Oh, god. Trump won't shut up.

Yeah. He won't shut up. And worse in not shutting up he keeps going back to this Birther beat he seems to love so much. I noted this much last time.

So after his debacle with the short-form yesterday, he has released the longer form for us. Yeah...still don't care. This is a non-issue. And only allows the crazies to come out and jump about.

I do love that the certificate issue bothers Trump so. When his businesses go belly up, he seems to barely care, before going on to the next. But on this, he's got a feeling. Based on his style and taste, I think we would all rather past on his gut and his instincts.

What can make this all the more annoying, and worse, make it a problem? Have the media jump in to join in. Now ABC is just asking questions. They are stupid questions, but...really this where you are now ABC? How sad.

Bring out your severely sick! Now, send them away!

Interesting story off the BBC website.

It is yet another story of miracle cures being sold. In Africa we can find many of these. But in this case it comes out of the hands of a retired evangelical preacher. What's for sale? An herb and water treatment that fixes what ails ya. He is so popular that people are lined up outside in the 1000's. At these umbers they are overwhelming him.

And they are coming in all sorts of states. Coming from home, from hospitals, and even some dragged out of hospital beds, they end up in this massive line (over 15 miles) to receive a cure made mostly of false hope. 

This isn't the sale of a fake hair growth formula. This isn't a miracle diet. No, this is a promise to cure whatever it takes to get you in. And the result has been death. Death while waiting for some. Death for some after getting help for some others. 

Now there is no indication that it is a poisonous brew. But like so many others selling snake oil and miracles, many come away with what they feel is their only hope. So many choose to abandon all other support that was still available. Like people who go to faith healers, and then rely on these results. Or, people who go to psychic surgeons, and assured afterward that there cancer has been yanked out. So they aren't being sold a poison. No, they are being sold on abandoning medical treatments which is the only real chance that they have.

So the preacher man wants a break now. :Stop coming, people", he decries. He needs time to work the MILES of people standing under the hot Tanzanian sun, mile after mile of people. 


Yes, promise a miracle, and then expect people who are afraid of death, that they deem looming, to not come. Sure. When you promise a cure all, nothing will stop people from seeking you out. That is the magic of advertising. Convince folks they will die without your aid, and they are hooked. Ad men, religions, and quacks all know this well.

Interesting as well, the nation in question, Tanzania, has already banned old school healers, magic users. But selling a water concoction that is unproven...go ahead, and promise the moon when peddling it. Nice, Tanzania, nice. What exactly makes him different from tribal witchdoctors? Is it not coaching things in magic? Or is it being a former man of the clothe? Are you letting him do this...out of faith? Or out of him having the right faith?

Bring out your birth certificates! Bring out your birth certificates!

We all know the Birthers. Nutters.


Now would be hairy man, would be king of NYC, and would be would be wit (if not for the absence of wit), Donald Trump wants to be president of a country. Or he at least dreams of playing at it and wasting a bunch of someone else's cash. He's used to this (see his business career). He has hinted at times, now he is serious, sitting on talk show couches and even wintering in Iowa.

Part of his current plan is to attack the current president at the point of his legitimacy. His place of birth. So Trumpy wants to do magic, and play at being a Birther.

And like some others he is going the passive aggressive route. Just asking questions. Asking them in his normal pompous, know nothing manner.

Trump has long galled me, in truth. He walks and talks like an idiot. But he keeps getting money from people, and keeps making it (to some extent).

It's like the character of Boston Rob in the show Survivor. From what little I see of him, I have no idea what people keep listening and following. It defies reason.

But people like Trump get the following. He struts around in wealth, and people drool. He struts around on a truly silly reality show and people go, "Ooooooo."

So knowing this Trump has stepped part way into a run for the Republican nomination. And his plan, be the biggest Birther candidate running. Not that he is of course. He's just asking questions. And what does the president have to hide anyway? What's to hide? About his birth? Nothing. But playing his normal dull role Trump throws out already answered questions as if they remain unresolved. Granted his audience is one oblivious to this. They just want to have Obama "given the business." And he is apt to do this. He is a master of empty rhetoric. He is king of posturing. He comes out trumps in this arena.

And so Trump makes his silly attacks. He even has threatened the governor of Hawaii. Trump suggests that trying to show Obama is a Hawaiian by birth means

To try to show up, in his usual empty manor, the president Trump released his own birth certificate. But as AMERICAblog notes, it is the short-form certificate. This is the version of Obama's certificate out for people to see, and attacked for not being the long-form. Now Trump is in the same place as the president. Not that this will occur to the Birthers. Trump is rich, white, and conservative.

By the way, if you want to see a Birther rant, here's the Certificate of Live Birth.

Sylvia Browne, even reaching for the wallets in the sickbed.

Among others SkepChick notes that famed medium Sylvia Browne has had a heart attack. They do joke a bit, but most do, seeing as Browne has gone a long way to prey on the bereaved, and to use tragedy to enhance her fame. So I can understand, but I just don't like to mock people in the hospital, even when as loathsome as Browne is. I am sorry she is in the hospital, but I think she's a truly terrible person.

It is odd, I am a generally  pessimistic growly grump. But I just don't think it does me or anyone else good to pick on people who fall ill, or pass. Sure you shouldn't shirk being honest on wrongs and faults. But dancing on a grave, or hospital bed...we should be better than that.

Thankfully, as people like Sylvia often do, she and her lot raced to remind us of just how low a lot they are.

As noted by ShepChick:

And her organization has found the perfect opportunity to squeeze some more pennies out of the people who don’t realize that she’s a sociopath who regularly lies to the parents of missing children and the loved ones of the deceased. Their begging newsletter...

Yes, in the wake of her illness, her group (a group she founded) raced to pressure fans and followers to bleed cash for them. They say they rely on her for money, and now need others to jump in a help. Why? She is okay and heading home? So it is really about fleecing extra cash...cause. So she had a heart attack, and everyone saw a way to cash in.

Mediums, psychics, and televangelists. It is so hard to see any real difference.

An interesting look back at scientific and political history

The Superconducting Super Collider. In the 80's and early 90's it was a big deal. Slowly constructed in Texas there was a lot of excited talk about how it would further our scientific understanding...but issues in construction, budgeting, and in political interest led it to never see completion. Much of this work was later carried on via the CERN's Large Hadron Collider.

This is an interesting blog post that takes me back in time to the days of SSC. Some participants at a physics conference took a trek to the site, photographing and remembering back to another era in US scientific efforts.

Of course, of note in the story is that when funding was cut here, it went to the International Space Station.

Defending your journalist, until you don't

Back to far more serious matters. Journalistic support. 

Do I mean defending constitutional rights, defending integrity, defending their physical safety? Oh, no.

We are talking about the HuffPo (Huffington Post).

See, it and Huffington herself, have a long friendly history with one Andrew Breitbart. You may remember him from any of many dishonest attempts to smear, discredit, and destroy the careers of liberals. You may also remember his erstwhile occasional lackey James O'Keefe. Huffington and Breitbart are actual friends, and in the early days of her HP site, he wrote on it.

Well, the years have passed, she has expanded her online empire, and he has expanded the scope of his douchiness. 

The prominence that has been announced and bestowed on Breitbart has annoyed many who see HuffPo as a liberal leaning news source.  (He was being linked and written up on the sites front page, meaning people would easily know and access his work and ideas.) To some, his die hard conservative thoughts getting promotion was galling. To many others the fact he is a dishonest shill getting this prime space and press was the issue. It was a reward to someone commonly seen as a RW villain. 

But Huffington and her staff have a right to hire, use, and promote who or whatever they want. And we have a right to bitch and moan over it. We have a right to protest it. And we have a right to not give her and her site views. It is up to you.

But that is not where this story comes to rest. Oh, no. Breitbart then chose to be Andrew Breitbart. A choice few sane people would make. At this juncture, having been given cover and support, and a nod from Huffington, that she was his defender, he now chose to rip into a favorite punching bag of the lowest common denominator of RW punditry, Mr. Van Jones. (Van Jones was in the Obama admin, before being driven out by mischaracterizations, and smears, which continue to this day. See Andrew Breitbart.)

That is when Huffington let loose and allowed the proverbial shit to hit the fan. With the nasty, as is the norm from Breitbart, comments shared with the world, mocking and deriding Van Jones, Huffington Post announced that Ariana's good friend was off the front page. He was welcome to stay, but he would be in the back with the rest of the work a day bloggers, slaving away for HuffPo.

Everything he says about everyone else, no biggie. The injury to the president, the dishonesty in his work...eh. Slag off her DEARER friend....you're out of here.

That's nice.

Now if you go to the science and medical sections of HuffPo, you will find compromised work, with the likes of AntiVaxers and Chopra peddling bull to the masses. I do expect a lot more from the political end. There are fine people who work there, like Howard Fineman. But to let Breitbart get that kind of elevation is both sad and wrong. And then to yank him back only after he hurts you're friend...? ...Fuck that speaks so poorly of you.

It is akin to NPR and Juan Williams. Based on every statement, claim he made on FOX News, and how he went on seemingly as a rep of NPR, the brass at NPR had a right to dump him. Waiting until after William’s comments on Muslims were made just helped make NPR look petty.

Ariana now looks petty. HuffPo looks petty. And this follows on looking more like a joke with the endorsement given to Breitbart.

Badly done HuffPo.

The hell? I left a blog in here?

Well there has been a break since my last...oh, hell...I got distracted...then busy...

,,,Anywho...

What was I talking about before...doesn't really matter, so let's just get a post in, hmm?

Kind of have to like this photo op for the president.

He is getting ready for a meet and greet. But to me it says, when you're the president of the whole damn country, and have to go, you are the front of the line.

Cue rim shot. Wacka wacka.

The unintentional humor of religion and bureaucracy.

This is a funny picture.

In 1973 the Catholic Church, the Youth Movement had a simple little logo. It is just so 70's.

Oddly, in looking at it now, it could easily be thought to be NSFW. The change of perspective and perception.

More Mitchell and Webb coming

New series of there show is coming. The promo just makes you want it all now.

Another review and snark.

Another fun review source is from That Guy With The Glasses, and particularly, the Nostalgia Critic. He's a little weird and plenty goofy, but wit and snark are always a joy to behold.

A look at part 1 of the the reviewing of Hook.

Bond...Snark Bond

The Agony Booth does some good reviews, picking apart movies and TV with humor and snark. And some are some nice lengthy articles that are a hoot.

They have also started some video reviews. This one from Mr. Meno, looking at 007 in The Man with the Golden Gun. Not the finest outing from Her Majesties best.

Glenn Beck: Fleecing the god fearing, the armed forces supporters, and the rest of the country.

Crooks and Liars:

...

Well, he's really stepping in it this time. He's asking his fans to make donations to a military charity to fund a rally in Washington D.C. - the only problem is that the rally is nothing more than a release party for his new book and well...I'll let GottaLaff tell the rest of the story, keying off this audio report from Bill Press:

[audio at link] ...

Classy, classy Glenn.

...

Yes, you heard right. Beck doesn’t even have a permit for The Big Rally yet. They’ve applied, but they’re still in negotiations. Yet, they’re selling merchandise as if it’s a done deal. He’s selling stuff for an event that may never take place.

It’s also not being held at the Lincoln Memorial, but at the reflecting pool, across the street. Glenn Beck is lying about the location of the rally.

And finally, he’s exploiting a charity by soliciting contributions to the Special Operations Warrior Foundation. But see, the fine print says all contributions will first be applied to the rally, the one with Sarah Palin. All contributions in excess of the costs will go to the troops.

Let’s recap:

–He’s desecrating the memory of Martin Luther King and Abraham Lincoln;

–He’s lying to the (gullible) American people who still choose to give him an ounce of credibility, and

–He’s using a charity set up to raise money for members of the military, and then stealing the money he raises to pay for his little get together. Read on...

...

If only he could stay classy and go back to mocking children and women who lose there children. Remember the good old days he was just happy to openly fear and have contempt for minorities.

Happy Time with a puppy

Here is a bit of joy, in watching a pup meet and challenge itself. "Who is that!"

Conservative Charm Offensive

Republicans and those other conservatives they continue to woo are quite a lovely group, except for all of their positions and statements...and so much else.

There is the great hope Sharron Angle and her great ideas. She has finally done an interview (vid at link) where she has walked back some of her claims, and tried to justify others, including the kinda sorta dismantling social security. It is great to see her face challenges to her claims.

Boehner wants to join Sharon Angle in going after Social Security, the nation's social safety net. Still with the myth that system is broken and doomed...and in the way of war. Love Boehner's frankness. It is great to see how full of it a loathsome Reps are at heart.

And the Senate continues to choose the needs of the rich over the survival of those that are poor or in straits, between jobs. What champions. George Will loves this position, holding that unemployment support is not stimulative. Those poor people will never work if they aren't starving on the street...guess we know how will picks his manor staff. Will continues to amaze with his clear detachment from reality. But it is the conservative axiom, to help the poor is to weaken the workforce. Now, of course, when their is an oil spill and conservative jobs go bye bye, they really love that socialist support mechanism...cause...


Conservatives are so much those of the people...just richer and safer and able to ride out their ideologies impact. Lucky them.

Dog doing his thing

Here is a cute video of a dog blind since a pup, and suffering other ailments, out playing fetch in the backyard. Lacks a sense, but living life and happy.

Finding the Gold Monkey

Don't know if it makes me sad, a nerd, or just old...but I am giddy that the Tales of the Gold Monkey series is available now on DVD.

It was a short lived, but fun action show, with a bit of comedy from the late 80's. It starred Stephen Collins. Along with his adventurer pilot were spies, barmen, mechanics, tricksters, and all sorts you expect in a fun pulp tale.

Personally I loved the show, as it gave some of the period fun much like what was available through Indiana Jones, and other pulp adventure stories.

This show takes place in that fun magical near nonexistent time of the 20's, where major war was seen as a memory, and adventure, mystery, and  the future were exciting.

I do really like this particular period. It is, as said a magical time. The big memories (world wars) of the age are around it, a decade out from WWI, which colors most every character in stories, but is far enough in the past that most have moved on and have built lives again, had kids, lived their dreams, etc., but it is part of the background forever. And another war is looming. Scary Germans. Aggressive Japanese. Officious Italians. And so on. And the tales that is told is smack dab in the center, the world oblivious of what is to come.

For stories like Gold Monkey, it is a story of the South Pacific, drawing on a variety of Pulp (with natives, traders, explorers, etc.), and the history of expanding Japanese power, and the colonial interest. Another shows I love that's like this is Tailspin. It also took this time and made it playful use of the related tropes. I loved the island home and its defenses (large guns guarding high mountain walls with a narrow pass for planes to get through), Baloo and his plane, and definitely that version of Shere Khan (an enjoyable Charles Foster Kane/Lex Luthor with big claws). It is a fun show to take a chance to catch when you can.

Then other tales that used the period are Anastasia (animated), which used a fantasy evil wizard with a lost princess and a mystic and wondrous Europe that never really was. I really liked the film. It had good animation, and I enjoyed the songs. Also it gave us a 1920's fairy tale. We need people to play with fantasy in history in this fun way more often.

As well, there is the Universal Horror series, like Dracula, Wolf Man, Frankenstein, etc. On into the war years these also made use of this long gone idea of a foggy Europe that was fool of werewolves, not Nazis. But it is an impossible time, kinda Victorian and kinda modern (for the day). It marks are ideas of the sorts of movies til this day.


Crimson Skies offered a alternate America of the time, with a disrupted nation, with sky pirates, zeppelins everywhere, and independent and fun states and site.

It is a fun period to enjoy. So I am glad to have this series out for me to enjoy again after all these years.

New season of Warehouse 13, YIPEE!

I am eagerly anticapting the new seasons of scifi fun with new Eureka, and Warehouse 13. Both of which will be crossing over into each others series this summer. Both are starting up in the coming weeks.


Here is a fun bit dealing with one of the artifacts held in the warehouse.

Rush standard class act and Beck's self love society

These two are charmers.

Following on the Beck example Limbaugh decided he needed to ridicule Obama's one daughter. I am startting to wonder if there other daughter is starting to feel slighted by the far right. Here for more or listen to the ass below.



Then Beck haw been on a role in a number of ways, but to see him declare himself great is a marvel. He is a great man, as he writes fiction, he is great as he is a truth speaker, or as his god talks through him to others.

But to see him declare that he is a new Martin Luther King Jr? Come on. He will be apart of the reclaiming of the Civil Rights Movement.

Really. He will reclaim it? Much like his country...when was the movement taken? While conservatives barred blacks and others from drugstore counters, while they were barring them from schools, or while they were setting dogs on blacks and others striving for civil rights? That is just lame on his part.

He compares himself to King, to Parks, and to Ghandi. And it makes me laugh. Because I could imagine him being around them in there day, and bringing them on his show. On the show he would yell at them for what they did and spoke out for. He would also be sure to challenge them as potential communist. Then, of course, he would be sure to challenge them on whether they were terrorist, or going to be trying to kill or harm people like him. Really cringe worthy media. NO doubt. But he has his little dream. Like the one were Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Paine would be his equals and respect and revere him...and not at all pants him, mock him, and denounce him as a troubled man.

So watch for 8-28 when he reclaims civil rights...for white people? I don't know...

Bad texting advise from Mitchell and Webb

Another vid from Mitchell and Webb, and BBC Comedy.

Jason Bateman - Prom Date

Bateman gets to team up with his old TV bro Will Arnett for an odd little short promoting Orbit gum.

It is odd, quirky, and a real laugh.

Orbit Dirty Shorts gives us - The Prom Date



We do need more Arrested Development. Or, at least, to bring the cast back together with the writers of the show to do some good comedy.