Month: November 2003 (Page 5 of 7)

A serious question

Does anyone know any right-wing weblogs that aren’t the online equivalent of poison? My usual diet of Dean Esmay, Andrea Harris, and Kim and Connie du Toit has left me nauseated of late, especially swimming though the backwash of Kim’s latest rant. I need to take an indeterminate break from these people.

I’d actually like to read someone thoughtful on the other side of the spectrum who doesn’t make me want to urp. Any suggestions would be welcome.

George Soros, Hero (via Smirking Chimp)

The best line comes right at the end:

Asked whether he would trade his $US7 billion fortune to unseat the President, Mr Soros opened his mouth. Then he closed it. He wrinkled his brow. The proposal hung in the air: Would he become poor to beat Mr Bush?

“If someone guaranteed it,” he said.

Questions I would love to ask the right-wingers, if by some miracle they would listen to me:

How much should we control the creation of the new Iraqi government? Should we only allow it if it’s the kind of government *we* want there? What if the populace would vote for, say, a fundamentalist Muslim theocracy? Do we stamp that out and tell them to try again?

For better or worse, we’re in charge in Iraq. So we have to answer these (and many more) questions. Right about now, please.

Pop culture admission No. 2,813

Last night I watched “Average Joe.”

Not much to tell, really. It’s not cynical enough to be entertaining in the original “Joe Millionaire” way, and not sincere enough to be touching. (Memo to the producers: Watching men cry about their experiences on a dating reality show does not equal “touching.”) It was funny to see NFL cheerleader Melana send all the remaining fat and ostensibly ugly guys home last night. I guess inner beauty has its limits.

Not worth the powder

A nasty dust storm has been kicked up on weblogs across this great land by Kim du Toit’s “Pussification” rant. And while I agree with Winston Smith of Philosoraptor that Kim’s screed isn’t “worth the powder to blow it to hell,” I still want to link to Winston’s great smackdown of Kim. (thanks to lies.com for the link) Bravo, Winston.

It’s simple, really. Real men don’t feel threatened by women or gay men. Real men don’t cast themselves as victims. Real men (at least those over 8) don’t call people names to make their point. Real men don’t tear down others to shore up their own fragile egos.

Just one thing more, because it’s so funny. One commenter on Atrios, responding to Kim’s rant in general and his “simpering butt-bandits” line in particular, had this to say:

P.S. I’m not gay, but after looking at Real Man? Kim’s puss on his web site, with that rakishly kool kap and those tiger striped spectacle frames and that distinctive lack of neck, plus knowing that even though you can’t see the telltale bulge in this pict you just know he’s packin’ some real heat, I’m thinkin’ of banditin’ me some Roofman butt!

Gore v. Bush, Redux

David and I were talking about Al Gore last night. Gore’s back in the news, coming out strong against the Bush administration’s “war on terror” and the real war against our civil liberties they are waging. That’s great. Bravo, Al.

But I think David and I agreed that it was Gore’s wimpy, I-agree-with-him, never-say-anything-to-offend campaign that convinced people there was no difference between the Democrats and the Republicans in 2000. And that’s what ushered in the Bush era, not, say, Ralph Nader’s candidacy, or even the Florida debacle. Gore couldn’t even win his own home state.

It’s good that Gore is rallying the troops now – too bad he couldn’t (or wouldn’t) do it then.

Big Donor, Small Donor (thanks to Atrios)

Go Dean.

In related election stuff, I saw John Edwards on “Meet the Press” this morning, and unfortunately the adjective that most occurs to me is “slimy.” (sorry, Mike) Edwards only seemed to underline my gut feeling that his war votes, pro then and anti now, are all just opportunistic political moves.

I stand by my enthusiasm for voting Ham Sandwich against GWB in 2004, but the war and candidates’ attitudes about it are a crucial litmus test for me. And Edwards flunks.

Tonight I made chicken shepherd’s pie for dinner. Damn it was good. Chicken, bacon and onions on the bottom, mashed potatoes, swiss cheese and sour cream on the top. Put it all under the broiler until it’s brown and bubbling. I’d invite you over for leftovers, but there’s not much left. I’ll make more next time.

Matrix Revolutions

Boy, am I glad this series is over.

This is not a terrible movie. The new ideas and mind-bending introspection of “Reloaded” have been jettisoned in favor of streamlined action throughout. It’s not a bad thing to make a movie that doesn’t have to be accompanied by a study guide. But with all the rich source material of the “Matrix” universe (including the cool “Animatrix” shorts), it’s too bad they couldn’t cap off the series with something a little more complex.

The biggest disappointment for me was watching Mary Alice replace Gloria Foster as The Oracle. Not a good trade, in my opinion, although to be fair, the dialogue they gave to Mary Alice was markedly inferior to The Oracle’s parts in the other two films.

Everything about this movie seemed less like a fantastic capper for the trilogy and more like fan fiction set in the “Matrix” universe – a watered-down, simplified version of the real thing.

Still, it moves along well, and the stupid parts (like the Neo/Trinity “love story”) are overshadowed by smack-you-in-the-face action. Which would be OK, if this wasn’t “The Matrix.”

The worst thing of all is how these ham-handed sequels have, rather than deepened and enriched the original, cheapened it a little. And that’s a fate a modern classic like “The Matrix” doesn’t deserve.

I’ll give you a topic…

“I worry about my son like any parent. I hope and pray that my son isn’t gay. Not because I’m anti-gay, I’m not, it’s because I don’t want my son to have to [be] tolerated for who he is. My son deserves better and so do your children. They deserve acceptance and the only way they will get it is through us.”

–Rosemary Esmay

Discuss.