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October 23rd, 2004

Just Music

Otis -- Durutti Column
Ever Fallen in Love -- Buzzcocks
All The Dark Horses -- Trashcan Sinatras
My Bird Performs -- XTC
Different Point of View -- Pet Shop Boys
The Figurehead -- The Cure

UPDATE: Expired

Posted by fad at 2:10pm

October 22nd, 2004

Evil

Ok, one more. Looking at the listings for tonight, it turns out the local ABC affiliate here is a Sinclair station and will be showing that special wrapped around the "Stolen Honor" anti-Kerry film.

This is the station that shows The Simpsons re-runs out here, and consistently hacks the shit out of them. They will cut huge, illogical chunks out, sometimes coming back from the cut with some lame video toaster effect.

There is only one conclusion from this: Sinclair is evil. I've known for a long time, but now have a name for these monsters. This, combined with the fact that John "Horsetoothed Shitbuck" Elway signed that athletes for Bush thing, is making my voting decision easier and easier.

Posted by fad at 6:12pm

Gone

Ok, I'm done for the week. I hope most of you have a good weekend. Only a couple Saturdays of good morning darkness are left before the time change, so, for those of you who can sleep in, enjoy it.

Posted by fad at 4:42pm

Need To Sell Kidney To Buy Tickets

If you'll excuse me, I have an audition to attend to.
Pop group Frankie Goes to Hollywood are auditioning for a new frontman to perform with them in front of the Prince of Wales.
[...]
Holly Johnson, the original flamboyant frontman, has refused to take part.

The open auditions will be held in London on Sunday 31 October.
[...]
The chosen singer will get to perform one of Frankie Goes To Hollywood's massive hit singles, which include Relax, Two Tribes or Welcome To The Pleasuredome.

Holly Johnson
The chosen singer will replace Holly Johnson
The remainder of their set will be sung by an established surprise vocalist to be announced on the evening.
Finally. My one and only dream can come true.

Posted by fad at 3:24pm

A Mystery

A quick update to the the billboard controversy from yesterday.
Colombo said he was approached to sponsor the signs because, as a frequent advertiser with Viacom, he could get a discounted rate. He declined to say who made the approach.

"I think I'll keep that to myself," Colombo said.
No wonder he knew nothing about the issue; they weren't really his billboards to start with. Now the question is, whose were they?

Posted by fad at 2:22pm

Advanced Squatting

I've thought about doing this, and may still with my next move.
A woman came home from vacation to find a stranger living there, wearing her clothes, changing utilities into her name and even ripping out carpet and repainting a room she didn't like, authorities said.
As long as she wasn't drinking the beer, what's the problem?

Posted by fad at 2:04pm

Creative Bursts Are To Be Feared

Now spam is starting to get cruel. I just got one with the subject, "how smart are you". Like I need more reminders of how much of a fucking moron I am. Stupid spam.

Posted by fad at 1:28pm

List Lust

This list of top 10 catchphrases from a movie is shameful. How the hell can "No one puts baby in the corner" be 6th? Seriously, there is no hope for humanity.

Posted by fad at 1:25pm

Note To Self

"OUTPUT" is not spelled "OUTUPE". Why you thought so is beyond me.

Posted by fad at 12:34pm

Random Extended Quotation

He was describing the loss of a steamer somewhere off the coast of England, which he'd actually witnessed; he watched people being saved from drowning and dead bodies being taken from the water. The entire article, long-winded and verbose, was written with the sole aim of showing off. Reading between the lines it declared: "Take an interest in me; see what a fine fellow I was during these moments. What do you care about the sea, the storm, the cliffs, or the ship's wreckage? After all, I've described it all very well with my mighty pen. Why are you staring at this drowned corpse holding a dead child in its lifeless arms? Look at me instead; see how I couldn't stand the spectacle and had to avert my eyes. Look how I've turned my back on it; now I'm so horrified I can't look back at it; I'm even closing my eyes -- now, then, isn't this all very interesting?"

Posted by fad at 12:01pm

Potty Mouth

Sure, you may find my breath offensive, but that's only because you want me to die!
Preliminary laboratory studies by a team from Cornell University found members of the onion family with the strongest flavour — particularly New York Bold, Western Yellow and shallots — are the best varieties for inhibiting the growth of liver and colon cancer cells.
And, no, I don't want any of your goddamn mints.

Posted by fad at 11:12am

I Know What's Important

With the World Series a day away, it's time to ask the important questions. The most pressing question of the series is: How many "celebrities" from Fox shows or upcoming movies will be crammed into seats so that their (usually bored and attached to a cell phone) faces can be splashed onscreen for coincidental promotions? And will these exceed the number of times we are forced to see Ben Affleck's bean shaped noggin?

Posted by fad at 11:08am

If She Had Kerry's Baby It Could Fit Its Face Through A Mailslot

This story is one of those Cowboys playing the Raiders things. I can't really cheer for either side, so secretly find myself wishing for horror on both.
Two men ran onstage and threw custard pies at conservative columnist Ann Coulter as she was giving a speech at the University of Arizona, hitting her in the shoulder, police said.
Dissent crushing for all! Tiny little drink umbrellas for everyone passed out in the storage room!

Posted by fad at 9:58am

Meme Try

  1. Look into a mirror
    Ok.


  2. Now take your right hand and....hey..where are you?


  3. Hello?



  4. There you are! Where'd you go?

    I was in the bathroom looking in the mirror. I sure as heckfire couldn't type back from there.

  5. You could've taken the laptop, fuckmunch.

    I'm not taking the laptop into a bathroom, cockdrip.

  6. Pansy

    Fuckoff. I'm so sick of your shit.

Posted by fad at 9:47am

Goddamn Fucking Idiot

Among the many things I wish I could stop doing, a leading one is to stop using the word "just" so much. Bleah.

Posted by fad at 7:33am

Baby Jesus Crier

Wait a minute. (60 seconds later) Is this true?
At an appearance at the University of Minnesota this month, Moore denounced Wilson and said he had never heard of his movie.
That's Michael Moore talking about the "Michael Moore Hates America" movie. According to that report, this month, and this month being October, Moore claimed he never heard of the movie (and don't you love Soviet phrasing of "denounced Wilson"?). However, he did a sketch on "The Daily Show" about it months ago.

Ok, had to do a little digging in the Google cache, but here's the word from the "film maker's journal" that Moore is indeed saying this, and repeatedly. I'm guessing every time it comes up during his little tour he has never heard of it. Poor sod's coming down with the 'zeimers.

There, 5 minutes spent, and my reporting is already better than the AP's. That quote just never should have passed by them without comment or, shall we say, balance? Just plain shitty reporting

Posted by fad at 7:23am

5 Random Things I Don't Understand

Posted by fad at 6:41am

World Series

Well, thank God I have no reason to go downtown on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday (if necessary). Of course, I never have any reason to go downtown, so it's an easy sacrifice. The ever-so-clever catchphrase for the Cardinals' playoff run is "Red October", so maybe these guys will want to hop on the bandwagon.

You know, you never see quality band wagons in public that much anymore. I remember back in my day you couldn't spit four hockers without hitting a band wagon. If I had a band, you can be damn sure we'd have one hell of a wagon. Sometimes progress is a bitch.

Posted by fad at 6:10am

October 21st, 2004

I Must Break Them

Woo-hoo! Downstairs neighbors just moved out. Time for a rousing game of "drop everything loud" and a bit of thunderous dancing. That's 5 residents who have come and gone while I've lived here. I hope it isn't because of me....

Posted by fad at 6:00pm

The Classic Copout

You decide you want to be politically active. You choose an issue, and decide to act on it. The action you choose is to buy billboard space for your political message. To make sure they get noticed, you make them controversial. Since two of them will be along Martin Luther King Drive, you pick an especially controversial symbol.
The billboards feature a large Confederate insignia and say that a vote for proposed changes to the city’s charter “equals support for the Confederate flag.”
Now, I would think you should have a damn good reason for why you chose such inflamatory symbolism. You'd better feel strongly about your message and be able to explain the connection.
[The man who bought the ads said] he is “neutral” on the charter change question and only wanted to attract attention to the issue. [He] lives in Sunset Hills in South St. Louis County and could not explain what the proposed changes would do
Hmm, I'd have to say that falls pretty damn short. But here is his given reason for the ads.
“I don’t see it as inflammatory. I see it as raising awareness,”
Uh huh. He just wanted to start a conversation, I guess.

Posted by fad at 3:02pm

Everybody Loves 'Em

I wish there was a picture with this story.
Dutch police fined the driver of small hatchback car after spotting a Shetland pony crammed in the back
I guess Europe is a pony rich place if you can pick one up at the local market like that.

Posted by fad at 1:28pm

God Bless CFR

One of the parts of the new campaign finance regulations is the "millionaires' clause". This means that if a wealthy candidate spends lots of their own money, the other candidate, as long as they too do not use lots of their own money, can collect more money per donation. However, this doesn't kick in until after a specific amount of self-financed money is actually spent. This puts people in this situation which I cynically think is an intended consequence.
Some fear the law, designed to level the playing field for candidates with more modest means, could actually give wealthy candidates an advantage down the stretch by allowing them belatedly to spend large sums of their money that rivals can't match.
In other words, the wealthier candidates can hold their own money in reserve until the final push at which point they can open it up. By this point, the other candidate would only be allowed the higher caps in a very few days leaving them with, really, no time to react. What well thought out laws.

Posted by fad at 1:04pm

At Least The Sun Won't Explode

Talk about grabbing attention right away. No, seriously. Talk about it. I'll still be here. Ok. Fine. Be that way.
Few people would question the value of participating in sports for young people. With proper training, supervision, protective equipment and techniques, and an appropriate emphasis on winning, sports can foster a healthy body and spirit and a lifelong interest in being active and fit. Without such measures, childhood sports can lead to disillusionment, injuries and even paralysis or death.
Not only that, but their intestines could spill out, their heads explode, their hands fall off and slap them around a bit until reattaching to the opposite arms, and all their pets could die after achieving the power of speech only in enough time to whisper your kid's name as they go.

Posted by fad at 11:13am

Was An Expensive Hobby

Glenmorangie is now Freedom Scotch.
Glenmorangie, one of Scotland's last independent whisky distillers, is to be bought by French drinks firm Moet Hennessy for about £300m (433m euros[*]).
I've had Glenmorangie a couple times, but never again after this! Actually, it's more a matter of taste. It's not bad, but I'm more of an Islay fan than Highlands.

*"euro" being continental for "cubit", I believe.

Posted by fad at 7:50am

A Game

For you old skül gamers, here's a little quiz to pass some time. Has sound. Hell, is useless without it.

Posted by fad at 6:45am

The CIA Tripped Him

I'm not one to relish in the pain of others. Much. Ok, publicly. That often.

Anyway, Castro fall down and go boom.
Fidel Castro, Cuba's 78-year-old leader, is recovering after falling at the end of a public speech and possibly fracturing a knee and an arm.
Damn. No broken hip? That usually does them in. Hopefully these work their magic. Oh, and dig that freeze frame catching him at a 45 degree angle. I hope the old murderer bounced. Oh, did I say murderer? According to the BBC, he's the "Cuban revolutionary leader". Nope, no batshit dictators here. Just leaders.

Posted by fad at 6:34am

Ahhht

I admit. I'm a sucker for stories like this.
A 16th Century painting by artist El Greco, valued at £500,000, has been discovered in an envelope in Spain.

The Spanish family that has owned the oil-on-wood portable altarpiece, The Baptism of Christ, since the mid-19th Century, did not know what they had.
[...]
The Baptism of Christ measures 23.7cm by 18cm[*] and was found when a man living in a small apartment in western Spain responded to an advertisement offering art valuations, Christie's said.
I always check my own drawers, closets and hidden bunkers after reading these stories to see if I have any hidden treasure I overlooked, but all I ever find are my doodles of Jodi Foster framed with "Mr. Fad Foster" written all around. Someday. Someday.
The news of its discovery comes just a week after another "lost" El Greco work was put on display in Poland.

Ecstasy of St Francis was discovered in a small church in east Poland during a routine check of historical artefacts in 1964.

But church authorities could not afford to exhibit it until now, and also wanted to hide it from communist authorities.
I hate commies.

*"cm" being British for "cubits", I think.

Posted by fad at 6:24am

Sports Sports Sports Sports

Oh, so you want posts today, do you? Fine! Then you're stuck with opening ramblings about baseball! I hope you're happy with what you've wrought.

You just knew going into the 9th last night that Isringhausen was going to blow that save; the real question was would he give up a tie or the lead. Then toss in abso-shitly batshit insane Julian Tavarez, and you got yourself more worry than necessary in a do or die game for one team.

I'm not a big Cardinals fan, but I don't mind them. Mostly, I want them to prevent the World Series from being played in that abomination of a stadium they have there in Houston. I still can't believe someone would purposely build a stadium even worse than the Metrodome.

As for the other game, damn I'm glad that's over. Yeah, big history and an exciting last few games (even the big lead last night was still smothered with "oh, the Red Sox can still fuck this up"), but now that the Red Sox have finally beaten the Yankees, can everyone just shut up about it now?

Yeah. Didn't think so. At least it was fun, as a bitter Mariners' fan, to see A-Rod so despondent in the dugout.

If the Cards don't make it to the Series, then I'm immediately barely interested. It's too hard to watch games in that shithole the Astros' marketing department shat out, and Boston fans are just insufferable. Though maybe let them get their fucking win so they can finally shut up about that crap too.

This has been a ramble from the Farm Accident Digest Sports department. Now back to our regular programming.

Posted by fad at 6:03am

October 20th, 2004

Hey, It Got Her In The Paper

I like a lady with skills.
The 22-year-old University of Chicago student can do something that few people can lay claim to -- she can touch her eyelash with her tongue.
But, then we read on.
But it's not her tongue that boasts above-average length, it's her eyelash. The U. of C. senior has an eyelash that measures more than 2 inches -- closer to 3.
[...]
And she has no plans of cutting it off. After all, how often do you have a physical characteristic that could land you in the Guinness Book of Records?

"I want to put that I have a record on my law school application,"
Sometimes I am so glad I'm not a goal oriented person.

Posted by fad at 5:48pm

Still Considered A Lost Job Stat

Here's today's winner for spin of the day. First, the setup.
ABC-TV has pulled the plug on Miss America, leaving the famous beauty pageant without a network television sponsor for the first time in 50 years.
I know; I know. You can hardly believe it and are wondering how you will make it through the night without sucking down a fifth of vodka. Here's the response from the CEO of the organization.
"This is a good day for the Miss America Organization," he said. "We are now free to pursue other parties who have expressed interest in our organization, and we are excited at the limitless opportunities that are now available for us to grow our brand."
Yeah, and I remember how excited I was about the limitless opportunities in front of me when I got fired from my job a little over 6 months ago. This guy sees a shitstream and calls it a fudge slide.

Posted by fad at 3:08pm

Election

Thank God it's under two weeks.

Unfortunately, that just means the start of Phase II of the election is less than two weeks away. I knew I shouldn't have unpacked that bunker.

Posted by fad at 2:03pm

Heh Indeed

Donnah is running a little contest to find the biggest InstaPundit suck-up. Her current (anonymous) leader is at 15 mentions just on the front page. As she says, that's some "XXX brown-nosing".

Posted by fad at 12:42pm

Is It In Your Head Yet?

Well hot damn and black pepper Doritos, it really will be a merry Christmas this year.
Twenty years after the release of one of the biggest singles of all time, leading artists are set to re-record the Bob Geldof-inspired charity hit "Do They Know It's Christmas?"
[...]
The Sun said rockers The Darkness and Scottish group Travis had also signed up to re-record the single
Do you know how many years I've prayed to Santa that this would happen? Well, none...and I never believed in Santa, but no other phrase captured my excitement more.

Posted by fad at 10:43am

Scoring Forgiveness

Via Tim Blair comes yet another faces of forgiveness series. I give points for the head tilts, the +7 Fists of Solidarity, and the acoustic guitar, but major points lost for the utter lack of sandals.

Posted by fad at 9:36am

Yes, I Took A World Lit Class

I always told you Gilgamesh was real!
Scientists in the UK are applying for a licence to create human embryos with three genetic parents.
Good thing, too, because that Humbaba is really getting out of hand.

Posted by fad at 7:45am

Squeak

Coming to a plate near you is yet another foreign culinary delicacy.
After 34 years of patient tinkering, researchers at Peru's most prestigious agrarian university have bred a new culinary export they hope will scamper onto dinner plates throughout America and the world: the super guinea pig.
[...]
It is a dining experience that normally requires two hands to pick scant, sinewy meat from a bony carcass — often with the head staring up from the plate.
Maybe if presented differently, I might be interested. But if that's the way it'll be served, then I'll continue the carnivore's hypocrisy and pass.

Posted by fad at 7:25am

Sorry

Ok, one more thing about Team America. I loved how it attacked the whole idea that acting, or being an actor, imparts special knowledge or powers upon a person. No, not all actors are stupid, and real talent is involved, but no more so than in your general spread throughout the rest of the world. It was just cheap fun to see the idea so openly mocked.

Posted by fad at 7:21am

Go Great With My Commerative Plates

Princess Di freaks have another chance to part with their money.
A limited edition magnum of champagne believed to be one of just 12 produced exclusively for the Prince of Wales’s marriage to Lady Diana Spencer is going on sale, it was revealed today.
Damn. I'm completely seized up on jokes. And this should have been an easy one.

Posted by fad at 6:36am

Peter Pan Prequel Crap Probably

Dave Barry is going on hiatus.
The Pulitzer-Prize winning humorist says he's taking an indefinite leave from the Miami Herald starting in January.
At least from his column. He'll still be doing the seventy billion other things he seems to be involved with.

Posted by fad at 6:30am

Management Ain't Too Keen Either

Oh, and Jerry? Yeah, I know you're the most fantabulous ever, but have a little respect for history. There is only one 80 in Seahawk history. You took his records; no need to take this as well.

Posted by fad at 6:07am

I Don't Actually Expect Anything

You all know that I'm stupid. In particular I'm incapable of understanding any literature or poetry. I've tried several times to bust through that, but simply can't. One of the times I tried to get beyond it was a few years ago. I decided to skip the older literature and go after some of the newer books of acclaim thinking that maybe that would help with what I thought was a mental block and not just, as it turned out to be, a mental deficiency.

Ok, here's my point. After seeing tons of gushings over Tom Wolfe's "A Man In Full", I read it. It was...ok. But "ok" doesn't match with the gushings. So, if anyone has read it and knows why, what the hell is supposed to be the big deal about this book? I obviously, as always, missed something.

Posted by fad at 6:02am

October 19th, 2004

The Sissy Slap

My thanks to A-Rod for finally supplanting Kent Hrbek lifting Ron Gant off the base as the cheapest thing I've seen by a player in postseason baseball.

Posted by fad at 11:10pm

Electioneering

Voting in Arlington, TX? Welp, leave that jersey at home.
Elections administrator Robert Parten said Monday that voters sporting Cowboys logos at Arlington polling sites will be told to cover up their allegiance to the team if they want to cast ballots.

He said he ordered the prohibition because of a provision on the Arlington ballot that asks whether taxpayers should help pay for a $650 million Cowboys stadium in their city.
Based on my observations at the Dallas/Fort Worth airport, that will severely depress the poll turnout since many won't have an alternate shirt to wear.

Posted by fad at 4:34pm

Feel My Skills, Donkey Donkey Donkey, Donkey Donkey

The constant mention of plans during campaign season -- and John Kerry's attempt to set a new damn record for having plans -- always suggests a joke or quote that I could never place. Today a friend reminded me. It's like hearing Jimmy James of Newsradio reading from his book after the Japanese translation was retranslated to English (taking it from "Jimmy James, Capitalist Lion Tamer" to "Jimmy James, Macho Business Donkey Wrestler"). Here is the run:
I had a small house of brokerage on Wall Street... many days no business come to my hut... my hut... but Jimmy has fear? A thousand times no. I never doubted myself for a minute for I knew that my monkey strong bowels were girded with strength like the loins of a dragon ribboned with fat and the opulence of buffalo... dung. ...Glorious sunset of my heart was fading. Soon the super karate monkey death car would park in my space. But Jimmy has fancy plans... and pants to match.
"The super mad demon monkey Bush stormed into our huts. But does Kerry have fear? A thousand times no! I never doubted myself a second for I knew that I was girded by the monkey strong CIA hat ribboned with Vietnam experience. Glorious hope of election at sunset went. But Johnny has fancy plans, and a VP to match."

Posted by fad at 4:04pm

Yes, It Had To Be A Trailer

In 2001, when the homeless were suddenly beamed back to our cities from their stasis cells (crap...and I don't even like most Star Trek...I'm sore ashamed), I remember reading an article from a vaseline lensed view about the plight of one man who, through no fault of his own, was now homeless. He went on about his life, then at the end revealed the changes he had to endure. He stated that he now had to keep it under 8 beers a night.

Well, after that story when my friends and I, hanging out or, most likely, watching football asked, "Wanna beer?" "Sure, I ain't homeless!" Eight or more beers in a night was the definition, then, of not being homeless.

Well, not anymore.
Adams, 32, walked into the Crisp County Law Enforcement Center early Thursday and told deputies he had burned down the doublewide home.

He told deputies that after watching "The Day After Tomorrow," a special-effects extravaganza depicting deadly natural disasters caused by global warming, and drinking nine or 10 beers, he decided to set fire to pillows on his bed.
Um, I'm going to guess there was a little more ingested than just the beers. But, I think from now on that's going to be the danger zone for becoming homeless. Nine or 10 beers.

Posted by fad at 3:29pm

Shit. Rollers.

Lotta space in that Target.
A man crashed a stolen car through the front of a Target store, drove around the store for a bit and then drove back out before police were able to arrest him, authorities said. No one was injured.
Wow, he must have been loaded.
[The driver] was not driving under the influence and he had no known history of mental illness
Huh. Well, then, guess he's just living the dream.

Posted by fad at 3:14pm

It's Evil

Ha-ha! Once and for all coffee is proven evil!
Consuming moderate-to-high amounts of coffee is associated with increased levels of several inflammatory markers, a finding that could help explain previous reports linking the beverage to heart disease.
I always knew that something that tasted like burned, fouled water had to be bad for you.
Although the findings provide a mechanism by which coffee intake could promote heart disease, the authors note that not all previous studies have identified an association between the two. Hence, further studies are needed to confirm the present findings.
Otherwise known as the "We won't draw a conclusion because we want to keep our jobs going. Give us money," disclaimer added to the end of every study announcement.

Posted by fad at 2:26pm

CERN Smash!

Mad scientists' first major attempt to undo the bonds of the universe and kill us all turns 50.
Scientists and heads of state from around the world have gathered to mark 50 years of the European Organization for Nuclear Research, known as Cern.
And, in classic late, midlife crisis form, it has decided to have a little work done.
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) will smash particles at near light-speed, recreating conditions that existed at the very birth of the Universe.
[...]
"This temperature allows us to study the Universe as it looked when the Universe was no older than a hundredth of a billionth of a second," he says.

And for those who are doubtful about the usefulness of such discoveries, Cern physicists point to the many achievements that have come about precisely because people have pursued fundamental questions, says our correspondent.
Or, stated otherwise, "Don't think about taking away our jobs or we'll untangle this universe so fast, you won't even have time to reflect on the fact the life is meaningless so its destruction doesn't matter anyway."

Posted by fad at 1:59pm

Schadenfreude

Interesting. That big anti-George Bush tour got a couple reporters suspended.
The St. Paul Pioneer Press suspended two reporters for attending the recent "Vote for Change" political fundraising concert and now faces a union grievance.

Several newspapers around the country had asked staff members not to attend the series of concerts held in Minnesota and other "battleground" states earlier this month. That's because ticket sales benefited an affiliate of the liberal group MoveOn, which would compromise the politically neutral stance expected of journalists.

However, the Pioneer Press appears to be the only newspaper to suspend reporters for going.
Ordering reporters not to go seems a little....well, it's typical paper stuff of objectivity in appearance, not necessarily reality. It is interesting to learn that several papers had taken the time to ask staff not to attend the concert, though.

Posted by fad at 11:19am

Creativity Waning

Remember, you're only as clever as the dumbest member of your crew.
Investigators say Bailey forged the signature of Monroe Circuit Judge Douglas R. Bridges on a court order that purportedly changed his bail from $100,000 surety bond to $500 in cash.

Bailey's old roommate told police that Bailey asked him to fax the fake papers to Bailey's attorney. The friend said he went to a copy store with a fax number he thought was the attorney's, but the documents went to the jail instead, according to an affidavit.
Whoops. Oh well, shit happens.

Yeah, I completely blanked on a joke there. Sorry.

Posted by fad at 7:40am

I Instruct Others

Dear Sinclair Broadcasting,

Just a friendly note that actions such as this will do very little to convert anyone to your cause.
Sinclair Broadcast fired its Washington bureau chief, saying he revealed company business when he discussed its upcoming program on a documentary critical of John Kerry's anti-Vietnam War activities.
[...]
"I was told I violated company policy by divulging information from a staff meeting" to The Sun, Leiberman said late Monday.

The staff meeting took place Sunday at Sinclair's headquarters, Leiberman said. He said staffers were told that the news division would handle the hourlong show, based on the documentary "Stolen Honor: Wounds That Never Heal."
[...]
Leiberman, 29, said he told DeFeo he would not participate in preparing the program about the film and that he objected to it being labeled news rather than commentary.
Whether right or wrong on the firing -- and, hey, you get to set your own rules -- it just looks really heavy handed and bad. You may want to consider that in the future.

Sincerely,
fad

Posted by fad at 6:45am

The Movie

So I've seen the movie of the moment now too. If you don't know what I'm talking about then, well, you're just stupid!

Sorry, I was channeling some of the reactions to Team America that I've read. I'm not going to waste time trying to sound all smarty about it since I pretty much can't sound smart about anything. The main thing, besides how just plain fun it was, that hit me was how good the movie looked. Not so much the puppets and special effects which were intentionally cheezy, but all the sets and scenery.

Back to some reactions I've read, it always amuses me in a frustrating way when I see that some people can't just sit down and try to enjoy a fucking movie. Sure, you can not like something, but when you have to make your reasons for not enjoying something as a sign of your elevation above others, you can't help but come across as pretty damn sad. I know I'm doing much the same here, but I'm an idiot and should, in a just society, be allowed my hypocrisy. I just don't think I could stand walking into every situation with my enjoyment determined by an ideological filter just because I think it makes me better than everyone else. These people are a peeve of mine as evidenced by my pathetic droning on about them.

Oh yeah, and a pretty decent interview with Matt Stone and Trey Parker at Salon. Yes, I'm linking to Salon. Pretty hard to believe it still exists. You'll have to sit through an ad because I'm pretty damn sure none of you actually pay them to watch them die.

UPDATE: Oh yeah, and finally got to see the trailer for "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou", a movie I hope will be very good. Plus, when a movie uses New Order's "Ceremony" in the trailer, that has to be a good sign.

Posted by fad at 6:28am

More Careful, Please

All those damn RSS readers make it a bitch to hide posts around here.

Posted by fad at 6:14am

Vroom

This article expresses a lot of what I love about freer societies.
From the time he was a child in Long Island, smitten by images of the Apollo moon landings, Diamandis has poured his heart and soul into researching space and trying to speed up his chances of getting there. He gave up on the idea of government-sponsored space flight after the 1986 Challenger disaster derailed NASA's space shuttle program. The quickest route to space, he decided, would be through privately funded missions.

So Diamandis set out to make it possible.
Sure a lot of people have and will bitch that all that money could be better spent, but it sure is a lot more fun to live rather than just exist. Not that I personally actually live by that creed.

Posted by fad at 6:08am

October 18th, 2004

Dispute This

You know, if they really want to increase voter participation, they'd let more people vote from space.
The space station's newest astronaut will cast his ballot in the presidential election from 225 miles up, with NASA's help.
[...]
He will cast his ballot via a secure e-mail connection, much the same way another astronaut did from Russia's Mir space station in 1997.
But suckers like me will still have to hoof it to some lousy school.

Posted by fad at 4:26pm

Sleep Is For The Weak

Hey, a bullshit study about city sleep. Let's treat it seriously.
The 10 cities with most sleep problems:

Detroit; Cleveland; Nashville, Tenn.; Cincinnati; New Orleans; New York; Las Vegas; Miami; San Francisco; St. Louis.
Actually, I'm pretty sure St. Louis being there is my fault. I'm pretty sure I brought my general insomnia with me, so have skewed the results some. I'm pretty sure I can use the phrase "I'm pretty sure" at least once more here.

Posted by fad at 4:01pm

Probably Happens A Lot

The clumsiness of this is in a way funny, but not the power one person had over a company.
FBI agents arrested a Cheyenne, Wyo., stock analyst this morning on charges that he threatened to blackmail Hardee's parent company with negative stock reports unless they paid him $25,000 a month for a year, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.
One guy thought he was worth that much? Especially some dude in Cheyenne?
Federal officials said [the man] published one negative report in August that caused the company's stock to drop by $2 per share - a $160 million loss in market capitalization.
One guy. This makes me wonder how many other times he did something like this. I don't necessarily think he attempted the blackmail before, but that he published false positive or negative reports just to get a jolly over how he affected their businesses. How has he alone affected jobs or needed investments?

Posted by fad at 3:36pm

Bring Back Sherriff Lobo

Wow...the Simpsons season 5 DVDs come out this December 21st. That's almost good enough news for me to actually be happy for a bit. Almost.

Posted by fad at 2:20pm

More Revelations

Once again, the Kerry campaign just called. They told me to warn everyone that George Bush has a secret plan to make more plans in secret.

John Kerry opposes secret plans preferring them to be announced constantly with few to no details.

John Kerry: for vague plans to let American be America again.

Oh, and when I complained that I'm getting sick of my nose running every time I eat, I was assured that John Kerry has a plan for that.

Posted by fad at 12:56pm

Talking Down To Voters

Negative ads don't bother me too much, mostly because I tune 'em all out. Yes, yet another thing that makes me better than you. I hope you're writing these down. Anyway, I did happen to catch the end of one just now on the radio that ended exactly like this.
[Opposing Candidate Name]. Wrong.

Wrong.

Wrong.
I was almost afraid the ad was going to order me to take a timeout and think about what I've done.

Posted by fad at 12:33pm

Breaking News

Just got off the phone with John Kerry. It seems that, if re-elected, Bush has a "June Surprise" in store. This one hits a bit close to home. Kerry says Bush is planning to take me and my friends out to a local Chevy's restaurant as a surprise for my birthday. Before we arrive he will have tipped off the waitstaff so that at some point during the meal they will gather around our table, put a sombrero on my head and sing me a song.

John Kerry says he strongly opposes this plan.

Posted by fad at 10:34am

Login And Password Both funklord

Personally, I find a bar or club is always filled with entertaining performances and shows if you look closely, but this is an interesting idea too.
Two men argued feverishly last Monday upstairs at Joe's Garage until their anger boiled over. They tussled and tumbled, threatening nearby tables as they wrestled.

No one called the police.

The men -- Ron Menzel and Nathan Christopher -- were professional actors who were performing a scene about two estranged brothers reuniting in a bar for a tense, raw 10 minutes.
[...]
Patrons pay $9, plus their dinner-and-drinks tab, to sit inches away from the dramatic action.
$9 seems a bit steep, but still, as I said, an interesting idea. Unfortunately sometimes it is executed by modern playwrights.
[A] one-person lecture [...] about shopping being the greatest expression of patriotism.
$9 to be lectured to what I must assume is self-satisfaction that I am not caught up in the evil consumerist push of the United States as I adjust my squared off "intelligent man", thick-rimmed glasses and make sure the labels on my hipster uniform are properly ironic. Of course maybe the concept as described above is straightforward and not ironic in the least. I'm just playing the odds here.

Posted by fad at 10:28am

Breaking News

This just in: sources in the John Kerry campaign say that their candidate will reveal later today that George Bush has a secret plan to have Ashcroft's "Let The Eagle Soar" played before the beginning of all movies, top-rated prime time shows and at all places that encourage fornication.

John Kerry condemns this secret plan and assures Americans he would not do anything like this.

Posted by fad at 6:41am

Skynet

Technology is evil. It is time we cast off these false gods and returned to the simple pleasures of song, dance, and summersaulting down the verdant hills as the aliens who forged our races long ago intended. I will be selling pamphlets at the door as you leave if you'd like to know more about our Alien forebearers and their secret plan (almost as secret as the half-dozen secret plans Kerry says Bush has) for your life.
Chris van Rossman's flat-screen Toshiba TV came with a built-in VCR, DVD and CD player.
[...]
On the night of Oct. 2, it began emitting the international distress signal.

The 121.5 MHz frequency signal was picked up by an orbiting search-and-rescue satellite, which informed the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center at Langley Air Force Base in Virginia.
Ok. Wrapping my TV in tinfoil right the fuck now.
Before long, van Rossman heard a knock at his door.

Outside were men in Air Force uniforms, a Corvallis police officer and a Benton County Search and Rescue deputy.
It's like out of a movie. A bad movie. A Bruckheimer movie.
Van Rossman was instructed to keep his TV turned off or face fines of up to $10,000 per day for emitting a false distress signal.
Goddamn government ruining everyone's lives.

Posted by fad at 6:39am

Like A Wire Fence

Pierre Salinger has died. I really have nothing to say about his career, or his late-life descent into echoing conspiracies, or even the fact that he fled the country for France after the 2000 election (one of the few -- if not the only -- who said he would who did). The one and only thing that ever really pops into my mind when his name comes up is one of the LBJ tapes that was released several years ago.

We've all heard LBJ ordering pants, but another classic is when he decided he should make Jackie Kennedy ambassador to Mexico. He called up Salinger, and you can hear the excitement of eureka in his voice as he discusses what, in his mind, is a genius plan. His idea is that she'll sit around there, and then every few days make an appearance on a balconey looking all purty. As he put it, the locals would stand out waiting for this and then just "piss themselves"* at the sight of her.

All this time, Salinger is vocally nodding along, trying to sound as noncommital as possible, but always with a tinge of, "Holy shit! He's completely crackers!" Though I'm sure it was really much more sophisticated than that, but that's the general sense. It's really hilarious to hear the President discussing a clearly batshit idea as an aide tries desperately not to piss him off, but also not to call him a fool on it.

*I'm 99% sure that is the phrase he used in this context.

Posted by fad at 6:07am