esrosedotblog

TODAY'S MOVIE

THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD (1938); NYTimes1176BestMovies; Errol Flynn and every medium to well known British actor they could find to fill out the large cast. Claude Rains is the evil King John. Basil Rathbone is his villainous henchman and ass-kisser, Sir Guy of Gisbourne.. Olivia DeHaviland is Maid Marian. The young Una O'connor is the maid. It is a great picture. Moves along. We know the story so it has to keep us busy looking at the action and this is done very effectively. NOTE: There is not ONE computer generated mass of armies, no monsters, and almost all the stunts are done by the actors themselves. The arrows actually hit the padded stuntmen (they got extra money) and the split arrow scene was real and done in one take. This film has more life than most of the current batch of 'adventure' films.

Errol Flynn was a great actor, not above doing a lot of hambone stuff in his closeups; his Irish sense of humor; good 'over-the-top' underlining. The term swash-buckler was made for him. He was also able to carry the swash outside the films and led a hard and fast life with a heart-attack-death at 50. In this film, he and Rathbone do a long swordfight which is suspenseful and innovative in its use of props, stairs, shadows and so on. It is a primer on how to do the thing. And, he is gorgeous. It is unbelievable that they originally wanted to do this with James Cagney.

The color on this DVD is so brilliantly restored that, for awhile, I was afraid that it had been colorized but that is not so. It was shot in Technicolor and that is how the master prints looked. The prints shown in theaters were never as good as the original. It has an unprecedented 8.2 on the IMDb review scale. I give it a four out of Netflixfive.

JEN

Of all the email that I get, this one is the most frequent:

Hi my name is Jennifer A friend said you were really cool and said I should get in contact you with you! I love meeting new people so you should come chat with me. I also have a videocam so we can make it interesting! It doesn't cost you a dime or anything like that, I just wana meet you!

And about this 'wana' word. Do you meant to say that you 'want to' meet me? And 'anything like that', this sounds a bit foreign to me. Our governor has a turn of speech that is like this phrase: "or anything like dat". It is infill for his insecurity in English. I wonder if Jen is not native born? Not that there is anything wrong wid dat.

I probably get five of these Jen letters a day in my mailbox. But there are many more that are repelled electronically; most do not make it through the earthlink spaminator or my own junk mail filter. In total there must be 20-30 if I include the ones that are caught. This 'Jen' is really creative. Perhaps I should give her some points for that. She has figured out a way to foil these electronic sentries more than 20% of the time. I find myself wondering if I have met her somewhere. Why is she so determined? So persistent?

There is another possible angle or answer to this puzzle. I presently get a lot of penis enlargement email. I try not to take this personally, incidentally. I think that it is a mass mailing. I would hate to think that anyone at the gym has turned in my name after seeing me in the shower. I suspect that could not be the case as I use an assumed name on my gym membership. I have to think that perhaps Jen and the penis people are somehow in league to get me to answer an ad, any ad.

Now stay with me. One more step in this possible conspiracy. I am connecting this Jen and the penis thing with the fact that I used to get almost all ink-cartridge email. Now that has disappeared. Do you suppose that Jen and the penis people are really the ink-cartridge folks trying to get me through a ruse of some kind? And what evil may lurk behind the ink cartridges? Let's face it. No one uses so many ink cartridges that any amount of savings would justify a special shipment.

I don't know. I am all sweaty palmed about this. If I do not answer any of this mail, I might be missing something; but if I do answer it, I might be inundated with ink cartridges or worse. I do not know what I 'wana' do. OH. I and when I write to Jen, do you think that I should tell her that I am gay?

TODAY'S MOVIE

BARTON FINK (1991); NYTimes1176Best; the brothers Coen; Odets lookalike (one play/one movie) goes to Hollywood and enters art deco hell, sells out, gets writer's block, and ends up as just another casualty of the powers that control the vast.........wait a minute. It is a Coen brothers' picture, full of visual fun, comic performance, over the top cinematic dancing, overwrought story, and good plain fun if I want to meet them half way. In this case, I did.

Turturro, Goodman, Davis, Lerner, Mahoney, Buscemi, and Shalhoub are all great and John Polito (77 credits) is the perfect studio toady. These are many of the Coen stable of actors and they are able to swim with the material. I liked it. I would not want to watch it again, though; it is a lot of work and I bet it does not withstand scrutiny.

Oh, yeh, there are symbols of fascism and furnaces and power out of control and all that; but it is more of an exercise than a serious examination. Selling out is sort of basic and not really the result of uber-dictator-mogul-manipulation. It is selling out. A 3 out of a Netflix5.

TODAYS MOVIE

BARRY LYNDON (1975): NYTimes1176BestMovies; William Makepeace Thackeray and Stanley Kubrick; what a pair. Kubrick made only 16 films. The first few, documentaries and B-pics, were unremarkable. Then came PATHS OF GLORY and there are nine more in succession, all on the NYTimesBest lists. His last, EYES WIDE SHUT missed the mark. It is said that he was ill and on his way out; to say nothing of the fact that he was working with the neuter Tom Cruise on a sex film; miscasting.

We have seen 2001 (a number--among the first of the Best) and (out of order), CLOCKWORK and will see the remaining 7 in due alphabetical course.

Kubrick invaded genrés. In the same way that PATHS is his military justice film and SPARTACUS his epic sword and sandal, LYNDON is his heavy literature project. It is beautiful. It does not have 'scenes' so much as 'tableaus'. You can see the Kubrick perfectionism beginning to creep in. How long did they have to wait for those sky-scapes? The interiors are dramatically candle-lit (only candles we are told). All in all, it is very impressive. There is not much of a story. It is all characterization and morals and, well, tableaus. It is a great 'picture'; picture, not film. The less said about the one-note acting of the leads, (Mr. Ryan and Ms. Berenson) the better. Support is good; especially the cuckold original Lord Lyndon (Frank Middlemass) who gives a memorable five minute choleric death scene; tour-de-force. Heavyweight at 3 hours, which is a bit over my limit, but I endured it. I am giving it a 3 or 4 out of Netflix5. Here is a tableau.

CIA WINS

I can't help but wonder if the winner of the new Premier sweepstakes in Iraq isn't, somehow, the result of a behind the scenes battle between the Pentagon geeks and the CIA creeps. Chalabi, the 'gon guy is out; this CIA-er guy is in. I haven't learned his name yet. Alawi. OK. Let's watch the action on the field; but keep your eye on the coaches on the bench. It is too early to use the term 'stooge' but I have it ready.

The only thing that screws my conspiracy theory up is that no one seemed to know he would be 'picked' at least on our side. Of course, that only means the bushers didn't know. They don't seem to know anything.

LOU

"It's hard to believe in the year 2004, with Americans being killed in Iraq, with civilians killed in Madrid, that these despicable assholes would conjure up the sanctity-of-marriage blather. This is a nonissue promulgated by thieves and religious zealots to imprison contemporary people in the prison of the medieval mind. They should just call it the Mel Gibson amendment." -- Singer Lou Reed, denouncing the proposed U.S. constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage, to The Advocate, April 27.

CARD

The enrollment for the Medicare discount cards is so low that many of the 70 companies participating are already thinking of dropping out. AARP sent out 70,000 kits and got 400 registrants. We did not even consider the card. It is impossible to figure out who and what you should get. It is a goat-fuck from top to bottom. Just another day in bushland.

BITE

So, I said yesterday that things have a way of coming up and biting the bushers on the ass. Now it is the new Prime in Iraq. Hours of confusion today over when and who and how and whether. Dither. Any doubts it is all out of control at the mega level? Well, we knew it was but this is out there it is pathetic. They are not even able to cover their asses anymore.

ZINNI

I heard Retired Marine General Tony Zinni being interviewed on NPR this morning. He is featured in Battle Ready: Tom Clancy's latest book in his Commander Series. It is a great interview and evidently the book is fully focused on the Iraq War runup and aftermath. Zinni's comments are said to fill the book and if the interview is any indication, indicts the administration at all levels for its incompetence and wrong headed management of the 'post war' situation; which of course means that it is not 'post' anything. The war is ongoing.

I was surprised that Clancy is involved in this enterprise or rather that he would involve Zinni who has been an outspoken critic of the bushers. I had assumed that Tom Clancy was as fundamental a right winger as any of the Pentagon chicken hawks; but this is evidently not so. I would not want Clancy after me if I were them but I am not and so..............it is interesting.

TODAYS MOVIE

ALIEN (1979): NYTimesBest1176Movies; Ridley Scott mindblower. It is as scary now as it was then and that is sitting in my own house with the dog over in the corner and the certain knowledge that it is scary and that I 'know' which parts are going to reach out and get me. It is still scary. I am still a bit agog.

It is interesting to see the younger (25 years) actors (l. to r.): Yaphet Kotto, John Hurt, Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, Veronica Cartwright, and Harry Dean Stanton. Ian Holm, who we last saw as Grandpa Hobbit sailing off into the sunset, is not in this picture. And for good reasons; or bad. It is a great movie: 4 out of Netflix 5.

MODERN STONEHENGE

Perfect alignment in Manhattan.

Today only. Otherwise go to archives for 052804.

HUH?

Headline in the WSJ today:

Homeland Security officials said they had little advance notice of Ashcroft's warning about a possible attack and believed the information wasn't new or specific enough to merit an announcement.

TRUTH

Paul Krugman comments on the gap between what the establishment press has been saying about the bushers and the way things really are. This gap may be closing: To Tell The Truth. The emperor's lack of clothes is beginning to be apparent to everyone and it is being reported as well. Finally. Just in time.

And Bob Herbert on Gore's speech: A Speech That's No Joke.. I believe Gore's speech is a turning point in the campaign. I hope that his words shake us out of the denial this country has been in over the incompetence and malfeasance of its leadership.

BILL

Did I show you this?

Oh yes. It is mentioned down below.

The book will be out 6/22/04 but you can order it now. It went from 8 to 6 on the Amazon hit parade just today--from about 10AM and now it is 630PM.

Can you tell I am excited about this? He will be doing a world tour the minute the book is published. It will make a great rampup to the DemoConvention and it will put Bill back on stage conspicuously.

Boy, I miss him. What I would give for another term.

Like I said, this is a great photo.

OK. That is enough. I will probably be reminding you about it again and I am not sharing my copy. I do not loan books.

The bushers must be nuts about this. I hope so anyway. I would really like it if they are. On the other hand, they are such numbnuts on so many things that they could be blasé about this. If so, I hope it comes up and bites them on the ass like everything else seems to.

THE EYES HAVE IT

When I read Neal Stephenson, I always learn a lot. I certainly am inspired to think. Today, I read this:

"The Brandy's scroll wasn't just showing the random static. It was flashing up a large amount of digital information, in binary form. That digital information was going straight into Da5id's optic nerve. Which is part of the brain, incidentally—if you stare into a person's pupil, you can see the terminal of the brain."

This flipped me out. I did not know this. I assume it is true. I even got a diagram of it. Apparently the same connection is true of the ears but you can't look into the ear and see a person's brain. Too twisty and curly like.

So I guess it is true. The eyes are the window of the soul. And it works both ways. Gotta be careful what you feed into the eyes. Take Da5id for example. He has looked into the Snow Crash screen directly ('The Brandy's scroll' which is on a hypercard--you remember them), assuming that it was a normal computer snow crash (white noise-video snow); but in this case, it is not. Rather, it is a fiendishly intricate computer virus with myriad bits and pieces lodged in the snow; programmed to contaminate the brain and so on. Incidentally, if you are a target of the villains and you suss this part of the plot, there is also a drug which does the same thing in the guise of being a new recreational concoction. They could get you with that. Of course you have to be susceptible to recreational drugs. The whole book is sort of centered on this plot. I will let you explore this aspect of the eye/brain connection on your own.

But, I like the 'looking in' part. Not that I expect to see anyone's brain, actually. I am not really sure that I would want to. But the eyes do reflect the being at play and that has to be the brain. It is a good thing to think about. If you see me gazing into your eyes I am not really trying to see what you are thinking; only the glow of it in the pupils. And, whether they are abnormally dilated, of course. And I guess that is it. Now that I am seeing the brain, what next? What about when the brain is not enough? More questions to ponder. See, it makes you think. I love this book.

THREE CARD MONTE

Have you noticed that Condoleeza and big dick Cheney are among the missing? They must have not done very well in their attack missions; back into the deck of cards for later play. We have now had the Ash talk down to us two days in a row; the new diverter. Some chatter here (see below) and a few arrests there. Keep your eye on the cards! Don't look up. Fearless leader is getting feckless again. Summit's coming and already those pesky euros are talking back. Hey. Watch the cards.

LINKS

You are what you read. Every so often, I have to do some house-cleaning based on the net links I have given up and new links that I am trying out or have adopted as daily reading.

Today I have taken down two links that I do not use anymore: Wikipedia and The New Republic. Wikipedia is the community-written encyclopedia. It has a daily item which I was going to for awhile. Yawn. Vaporish. Thin. I have tried out items and have a feeling that some of 'it' is unreliable. Remember that a camel is a horse invented by a committee. I am back to the World Book that came with my machine.

TNR-The New Republic is just not there for me. No criticism. I thought I had an interest but I notice that I have never signed up for the $ version and that is not a good sign. I am not miserly; I have Salon Premium and the Wall Street Journal which costs up the nose. Let's say I am prudent.

The links that I have put up, on the list at the upper right, have become daily stops for me; occasionally I dip in again in the pee emm. The Smirking Chimp is a great 'summary' site. There are captures of commentary from all over (today Africa) and links to the 'more' of the article if you want it. There are a lot of these each day. More than enough to keep you interested. All of the material is 'anti-smirk' so I do not know what these folks will do when Kerry becomes President. We should worry.

Another 'summary' blog that I have come to rely on very heavily is Eschaton by Atrios. Short comments with hot links. Very good, very rich, and very reliable as a resource of late-breaking stuff.

Finally, you have seen a lot of Jesus' General lately. I would like to deconstruct the site and discuss the General's flawlessly consistent persona and all; but it would spoil the fun. I laugh my ass off at this site. Of course, before you get the wrong impression, I should tell you that this is just giggling in church. I also take the General's message very seriously. I try to take away a strong spiritual message from each item and apply these lessons in my daily life. I need some help to stay on the straight and narrow just like anyone else. This is important, especially since, unlike JC, I AM a homosexual!! I do not have any gladiator films in my library but there are some wrestling videos. Manly stuff. They keep me at a 10 on the Scale of Absolute Gender. It is the Kinsey scale that I am shaky on. I think I might be on the other side of that one.

SEX

Jesus' General, has reviewed one of the latest christian sex manuals (052604).

The Married Guy's Guide to Great Sex  I can't recommend this Christian sex book enough. I gave it a very favorable review at Amazon.com. posted by Gen. JC Christian, Patriot

And while you are at it, you will note that the poor bastard that wrote the other rave review has a batch of NOT HELPFUL votes.I bet these are JC's fans as well. I think this means that Jesus' General has his 'finger' on the 'pulse' of christian sexuality. I think you get the picture. A lot of people identify with his view and do not buy the stepford enthusiasms of casual christians just looking for a good time in the sack. They want the spirit to move them.

DOWDTFULLY DOWDY

I am getting tired of Maureen Dowd. She used to be funny and even, at times, trenchant. (OK. I had to look up 'trenchant' to see if I got it right--yes I did).

tren·chant Pronunciation: -ch & nt. Function: adjective. Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French, present participle of trenchier. 1 : KEEN, SHARP 2 : vigorously effective and articulate (a trenchant analysis) also : CAUSTIC 3 a : sharply perceptive : PENETRATING b : CLEAR-CUT, DISTINCT (the trenchant divisions between right and wrong -- Edith Wharton)

Enough is enough. She has become a cartoon of herself. Over the hill. The shrill bitch version of bitter late-middle age. I won't use the M word, that would be sexist I suppose. Shrill bitch is enough. Today in her home paper she takes on both bush and kerry and it is all meaningless mean-ness. Can you tell that she has pissed me off? I will not even bother to link it. She has nothing to say. Too bad. I am done with Dowd.

THE MAN

Enough said. Pre-order it now. It is already at Number 8 on the Amazon list.

Isn't this a wonderful photo?

CHATTER

Terrorists are looming. Not to be alarmist or anything. We just want to talk about it enough to draw attention away from that awful speech the other night and the messup with the generals coming and going in Iraq and the usual hum of incompetence down at the oval. The boss said to get out here divert awhile. It isn't even serious enough to raise the color......what is it now? Yellow? Orange. What do the colors mean again? Don't worry, we will tell you when you need to know. Save your duct tape. But there is chatter. Chatter. The wires are full of it. We are worried. There are many events coming. We don't know which ones they are talking about or when or what or where or any of that. Chatter. Nameless, faceless, diverting. Chatter. Chatter on Justice (hah) guys.

SIGHOFRELIEF

They gave up on the idea of delaying Kerry's acceptance. And not a moment too soon. Whew. I figured they had just cut their own jugular. Where is that? I know you don't want to do it. It is a good symbol though. The Demos have this death wish thing that keeps cropping up at the most inopportune times. When will they learn? They should fire whoever is responsible.

And then here comes the second part. Not only was it a really really bad idea; it was supposed to be a secret. Then AP found them out. Then they had to scramble. Secrets do not work. Look at fearless leader. Look at our own history. Secrets brought our Bill down. Yeh, I know. It was that awful prurient Starr; but Bill made it easier for him.

And while I am at it; here is a third thing. This money situation makes politicians crazy. McGovern said so yesterday. There have to be some principles in the Demo Party. It is time while we are cleaning junior's clock that we do some cleanup in our own house. Terry McCauliffe's checkbook politics have to go. I have been just deluged with pleas for money which is sure to go to Committee overhead. Bloated and fat. No dice. And so on.

I know. Shutup. We have an election to win and THEN we will clean up our own house. Uh-huh. Isn't it traditional to name a new DNC chair with each new nomination? Let's get someone who can sweep up a bit. It will be tough throwing stones at the bushers if our own house is in disorder. Blah blah. Boy this kind of thing really gets to me. That is why I wanted Dean. But then money made him crazy too. OK. OK. Stifle.

BELLOW

They say Gore THUNDERED AND BELLOWED when he delivered his speech today at NYU. I wrote about it below--earlier today. Click here to read it: MoveOn PAC--GORE NYU SPEECH.

NEW YORK - Al Gore (news - web sites) delivered a blistering denunciation Wednesday of the Bush administration's "twisted values and atrocious policies" in Iraq (news - web sites) and demanded the resignation of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, national security adviser Condoleezza Rice and CIA director George Tenet. Raising his voice to a yell in a speech at New York University, Gore said: "How dare they subject us to such dishonor and disgrace! How dare they drag the good name of the United States of America through the mud of Saddam Hussein's torture prison!" The Democratic former vice president said the situation in Iraq is spinning out of control. "I am calling today for Republicans as well as Democrats to join me in asking for the immediate resignations of those immediately below George Bush and Dick Cheney, who are most responsible for creating the catastrophe we are facing in Iraq," Gore said, drawing strong applause from the partisan crowd. "Donald Rumsfeld ought to resign immediately!" Gore bellowed. "Our nation is at risk every single day Rumsfeld remains as secretary of defense. We need someone with good judgment and common sense." Rice "ought to resign immediately. She has badly mishandled the coordination of national security policy. This is a disaster for our country," he said. "It came from twisted values and atrocious policies at the highest levels of our government," he said.

I like this. I like that Kerry is keeping his cool. We need more shouting but not from him. Not yet. If they can keep Al hot and get Bill out on the hustings doing his patented hoot and call speeches, we will be well on our way to a great convention and nomination--including the acceptance!!!

PROGRESS?

Alex sent me this, written by a pilot.

We must get rid of turbines. They are ruining aviation. We need to go back to big round engines. Anybody can start a turbine, you just need to move a switch from "OFF" to "START" and then remember to move it back to "ON" after a while. My PC is more difficult to start.

Cranking a round engine requires skill, finesse and style. On some planes, the pilots are not even allowed to do it. Turbines start by whining for a while, then give a small lady-like poot and start whining louder. Round engines give a satisfying rattle-rattle, click-click BANG, more rattles, another BANG, a big macho fart or two, more clicks, a lot of smoke and finally a serious low pitched roar. We like that. It's a guy thing.

When you start a round engine, your mind is engaged and you can concentrate on the flight ahead. Starting a turbine is like flicking on a ceiling fan: Useful, but hardly exciting. Turbines don't break often enough, leading to aircrew boredom, complacency and inattention. A round engine at speed looks and sounds like it's going to blow at any minute. This helps concentrate the mind.

Turbines don't have enough control levers to keep a pilot's attention. There's nothing to fiddle with during the flight. Turbines smell like a Boy Scout camp full of Coleman lanterns. Round engines smell like God intended flying machines to smell.

I think I hear the nurse coming down the hall. I gotta go.

You know, this took me way back to the actual changeover; what it was like to a passenger. I used to ride in the Eastern Convair shuttle and it had circular lounge seats in the back. Like a banquette. The whole back half may have sat ten or twelve people. There was a round table. Inconceivable today. Talk about your legroom; it was all legroom. I remember getting drunk with a bunch of other guys at the banquette. The shuttles took a while longer to get from LGA to BOS then and you could relax. I think all the drinks were free.

They shook like a bastard though. But then all the shuttle flights shook. The DC-3's, which the Connies replaced, were all shake and rattle and noise. Like the man says. Those were the days. Props. Turbines. Shit, why did they bring the smelly kerosene eating jets into it? That is where all hell broke loose and we had to start gettin' in lines and payin' for drinks. Oh. Did I mention that when I first took the shuttle it cost 16.00 one way? They didn't bother with round trip tix because it was open seating and you just waited on line to get on. A ticket was a ticket. Don't get me started.

SPAM

So naive-me. I am starting to get spam with titles that have names of people I KNOW in them. I won't list them here. But they obviously have figured a way to scrape the addressee out of my emails and tack them into the spam. Actually, as much as I hate wading through it all, the cleverness of these pirates is pretty impressive as hacker-work has often been. I suppose people felt the same way about the ocean pirates too. We even make movie heroes out of them. Maybe, some day, there will be a movie blockbuster called HACKERS OF THE CARIBBEAN!

READ

Still reading SNOW CRASH: Neal Stephenson. It takes some time to work through the scene and the language (futuristic) and is not as layered as his later work but it is very cool nonetheless. I gave up on BLUE BLOOD: Edward Conlon, the cop autobio. Too much personal history and meandering through the Irish Catholic childhood. I imagine he is looking for motivation. I suspect there is none. He just wants to be a cop and the doors opened. Here he is. He is a good one. Unusual. A Harvard degree. Few of us ended up in the careers we started in. Look at me. I began as an engineer. I found out you could design the hottest machine in the world for people to work with and if they didn't want to work with it, forget it. So I started working with people and machines. Then left the machines and just worked with people. But I digress. If you are of the South Boston persuasion you will love this book. If not, better look for cop-thrills elsewhere.

GORED

Just when I figure that Al Gore has gone to sleep and will not wake up again, I am surprised by his candor and courage in saying out loud what the establishment media and most politicians, too craven for candor, will say out straight. Here he is today in published remarks at MoveOn PAC--Gore remarks He draws a clear arc from the beginning of the 'war on terror' to the present debacle of looming military and political failure in Iraq and the dishonor brought down on our country by the actions of the present administration. Here is the opening.

Remarks by Al Gore
May 26, 2004
As Prepared

George W. Bush promised us a foreign policy with humility. Instead, he has brought us humiliation in the eyes of the world.

He promised to "restore honor and integrity to the White House." Instead, he has brought deep dishonor to our country and built a durable reputation as the most dishonest President since Richard Nixon.

Honor? He decided not to honor the Geneva Convention. Just as he would not honor the United Nations, international treaties, the opinions of our allies, the role of Congress and the courts, or what Jefferson described as "a decent respect for the opinion of mankind." He did not honor the advice, experience and judgment of our military leaders in designing his invasion of Iraq. And now he will not honor our fallen dead by attending any funerals or even by permitting photos of their flag-draped coffins.

OPENDOOR POLICY

While we are on the subject of Franklin, it seems worthwhile to mention something that he is not doing. He has still not learned to open a door. This pleases John as he maintains that the disability is similar to Franklin's aversion to going in the pool; actually, to water of any kind except to drink. The point is that there are some things it is GOOD to be dumb about. The water aversion means that he won't get all wet, then muddy, then need toweling. The door block means that he won't go in where he is not supposed to. Or out.

I kinda disagree on the door thing. I feel that any dog worth his or her salt should be able to open a door. Even if it is LATCHED. We see dogs doing this on the teevee all the time. While we are agreed that we do not want to bother Franklin with silliness; to have a circus dog who does undistinguished things like 'tricks' there are certain skill fundamentals which would be nice to have under his--belt?--collar.

There are two parts to the door routine. One, is that he will not go through any space that seems too narrow to him whether it is really too tight or not. He needs about a two-foot opening and is about one-foot thick. The second part is that we will not work at opening any door further than it is ajar (yeh, when is a door a jar and all that; I heard the joke). So if a door is open but not open far enough, he stands and groans. Franklin does whine but there are about four levels of complaint. A groan usually means 'I cannot do this, why aren't you helping me'? A whine means he is afraid or wants to go BE afraid; chase something in the yard that he cannot see. A series of groans and whines means KITTY ALERT or similar. Bark,groan,whine,run,whine,groan,bark,shit,goddam,goddam,bark,groan,whine. Well. That is a call to get the leash and we all go see what is going on. We probably do not want to be off the leash and run to see what it is. It might be the notorious and infamous (are they the same thing?) skunk. We met him once. Enough.

In solving an intractable behavior problem, it always useful to ponder the possible origin of the block or disability. We wonder, for example, if this unwillingness to enter until conditions are right might relate to a birth trauma. Mom was not wide open and he felt constricted. Everything was OK in the canal but it looked kinda bleak out there in Victorville. There are certain therapies that you can relive the birth experience. Or maybe it is that he is just looking for attention and getting us to open an already open door is a way to get it. Perhaps, he is just dumb. But all evidence is to the contrary. This dog is smart as a whip. There IS something going on. Working the smart angle, it is likely that he is teaching US tricks. This has occurred to us more than once. We certainly are adaptable in that regard. We feed him on schedule, let him take his walks when and where he wants to, he decides on the turns. He has a lot of toys for us to play with. Hmmmm. The door. I wonder if I will get a biscuit if I open it fast enough.

AGGRESSION

No one told us about this stage of dog development; the onset of aggression and hostility to evil doers. Up until now, Franklin has liked everyone indiscriminately; but recently, he has become more selective and flexible in his reactions. It began with the realization (his not mine--I knew this) that not every being you encounter wants to be friendly. Some are disinterested and a few are downright hostile; and we are not just talking about other dogs here. John and I have a typology for 'hostiles' and they invariably come as a package. The angry dog has an equally angry master or mistress. There are some (a local couple are famous for this) who mask their own shit or try to. They walk up all smiles and hellos--she not he, actually--the dog dragging them along with fangs bared. There is this attempt to quell the dog with words; failing that (always) the guy takes to beating the dog with the leash and screaming HEEL well after heeling is even possible. The poor dog has moved into pure instinct and is not available for commands.

Until recently, Franklin viewed this display as, perhaps bizarre; not anything to worry about. But the other night, he took a look at them coming at us and got in a new position; more of a squat than a lean. When the display of nastiness started, he hunched. At the 'right time' he lept and barked a really nasty counter-attack bark sequence. I had him by the leash. I am not insensitive. I had read the signals even though I never saw him do it before. He relaxed back on his butt. I said 'good dog, sit'. The other dog was going nuts. I said stay. Franklin stayed. The guy went nuts beating his dog with its leash hollering HEEL. No heel. Franklin did one more bark from the sitting position; then he and I got moving in the other direction; calmly and without haste.

This all feels satisfying to me somehow. Not that Franklin has ever come home and told us that the kids beat him up. But, he has been just a little too docile and innocent. Now, I think that if he is ever attacked or threatened, he can at least defend with a really loud deep bark. I am not sure about fisticuffs. That is a bit too rough. But talking loud; that is something I understand. As a confirmed sissy (when I was a kid of course, not now!); I defended with my mouth and only got in a fight once. I defended with a well placed block and the kid did not connect. That was it. One kid. One fight. One punch thrown. TKO. Undefeated. Retired from the ring. So we shall see what develops for our Franklin.

BARFLY (1987)

Today's movie; NYTimes1176Best: Mickey Rourke and Faye Dunaway; biopic short story by and about Charles Bukowski--avowed low bottom alcoholic; defines the term self-destruction. Bukowski relates in short story form his 'discovery' by the literati; the cash fuels his disease. The film ends as it begins. The cycle.

The whole enterprise is pretty effective. While it is realistic, it is also a fantasy; but then, it is told by the alkie; watch out for the reliability quotient. It is interesting that no defense or explanation is given for alcoholism; which is OK; all you have to do is watch it to get it. Of course, I have an inside view; and, even though I haven't had a drink in 25 years, it all made sense to me. I suspect that it looks insane to a normie. But then, that is it! Bottled insanity.

The little side vignettes are all very good. Pruitt Taylor Vince is in it; the guy with the eyes that never stop moving; and, Bukowski himself is a bar patron; but we don't know which one. He should have had a keylight. I have never really seen Mickey Rourke before. Well, I have seen him in DINER and some other films. In recent years he passes in and out rather quickly. He has had a short, bright, flamed out career. I suspect that he identifies more than a little bit with his character. The other day I saw him in a web site that shows plastic surgery jobs that have gone bad; cheek implants, a new nose, all displayed under very very tight skin. It is in fact the photo he has given to IMDb. Anyway, he rules the screen in this except when Dunaway turns it on. What can I say about Faye. She is the reigning deity of picturesque parts. Is 'deity' the feminine form? Anyway. Faye, way.

This film is very hard to watch but I know a couple of Bukowski fans who should see it if they missed it. A 3 out of Netflix5. I don't usually do this: Roger Ebert; who on his own is actually a great reviewer, totally unreliable with the thumbs; has put it all down in a really nice way that I could never hope to.

JUST IN

I like the Wall Street Journal question of the day feature. You vote and then look at the results. Today was about the bush speech: More or less confident of our Iraq Plans? Or the same. Only 30% felt 'more'. Could this be the famous hard core immovable 30%? I think so. ( I voted less). I like the WSJ because it is a more conservative, thoughtful, committed crowd and more likely to vote.

COOL

I suppose it is time to fess up and say that I am still not hot for Kerry. I guess he is not going to be hot. I want(ed) a Clinton or a Dean and I am not going to get one. It is too much. This is a consequence of the strong right swing the country took. It ain't coming back hard to the left or apparent left. Kerry is comfortable; in the middle. This is his great strength.

Andrew Sullivan called him a cutout; a Democrat from central casting. Andrew can be such a jerk sometimes; but of course, he is right. That is just who Kerry is. And that is what we probably want and need. I will wait for the flamers to come around later and tweak John on the ass when he is sitting in the Oval being too Presidential. He shouldn't even be eating this pizza. It looks so lame.

And goddam I hope that they scuttle the idea of waiting to accept the nomination. It just seems like the worse idea possible to me.

MODERATION

I heard a moderate evangelical this morning on NPR. He was all bent because that great christian, Karl Rove had said all he needed was 5 or 6 million evangelicals to vote for junior and he would win the election. This guy was all incensed over it. He said it was high time that people, particularly republican people, quit assuming that a fundie was a right winger; that there were many moderate ones and that he was one of them.

It didn't sound good for george. This guy said that evangelicals wanted a conciliatory, diplomatic approach to world problems not the power driven, authoritarian kind. They like people who admit error. Well that sure as hell leaves our georgie out. He has no error.

The sad part is that this guy did have to say that evangelicals still believed in a tough social message on gay marriage and abortion and the like. But then that would be asking too much. I like the incensed part. He liked Kerry because of the quiet independence from the church and the value driven ideology. That's enough. I will take his vote and argue queer marriage later.

SHOCK'N'AWWWGH

I saw fearless leader on the teevee at the gym this morning; deer in the headlights. The smirk is pretty well gone. The eyes darted. Poor non verbals. The verbals were not a lot better. Same stuff. Not even a new wrapper. The only new thing is that they will tear down the prison. Of course, that is not our's to say as the new government will be in charge, won't it kinda sorta be. Kinda' like burning down the barn after the horses left. The thieves are still around though. They might just get singed a bit.

RUSTY COMES OUT

A primer that somehow wasn't available at the Barrett Elementary School; at least, not when I was there.

Rusty is a Homosexual.

But I perservered and eventually a man stopped his car and gave me ice cream and sent me to the gay hotline.

READY AIM FIRE!

Anthony Lewis, dean of commentators, puts the 'fire Rumsfeld' movement into perspective and offers the real goods on why it should have been done a long time ago. That it has not, is, of course, another indictment of fearless leader's dereliction. In the LA Times: Rumsfeld's Long List of Failures.

Yes you have to register but it is easy and you will be able to get into one of the best papers going today; more Pulitzers than any others in recent years. You can even get the daily email-summary which they have (finally) initiated.

STOOGE

You saw it here first. I had this Chalabi guy down as a double-dealing stooge from the beginning. He had all the hallmarks of a puppet of the Americans. We have often tried this approach when we don't know what else to do. Set up a local with some power, give him some money, and get him to stand up tall for our side. Of course, by definition, you are going to get the two-faced type, the double dealer, and now we are finding (alleged) double agent. This nasty cartoon is from an arabic website. They can scope this guy.

What is sad is that Chalabi was already under the gun for double dipping in Jordan. He had the power-grabber written all over him. Of course, one of the problems of choosing stooges is also that you fail to see the defects which are similar to your own. Rumsfeld/Cheney have been doing double speak so long that someone like Chalabi seems to be just one of the guys.

The other thing about this, which requires a jump in logic. Is it possible that Iran used this guy to get us to attack their long time enemy Iraq? Nooooooo. That is too far fetched. Junior was motivated enough wasn't he? He didn't need his skids greased. That would make HIM the STOOGE!!!! But then again. The thing about conspiracy theories is that they have this wierd way of being real ex post facto.

GENERALLY SPEAKING

I don't know whether someone pulled a switch or if it is spontaneous; but I notice all that generals are now speaking out: Hoar, then Zinni, a couple of others. Actually, I suspect a domino effect; the named are both Marines. Someone said what they were thinking and the others fell into line. Soldiers are like that.

I don't know what took them so long. It is OK though. I suppose the tradition of respect, whether you have it or not, for your civilian leaders prevents too much mouthiness. And then, there is the loyalty to the soldier in the field. But, when they have had enough, they have had enough and will wade in. It is evidently time.

I remember Douglas MacArthur very clearly. I would not call him a personal hero but I sure admired him. He had no problem mouthing off to the civilians and even came and tried to trounce Truman on the Korean War. He didn't succeed; nevertheless, his dedication to his own beliefs (and some would say 'ego') was such that he spoke out and made the issues clearer by doing so. I am for upset and acting out. Thanks to the guys who tell us what they think.

OH, and let's thank Lugar and a few other Senators while we are at it. After weeks of dropping hints that he was pissed and unhappy at fearless leader he has now come forth with the particulars. McCain has had no problem doing that. A few others would help. Let's face it, when the shit flies, and it is flying, everyone gets hit whether they are loyal or not. A few more would not hurt.

SELF ESTEEEEM

I seem to be hearing a lot of stuff about low self esteem lately. I am sorry to jump on anyone when they are 'down' but I have pretty low esteem for the concept of 'low self esteeem'; let's just call it lse. I am tired of typing it already. I will bow to the form by using the lower case though. Can't have too many uppers.

It seems to me that most people who are crying the blues over their lse are actually chock full of self esteem. They esteem themselves so highly to assume that we all care about their mental attitude. And beyond, the whole exercise seems to me to be more about self centeredness. As an expert in the latter, I can attest that it is certainly a malfunction of the thought apparatus and a dislocation of the ego but it is brought on mostly by myself.

OK. Before you get all irate and such, let me point out that this is not about your circumstances. There are certainly a lot of people who have real shittiness to deal with in their lives. Sometimes this is how the cards were dealt and others, I fear, brought on by their own magnetism for the tragic. Whatever the case, I am not talking about the outside. I am talking about in here; where I think about it and me and the whole shebang. I am thinking of self obsession and self pity.

OK. Now that we stirred that one up, what do we do if we are in the grips of self-centeredness? Well, for one thing, getting out of yourself by actually lending a hand or asking someone else how they are might shake the pillars a bit. Another thing folks might consider is to quit thinking about lse so much and begin to 'act as if' they had some--any amount will do.

Now I am getting out of my range. I suppose there are some genuine lse-ers around who need a little kick in the pants from therapy or something. I am not talking about real depression. That is Depression. I am talking about the pop-psych addicts who use some lame concept concocted by tv-talking heads to camouflage their lack of ambition or feed their self pity. If professional help is needed, then go get it. Join a self help Program. The main thing is to duck the whining. My business partner Alex had the most effective way of kicking me or us or himself out of despondency when we had setbacks and problems (usually of our own creation). The phrase was "let's get on with it". A rolling stone gathers no moss. Don't look back; the bastards might be gaining on you. And so on. Get over yourself. I am talking to me now. You are free to run with whatever you want to. Just quit telling me about your lse. Run. Action.

FUSS

I am so self centered. I worry that I am not doing 'enough' in the blog. It needs more about me; no there is too much about me. This format is not working, maybe another; no this is fine. That sort of thing. Back and forth. On and on. The committee meets daily in my head.

Today I realized that there IS a lot of me in the movie reviews and in the political stuff. I am what I like and how I like it. OK. That is enough. What is going on for me right now, other than real life, is movies-THE PROJECT 1176Best--and politics. Well, a little bit of dog and stuff like that too. OK. I am settled again. No one is reading this but me anyway.

CHANGEUP

For anyone who is following these things, I have decided to meld the old and new NYTimes1000BestFilms lists. I will not bore you with the detail other than to point out that the original millenium edition was my first template for the 'best films' project; see 'em all.

Then they came out with a new edition which has at least 176(?) different choices. Some of them are new since 2000 (bad choices, a lot of them) and some are just exchanges with other pre-2000 films. At first I was not going to give in to the new list but then I realized that if I included some of the newer ones (that terrible BEING JOHN MALKOVICH ugh!) I could piss on the ones I did not like. And, as far as the older ones are concerned, who cares what ranking THE BANK DICK has? It is on the new one and not the old one so lets look at it. This is by way of explaining that from now on it will be The NYTimes1176BestFilms.

A BOY AND HIS DOG(1975)

Today's movie; NYTimes1176Best; cult favorite; the young Don Johnson; post apocalyptic fantasy; based on a Harlan Ellison short story.

L. Q. Jones (B picture actor and Sam Peckinpah favorite) is the one time auteur. He appears in the film in a filmwithinafilm porno appearance. We will see him when we get to the Peckinpah BestFilms. I am fascinated by people who are one-timers; best picture, best actor, best anything; then go back into the middle of the boat and keep on working. I admire that a lot.

This is a great movie. It is flawed in the very best ways; that is, by over-reaching. The dog is great. Don ain't bad either. 'Blood' and Johnson talk to each other telepathically and we get to listen in. Great ending.

The seventies had a lot of anti-establishment films that made it into the main stream. They were a considerable source of inspiration to the folks who were re-thinking their priorities. I am not sure whether I saw this the first time around (it is 30 years) but I sure remember the sentiment.

There is a sequence where the 'boy' has to go 'underground' to an enclave of what appear to be republican southern baptists who have a strong hand on how 'normal' is defined. Jason Robards is the head deacon. It is pretty heavy handed but one has to remember the times. Actually, it still holds up. Just put Ashcroft and fearless leader in the picture and a lot of it would still be the same. There is even a laura character; stepfordian wife.

I give it a 4 out of Netflix5.

Sorry about the picture, the film is so underground that it only has grainy takeouts in the google de google files.

MYMAN

I suppose I will get tired of it in a while; but for now the Jesus' General: A 10 on the Manly Scale of Absolute Gender is giving me a lot of laughs. Today's posting has JC's profile for the Single Republican website; which is not a satire ( I don't think). Take the tour.

POLLGEEK

There is something in me that loves a poll. James K. Galbraith (son of John Kenneth Galbraith and as talented an economist) has taken ALL of them and looks at the slow inexorable downward trend in junior's support. Take a look at Coming to our Senses? in Salon.

MOODY SWING

In case no one noticed, Moody's upgraded California bonds today citing the improved economy and the stability of the political situation. Big article today in the LA Times about the mutual admiration society that has been joined between der Gov and John Burton, the Demo majority leader in the legislature. Just to update those who worry about us out here. We are having some recovery.

BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE(1999)

Today's movie; NYTimes1000Best; Jasmin Dizdar writes and directs a potpourri of stories that intertwine and coalesce into a wonderful construction. It seems every generation of Brit immigré has his or her integration story (MY BEAUTIFUL LAUNDERETTE comes to mind) and this is the one about the Bosnians, Croats, Serbs and 'former Yugoslavians'.

It is fast paced; heart stopping, at times; funny; very emotional and almost perfectly tuned to the theme of how helping others is redemptive and exponentially good for us. In this case, the 'marriage' between all kinds of English Brits and the brand new non-English Brits is joyous and complete; difficult in the process, but well worth it in the long run. And so on.

Words fail. We laughed and cried and were a bit horrified as the reality of the war scenes. All members of the cast and the story are indeed, in the end, beautiful people. This is a 5 out of Netflix 5.

READ/POST

I notice that when I am reading more, I am posting to the blog less. Of course, this makes perfect sense as two thoughts cannot occupy the brain at the same time and, anyway, it is hard to hold a book and type at the same time. I understand that some people are quite able to type one handed under certain circumstances particularly the net-wank one. In that case, the motivation and reward structure are much higher and I assume that the hand/mind continuum is more integrated. I have never tried this, of course, and only speak from the experience of others who have moved beyond live and video into more far reaching electronic wank-venues. They are kind enough to send messages back to those of us who stay behind keeping the home fires burning; as it were. But I digress.

The Iraq stuff is very sad. The election is in a period of non-action until after the conventions (see below). While all may not be well in the universe of my current 'read', I know that things are under control and that there will not only be a beginning, but a middle and an end will follow. I can see this in the physical form of the book. If I am on page 256 of a 512 page novel I am at the middle. When I hit 512 I will be at the end. I guess the discouraging thing is that I see no end to the Iraq thing or the contention of the election. I do not even think we are close to the middle of either.

DUG OUT

When we left Boston, we felt a bit like refugees from the Big Dig. It was just starting and while it was not the factor that made us move, it certainly was a consideration. Now we hear from friends that the thing is almost over; the underground ways and bridges are open; the old elevated highway is being removed. In the midst of all this, we read today that the Demo Convention is going to take all this progress and put it at a dead standstill.

There will be no traffic on the 93 from 4pm to 1am, all the parking lots in the area of the Fleet Center will be closed; North Station under the Fleet will be closed; all the autos in the neighborhoods will be searched and sealed (or something). Isn't this insult to injury? Well I guess not actually. Boston has gotten billions of dollars from the Feds to do this thing so a few days of total inconvenience is not too big a price. Easy for me to say. We aren't there anymore. Good thing. If we were we would move.

FINISH

I have completed CRYPTONOMICON and it held right up there until its ending; highly reccomended; a thinking man's page turner. You will three great novels in one and a basic course in cryptology. I recommend ordering a used copy as it is a big thick paperback; hard to hold and handle. I am moving on to SNOW CRASH; which is a trade paperback and is quite manageable; earlier work by same author Neal Stephenson! I am parallel reading BLUE BLOOD by Neil Conlon; true life NYC cop documentary. A lot of these were first seen in The New Yorker; very good; funny, enlightening, moves along.

CORE BELIEFS

From my friend Alan:

Subject: Things you have to believe to be a Republican

1. Being a drug addict is a moral failing and a crime, unless you're a conservative radio host. Then it's an illness and you need our prayers for your recovery.

2. The United States should get out of the United Nations, and our highest national priority is enforcing U.N. resolutions against Iraq.

3. Government should relax regulation of Big Business and Big Money but crack down on individuals who use marijuana to relieve the pain of illness.

4. "Standing Tall for America"; means firing your workers and moving their jobs to India.

5. A woman can't be trusted with decisions about her own body, but multi-national corporations can make decisions affecting all mankind without regulation.

6. Jesus loves you, and shares your hatred of homosexuals and Hillary Clinton.

7. The best way to improve military morale is to praise the troops in speeches while slashing veterans' benefits and combat pay.

8. Group sex and drug use are degenerate sins unless you someday run for governor of California as a Republican.

9. If condoms are kept out of schools, adolescents won't have sex.

10. A good way to fight terrorism is to belittle our long-time allies, then demand their cooperation and money.

11. HMOs and insurance companies have the interest of the public at heart.

12. Providing health care to all Iraqis is sound policy. Providing
health care to all Americans is socialism.

13. Global warming and tobacco's link to cancer are junk science, but creationism should be taught in schools.

14. Saddam was a good guy when Reagan armed him, a bad guy when Bush's daddy made war on him, a good guy when Cheney did business with him and a bad guy when Bush needed a "we can't find Bin Laden" diversion.

15. A president lying about an extramarital affair is an impeachable offense. A president lying to enlist support for a war in which thousands die is solid defense policy.

16. Government should limit itself to the powers named in the
Constitution, which include banning gay marriages and censoring the Internet.

17. The public has a right to know about Hillary's cattle trades, but George Bush's driving record is none of our business.

18. You support states' rights, which means Attorney General John Ashcroft can tell states what local voter initiatives they have a right to adopt.

19. What Bill Clinton did in the 1960s is of vital national interest,
but what Bush did in the '80s is irrelevant.

20. Trade with Cuba is wrong because the country is communist, but trade with China and Vietnam is vital to a spirit of international harmony.

Feel free to pass these on. If you don't send them to at least ten other people, we're likely to be stuck with Bush for 4 more years.

STATS

"Gays and lesbians have experienced a dramatic rise in acceptance over the last two decades, according to a new Los Angeles Times Poll. Almost seven in 10 Americans know someone who is gay or lesbian and say they would not be troubled if their elementary-school-age child had a homosexual teacher. Six in 10 say they are sympathetic to the gay community, displaying an increasing inclination to view same-sex issues through a prism of societal accommodation rather than moral condemnation. On questions ranging from job discrimination to adoption to whether homosexuality is morally wrong, responses indicate that as gays and lesbians have become more open, heterosexuals in return have become more open toward them. The change has come within one generation." -- The Los Angeles Times, April 11.

And we were there! Thanks everyone.

PORTRAIT

War President. This portrait is a mosaic made up of the Iraq war dead. And these are just the Americans! Whether you believe the war was just or unjust; that we were right to go in and wrong about the way we did it; that you think Bush is a culpable sumbitch or a tough effective leader; there is no denying that the Commander in Chief presides over the deaths of the young men and women whose price is the very highest anyone can pay.

And what was the purpose again? Ohhhh. That Saddam was a cruel and despotic oppressor of the Iraqi people. That one is all that was left after WMD-none; after the terrorists--there are more now. Now let's see that new collection of cruel and despotic slides from the prison again; for intelligence purpose only of course. What a mess.

SENIOR

My Dad died on this day in 1988. I miss him.

He was the Boss. There was no one who one upped him and no one who missed out on hearing his displeasure when things were not going his way. He was a hard guy to live with. The term 'anger management' comes to mind. But, he was not a man of today. His attitude was one that took him far in a tough world and it was only at the end that his 'coping' mechanisms seemed a bit inappropriate. And he didn't give a shit about that either.

My Dad had to drop out of school in the 8th grade. He worked hard to get jobs that would not depend on his education to make the grade. He hit on working in food stores and he bootstrapped himself to the position of Manager in a small town branch of the A&P. He started in a service store; all counter service. He ended managing a small super store. After a number of years as a manager he had enough of the sales targets and the second guessing and told his bosses they could shove the job up their asses. He joined the union and they had to give him a super's job in a big supermarket; produce.

He loved the work and he loved the people. He was kind to many people who needed kindness in their lives. Times were hard in the late thirties and early forties. When WWII came, he did not have to go serve. He was technically too old and in a 'critical occupation'; so for awhile he stayed out. Then he couldn't be an outsider anymore. He believed fervently that our world would end if we lost the War. He volunteered. He went into the Navy and served on a destroyer-escort as a radar man; perched in a shack on the top of a pitching bucket. First, he ran the North Atlantic and when the European theater was closed they sent the ship to the Pacific. He was wounded there and saw a few of his best friends vaporized by kamikaze hits. He dreamed this war the rest of his life.

When he came home, I was 8 and ready to have a Dad. We didn't always agree. I had a lot of the same shit that he did; independent, don't tread on me. All that. He saw it through with me, got me to work with him in the A&P where I learned more about him than I could ever have at home. He was a good, moral man who had principles that he lived by. I wanted to emulate.

He got me to college and out of that town. He got to be a Grandad--"Pappy"--to my kids; the best.

When I finally came out as a gay man, it hit him hard. He worked through it. In a way he was not surprised; parents rarely are. He just had hoped it would pass or go away. It did not. And neither did he. He hung in. I took John home to visit my Mom and Dad. In minutes, it was discovered that John had also been in the Navy, had served on a destroyer (there is a God) and the picture album and trophies came out of the closet. If there was any shit it was over. Before he died, my Dad told me that he knew that I was happy and that was what counted most. This was the greatest gift he could have ever given me. The final stamp of approval.

In the years that he has been gone, I find my Dad in the most surprising places. I certainly see and hear about him from my kids; but most of all, the really surprising part--I see him in me and what I do and how I think. I ask myself what he would do. I hear myself say things that he would have said. I have his attitude. I work on the rough edges but I know that it is basically good. I am not confused about my principles either because they are his.

I always hated that they called me 'Junior'. I never thought you should do that to any kid and did not do it to my own sons. But now I am easy with it; probably because no one in my universe ever says it or, as far as I know, knows about it (other than the rest of the family and they would not dare). I can relax with it and let my Dad be Senior; the older part of me. I now believe that was the point of it; to have a younger part of him; some kind of immortality; and that was the style at that time.

You know something? I wrote this straight out. No break. I did not have to think about it one minute. That is how deep this thing is. Senior.

SCHOOL DAYS

This is by John who went to school with Franklin last week.

A few weeks ago, a friend asked if I could (or would) bring Franklin to show and tell at her class. She has ten "special ed" students. Earl and I talked it over; we had heard of visitor or therapy dogs before and had thought Franklin might qualify. We said OK and Franklin and I went to school!

The kids were seated in a little circle and we tried to do mannerly introductions but all 11 "kids" wanted to get on with things. It was a little confusing at first. The kids moved too fast. Franklin moved too fast. Kids pulled back. Franklin followed. John talked to Franklin and got a "Don't bug me, John." look back. Slowly we all settled down.

John sat cross-legged with Franklin lying across his lap. Jordan, who has steel teeth (don't ask), sat on John's shoulder and patted his head. Two little girls held Franklin's front paws. Kevin finally got close enough to touch Franklin's neck. Monica kept saying "john" and then forgetting.

It was wonderful. "What does he eat?" "Why does he bite?" "How old is he?" I doubt they understood that he was, in "dog years," their same age but they got that he was a kid too. Ryan asked if he did tricks and, when I said "No." wanted to know why not. I explained that Franklin was my friend, not my pet. "Would you ask your friend to do tricks?" He said no and smiled at the dog.

The twenty minutes was a moment and an eternity. We said good bye. Franklin was not happy that Michael was still staying away but accepted the other nine fans. We turned in our tag, got in the Jeep and came home.

My heart still overruns with the feeling. Shared love, outside all the boxes.

BEING JOHN MALKOVICH(1999)

Today's movie; NYTimes1000Best. Boy did I hate this movie. It is the first film with John Cusack that I have not loved. I did not go see it in its time as I had a feeling. I was right. And, I have to sign a pact with myself that any film that has Catherine Keener in it (Maxine) is going to be relentlessly nasty. It is her strong and only suit.

As one who complains about the vapidity of today's film selection, I suppose it is pissing on the good fairy to complain so strongly about a work that someone has obviously thought about and that is relentlessly original. But, what thoughts, how bizarre! Actually, it occurred to me that the writer--the esteemed Kaufman--had a deck of cards or a random number generator in front of him and selected the oddest combination of circumstances to create this piece. The little office, the eccentric people, the hole in Malkovich' head and the rest. The pieces are there but when they come together they are pessimistic, nihilistic, and just plain cockeyed. It is nasty. By the time Cusack locks the wife up with the monkey (yes) I wanted out.

But, my contract is to see them all (the 1000) and now I can chalk this one up as a 1 out a Netflix5 and no more Charlie Kaufman or Spike Jonze. There is none for Jonze--only two announced projects; one of them with Kaufman. Kaufman has won an Oscar for ADAPTATION and had another one that I studiously avoided as well. My only way of retribution is to show the chimp's picture and let the rest of them go on to their next project if any.

HOMO

You will want to take a look at Jesus' General today (Tuesday 18 May): Everybody thinks I'm a homosexual.

It is also sort of a review or the film TROY which John walked out of midway last night "they may be pretty but they can't act"

Of course, they have deleted Achilles' homo-relationship(s) since Brad has to maintain his image and can't act. I am sure he is straight, praise god. There have never ever been any of those queer rumors about him. I will not be going to see the film.

BUGS

BACK TO THE FUTURE(1985)

It is interesting to see Michael J. Fox and what has happened to him in his future in the twenty years since this was made. He is still a star. On the other hand, it is sad to see that Christopher Lloyd has worked a lot but has never had a hit like this one. This is a 5 out of the Netflix5.

I THEE WED

I don't need Massachusetts or California to validate the fact that I have been married to another man for 29 years. On the other hand, it is very nice to have our upcoming 30th celebrated with the marriage of so many gay men and women. The United States is not behind the times. We are the fourth country to legalize full gender-blind marriage. It will be a long time until this is true in all fifty states but we are persistent and patient. I will take our other 'home' state as a good beginning.

So there was a small tear this morning when I saw the gang on the steps of Cambridge City Hall celebrating this great day. It is a nice way to win battles. Celebrating the results of love and not hate.

DONE?

It is tempting to declare the gay civil rights question settled and answered when gay men and women are being married today in one of my home states. Unprecedented. But then the leader of our nation takes the occasion to remind us that is not so; nor are a number of other fights over. On the road in Kansas City he reminded us that he is above the courts and the people and compassionate conservatism whatever that was or is took another nose dive.

THE BAREFOOT CONTESSA(1954)

Today's movie; NYTimes1000Best; Ava Gardner; Humphrey Bogart; written and directed by Joseph Mankiewicz. Mankiewicz wrote and ghostwrote a lot of pictures and we have seen and will see a few: ALL ABOUT EVE for example. A lot of his work was done with his brother Herman who has an even more impressive number of 1000Best (PRIDE OF THE YANKEES). Quite a family. They are from Wilkesbarre, PA; near where I grew up. If you can make a career like their's out of Wilkesbarre, you are special!

This melodrama is really great to watch right up to its implausible ending. It is a 'fifties ending' where the earthy woman with strong sexual appetites (or gay man or other sinner type) must be killed off for moral turpitude. There is no other explanation for the ending. This is not a spoiler. The first scene of the film is in a graveyard; the funeral of the Gardner character. Ava Gardner was also scandalous in her off screen behavior, so it is probably even more important that she be punished for indulging in sport fucking.

That having been said, the film is absolutely beautiful with a use of color; always surprising and supportive of the story and characters. For example, Bogart is always in brown. You have to see it. I was glad that it was NOT a story about romantic love between Bogart and Gardner; Bogart is in his last-hairpiece stage Soon, he will be unable to cover all of it without looking like Ronald McDonald. They could not light around it. It is a nicely built relationship with a lot of love and humor. We stayed glued to it until the ending which is really not that long and seems tacked on to sort of please the censors.

One of the neat things about fifties and earlier films are their NON-explicit narrative. You have to listen and dig a bit to get the point about sex or anything 'unprintable' but it is all there in spades. The veils are very thin. I liked it; a 3 out of Netflix5.

JC CHRISTIAN

This is pretty good. I love the whole 'reality' of it and apparently his targets take him seriously enough to provide good entertainment as well. Jesus' General; General JC Christian, Patriot.

Today he is taking on the cardinal who wants any voter who votes pro abortion or pro any issue the church is against banned from communion. The other day (scroll down when you get there) he was doing Inhofe, the stupid bastard senator who is outraged at the outrage over the prison stuff in Ir-ak. How does the right get so many idiots on their side? Anyway, this guy is pretty good. I laughed a lot and felt much better. Laughter is the best medicine especially when the assholes are rampant.

BANNED

So, there is a new order about treatment of prisoners in Iraq. I guess it wasn't a few 'bad apples' or is the word 'scapegoats'. All efforts to duck and cover fail again. Sooner or later they gotta get the political apparatchiks out of policy. I guess that will be this November.

The summup has to be the old chestnut: I DIDN'T DO IT AND I WILL NEVER DO IT AGAIN.

TROUBLE

The puzzle of the Columbine killings endures despite all the attempts to answer the questions. As a parent, I have speculated what it would be like to have this tornado occur in my life; to have to face my own culpability in the matter. Today in the New York Times, David Brooks writes about his contact with the Klebold parents and gives a glimpse into what their life is like today Columbine: Parents of a Killer.

I suppose everyone searches the faces of killers and other psychopaths trying to find answers. Look into the eyes of this attractive lad; what do you see? I wrote the other day about how evil is in here as well as out there and that the seeds lie ready to germinate if we nurture them. Then there is the question of insanity and whether, through our bent perspective, we would or could nurture them un-intentionally, without volition. Big questions to answer as I look at Dylan Klebold's face and think about his parents who have to deal with these questions every day; unanswered and perhaps unanswerable.

VEEP

There it is right in the New York Times Undeterred by McCain Denials, Some See Him as Kerry's No. 2 or link upper right. There is a great picture of McCain and Kerry in there as well; K is carrying on and McC is slouching in a chair. McCain for Vice President on the Kerry ticket. You heard it here first; well third or fourth. This idea has been kicking around for awhile but was put down to excessive fantasizing. Now it re-emerges.

There was also the idea that Kerry continue to float McCain's name to keep the middle lane of the campaign wide open for all voters, Dem and Repub alike. Whatever it is, the idea will not go away. I think that the underlying message is very important and that is that junior is in bad shape and it is time to put partisanship aside, get this creep and his henchmen out of there and get serious about the war on terror and the many other pieces of business that have been languishing. He has been a serious embarrassment to serious Republicans in the middle and on the right.

There is also a great side benefit to all this speculation and that is to show the serious attraction that the Kerry campaign has for moderate Republicans. He is, if anything, the penultimately Republican Democrat. That is why the left is nervous when he is running in the primaries. The liberal Republican or conservative Democrat is a fine Massachusetts tradition. He has the square jaw and serious demeanor of Leverett Saltonstall; who, incidentally, was a great politician and liberal thinker. He has the twitchy Catholic rectitude of the Kennedys (when they are at their best). I am still not energized by Kerry for a lot of reasons but I am deeply moved by the need to get the de-bushed.

Of course we have to remember that Kerry and McCain are best friends in the Senate and have had many adventures together. Both are tough Viet Nam vets with a point of view. Perhaps this is all a little game between friends to keep the bushers off center and worried about 'what if'. It has to be very unsettling for them; a fusion ticket! Well, so much the better, if that is true. Anything to keep the ball rolling and the boil roiling.

SOS

I am just back from a weird and somehow exhilarating trip to the back yard. Franklin was fussing and had me go out with him--it is 415 AM and dark with beautiful bright stars. He went to the pool and there at the edge is a little mouse or baby rat struggling in the water. He fell in.

It is rather common for this to happen, but usually, we only find the little drowned bodies. Something clicked. Nearby was the scoop net we use to clean the pool. One hand with a flashlight and the other on the net, I scooped the little rat out of the water and dumped him out on dry land--on the other side of the fence. Let him start over in different territory.

I don't know why I saved him. We have spent some time killing the rats that got into the house but it seemed like the right thing to do. Like I said. Weird. And exhilarating.

FILL-IN

I figured I would enter an entry every day and here it is, the end of the day, and nothing to show for it. I have spent the day idly; well not totally. I did the gym, walked Franklin, went to the store, and then read or napped or floated on the pool. I didn't do a lot on the 'net but read through the latest developments. It has been a turned down day.

Now prepping for tomorrow when guests come. Chicken for salad is ready. I can talk and assemble. That is it. No movie for a few days. Good, because CRYPTONOMICON is taking up most of my available headspace.

WIRELESS

I have never exploited my wireless capability until now. For some reason, it has always seemed sort of silly to do the lap thing when there is a big white eMac ready to go. But, I have been watching movies on the lap lately; today was one of those days. I finished the film L'AVVENTURA and was caught in the back of the house while Mari cleans the front so I opened up Blogger and there I am. I have used the 'airport' to look at the 'net but not compose. A first. It works. It is a little slower but that is my Titanium PowerBook G4. I am used to the 1GHz eMac now. OK. That's enough. Let's not go overboard on the techie thing. I am wireless. Can Starbucks be far behind? Sippin' my latté; writin' my story. Bloggin'.

L'AVVENTURA(1960)

Today's movie; NYTimes1000Best; Antonioini; Monica Viti; booed in its Cannes debut, then won the Jury Award for Best Picture. Not much happens in this film but it does happen very slowly. A guy, a girl, and her best friend go for a ride on a boat. The girl disappears. Her guy and her best friend look for her. They have an affair which may be love. No one has any feelings until just at the end. There are a lot of other people equally as jaded and unfulfilled as the two seekers. They do sort of find each other. And so on.

In its time this kind of thing was in the air. It dates. Roger Ebert compares it to LA DOLCE VITA and makes the point that this is the flip side; LDV has juice; this is dry as a bone. It is somehow absorbing but only if your house is being cleaned and you can't leave the bedroom to take a break. I give it a 2outofNetflix5. And no picture. I am so tired of looking at these people that I won't take the trouble to Google them. Sorry.

Oh, They never find Anna the original girl friend. This is good as she was even more bored and boring than the two she left; or did she jump ship? I am looking forward to BLOWUP; other Antonioni best film. Yawn. Actually I saw BLOW UP and it was pretty good. A lot happens.

METAPHORS

I love this comic. This week we kill two birds with one stone; some political commentary and a tract on the perils of home improvement: Dykes to Watch Out: Snug as a Bug. You know these people; hell, you and I ARE these people.

IMPLODE

This from DAILY KOS (link upper right). NBC also reported this morning on major turn for Kerry in the Pew Research Polls which are pretty accurate.

CBS News poll: Bush's numbers collapsing

by kos
Thu May 13th, 2004 at 02:42:15 EDT

CBS News (PDF). 5/11. MoE 5%. (April 4 results)

Do you approve or disapprove of the way George W. Bush is handling his job as President?

Approve 44 (46)
Disapprove 49 (47)

How about the economy? Do you approve or disapprove of the way George W. Bush is handling the economy?

Approve 34 (39)
Disapprove 60 (54)

Do you approve or disapprove of the way George W. Bush is handling the situation with Iraq?

Approve 39 (41)
Disapprove 58 (52)

Do you approve or disapprove of the way George W. Bush is handling the campaign against terrorism?

Approve 51 (60)
Disapprove 39 (32)

Do you think the result of the war with Iraq was worth the loss of American life and other costs of attacking Iraq, or not worth it?

Worth it 29 (33)
Not worth it 64 (58)

Iraq and the War on Terror initially had nothing to do with each other, regardless of how badly Bush and Wolfowitz and Cheney wanted it so. But the administration did their darndest to link the two, and in reality, the two are now indistinguishable.

So as Iraq goes to shit, so does Bush's terrorism ratings. And at the end of the day, his performance on the WOT is all he's got left going for him. He wanted Iraq and WOT linked, and now he's got it.

Worst president ever. Without a doubt.

BUM'S RUSH

You might like this: Media Matters: Their First Ad. This is the new organization of David Brock, the right wing 'turncoat' who wrote the tell-all book about right wing media. It is pretty good. Fire with fire. Rush Limbaugh is such an asshole. I would think he would be an embarrassment to any thinker; right, middle, or left; a shit stirrer with no ethic.

SLOWLY

I have been thinking about the guys, all ballplayers, in BANG THE DRUM SLOWLY (see below). It is interesting that none of them are presented as 'smart' or educated. They are, indeed, wise and intelligent; but they are blatantly common and relentlessly human; a rare commodity in any film role, let alone ten or twelve of them. These frailties are not used to any comic effect in the sense of 'laughing at'. Rather, it is more endearing; laughing with. Everyone knows that they are not the brightest bulb and do not try to mask it. Humility comes to mind.

Yeh, I know this is only a movie but it is one that stuck with me and has levels beyond the story. It is a presentation of a way of life which us educated 'fellers' might want to emulate. Simplicity. What you see is what you get. Enjoying each other as a primary goal. And so on. I think that it is a delicate process to make a piece of art about being uncommonly common and not make it look like farce or making fun of or, worse, corny. The last line of the film is "From now on, I rag no one". It is a great line and one that follows a whole film full of lessons in how that works.

EMAIL

It seems to me that pundits and reporters miss the influence of the stuff that flies over the net as email. Of course you cannot measure or respond to something you cannot see or do not get. Websites are considered a lot and, I think, over-rated in their influence; preaching to the choir.

This piece of work has been sent to me a couple of times. It is thoroughly damning and, as far as I can tell, thoroughly truthful. I have passed it on to others and I never do that. This has to be in the mega millions of proliferation. Does it influence anyone? I dunno. Maybe. Take a look. Does it influence you? Even if you are already in the oppo camp, it will shiver your timbers enough to get you active or insure your voting when the time comes.

George W. Bush--Curriculum vitae
EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE
LAW ENFORCEMENT:
* I was arrested in Kennebunkport, Maine, in 1976 for driving under the
influence of alcohol. I spent time in jail.
* I pled guilty, paid a fine, and had my driver's license suspended for 30
days. My Texas driving record has been "lost" and is not available.
MILITARY:
* I joined the Texas Air National Guard and went AWOL.
* I refused to take a drug test or answer any questions about my drug use.
* By joining the Texas Air National Guard, I was able to avoid combat duty
in Vietnam.
COLLEGE:
* I graduated from Yale University with a low C average. (I'm amazed it was even that high!)
* I was a cheerleader. (How butch, Mary....)
PAST WORK EXPERIENCE:
* I ran for U.S. Congress and lost.
* I began my career in the oil business in Midland, Texas, in 1975.
* I bought an oil company, but couldn't find any oil in Texas.   The company
went bankrupt shortly after I sold all my stock. (Always a winner, that G.W.!)
* I bought the Texas Rangers baseball team in a sweetheart deal that took
land using taxpayer money.
* With the help of my father and our right-wing friends in the oil industry
(including Enron CEO Ken Lay), I was elected governor of Texas.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS AS GOVERNOR OF TEXAS:
* I changed Texas pollution laws to favor power and oil companies, making
Texas the most polluted state in the Union.
* During my tenure, Houston replaced Los Angeles as the most smog-ridden
city in America.
* I cut taxes and bankrupted the Texas treasury to the tune of billions in
borrowed money.
* I set the record for the most executions by any governor in American
history.
* With the help of my brother, the governor of Florida, and my father's
appointments to the Supreme Court, I became President after losing by over
500,000 votes.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS AS PRESIDENT:
* I am the first President in U.S. history to enter office with a criminal
record.
* I invaded and occupied two countries at a continuing cost of over one
billion dollars per week.
* I spent the U.S. surplus and effectively bankrupted the U.S.
Treasury.
* I shattered the record for the largest annual deficit in U.S.  history.
* I set an economic record for most private bankruptcies filed in any
12-month period.
* I set the all-time record for most foreclosures in a 12-month period.
* I presided over the biggest drop in the history of the U.S. stock market.
* In my first year in office, over 2 million Americans lost their jobs and
that trend continues every month.
* I'm proud that the members of my cabinet are the richest of any
administration in U.S. history.
* My "poorest millionaire," Condoleeza Rice, has a Chevron oil tanker named
after her.
* I set the record for most campaign fundraising trips by a U.S.
President.
* I am the all-time U.S. and world record-holder for receiving the most
corporate campaign donations.
* My largest lifetime campaign contributor, and one of my best friends,
Kenneth Lay, presided over the largest corporate bankruptcy fraud in U.S.
history, Enron.
* My political party used Enron private jets and corporate attorneys to
assure my success with the U.S. Supreme Court during my presidential
election decision.
* I have protected my friends at Enron and Halliburton against investigation
or prosecution. More time and money was spent investigating the Monica
Lewinsky affair than has been spent investigating one of the biggest
corporate rip-offs in history.
* I presided over the biggest energy crisis in U.S. history and refused to
intervene when corruption  involving the oil industry was revealed.
* I presided over the highest gasoline prices in U.S. history.
* I changed the U.S. policy to allow convicted criminals to be awarded
government contracts.
* I appointed more convicted criminals to administration than any President
in U.S. history.
* I created the Ministry of Homeland Security, the largest bureaucracy in
the history of the United States government.
* I've broken more international treaties than any President in U.S.
history.
* I am the first U.S. President to have the United Nations remove the U.S.
from the Human Rights Commission.
* I withdrew the U.S. from the World Court of Law.
* I refused to allow inspectors access to U.S. "prisoners of war" detainees
and thereby have refused to abide by the Geneva Convention.
* I am the first President in history to refuse United Nations election
inspectors (during the 2002 U.S. election).
* I set the record for holding the fewest number of press conferences of any
President since the advent of television.
* I set the all-time record for most days on vacation in any one-year
period. (Well deserved, of course.....)
* After taking off the entire month of August, I presided over the worst
security failure in U.S. history. (Not his fault, remember folks there was NO WARNING!  Yep, NO WARNING)
* I garnered the most sympathy for the U.S. after the World Trade Center
attacks and less than a year later made the U.S. the most hated country in
the world, the largest failure of diplomacy in world history.
* I have set the all-time record for most people worldwide to simultaneously
protest me in public venues (15 million people), shattering the record for
protesters against any person in the history of mankind.
* I am the first U.S. President to order an unprovoked, preemptive attack
and the military occupation of a sovereign nation. I did so against the will
of the United Nations, the majority of U.S. citizens, and the world
community.
* I have cut health care benefits for war veterans and support a cut in duty
benefits for active duty troops and their families-in war time. (Very patriotic of him!)
* In my State of the Union Address, I lied about our reasons for attacking
Iraq, then blamed those lies on our British friends.
* I am the first President in history to have a majority of Europeans (71%)
view my presidency as the biggest threat to world peace and security.
* I am supporting the development of a nuclear "Tactical Bunker Buster," a
Weapon of Mass Destruction.
RECORDS AND REFERENCES:
* All records of my tenure as governor of Texas are now in my father's
library, sealed and unavailable for public view.
* All records of SEC investigations into my insider trading and my bankrupt
companies are sealed and unavailable for public view.
* All records or minutes from meetings that I, or my Vice-President attended
regarding public energy policy are sealed and unavailable for public review.