Just saw this last night. Nicely done. Taken together the two trailers do it justice.
1.30.2007
One of the best sites on the web
From Number Watch
Man of a decade
It does not fall to many leaders to revolutionise both the constitution and the culture of their country. After William the Conqueror and Oliver Cromwell comes Tony Blair. Like those other great leaders, he has distinguished himself by his contributions to military theory, extending Hitler’s vision of blitzkrieg to lightly armed and fast moving troops and finally to the point where men and vehicles have no armour at all. Yet every soldier is secure in the knowledge that behind him is a small army of civil servants ensuring that he does not waste any money on expensive bullets and such. Thus Tony is able to attack more and more enemies with fewer and fewer soldiers.
So clear has been his political vision that he has developed new ways of governing that have not been seen before. Previous leaders have given priority to ensuring that their nation is self sufficient in energy and food. Only Tony has seen that we can rely for energy on our staunch friends, the Arabs, and that kindly Mr Putin, so we do not have to think about controversial things such as nuclear power stations and can go on covering the countryside with windmills that only work 20% of the time, yet are such a wonderful and ever present monument to our new age of enlightenment. For food we can rely on an even wider circle of friends, such as our historic allies the good old French farmers.
He has eliminated much of the annoyance of parliamentary democracy by delegating the most important decisions to unelected European Commissioners and dealing with the rest from his famous sofa. The MPs are kept quiet with ever more generous payments from the public purse. By sheer hypnotic power, he has lulled the electorate into such a state of trance that it accepts, and regards as normal, levels of taxation that would have induced riots in times past.
He has swept aside the fuddy-duddy old culture, with its boring old writers, composers etc, and replaced it with the completely new celebrity culture that every one can join in. While all those windmills will be his lasting concrete monument (Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!) his cultural monument will be the reality TV show.
He was ever the man of action. While others fretted about the West Lothian Question, he simply ignored it and drew up a new constitution that involved just one country of the four being denied its own parliament and being forced to subsidise the others, while they were given votes on its affairs. Only Tony realised that the English had become too effete to raise a protest. Likewise, while others wavered about the future of the House of Lords, at a stroke he eliminated the hereditary peers, and hence the main opposition to his glorious vision, replacing them with the right sort and simultaneously overcoming the funding problems of his party. Without the hereditaries’ pathetic concerns about the rights of individuals, he was able to implement vital policies such as the smoking ban and the forthcoming bans on salt consumption and fat people in public places.
Of course, his great political war cry was “Education, education, education” and this is where he has wrought the greatest changes. He has, for example, managed to close down most university departments of Physics, which were always nests of opposition to Good Green Science, while achieving world domination in Media Studies. In schools he has pressed on with the everybody passes principle, so that no one knows who is academically able, which is as it should be. At the same time he has achieved a rebalance of the sexes by feminising the education system. The alienation of many boys and the creation of gangs of feral youths is a small price to pay for the advance of women.
His greatest achievement, however, is to oblige the Conservative Party to abandon every principle it ever stood for and put up a pale imitation of himself as an alternative. That is true greatness!
Man of a decade
It does not fall to many leaders to revolutionise both the constitution and the culture of their country. After William the Conqueror and Oliver Cromwell comes Tony Blair. Like those other great leaders, he has distinguished himself by his contributions to military theory, extending Hitler’s vision of blitzkrieg to lightly armed and fast moving troops and finally to the point where men and vehicles have no armour at all. Yet every soldier is secure in the knowledge that behind him is a small army of civil servants ensuring that he does not waste any money on expensive bullets and such. Thus Tony is able to attack more and more enemies with fewer and fewer soldiers.
So clear has been his political vision that he has developed new ways of governing that have not been seen before. Previous leaders have given priority to ensuring that their nation is self sufficient in energy and food. Only Tony has seen that we can rely for energy on our staunch friends, the Arabs, and that kindly Mr Putin, so we do not have to think about controversial things such as nuclear power stations and can go on covering the countryside with windmills that only work 20% of the time, yet are such a wonderful and ever present monument to our new age of enlightenment. For food we can rely on an even wider circle of friends, such as our historic allies the good old French farmers.
He has eliminated much of the annoyance of parliamentary democracy by delegating the most important decisions to unelected European Commissioners and dealing with the rest from his famous sofa. The MPs are kept quiet with ever more generous payments from the public purse. By sheer hypnotic power, he has lulled the electorate into such a state of trance that it accepts, and regards as normal, levels of taxation that would have induced riots in times past.
He has swept aside the fuddy-duddy old culture, with its boring old writers, composers etc, and replaced it with the completely new celebrity culture that every one can join in. While all those windmills will be his lasting concrete monument (Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!) his cultural monument will be the reality TV show.
He was ever the man of action. While others fretted about the West Lothian Question, he simply ignored it and drew up a new constitution that involved just one country of the four being denied its own parliament and being forced to subsidise the others, while they were given votes on its affairs. Only Tony realised that the English had become too effete to raise a protest. Likewise, while others wavered about the future of the House of Lords, at a stroke he eliminated the hereditary peers, and hence the main opposition to his glorious vision, replacing them with the right sort and simultaneously overcoming the funding problems of his party. Without the hereditaries’ pathetic concerns about the rights of individuals, he was able to implement vital policies such as the smoking ban and the forthcoming bans on salt consumption and fat people in public places.
Of course, his great political war cry was “Education, education, education” and this is where he has wrought the greatest changes. He has, for example, managed to close down most university departments of Physics, which were always nests of opposition to Good Green Science, while achieving world domination in Media Studies. In schools he has pressed on with the everybody passes principle, so that no one knows who is academically able, which is as it should be. At the same time he has achieved a rebalance of the sexes by feminising the education system. The alienation of many boys and the creation of gangs of feral youths is a small price to pay for the advance of women.
His greatest achievement, however, is to oblige the Conservative Party to abandon every principle it ever stood for and put up a pale imitation of himself as an alternative. That is true greatness!
1.29.2007
Washington War Protest
One of my roommates went to the protest in DC over the weekend. He had a good time and saw lots of cute hippy chi-, errrr, ladies. He said he saw Hanoi Jane, too. We should be out of Iraq in a fortnight.
1.28.2007
Larry King, Rosemary Altea, and James Randi
Here's a transcript from Larry King this Friday. I didn't watch it either. Click "Find" and then type "Randi" for the good parts. Or, if you're a sensible person, just type "Randi" in the handy text box at the bottom of your Firefox tab.
Why can't people with such amazing, complicated, physics-defying "gifts" answer simple questions directly? Oh yeah, it's BULLSHIT!. Wait, wasn't Rosemary debunked on that show?
Why can't people with such amazing, complicated, physics-defying "gifts" answer simple questions directly? Oh yeah, it's BULLSHIT!. Wait, wasn't Rosemary debunked on that show?
Good News, Bad News, Worse News, and Worser News
Good news: the anti-enlightenment crusading, science hating, execution device worshiping, homo bashing, theocratic mental abortion known as D. James Kennedy had a heart attack. He's the founder of that great christer dominionist bund, The Center for Reclaiming America for Christ, aka The Center for Returning to Witch Burnings and Plagues.
Bad news: the fucker is still alive.
Worse news: the science he mocks and despises saved his sick, twisted ass, not his magical gods.
Worser news: if he lives, his invisible, unaccountable gods will be given all the credit.
Good breakdown here.
I watch this guy's sick Coral Ridge Hour every chance I get (including today, where I found out he was ill). I wish I didn't wish him dead; but if he had his way, I would be in jail. If you're reading this, chances are you would be too. So fuck you D. James, and the fairy tales you rode in on!
D. James Kennedy does love our constitution though. He doesn't think it's as soft as Charmin, but it gets the job done.
Bad news: the fucker is still alive.
Worse news: the science he mocks and despises saved his sick, twisted ass, not his magical gods.
Worser news: if he lives, his invisible, unaccountable gods will be given all the credit.
Good breakdown here.
I watch this guy's sick Coral Ridge Hour every chance I get (including today, where I found out he was ill). I wish I didn't wish him dead; but if he had his way, I would be in jail. If you're reading this, chances are you would be too. So fuck you D. James, and the fairy tales you rode in on!
D. James Kennedy does love our constitution though. He doesn't think it's as soft as Charmin, but it gets the job done.
1.27.2007
All Good Eats Spinoffs...
...must come to an end. And we finally get to see it.
Feasting on Asphalt episode 4 airs tomorrow around 6ish. Check your local digital cable oracle box to confirm.
IMDB says this was aired in August. If it did, no one I know saw it. Ever.
Feasting on Asphalt episode 4 airs tomorrow around 6ish. Check your local digital cable oracle box to confirm.
IMDB says this was aired in August. If it did, no one I know saw it. Ever.
1.26.2007
Jacksonian Democracy?
Something for Bromide: "Andrew Jackson tended to relish violence almost to the point of connoisseurship. His instincts for it helped him beat the British in 1815." - not a perfect article, but right up our alley - "Andrew Jackson’s assault on habeas corpus.
1.25.2007
Evolution and Creationism/ID: Family Guy Style
This nearly killed me when it was aired; thank Jeannie for YouTube.
1.21.2007
I'd offer you some, but they the lord's...
Or the IRS's now. Yes, our favorite Pensacola creationist--and Dino Adventure Land proprietor--Kent Hovind has been sentenced for tax evasion...for 10 years.
He claims he never owed taxes on money collected, and never had to pay taxes on the income of his park's "volunteers" because his ministry, his park, his home...well just about everything around him...was not his property but His (iow, invisible captain sky-god with the beard's) property. Thus, the IRS has no say over him, no right to collect taxes, etc. At one point I believe he claimed that he was not subject to US law--only god's law--as he was a citizen of the lord's kingdom.
Right...and humans and dinosaurs lived together in a garden 6,000 years ago after the first human male was made out of mud and the first human female was made out of a human male rib...
Precious.
He claims he never owed taxes on money collected, and never had to pay taxes on the income of his park's "volunteers" because his ministry, his park, his home...well just about everything around him...was not his property but His (iow, invisible captain sky-god with the beard's) property. Thus, the IRS has no say over him, no right to collect taxes, etc. At one point I believe he claimed that he was not subject to US law--only god's law--as he was a citizen of the lord's kingdom.
Right...and humans and dinosaurs lived together in a garden 6,000 years ago after the first human male was made out of mud and the first human female was made out of a human male rib...
Precious.
Why I will be reading, but not contributing to the blog for a while
From webmd.com
Muscle Strain Symptoms
* Swelling, bruising or redness, or open cuts as a consequence of the injury
* Pain at rest
* Pain when the specific muscle or the joint in relation to that muscle is used
* Weakness of the muscle or tendons
* Inability to use the muscle at all
Yes, I was just walking Thisbe, & went down hard. I think my right bicep took the brunt of the impact.
1.20.2007
1.19.2007
Sunshine
If you head over to imdb [ed. note: or check my next post], at the bottom of the homepage you can watch the trailer for Danny Boyle's Sunshine. I'm pretty excited about it. Millions was light-hearted, mostly, and fun; I can understand wanting to make that after 28 Days Later. But it's time to get back to the nasty bits. Cillian Murphy rejoins him.
It's about global cooling and how we have to stop it with a space ship, or something. Then bad stuff happens. Based on the trailer, really, really bad stuff.
I am, however, understandably apprehensive about this.
It's about global cooling and how we have to stop it with a space ship, or something. Then bad stuff happens. Based on the trailer, really, really bad stuff.
I am, however, understandably apprehensive about this.
1.18.2007
Nobel-winning physicist discusses Dawkins
Steven Weinberg of UT (Austin) refutes christical arguments and argues that mussellmen are more dangerous than christicons because atheism is farther along in the west than amongst the mohommaden in Times Online.
1.17.2007
Sweet
Detection ClubFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Detection Club was formed in the 1920s by a group of British mystery writers including such well known authors as Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers [left], G.K. Chesterton, Freeman Wills Crofts, Arthur Morrison, and Ronald Knox. In addition to getting together for dinners and helping each other with technical aspects in their individual writings, the members of the club agreed to adhere to a code of ethics in their writing to give the reader a fair chance at guessing the guilty party.
1.16.2007
1.15.2007
Having lots of fun.....
With board games from Fantasy Flight Games. Twilight Imperium expansion is good and the Marvel Heroes game is a lot more fun that I expected and it only takes about two hours to play.
1.14.2007
Tony Bourdain on Mario Batali
From a celebrity chef roast of Mario benefiting the food bank of NY:
Tony Bourdain: "He's got shows, a line of cookware, books, the NASCAR connection -- Mario is every man's dream: a whore who can cook."
Tony Bourdain: "He's got shows, a line of cookware, books, the NASCAR connection -- Mario is every man's dream: a whore who can cook."
1.12.2007
Giving Creationists & ID'ers a serious run for the "Ain't No Way in Hell This is Science, Dude" Grand Championship Cup
by Dr. Zaid Kasim Ghazzawi
(who got his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Surrey- the one in England)
(who got his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Surrey- the one in England)
Be sure to check out the flow charts- especially Scientific Proof to the Manner by which Satan affects Humans.
Via Jihad Watch
From the land of John Locke, David Hume, Adam Smith, Isaac Newton and other giants of the Enlightenment comes this story:
BRITAIN'S NEW PREACHERS OF HATE
Mirror.co.uk
Mirror.co.uk
....
Dr Mian [of Ahl-e-Hadith mosque in Derby] wants to see religious policemen roaming our streets, modelled on the feared Saudi Arabian force.
He says of their strict implementation of Sharia - or Islamic - law: "They send the police and they say: 'Well, if you don't come for prayer, we will arrest you. But if you still don't, then we have to bring the punishment on you - you will be killed and nobody will pray for you.'"
....
[Abu Usamah of Green Lane mosque in Birmingham] urges worshippers to discriminate against homosexuals but in a way that ensures they don't get caught. "If I were to call homosexuals perverted, dirty, filthy dogs who should be murdered, that's my freedom of speech, isn't it?" he says. "But they'll say no, I'm not tolerant."
Women, too, are inferior in Abu Usamah's eyes. He tells his audience: "Allah has created the woman - even if she gets a PhD - deficient. Her intellect is incomplete, deficient. She may be suffering from hormones that will make her emotional. It takes two witnesses of a woman to equal the one witness of the man."
....
And so much for jihad as a strictly an "inner struggle":
Abu Usamah says that he condemns terrorism. But he predicts that an army of Muslims will soon arise to wage jihad - or war - against non-believers.
"They will fight in the cause of Allah. I encourage all of you to be from among them, to begin to cultivate ourselves for the time that is fast approaching - where the tables are going to turn and the Muslims are going to be in the position of being uppermost in strength.
"And when that happens, people won't get killed - unjustly."Read it all.
Why I [Heart] Keith Olbermann
Ok, so, he's a liberal. But he is an ESPN alumnus. Compared to his arch nemesis, Bill O'Fuckface, he's more than credible. I've become tired of Fox News, as they are now all Bush hacks who use the fifth column, American flag graphics, big-titty blondes, and anti-patriot accusations as shields against serious discussions and as bats to bludgeon anyone who may think the President may have made a bad decision one time maybe.
After the President's speech last night--after I had wiped the spittle dripping from my lip from regurgitating my left-overs supper, and after flushing the remnants down the toilet--I tried to compose my thoughts. I couldn't: I had work to do.
Thankfully, Keith did it for me tonight.
Keith, I may not agree with you always, but when I do...thank you, you glorious mother fucker.
See for yourself. Better to click on the video on the right. The advert only takes 30 seconds, and it's better to watch him say it than to read it.
After the President's speech last night--after I had wiped the spittle dripping from my lip from regurgitating my left-overs supper, and after flushing the remnants down the toilet--I tried to compose my thoughts. I couldn't: I had work to do.
Thankfully, Keith did it for me tonight.
Keith, I may not agree with you always, but when I do...thank you, you glorious mother fucker.
See for yourself. Better to click on the video on the right. The advert only takes 30 seconds, and it's better to watch him say it than to read it.
1.11.2007
Now you SOB's know exactly how I feel.
Onion Sports: Bill Parcells: 'I've Always Hated Football'. - This pretty much explains my feelings about coaching football these days - GT.
Picture Malfunction
Paul, you should probably save the picture and then upload it to blogger and put it in the post, making it smaller, or we, and anyone who comes to the blog, will have to log in to Mallet every time we come to the blog. Damnit.
1.10.2007
"Black Books", or, I think Clyde Squid is moonlighting
A series recommended by Clyde S. himself. Not only does Bernard Black (Dylan Moran) look a lot M. Squid but he has Bernard's same misanthropic & dipsomaniacal disposition. Love the show & am not surprised Graham Linehan of Father Ted was involved.
1.09.2007
Hot Damn!....Damn it all ta Heyell!
Good news: new Squidbillies this year.
Bad news: new Squidbillies this fall.
Them Atlanta boys better start animatinizing their squidations faster.
Bad news: new Squidbillies this fall.
Them Atlanta boys better start animatinizing their squidations faster.
1.08.2007
Nashville Mini-Mallet Reunion
pic removed....
Cassondra, please note the Fanny-pack, worn just for your viewing pleasure.
Cassondra, please note the Fanny-pack, worn just for your viewing pleasure.
How Much Cash You Guys Got?
Apparently this one-toilet-having country has fallen on hard times, and is up for grabs to the highest bidder
1.07.2007
Yeah, But Can It Fly?
No, unfortunately. But the Chevy Volt sounds interesting. I've not been a fan of any of the hybrids that I've driven, but I'm certainly in favor of a "plug in car", though I promise to make up for the lost carbon emissions by grilling spotted owls over charcoal made of redwoods in my backyard.
;)
1.05.2007
A letter to a coaching friend.
I've heard in other places that Sexton contacted Moore after Mississippi State, when it was getting to be pretty likely that Shula was going to go. I think that Saban and Mal did this thing exactly like tons of other coaching changes have been done. I only wish Saban had said, "I don't expect to be the coach of Alabama" instead of "I won't". That was a mistake. I think he kinda got badgered into it, but a standard, "No comment" would have been much better.
I really do think that Shula did not quite have it in him. I am the same age as him and was a football tutor when he was there & I've always like the guy. He was not ready when he took over, but he bailed us out in a terrible situation. He started out with that disastrous press conference, but he did improve in public. From what I understand several of the coaches, especially the line coach & the strength coach (as in your note) were not up to it and he wouldn't make the changes. I've heard from guys down there that they just didn't work hard (which you & I know could contribute to all the 4th quarter fades). Shula had a very NFL attitude, not a teacher/coach attitude to player development, workouts, & discipline. You know that Juwan (Garth) Simpson is from Austin, so there was alot of focus on his situation & Shula here. Even he, the embarrassment, said that Shula was lax & no one ever actually feared getting in trouble with him. The playcalling is a matter for debate - I can't say precisely 'how' it was bad, but something they were doing down close was clearly awful. If you don't blow them off the ball, you have to do something else besides up the middle, no matter how much that appeals to me.
I think Saban will win. I think it is a minor miracle that Mal was able to get him. I was afraid we could no longer get a top coach. There are no Bama guys left really. Saban is a hardcore discipline and character guy (despite the hiring debacle) and he is an incredible recruiter, look at LSU even now. He will not suffer fools, he will have a system, a schedule and a plan. He's from West Virginia, which was in the south until 1863, and he's an immigrant's grandson who used to work at his dad's filling station when he was 11 years old for a dollar an hour. I can take that. His wife is a lot like yours - she's deeply involved in the program, feeding recruits, keeping an eye on academics, raising money, talking to the players about her husband when he's not there. I really think she wanted to get back to college as much or more than him.
It's been an ugly hire, and Shula clearly took one for the team in this (his dad, one of my heroes, has looked bad the last couple of days). We know how coaching goes. I think Saban will kick butt and take names and Alabama will be where we should be. He's not cuddly, and he's a tough SOB.
There is a dark truth here as well:
I want to shut Auburn people up so badly I can't stand it. 5 years of losing in a split town is an eternity. I've been embarrassed by my team's results and the smirking by Aubies and UT fans stops right now. They all fear what is coming, and that's what I want - I want the fear back in their eyes and I want the gdmf smirking and cocky smiles to all go away. I want to be hated and not laughed at anymore. Saban can bring that, I don't think Shula ever could. There I said it.
I really do think that Shula did not quite have it in him. I am the same age as him and was a football tutor when he was there & I've always like the guy. He was not ready when he took over, but he bailed us out in a terrible situation. He started out with that disastrous press conference, but he did improve in public. From what I understand several of the coaches, especially the line coach & the strength coach (as in your note) were not up to it and he wouldn't make the changes. I've heard from guys down there that they just didn't work hard (which you & I know could contribute to all the 4th quarter fades). Shula had a very NFL attitude, not a teacher/coach attitude to player development, workouts, & discipline. You know that Juwan (Garth) Simpson is from Austin, so there was alot of focus on his situation & Shula here. Even he, the embarrassment, said that Shula was lax & no one ever actually feared getting in trouble with him. The playcalling is a matter for debate - I can't say precisely 'how' it was bad, but something they were doing down close was clearly awful. If you don't blow them off the ball, you have to do something else besides up the middle, no matter how much that appeals to me.
I think Saban will win. I think it is a minor miracle that Mal was able to get him. I was afraid we could no longer get a top coach. There are no Bama guys left really. Saban is a hardcore discipline and character guy (despite the hiring debacle) and he is an incredible recruiter, look at LSU even now. He will not suffer fools, he will have a system, a schedule and a plan. He's from West Virginia, which was in the south until 1863, and he's an immigrant's grandson who used to work at his dad's filling station when he was 11 years old for a dollar an hour. I can take that. His wife is a lot like yours - she's deeply involved in the program, feeding recruits, keeping an eye on academics, raising money, talking to the players about her husband when he's not there. I really think she wanted to get back to college as much or more than him.
It's been an ugly hire, and Shula clearly took one for the team in this (his dad, one of my heroes, has looked bad the last couple of days). We know how coaching goes. I think Saban will kick butt and take names and Alabama will be where we should be. He's not cuddly, and he's a tough SOB.
There is a dark truth here as well:
I want to shut Auburn people up so badly I can't stand it. 5 years of losing in a split town is an eternity. I've been embarrassed by my team's results and the smirking by Aubies and UT fans stops right now. They all fear what is coming, and that's what I want - I want the fear back in their eyes and I want the gdmf smirking and cocky smiles to all go away. I want to be hated and not laughed at anymore. Saban can bring that, I don't think Shula ever could. There I said it.
A neat time-waster
"Am I Right: Making Fun of Music. One Song at a Time. Misheard lyrics (also called mondegreens) occur when people misunderstand the lyrics in a song..... These are NOT intentional rephrasing of lyrics, which is called parody. For more information about the misheard lyrics available on this site, please read our FAQ."
R.E.M.'s, "Losing My Religion"
Misheard Lyrics:
Consider this
The smurf that brought me to my knees failed
The smurf that brought me to my knees failed
Original Lyrics:
Consider this
The slip that brought me to my knees failed
The slip that brought me to my knees failed
The Police's, "Spirits In The Material World"
Misheard Lyrics:
Asperger's syndrome for Muriel Ward.
Original Lyrics:
We are spirits in the material world.
Everybody okay?
A little slow in the posting, it seems that the New Year has slowed us down. I'm guessing everyone is pleased that we have our new Head Coach and that the ordeal is done & are hard at work for the new Year. We enjoyed the visits by all of y'all and look forward to seeing you again. Alright, vacation is over, start posting!
1.01.2007
And Don't You Forget It.
“It’s the greatest job in America.” - Joe Kines.
“I don’t believe that junk about too much expectation,” he said. “That’s what’s wrong with the world anyway. Too many people settle for average. “We’re not going to settle for average at Alabama.” - Joe Kines.
“There are some things at Alabama that I am really, really going to miss,” Rader said. “Probably at the top of that list is the Alabama player, and how hard the Alabama player plays. I don’t know if that started with Wallace Wade, or with Frank Thomas, but it is real. I saw it when I was here the first time [as an assistant to Ray Perkins] and I saw it today.” - Dave Rader.
But the new coach won’t face the far tougher task that often accompanies a regime change, or a rebuilding job. He won’t have to instill the will to win. - Cecil Hurt.
That’s why Alabama is, as Kines recognized, a great job... And it’s why the person who does might be closer than the world thinks to achieving greatness. - Cecil Hurt.
Column Link.
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