Socialism Poll

36% of Americans view Socialism positively accord to Gallup.

http://www.gallup.com/poll/125645/Socialism-Viewed-Positively-Americans.aspx?version=print

Fantastic Mr. Fox

Fantastic Mr. Fox is nominated for the Best Animated Feature category of the Oscars. This is a film that I was afraid to watch for several reasons and also the one in which I had the most hope for. Allow me to explain. Growing up I was a book worm and there were a few books that were particularly special to me. Island of the Blue Dolphins, Where the Red Fern Grows, Shiloh, and Matilda. If you ever get bored go and pick up any of these books, I'm sure they are an easy read now and the stories still hold up, especially Island of the Blue Dolphins which is based on a true story. After reading Matilda I had read like 6-10 of Roald Dahl's books and that author was as special to me as Shel Silverstein. He also wrote Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Now, I never read Fantastic Mr. Fox, but I am extremely familiar with Roald Dahl's flair and every movie I've seen based off his work have failed miserably to capture his brand of wimsy. So I was scared walking into this film.

It just so happens that Wes Anderson, the director is pretty much tied for the best director in my mind with Spike Jonze (Where the Wild Things Are, Being John Malkovich), Michael Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Science of Sleep), and David Fincher (Panic Room, Fight Club, Seven, The Game, Zodiac, Benjamin Button). BTW, I recommend all of those films. In fact if I had to sit down and honestly pick what my favorite American film, considering all Oscar catagories, could be, Royal Tennenbaums (Anderson) would likely be #1, but it is a close tie with Stranger than Fiction. Anderson Focuses on his characters and has said in several interviews that is where the scripts come from. He gets an idea for a character and writes up profiles almost like they do with serial killers and the story just writes itself. His films have a distinct visual tone and like all the other directors I listed, he creates his own world almost like he were an animator. Well, he finally quit walking the line and crossed into animation with Fantastic Mr. Fox and made a stop motion film based off a book by my most beloved childhood author and casted Meryl Streep, Jason Shwartzman, Bill Murray, Owen Wilson (always fantastic with a good director), George Clooney, and Willam DeFoe.

Less than 5 minutes in, my affection for his work was quickly re-affirmed. The stop-motion was so insanely beautiful that I quickly remembered why I see Anderson as a visionary. The film industry has taken a turn in the last 10 years to pump out the quickest, most clean cut, easily marketable bastardized scripts and force feed the public muted stories with a bland atmosphere. This was like adding some ground garlic and minced onion to store bought spaghetti sauce. The animation is breath taking. The world was created from the ground up and based off all the actual surrounding to Roald Dahl's house, from the furniture he sat in to the hills that surrounded his house. The animation itself kind of messes with your mind in a way that I can't really put my finger on, which is a compliment in my book. The audio was different as well. In animated features the sound is so crisp and manufactured. The actors are shoved into isolated rooms and often don't even work with the other actors. They just come in and lay their own crisp tracks. Anderson took a different approach.

He made all the actors come to Dahl's country estate and live together for weeks and they acted out the parts together and he explains it as recording the audio like a "radio play." When Mr. Fox is rolling around or digging, George Clooney was actually rolling around in the grass with Meryl Streep and digging in the dirt in a furry with his hands. It seems miniscule just from hearing the description, but believe me it added a layer of realism and set this film further apart from the animation we are used to. I'm going on and on about the directing, but the story and acting were awesome too.

You couldn't ask for better actors. All of the talent he called on, are extremely picky about the projects they work on. Meryl Streep, Schwartzman, and Murray don't work on anything that is less than brilliant in there eyes. If a project does not challenge them, their field, or social norms they turn the roles down. This film was based off a book by an author that wrote because he wanted to, directed by a man who works because he loves it, and actors who have an obsessive approach and really only do ground-breaking work.

As I said earlier, I have not read this book, so I'm not sure how closely it stuck to the story. Judging from the work and interviews with Dahl's kin, I would say it was spot on. It wasn't overly dramatized. In fact it was somewhat muted. The script itself wasn't something I'd say was particularly great, but the narrative was just...... Charming. It was full of feeling in a way that has been becoming less and less common over the years, which I would blame on our corporate culture. Can you really explain why Princess Bride is set apart from other films? If you can, then I would say that this had a lot of those same qualities. I just feel I imagine someone from Sierra Leon would feel after seeing snow. They literally just don't have the terms to describe it. This movie is innocent and charming. I loved it. I'd say the moral of this story is to appreciate the things that people may make fun of you for, because we are all different for a reason. Our "downfalls" are actually our strengths.

Kitty Crimes

Mei Lan

Mei Lan is the 3-year female panda from Zoo Atlanta who just went back to China to participate in captive breeding programs to perpetuate the species.

There is a need for a Sichuan Chinese tutor for her to teach her the commands she learned in English into the local Chinese dialect for the area she will be living in.

Also, the Chinese have launched an internet "Panda Bachelor" site to select a suitable "husband" for her. This is too cute.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/2010-02/04/content_9426082.htm

Spectacular Views from Outer Space

Ran across this at the China Daily news site - amazing pictures:

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/photo/2010-02/04/content_9430017.htm

Newspaper Correction

"A story on Page 1 of Tuesday's Telegraph quoted a White House official explaining that a Q-and-A session with dozens of teenagers in Nashua High School North on Monday was "off the record." However, the explanation about the talk being "off the record" was, it turns out, also "off the record" and should not have been quoted."

http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/news/593663-196/correction.html

Cake Walk

I just wanted to post actual video from the time that Madam Walker became a millionaire. The Library of Congress released this video from 1903. Her accomplishments seem a little more extraordinary don't they?

Kitty Crimes

A feline loving man was shot by his pet cat armed with a 9mm handgun. Well, almost. The cold kitty knocked the Michigan man's weapon from a kitchen counter while he was cooking, it hit the floor and fired, shooting him in the lower torso. He was treated in hospital and, no thanks to the pistol pussy, survived.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,150007,00.html

Pluto Changing Color

According to new images from Hubble, the planet Pluto is changing color.

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/main/index.html

CIA Officers

Some of the first CIA Officers are dying and their children are now trying to find out what their parent/s did. Here's an interesting article:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/02/AR2010020203887.html?g=0

NWF

Watch the smaller computer screen to the left(our left, not his) of the ear of guy getting interviewed at around 1:07.

Oscar the Cat

The original story ran some time ago about Oscar the Cat who lived in an assisted living facility on the East Coast. He was nicknamed the "Death Cat" because he would spend time at the beds of people who died soon after.

A researcher offers this view about a year later - and it makes sense with what we know about the senses of animals that are much more acute than ours.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20100202/od_nm/us_books_cat

Tunguska Event

Joe, this one is for you - this is likely the event you are thinking of that occurred in 1908 that was catastrophic.

Since I am unable to get embeds to work, I am providing the wikipedia link to a general synopsis of that event:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunguska_event

Oscar Nominations

To see the list click here.

I'm going to start watching these movies. I have like half of the major catagories and haven't watched most of them yet and I think I'm going to do a little write up for each of them. If you don't like my movie reviews, sorry I have to do this. I will tell you right off the bat that if Avatar wins any of the major categories I will be pissed. It was a great movie and my favorite movie, but only as something that has influenced culture. Secondly, I'm kind of happy that Up was nominated for Best Picture. You have no idea how pissed I was that they pigeon-holed Wall-E last year.

Is it ok with you guys if I post the movie reviews and then pick who I think should win, before the ceremony?

Landon's CD

This is just for me to come back to later. If your curious it is the cd my friend made back in the day that I was looking for when I found out he was famous now. It was the one he personally put out and was selling himself when he was a nobody ... His music is shit now. If you happen to watch Whip It, tell me if its any good. I think its out already.

https://www.cdbaby.com/cd/landonpigg

Drugs, Animals, and Australia

I was at New Scientist a few minutes ago reading this article about animals using drugs which said the following:

"The marsupials of Tasmania have found a means of passing the time on Australia's island state that could also explain mysterious local crop circles. Wallabies have been munching the poppies grown for opium by the pharmaceutical industry.

"We have a problem with wallabies entering poppy fields, getting as high as a kite and going around in circles," the attorney general was quoted in The Mercury newspaper."

Which somehow lead to me being on YouTube and running across the funniest man I've ever seen talking about how dangerous Australia is because of it's wildlife, as seen below.

Car at Walmart

I don't know if you can read the side of the car but there are quotes from Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson scratched into the side of the car.

Let The Building Begin

I know there is a push to build more nuclear plants and I don't know if this is something that can help with the waste generated. Venus Flytrap eats radioactive waste.

"Researchers have developed a material that opens its pores to let in its intended prey--the radioactive ion cesium--then "snaps shut" to entrap it, according to Science Daily. It's a Venus Flytrap that eats radioactive waste instead of flies."

America's Greatest Rip-offs

This is a very interesting article from CNNMoney about the mark-ups on everyday things. It is amazing.

http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2010/news/1001/gallery.americas_biggest_ripoffs/7.html

Mars

This is a photo of the fog on mars.
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap100202.html

Edit; I reread this and it is definitely a fog-bow (moon rainbow) on earth and the brightest 'star' is Mars. That's what I get for skimming.

Black History Month

Madam C.J. Walker. I thought I would make a tiny little post promoting a historical figure I feel kind of close to, only because I livend in Indianapolis. Walker went from being a slave in the south to becoming the Oprah of the super early 1900's. She had a huge impact on black people across the country and came to success by being the first person to make hair products for black people. She was also very liberal with her money and paid her workers 50 percent more than the average and donated mad money to charities and social welfare. It's kind of strange that she has such a presence still in Indianapolis. The Walker Theatre still stands and is absolutely amazing.

She is America's first black self-made millionaire.

Yellowstone Earthquakes

This is going to show my ignorance regarding the geography of the Northwest, but I think this may concern you. Have you heard about Yellowstone getting over 1200 earthquakes in the past few weeks? They say there is likely nothing to worry about, but this is only the second time a cluster of earthquakes this large has been recorded there and other sites say that earthquakes are not THAT common Yellowstone. Still, I worry. I think both of you guys live near other volcanos that are networked into the same volcano magma sewer things. I know that Yellowstone is a giant super-volcano too... Which would scare me if I lived close to it.

Do you guys know what to do during an eruption or earthquake? We had one in Indiana last year which was kind of odd because it was like a 5.6 I think. I don't get the rhicter scale at all. That was nothing, but a 7 is severe? I have no idea what to do and I slept thru that.

Here is one of the articles I read about Yellowstone.

I haven't been on line for a few days. I don't know why. I can't think of anything to post. I couldn't even really respond to Lisa's post about Obama addressing the GOP. I wish I thought it mattered. I'm probably just going thru PMS. So for something different, here are a couple of photos from a trip we took to the Washington coast last October.

"The Enemy is at Home"

This is an excellent speech from a veteran of Iraq/Afghanistan, or the larger US vs the Middle Eastern Wars.

It is from a website entitled Brasscheck and here is the link: http://www.brasschecktv.com/page/797.html

I highly recommend this site and that you check out some of their other videos.