Since the run-up to the 2008 presidential campaign has—sadly—already begun, let’s start 2007 with some myth-shattering thoughts about getting elected. The talking heads were in universal agreement that the very close and relatively close presidential elections of 2000 and 2004 demonstrated how “polarized” the voters are. In a technical sense, this is true, but not
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A bit too sentimental, this pic overindulges in action outside the ring, then finally comes into its own with the fight scenes. Still, dubious character arcs, zero romance (at least between people both alive), and an apparent disregard for circumstances developed in earlier Rocky films detract from the overall experience. Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) is
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Amil Imani, an ex-pat Iranian now living in the US, recently posted an interesting article to the American Thinker website. His premise is that the current theocratic and despotic rulers of Iran are not true Iranians in the sense that they do not portray the ancient traditions started by King Cyrus the Great. This Cyrus
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One definition of a leader is… A person who by force of example, talents, or other qualities plays a directing role, wields commanding influence, or has a following in any sphere of activity or thought One flaw with this definition is that this person could have a following merely BECAUSE he has been anointed as
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Two of the latest and juiciest involve Michael Richards (late of Seinfeld, and not a whole lot else) and Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick. Richards was being heckled during a nightclub performance, and inexplicably yelled racial epithets, repeatedly, to the heckler. Videos of this incident were soon all over the Internet, along with reports that
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Mind-bending time travel considerations set against a backdrop of domestic terrorism, within a rebuilding New Orleans, adds up to 128 minutes of enjoyable screen time, in this Thanksgiving weekend police procedural. Pic opens with hundreds of people, including Navy personnel, boarding the Alvin Stumpf ferry. Within a few minutes, though, there is a large explosion,
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Last week, I gained some insight into human nature. While Sir Francis Bacon noted that knowledge is power, and Jesus said that the truth will set you free, there are still times when you might regret learning certain things. Or, at least, you might wish that your lesson were not so comprehensive. I produce content
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First of all, people want a choice. Ideally, there should be at least two distinct alternatives. As far as the Team D sweep over Team R, the alternatives were never all that distinct, but ever since about 2003, it became harder and harder to tell the difference. Yet, even at the point where there is
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Fundamentally, people should vote their self-interest. Charity should be a separate matter, and not be part of the government. That charity, or at least some form of pseudo-charity, IS part of the government tends to be a complicating factor, of course, but let us ignore it for just a moment. In the vast majority of
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This seems like a good topic, in light of the recent New Jersey Supreme Court decision “ordering” the state legislature to come up with some form of civil union for homosexuals. Any good high school student can recite the supposed checks and balances on the federal judiciary, provided for in our Constitution: Senate approves federal
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