Dark Knight Review

Let me start out by saying that the only way to see this film iMax. The iMax experience is definitely worth the extra money.

Overall, I feel a little indifferent to the film. Ledger nearly hit a home run as the Joker, but he's not on screen with Bale enough. There are tidbits of intensity between the two here and there, but a lot of the screen time seems like filler when waiting for intense verbal exchanges between the ultimate comic book villain and Batman.

Aaron Eckhardt did a great job as Harvey Dent/Two-Face, but the cgi effects used on his face were a little too over the top and could have been done far more realistically. Its a shame because Eckhardt would have been great in a sequel. He would have been a real asset to a follow-up.

Bale seemed to be very plastic and reminded me of his performance in American Psycho. He lacks a lot of emotional range. I guess a film like this has to cut out more of that kind of character development to please the wider audience.

All of that said, the film is definitely a must-see. I give it a B+.

Free 3G iPhones for Congress in Return for FISA Capitulization?

I finally figured out why Congress caved on the president's FISA requests. The answer: free 3G iPhones for all those who voted for FISA courtesy of AT&T. Incidentally, John McCain requested a rotary dial iPhone.

Next time you see your favorite Congressman cruising the beltway they will be doing it in style. God Bless America.

What Ever Happened to Single Earner Households?

The Fifties seem like a golden age in America. Perhaps I am guilty of giving too much credence to the popular memory, but at one time didn't most families have only one working parent? If you want a clear barometer of how the economic landscape of the U.S. has changed it would certainly seem logical to speculate that it would be almost impossible for most families to survive on one income.

How did such a shift occur and how did it occur so rapidly? The results have to be detrimental in terms of the socialization and development of children. The dual-income household which is now the standard has given rise to a whole host of problems. These certainly may include health and education.

The dual-income reality means that parents are less likely to make home cooked meals and instead opt for take-out on the way home from the daily commute. The dual-income household also gave rise to latch key kids.

Gee Wally, how the hell did mom and dad do it?

Million American March?!?

I want to start building the momentum for a million American march on Washington to demand responsible government. We need to get past all of the partisan nonsense that has been used so skillfully and successfully to divide and conquer the American people. We are so busy bickering about things like abortion, gun rights, and gay marriage that we allow ourselves to be manipulated by people who have blind ambition and cunning. While we fight over these issues they are taking our civil liberties, fiddling with the economy(poorly), and turning us into nothing better than the 21st century version of share-croppers.

Spread the word, the clamor of a million voices in Washington crying out for change cannot be ignored by those who have sullied the name of this great nation. God bless America!

FISA Passed 69-28

Words cannot begin to describe the feeling of dread in the pit of my stomach. Hillary out of nowhere came out and voted against cloture, and I threw my vote away on Obama.

FISA Isn't the Only Threat

freedomworks.org — Help stop this legislation! Hidden deep in the Senate housing legislation is a sweeping provision inserted by Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA) that affects the privacy and operation of nearly all of America's small businesses. There is a good chance that we can still stop this, but not without everyone's help.

http://freedomworks.org/petition/grassley/index.html

The Audacity of Hype

Am a an idiot for having the audacity to hope that Barack Obama was a different kind of politician. He certainly had me going for awhile.

The New York Times wrote today:

"The new Barack Obama has abandoned his vow to filibuster an electronic wiretapping bill if it includes an immunity clause for telecommunications companies that amounts to a sanctioned cover-up of Mr. Bush’s unlawful eavesdropping after 9/11."

I began this primary season as a Ron Paul supporter, but after McCain grabbed the nom early on I reluctantly switched to Obama and even voted for him in the Texas Democratic primary and caucus.

The campaign finance flop didn't really bother me all that much, though it did bring his integrity into question. It would have been a foolish maneuver for Obama to accept public financing given his ability to raise money on the web.

His flip-flop on FISA however is a deal-breaker for me. If he refuses to come out against FISA I will refuse to vote for him in the general election. Not to say I would cross-over and vote for McCain, who is even worse. I can't vote for Bob Barr either due to his voting track record.

If only I was old enough to write myself in.