Thursday, February 3, 2011
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Worst Tattoo Ever
Banksy's Oscar Campaign
(All pictures courtesy of sneakhype.com. If it's not sneak then it must be hype.....HA! No, that's not their real slogan.)
Week Of Revolution
A little over a week ago the Egyptian people, tired of the police state, puppet government run by a dictator, took to the streets to demand their aristocracy step aside. In that time the Egyptian revolutionaries had gone head to head against the oppressive police regime and forced them from the capital of Cairo. Uprisings began springing up in other cities throughout Egypt. President Mubarak has since fired the government while at the same time digging his heels in saying that, though he won't run for re-election, he also will not step down as President. The military has moved in to try and create some sort of order in Cairo and many reports have come out that the military has shown sympathy to the revolutionaries. Looters, many backed by the disgraced police, had been spotted ransacking homes and buildings riding crotch rockets and wielding samurai swords (Ok, I gotta admit, that is pretty epic.). Neighborhood Patrol's aka militia's have began to form in order to secure parts of the city that the military was unable too. Egypt went through a phase of complete information blackout as the internet and cell phone service was cut. And now, a new element, loyalists to the regime, have begun to take the revolutionaries on.
Hey, if revolution was easy, everybody would be doing it.
The brilliance of the current Egyptian Revolution is, just as it was inspired by the Tunisia Revolution, it is inspiring protests and possible uprising in Yemen and Jordan. The Arab World is on fire and it is a beautiful thing to see the people take their freedoms from the oppressors.
Hey, if revolution was easy, everybody would be doing it.
The brilliance of the current Egyptian Revolution is, just as it was inspired by the Tunisia Revolution, it is inspiring protests and possible uprising in Yemen and Jordan. The Arab World is on fire and it is a beautiful thing to see the people take their freedoms from the oppressors.
(All pictures courtesy of HuffingPost.com)
Republican National Committee: Come For The Conservatism And Buy Our Reagan Crap
So what's with all this cheap Reagan crap now on the market? Well, funny thing. Remember the GOPs token black friend Michael Steele who the Republicans elected to be their chairman in an effort to show that the Democrats weren't the only ones willing to make history? Well, apparently the guy who blinged out the American flag at the bottom of the RNC website spent a bit too much and got his ass canned for it. How much? Well, currently the Republican National Committee is $23 million in debt. Who would have known that all those luxury golf outings and lesbian S&M clubs would be so goddamn expensive. So, new RNC chairman Reince Priebus, is on a quest to restore the RNC back into the green before the Republicans go into the 2012 general election with no support structure. What's Priebus doing? He's selling the Gipper. Or atleast hawking a bunch of Gipper crap. They aren't actually selling the Gipper. That would be illegal.....right? Fuckin socialists trying to ruin capitalism all the time.
Now, the RNC isn't just banking on the memory of Reagan. Priebus has already fired nearly half of his staff and cut back on the massive spending spree which Steele began. But $23 million is a lot of bobble heads. 4.6 million to be exact. But hey, if you just throw on a million dollar shipping and handling fee you'll knock that out in no time. You are the party of overly bloated rich people after all right? Oh, my bad, you don't make the rich people pay for shit. I forgot.
Easy A Review
The funny thing about Easy A was that throughout the film the film maker makes fun of the 80s style of the classic coming of youth story while at the same time following every single one of the rules.
Saving grace about the film? Emma Stone. First time I saw Emma Stone was in SuperBad and lately she has been in a lot of the headlines ever since she was cast in the Spiderman reboot. Stone has a cleverness and a charisma to her that makes you believe that she is the character that she is portraying. The way Matthew Lillard made many believe he was an actual punker after SLC Punk came out; after watching Easy A, you could almost believe that this was a biography of Stone's high school years just with the names and locations changed. She is a less indie hipster version of Ellen Page but better. Better because she is actually funny and not just funny for ironic sakes.
All in all my favorite part of Easy A was how they nailed the Jesus Freaks on the head. Growing up as a pastors kid I knew these people all too well. Believe me, I went to DC Talk and Petra concerts too. They are the "cool, next generation Christians" who grow their hair long, get into shape, wear the ironic t-shirts, don't shave, get tattoos and piercings, sit on their chairs backwards, and strum the guitar. There is ALWAYS some douche bag with a guitar. They act as though they are a new breed but they are just chameleons. Taking the form of anything they can in order to infiltrate any social group to force their message. They are the same religious bigots, just with a better alternative soundtrack.
In closing, we've seen this movie before plenty of times. At one point American Pie attempted to change the formula but it seems as though the pendulum has swung back pretty quickly to the original. Except now, they have the token gay character.
Final Grade: B- = Filled with situations that by no means could ever happen in real life. One of those movies where the entire school becomes obsessed with the problems of just a few students. However, a relatively funny film which didn't need to become overly vulgar as a fall back in order to get the jokes out. Not knocking vulgarity by any means, but it's nice to have none dick and fart jokes once in awhile.
In the scale of Burn It, Wait and Rent It, Wait and Buy It, Go and See It, Obsess Over It, Turn It Into A Religion: Wait and Rent It. Definitely worth a watch but doubtful if I'll ever want to watch it again. The best part of the film is the teachers rant about how our generation is obsessed with documenting our every waking thought on social networks. No need to buy the film though. Can't really imagine the dvd having too many extra features that I would want to sit through.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Friday, January 28, 2011
Day of Rage
For 30 years Mubarak built up his influences of power throughout Egypt by implementing a police state, legalizing censorship, suspending sections of the Egyptian Constitution, rigging one election after another, and making back allie deals with corrupt political allies.
For 30 years the tensions rose. On Tuesday, January 28th, 2011, the powder keg blew.
Inspired by the actions of the Tunisian revolutionaries just two weeks before, many who have become upset with Egypt's economic and unemployment situation organized together for the purpose of telling their government to get their act together. So, on the 25th, organized largely through social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook, a youth movement took to the streets of Cairo to demand reform in their nation. Nothing that the youth movement was asking for was out of the question. Fiscal responsibility from their officials, relaxed censorship laws, ending the culture of corruption in Cairo, and getting a handle on the out of control police forces whom the Egyptian's refer to as thugs.
In response, swarms of riot police swarmed the streets to cut the youth movement off. Gas canisters, electric prods, bats, water hoses, rubber bullets, and live rounds were used against the youth. The internet was severed to keep from any further organization. Foreign journalists were harassed, beaten, and locked under house arrest in their hotels while their equipment was confiscated. Opposition members were rounded up and taken to secret holding locations. Free speech was met with an iron fisted over bearing response. Mubarak wanted the people to know that Egypt was not Tunisia. Apparently the people didn't get the memo.
Four days later came the day of rage. Thousands flooded the streets in opposition to the crackdown despite being outgunned by security forces. Police tanks were hijacked, firebombed, and pushed into the Nile. Police were over powered, beaten within an inch of the lives, and stripped of their equipment. Federal buildings were ransacked and burned including the headquarters of the National Democratic Party which was looted and torched. Walls of oppressive law enforcement officials were pushed back and stood their ground at their own risk. But even with their weapons and their security walls and their tanks the people gained ground. First they took the streets. Then they took the bridges. Then they took the city blocks. Then they began to take the city. What had started off as a peaceful youth movement for reform had turned into an all out people's revolution.
At first the government attempted to make it seem as though they had everything under control. But even after the military moved in, there was no denying that this rebellion wasn't going to end. Then the government tried to paint the revolutionaries as radicals from the Muslim Brotherhood. But no one was buying it. By night fall the uprising in Cairo had spread to other cities in Egypt. Things were about to change.
In the calm of the night, Mubarak addressed the people. He told them that he took responsibility for what was happening. That he was prepared to listen to the will of the people. But before he could stick his forked tongue back in his mouth he proclaimed that he would not relinquish power. Instead, he would fire everyone in his cabinet and replace them the next morning. The people responded by taking to the streets again and lighting up the night.
Great things are happening in Egypt. Things which most only get to see once in a life time if that. I stand with those Egyptian Revolutionaries. I hope you will do the same.
[All but one photo acquired from the HuffingtonPost]
No Go For Reggie Watts TV Show
If you don't know Reggie Watts brand of comedy well instead of telling you I'll just show you.
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