A Move Towards Clarity

Shocking: Obama reverses “Mexico City policy”

Kyle — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 23:34:23 +0000

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/01/23/obama.abortion/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

I’m intrigued by the Population Action International quote in the article. They say family planning is about “basic health care and well-being for women and children.” I guess they are only talking about the well-being of real children — the children that are wanted.

Before the election, I remember someone scoffing at me for referring to abortion as an important issue in choosing a president. They said that the President hardly has a say in it. Hardly.

Those clever spammers..

Kyle — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 20:15:01 +0000

I was getting a ridiculous amount of spam on some old entries, so I had to enable moderation for first-time commenters. Just in case I actually start to blog regularly again..

Friends

Kyle — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 18:53:52 +0000

xkcd is spot on again. I love this comic.

http://xkcd.com/513/

Where you been?

Kyle — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 19:12:45 +0000

And we're back.. I've been silent on the web for awhile. I hope to make a return. When I do, I will get rid of some of these ugly colors.

In the mean time, I thought I would plug a site my colleague is working on. Due to the pending demise of the social networking site Pownce, my friend Joel is working on a replacement of sorts @ www.topixz.com. Register early and you might make it in for the beta testing.

On the writer’s strike

Kyle — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 04:14:13 +0000

The Writer's Guild has struck. No new episodes of many network TV shows are being filmed. I watch a limited amount of TV these days (something about trying to graduate on time), but what I do watch is being affected - The Office and Prison Break are among the shows on early hiatus due to the strike. I'd like to hold out that I'm not too addicted, that I'm not too distraught over this. But anyhow, like any strike, there's been a lot of debate over the writers' reasons for picketing. After all, they are Hollywood writers; they make a boatload of money, right?

As I was writing this entry I found a very well written blog on residuals - the main issue in the strike. Check out John August's post. For Myspacers, here's a blog entry from the perspective of an actress - Jenna Fischer of The Office. They beat me to the punch, so I don't feel the need to comment further on this.

Because all whites are racist

Kyle — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 04:04:00 +0000

I was stunned to find that this "ideological reeducation" narrowly missed being adopted at the University of Delaware, just a stone's throw from my parent's house.

http://www.thefire.org/index.php/article/8555.html

The definition of a racist according to the new plan was "one who is both privileged and socialized on the basis of race by a white supremacist (racist) system. The term applies to all white people (i.e., people of European descent) living in the United States, regardless of class, gender, religion, culture or sexuality.” I think there's a paradox in there somewhere..

Human Tetris

Kyle — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 20:59:13 +0000

Forget Deal or No Deal. If I were to be on a game show, I would like it to involve a Human Tetris challenge such as this.

Currently Listening..

Kyle — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 01:28:30 +0000

After a few listens, I am really digging the new Alter Bridge record. The first single, Rise Today, gave me a bad first impression.. quite bland. The rest of the album is rockin' though. Lead vocalist Myles Kennedy displays an impressive range, and guitarist Mark Tremonti shreds effectively. This is a departure from their first album, One Day Remains, which felt like a Creed afterthought blended with a bit of harder rock. With Myles Kennedy much more involved in the writing process on the new album, it seems Alter Bridge has established their own creative vision.

This new vision is evident in the title track, Blackbird, the strongest cut on the record. I will venture to call it epic. Clocking in at almost eight minutes, it feels about half that time.

Alter Bridge - Blackbird

Highlights

Blackbird
Ties That Bind
Brand New Start
Watch Over You

The R-Rating

Kyle — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 21:33:51 +0000

Fox Assures Hitman Will Be Rated "R"

Films buffs and video-game enthusiasts have been outspoken on the web about the rumor that Hitman, the latest game-turned-movie was being edited, or "watered-down", for a PG-13 rating. Heaven forbid they would get another Live Free or Die Hard. Fox released a statement assuring the concerned folks that Hitman will be rated "R".

This is probably a bad example, since Hitman is a gruesome game for which a film adaption should deserve an R-rating. Still, call me old-fashioned, but I think the real artistic challenge is creating a film that can engage the audience without resorting to the "R-rated material".

I don't want to sound hypocritical - my "favorites" list of films does include many R's. Sometimes to convey the story in the best possible way, disturbing or graphic material might be necessary. But more often than not, I find the material that warrants the R-rating is actually a film's greatest weakness.

Great "PG" movies:

Chariots of Fire
Hoosiers
The Princess Bride
Apollo 13
Star Wars
Jaws
Raiders of the Lost Ark
E.T.
The Sting

Radiohead’s Magnificent Marketing

Kyle — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 04:10:31 +0000

I just downloaded Radiohead's new album, In Rainbows, for 3.45 euros. That's about 5 bucks for 10 new songs from one of my favorite bands. And the kicker — it's all legit. Radiohead embarked on an experimental marketing strategy with their new record - let the fans download the album online, and choose their price. The tagline that is being associated with it is "How much is the music worth to you?" It's a pretty brilliant strategy for a band with as large a cult following as Radiohead.

I read one fellow's comment that he bought the album for 100 euros. I'm not quite as generous, but I think that 5 bucks isn't that bad, considering (I believe) that the band will see every penny of it. I wonder what the typical percentage is that artists get from Atlantic and the like via traditional $15 record sales.

Supposedly Oasis and Jamiroquai (also favorites of mine) will be following suit.

Click here to download In Rainbows from Radiohead's official site.