best matches of the tournament thus far; Germany won 1-0 on a spectacular late goal). I didn't get to see the first half - we were driving down to Cal's surprise 30th birthday party, and yes, he was surprised - but by its end, both teams were playing with 10 men as a result of two red cards. In the opening minutes of the second half, defender Eddie Pope received an undeserved yellow, which, coupled with a first-half caution, meant ejection. The U.S. played 9 to Italy's 10 for the remainder of the match. I didn't see either of the goals (both came in the first half), but the officiating was certainly suspicious, especially in light of the fact that the referee was suspended back in 2002 for unspecified irregularities. Hmmm. Anyway, the U.S. still can advance, but they obviously must been Ghana on Thursday.

A quick thought on Cup coverage; I think ABC/ESPN is doing an admirable job, but the lack of coverage from other outlets is discouraging. Get this - on our way down to Cheverly yesterday Jenny and I managed to find an Italian language broadcast of the match (on AM station 730), but not an English broadcast.

Concrete Jungle

There was a big drug bust in the city, not too far from our house, on Tuesday night. Four hundred pounds of marijuana was seized, including some plants that were 4 feet tall. 33 year-old John Arbuckle was arrested. No word on whether Garfield or Odie were taken into custody.

Middle-Aged Man

Of course I'm kidding. I fully expect the life expectency to hit 120 by the time I'm officially old. So when my good friend Callahan turned 30 yesterday, I hope he thought of it start of the second quarter.

And what better way to celebrate the big 3-0, than to start your very own blog? Or, at the very least, publicize the blog that you started back in January. But maybe I should give Cal a break - the guy is freakin' old, he probably just forgot until recently that he had started it.

Cup Update v2.5

We wheeled our office's TV out today to catch some of the USA-Czech match; we managed to tune in a somewhat fuzzy but watchable Univision signal, and saw most of the first half. At the half, the USA seems simply outgunned by a much bigger Czech side. The Czechs bring so many people foward, and almost all apear to be taller and/or stronger than the Americans marking them. I would guess that the US wants to try to use its speed more in the second half, and create some opportunities with fast counters.

The two Czech goals came on a perfect header from the 6, and a perfect strike from about 20 yards out. Meanwhile, the best chance for the US came on a pretty shot by Claudio Reyna that hit the post and rebounded back into play - no US player was nearby, though.

Cup Update, Part Zwei

Caught 2 more games, and halves of two others, since the last update. I'd have to say that Holland has been the most impressive team I've seen thus far, while the Eurotrash team award has to go to Serbia & Montenegro (with Sweden a very close second) - lots of half-shaven guys, a few mullets as well.

Sweden 0, Trinidad & Tobago 0: What can you say about the T&T effort. Last-second GK change, playing a man down in the second half - a fabulous defensive effort. Keeper Shaka Hislop, who played in college at Howard, was phenomenal. Sweden demonstrated the importance of finishing, a lesson that group leader England also needs to learn, and quickly. They dominated possession (60/40), were up a man for nearly half the match, and didn't get it done.

Netherlands 1, Serbia & Montenegro 0: Like I mentioned earlier, Holland looked sharp. I'd be surprised if there were a better passing team (other than Brazil, of course) in the tournament. I only saw the first half, and was somewhat surprised that Holland didn't score in the 2nd half. Also, I dig the all-orange look. The S&M defense was very good, but the one lapse was all the Dutch needed.

Mexico 3, Iran 1: I only saw the 1st half of this one as well, but Mexico looked really good. I was unsure if they'd make it out of the group, because they historically haven't played well in Cups hosted in Europe. But they look tough, and Iran was no pushover. Mexico kept the pressure on constantly in the first half, and was awarded a ton of free kicks. When I saw the final a bit late in the day, it wasn't too surprising. After seeing the Portugal match (see below), I'd say that Mexico should win its group.

Portugal 1, Angola 0: Another inspiring performance by an African squad, another mediocre performance by a heavily-favored European squad (see: England, Sweden). Portugal seems to have a ton of talent, but other than the first 20 minutes, didn't really do a whole lot. Yes, Angola's defense was solid - as solid as their attack was ineffectual - but still, Portugal had plenty of chances that they didn't convert. Maybe John Harkes is right, some of these favored teams seem to be easing into group play, not trying to do too much. Not what I'd call a winning strategy, but hey what do I know.

One final thought; I dig Harkes' commentary much more than his former teammate Marcelo Balboa's. Harkes brings some interesting insight, is obviously better-researched and more familiar with the top Euro-leagues, and stays positive and entusiastic. Balboa, while knowledgable, dwells on negatives and doesn't add much, in my oh-so-humble opinion.

Cup Update, Part 1

I've managed to catch two of the three matches played thus far, Poland/Ecuador and England/Paraguay. Impressions:

Ecuador 2, Poland 0: Poland looked terrible on defense against Ecuador, and while their players in front looked capable, they really didn't demonstrate that until the last 10 to 15 minutes. Ecuador, meanwhile, was aggressive but also picked their spots well. They sure took advantage of the Polish defenders, who were often just standing around.

England 1, Paraguay 0: A Beckham free kick lead to a Paraguay own-goal when Gammara tried to clear with a header. He ended up helping the ball into the corner of the net. It seemed as though the keeper probably could have gotten to Beckham's kick otherwise. England played relatively passively throughout much of the remainder of the match. Watching this match made me wonder what would happen if Beckham played in the middle - every time he touches the ball, there's the potential for something fantastic to happen, but he often doesn't touch the ball that much because he plays so wide on the right.

World Cup Predictions

There's some large international sporting event starting today, with that in mind here are some predictions for standings at the end of the group round, just for fun, as if I know what I'm talking about (teams in bold move on, 3rd and 4th teams, better luck in South Africa). I would add commentary and defend these choices, but who am I kidding, most are just based on hunches anyway; I have no real in-depth knowledge of any of these teams. Although I'd be a happy guy for never again reading anything about Wayne Rooney's foot. Surely England isn't the only nation hyperventilating about its team, um squad, er...side - it just has the greatest concentration of tabloid/football press available to cover it, unfortunately.

A: Germany, Ecuador, Poland, Costa Rica
B: Paraguay, England, Sweden, Trinidad & Tobago
C: Netherlands, Argentina, Ivory Coast, Serbia & Montenegro
D: Portugal, Iran, Mexico, Angola
E: Czech Republic, USA, Italy, Ghana
F: Brazil, Japan, Australia, Croatia
G: Switzerland, France, South Korea, Togo
H: Spain, Ukraine, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia

A Bizarre Draft Option for the Orioles

I'm not sure what I found more shocking in this article, that the Orioles are actually contemplating drafting Jeffrey Maier, or that Scott Erickson is still pitching in the majors.

Free Art in Baltimore

According to the Post - funny, I couldn't find any mention of this in the hometown paper - those uppity Baltimore art museums, the Walters and the BMA, are no longer charging admission fees, starting October 1st. Finally, free art for the locals other than crime scene chalk outlines!

Civil War, Al Gore, and Secret Wars!

Not that this will shock anyone, but this column from Sunday's Post makes it clear; while it may not be all-out, textbook-definition civil war in Iraq, it sure is in the ballpark.

Meanwhile, Rude Pundit makes a great case for Al Gore as a 2008 candidate. His third paragraph states it as well as anything I've read about Al recently. Oh yeah, and Rude Pundit isn't just a clever name - this guy does not mince words, four-letter or otherwise.

Finally, what comic book fan doesn't remember the old Secret Wars tie-ins that spanned, oh about 16 different Marvel titles back in the 80s? Hell, if you wanted to keep up with everything that was happening, you actually had to buy Thor. Ugh. This super-geeky video re-enactment features what is possibly the saddest looking Doctor Doom costume ever. Still, an 'A' for effort.

Age of Indifference?

These two columns, one at Wired and the other in the Baltimore Sun by columnist-activist Dan Rodricks, have recently put me in a place that I don't visit very often: deep in thought. I know, risky. But reading them made me wonder, with all the shit that's going on with our government these days, where's the widespread anger, the demand for accountability, any kind of populist response? Missing in action, apparently, but why?

First the Wired piece. The comparison with the Vietnam era is intriguing. I read an article months ago - don't recall where or I'd link to it - that discussed the idea of World War II's "Greatest Generation", and that while that was an appropriate label, and that generation deserves all the praise and honor that all the documentaries, Tom Brokaw books, and Tom Hanks-produced movies and TV series bestow upon it, don't forget about the '60s-early '70s generation either. The argument was that World War II was something that was easy to unite behind, and the conflicts of the '60s didn't necessarily have widespread popular support but they got the job done anyway, with civil rights, with getting us out of Vietnam (eventually), even with timely investigations of people at the top who were abusing their power (Watergate, Church Committee, etc.). So, back to the Wired column; are we that self-absorbed that we can't mobilize to do something about the current abuses? Are we looking to the wrong opposition leaders - i.e., most of the Democrat Party 'leadership' - to rally behind? Do we not realize how perilous a position we've put our world in, and how much our freedoms are at risk? Hopefully, it's starting to sink in for a majority of people, but I'm not quite convinced that the tide has turned.

The Rodricks column on mandatory public service goes in a somewhat different direction, but still speaks to this pervasive indifference that seems to have settled in. Is mandatory service the answer? I hope that it wouldn't have to come to that. I remember the debates, back when I was in high school, about mandatory community service for students, and whether the mandatory part of the equation violated the altruistic spirit with which one should approach community service - I believed that it did back then, and I still believe that. Community service as forced labor can easily breed resentment towards both the government that mandates it, and towards those who are being helped. Sure, it can get things done, but is that cost worth it? Maybe, but something about such an arrangement just feels wrong to me. Dan Rodricks' columns always ask tough questions though, and this one is no different. It also naturally lead to some introspection, namely my own complicity in this culture of apathy, and what I could be doing differently with my time and/or money, to break out of it. Tough questions indeed.

Muppets Take Smithsonian

Not that they weren't part of Americana already, but now they're behind glass at the Smithsonian. I hope they put some airholes in the glass though, Muppets do need to breathe.

I was talking with Jenny about Muppets the other day; every time I pass by the Wilkins Avenue exit on the Baltimore Beltway, I think of Jim Henson. His Muppets' first job as pitchmen was for Wilkins Coffee back in the early '60s (late '50s?). Now, I don't know whether they had a presence in Baltimore, but Wilkins Coffee was (is?) actually based in the DC area, in Capitol Heights I believe. So my free- association with Wilkins Avenue is just that; there's no direct link that I know of. Anyway, over at YouTube, someone has collected the old Wilkins TV spots, so check them out. Most are a more violent than I would have guessed a commerical back then would have been - lots of exploding, beaten, pummeled, run-over, coffee-dumped-on Muppets. Still entertaining though! It's also interesting to note that while the featured Muppets, Wilkins and Wontkins, are somewhat primitive by modern Muppet standards, there's really not a huge gap to bridge from them to Kermit or Fozzie.

FA Cup: Democracy in Action

Last Saturday morning at 10 o'clock, I met Jay and his wife Val at Slainte in Fell's Point, to catch the FA Cup final between Liverpool and West Ham. And even if it hadn't been an incredible match that, unfortunately, had to end in penalty kicks, it still would have been a good time. Four of the six goals scored in regular time were nothing short of amazing (the other two goals, eh, not so great). And if Liverpool's Steven Gerrard isn't the best midfielder in Europe, he's surely in the top five.

But even if the match had really stunk, it was still a fantastic atmosphere: full pub, 10 am on a gorgeous, sunny day, a view of Thames Street and the harbor, a nice corned-beef Irish omelette, four - yeah, four - pints of Guinness, all before noon! OK, the last pint was ordered before noon and consumed afterwards, during extra time, but still, a nice way to start one's Saturday. Although I was dragging a bit come midday, it was worth it!

647 teams entered this year's FA Cup, these are clubs from all levels of English football, and the draws are completely random (no seeds). This year, as in many years, two Premiership teams made it to the final. But the idea that the little guys can go up against the giants of the sport, such as Liverpool, is pretty much a foreign concept with any other sport but soccer. Maybe that helps to explain its globabl popularity; lots of team sports are skill-based, but I can't think of any that rely less on the sheer size of the players than does soccer. So why hasn't the sport caught on as much in our corner of the world?

Police State

Not a term that should be used lightly, but since when do we send the National Gaurd to hold hands along our southern border? Since now, perhaps?

Maybe I shouldn't complain. A majority of Americans are apparently OK with giving up their privacy. By the way, kudos to Qwest for just saying no to the feds. As for the other Baby Bells, AT&T, Bell South, and Verizon, how should I put this...you're all spineless, greedy fuckers. Have you really run out of ways to screw your customers, that you now need to involve the NSA in the process? Not to mention that now I have to listen carefully for Dick Cheney's wheezing breath whenever I pick up the phone. Then again, maybe that's not Dick's breathing - maybe that rustling sound is Dick wiping his ass with the Constitution!

Seven Tons, Three Hours

As of last Friday, the concrete is gone from our back "yard"! I thought I had a 'before' pic, but I think I must have deleted it, so you'll have to make do with the 'after' pic, and the shot of me and the dumpster full of concrete. Not too bad in terms of home improvement projects; it only took about six months from the time I hammered up the concrete, to get it removed! Thanks to Dad for all the help, and the use of the trailer.

I know what you're thinking though. Exaggeration. Surely, it wasn't seven tons. Maybe, maybe not. But check out the numbers. A 13.5' X 20' area (actually, a bit larger). Concrete that was 6" deep - or even thicker - in most spots. Let's be waaaay conservative, and say it was an average of four inches thick. That's 89 cubic feet of concrete. A search of the internets - the concrete internet, specifically - reveals that the density of concrete is around 150 lbs/cf. That's 6.7 tons right there! Not too bad for three hours of work.

Afterwards, we drank beers, went to the O's game (they won), while there we ate and drank more beer. All in all, a productive Friday.

Understated Sports Headline

Kaman: Evans pulled testicles, prompting outburst. "Prompting outburst"? Gee, ya think?

Ugh, to think the Nuggets traded for this Evans guy in mid-season! I guess it's hard to find quality testicle-pullers in the NBA these days. Although I sure could see Cherokee Parks or Christian Laettner coming off the bench as designated 'pullers' once their real NBA careers are over. What? Their NBA careers are over? Funny, I didn't notice.

Planet v. Human

It's something I ponder now and again, but this recent post by Greg over at his blog brought it into focus for me a bit. His family (soon to number four) is buying a Honda SUV to transport the kiddies in. Greg writes that one of the reasons is due to the harping of the liberal elite. I don't quite know what that means, since I doubt he's taking calls from Arianna Huffington or Laurie David, but those who know him would not be surprised to find his photo here some day - and I mean that in the nicest possible way.

But there's a lesson here, that many environmental groups do their movement disservice in the way they make their cases. Nobody, no matter where one is in the world, likes being told what to do and what to think. Environmental organizations that tell people what not to buy, or assume that the average world citizen is a moron, will always be fighting at least some backlash. I support most of their causes wholeheartedly, but can't help but cringe at the way they present their arguments to the public. There is real scientific basis for great concern over the temperature of the planet, more species disappearing every year, and the cleanliness of the air and water.

The challenge is making these arguments more personal, but less condescending. It's a fine line to walk sometimes, for certain. But these are not difficult concepts for the most part, no need to get snooty when explaining them! The planet warms, ice melts, water levels rise, not that tough to visualize. It's human nature for people to be wrapped up in their own worlds, and to be thinking about how best to care for and protect their kids; the last things they're going to consider are global environmental problems (hell, most people in my neighborhood don't even recycle). The goal needs to be to make the arguments more personal, and make them respectfully. Shouting that the sky is falling is a big turn-off - even if it happens to actually be falling - and telling someone that they're a bad human being for making a certain purchase is the first, and biggest, step towards alienating that person to your message.

Songwriter Extraordinaire

Anyone who digs great - and usually hilarious - music should check out Jonathan Coulton, a musician who's Thing a Week is currently my favorite podcast. He's got a little something for almost everyone! Here are some examples:

• for the Calscape: acoustic-guitar driven cover of Baby Got Back
• for Jarriel and anyone else who appreciates a good zombie film: Re: Your Brains
  
• for my parents and other old(er) people, and for 1990 TJHS Marching Band members: Beatles/Chicago mashup When I'm 25 or 64
• for Scott and anyone who was captivated by curling during the Olympics: Curl
  
• for Greg, the Wimble, other young dads, and Beach Boys fans: Stroller Town

I have most of his podcasts stored on my home PC, so let me know if you want me to hook you up with songs that might not be available via iTunes anymore. Plus he has a few albums on iTunes, which I've been meaning to purchase (honest!) but haven't gotten around to just yet.

I Hate Jeffrey Maier, The Movie

Talk about creative use of fan frustration. If this doees indeed come to the Senator this summer, I'll certainly go see it.

27 Points of Light, or 1 Blazing Inferno?

What can I say, a bit of Easter-weekend inspiration! Either that, or I was just really hungry for brownies, and who has time to place and light 27 individual candles when the brownies beckon? Regardless of the motivation, I have a feeling that a new family birthday-celebrating tradition has been born!

Happy Birthday Matt! Hope you win big this weekend, bro, like I always do (haha! I'm so funny!). Just remember the words of the King: All you need's a strong heart and a nerve of steel...

Upcoming Charm City (Odd) Events

I wrote about this awesome race last year, but unfortunately this year Jenny & I won't be in town to see it: the 2006 running of the Kinetic Sculpture Race!

And coming in October - BUT with an application deadline at the end of July, for all your flying (and crashing) enthusiasts - FLUGTAG!

Coming later today - birthday wishes to the bro (as soon as I get home and download a special birthday photo from my camera).

A Bad Week, plus This Week at the CCB

It was just one of those weeks. Sixty hours of work (and with my commute, it seemed like much longer), a $2900 plumbers' bill, and allergy season finally hit as well. Needless to say - evidently not - blogging wasn't a priority, it was barely an afterthought. This week has to be better though, and I've got a lot to catch up on. A preview of this week:

• new links! to two upcoming Baltimore events in creativity and engineering, and to the oddest and geekiest ipod accessory ever
• new sidebar! with links to the podcasts I listen to regularly
• music review! of songwriter extraordinaire & podcaster Jonathan Coulton
• peep jousting! photos, and possibly videos, of the newest Easter tradition in our family, started this past weekend by Amy & Jenny

An ambitious agenda, to be sure, but I think I can handle it - stay tuned!

Busy Times at the Office

So busy, in fact, that I'm this far behind on my rubber band ball:

Women's Basketball: Who Knew?

Yeah, I watched the entirety of the Terp Women's chamionship triumph last night. And yes, it was entertaining! Was it as compelling as some of the fantastic men's tourney games this year? Hell yeah! I have to admit, I'm surprised that it kept my attention - I've rarely allocated many of my sports viewing hours (and I probably devote hundreds of hours every year to sports viewing, as you might imagine) to women's sports, other than the odd tennis or soccer match, so I was pleasantly surprised. Then again, this game was played at a high level, so I might be disappointed to watch a more typical women's game, which would naturally have less at stake and therefore less intensity. It might in fact be the opposite of my recent NHL viewing experience; I may have been turned off by an atypically-poor level of play in that case, while in this case I'm drawn in by unusually-high level of play. Who knows.

What I do know, is that these Terps are champs, and considering who they beat makes it that much sweeter. Congrats to Brenda Freese and all of her Gurtles.

Baseball Is Back

Another season begins, and Peter Angelos is still an ass when it comes to player negotiations. What a shocker!

Bad Coffee Pacing, 10K Congestion

So I didn't pace myself too well with the coffee this morning, and by the time I got on the Metro after the train ride from Baltimore, I really had to pee. I figured I'd try to take my mind off it by leafing through a Washington Post Express. As fate had it, a very bad idea! What should I find in the Express, but a condensed version of this article. NOT COOL! But I did make it to the office without incident, so I can't bitch too much.

How did the Bridge Run go? Well, considering that I couldn't really get up to my pace until midway through the third mile, I was quite happy with my time of 54:05. Fifty thousand people really clog up a race course, I don't care how wide the course is. So I did the first two miles in about 9:15 each, started to pick up some speed by the third mile (8:53), tried to make up for lost time with a 7:46 fourth mile - fast for me - and then evened out with fifth and sixth miles of 8:34 and 8:31. It's amazing how big of a deal this run is down in Charleston. A local news station down there covers the whole run! Em & Dave Tivo-ed it, and we actually caught Dave and Barry on the coverage. Kinda neat. I think that all four of us were happy with our times, considering the slow going early on. Dave was his usual speedy self - I think I'm going to switch over to a new Diet Coke training regimen, since I suspect that's the secret of his success (it can't be the years of running, can it? Besides, who wants to work that hard?). And check this out: there were grilled Johnsonville Bratwurst available post-race, how sweet is that? From now on, I won't run a race that doesn't guarantee bratwurst at the finish line.

An Early April Fool's?

Call me crazy, but this story about the apparently impending divorce of Orioles new starter Kris Benson from his model/"actress" wife Anna, sure seems suspicious. It's March 31st, it's right before the season begins, and Anna has never been shy about self-promotion. April Fool's, anyone?

I'm down in South Carolina, and am running in the Cooper River Bridge Run tomorrow - there are currently over 45,000 runners registered for this 10K race!!! That's an insanely big 10K race field, but according to Em & Dave this is a big Charleston area tradition. It should be fun, it will just be a crowded bridge, that's all.

I'm using Em's brand new laptop to write this entry. It's shiny.

Cashing In the Bracket

One bracket down, one to go! I already wrapped up the pool for our main office in Michigan, the earliest win ever, by anyone's recollection. And I'll win the local office pool as long as LSU doesn't win it all. Neither pool is very big, $75 payout for each, but not a bad return on a $5"investment". I don't like rooting against LSU; they and George Mason are two of the more lovable teams left in the tourney. Actually, if you can excuse UCLA's hideous brand of defensive basketball, all four teams are likable in their own way. LSU has Big Baby, UCLA is Big East basketball amongst the palm trees (well, I think that's kinda neat), Florida has the fabulous inside play of Noah and Horford, and Mason is the local team with five - five! - players from Maryland.

Quick aside about that - this is where the Terps missing on a recruit like Travis Garrison or Sterling Ledbetter hurts twice. They not only get a player who isn't very good or who doesn't improve, but they miss out on local talent that ends up going to a smaller program.

Hey, if you're in the DC area and don't have anything to do this Thursday, head to the Black Cat to see Hard-Fi. Cheap tickets, great music - unfortunately I'll miss it, so somebody please go, and tell me how much it rocked.

What the Puck

What a brilliant title! I am so damn witty.

So I attended my first pro hockey game this past weekend, between the Capitals and the Florida Panthers. It was certainly better than I expected, although hockey is one of the few sports that I don't follow, nor have expressed any interest whatsoever in following, so "better than I expected" doesn't carry too much meaning. Yes, it's true what many people have told me in the past, hockey is much better live than on TV. Of course, you could say that about most sports, with the possible exception of football, which was seemingly made for television. This was a sloppy game though, or so it seemed to me. "Passes" went to the other side just as often as to the passing team, and most shots seemed either rushed or else too delibrate. That seems to be the philosophy in hockey, as far as I can tell; fling enough pucks at the goal, and some are bound to go in - scoring by attrition. But then again, what the hell do I know, right?

There were several women among our sizable group there that lamented the dearth of fights and bloodshed in hockey (I guess the NHL cracked down on that a few years ago?), which I don't quite understand. That's always been one of my hockey turn-offs; if the sport is that good, and the players that skilled, why do they let these thugs out onto the ice to fight a few times a game? I don't know if that's been eliminated from hockey completely, but judging by this game it has, and that can only be a good thing. Now if only the players were more skilled, or at least more consistent, than the two mediocre (at best) teams that I saw on Saturday.

So that's the final verdict from this corner: hockey, it doesn't suck completely, but it's pretty damn close. I would actually attend another game, if I didn't have to buy the ticket, and there wasn't anything better going on that night (like a good baseball, basketball, soccer, or football game on TV, for example).