Welcome To Traitor Talk With Rush Limbaugh

Unamerican Rush Limbaugh tells America how much he thinks about their economic recovery hopes under the elected President of the United States. Bipartisan politics are more important than your mortgage, education, job or retirement, it turns out.

North By Northwest, Word By Word

I spent last night watching the Hitchcock classic North by Northwest, and reading the script as I did so. That was a blast I'd recommend to anyone interested in movies or writing or just interested in doing something fun.

On the page, you can interpret lines of dialog any way you like, but when you hear Eve Marie Saint actually say them aloud, you're forced to change your own mental performance and weigh hers more carefully, reading intellectual and emotional nuance as she had intended. Cary Grant is always great, and in a role that is a maybe a little too innocent on the page, he manages to keep you believing in his character. The plot is full of improbabilities and impossibilities, but the performances help make the ridiculous real; at least they're "real" in the heightened reality of Planet Hitchcock.

Many screenplays are available online for free, and many more can be found on ebay and in specialty stores, both online and brick and mortar. You might enjoy the experience of reading along with one of your favorites, or with a respected classic you might not know as well.

As a bonus, I give you Seth Rogen as Cary Grant in NXNW from an issue of Vanity Fair last year.

Are Violent Video Games Adequately Preparing Children For The Apocalypse? ONN Report

Are Violent Video Games Adequately Preparing Children For The Apocalypse?

A Helpful Hint

I've been plagued by a terrible, musty odor in my apartment since last week's flood from the apartment above. I had a fan running 24/7 for a few days to dry things out, but the funk remained. I did a little research on the internet, and following the advice of more than one website I bought a small bag of charcoal briquettes last night. I opened the bag, poured half the contents into a paper grocery bag and put it in the closet. The websites said that the charcoal would begin to absorb the odor and would have a noticeable effect within 24 hours. It's been about nine hours and the smell has diminished almost completely! This is incredible.

What's more, you can leave a bucket or bag of charcoal almost anywhere for up to six months, and the charcoal will continue to absorb moisture and odor. It's a great idea for long term storage, keeping your furniture or other belongings damp and odor free for as long as you like, providing you swap out the charcoal twice a year. You can then use the used charcoal to barbecue if you like.

I wish I'd done this last weekend. What a relief!

Eyes, Nose, Ears, Mouth- The Face of Jordan Brown.

Empty.

Look at this picture of eleven year old Jordan Brown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. What do you think you can discern about this boy based on this photograph alone? He's in trouble now, but what kind of trouble?

Did he steal the family car and drive it to the toy store? Did he hire a stripper for his eleventh birthday party? Did he illegally download music and games from the web?

Would you guess this boy is being charged as an adult for the premeditated shotgun murder of his father's pregnant girlfriend? Jordan Brown allegedly used his Christmas gift shotgun (!) to kill 26 year old Kenzie Houk after first taking care to cover the shotgun with a blanket to conceal it as he carried it through the house.

"Houk was eight months pregnant with Brown's father's child, and also had two daughters, 7 and 4, who lived in the rural home with the Browns where authorities said she was slain as she lay in bed about 8 a.m. Friday."

"...the boy hopped onto a school bus with Houk's oldest daughter, police said. He was picked up from school several hours later after some tree trimmers called 911 when Houk's youngest daughter told them she thought her mother was dead."

Psychotic behavior. Clearly, this kid is troubled. You might even call him a monster, but his father surrounded the boy with guns, and didn't try to keep the guns locked away, and Houk's brother in law said:

"Jordan had told (my son around Christmas) he was going to pop Kenzie in the head and pop both kids. We didn't believe it. ... We told Chris (Jordan's father) and Kenzie and they didn't believe it."

So, Jordan's father has failed this sick little boy time and time again, and failed his girlfriend, fatally. And yet, according to this story, he will not be charged with a single thing. Lawrence County District Attorney John Bongivengo said:

"Should he have had the guns locked up? Yeah, obviously. On the flip side, he lost his girlfriend, his newborn and now his son is facing life in prison without parole. I think his punishment is enough at this point."

He added, by way of a partial explanation:

"In this area, in Lawrence County, it's not unusual for a boy that age to have a gun and know how to shoot it. This is a hunting and fishing community."

Here's some more information, courtesy of the AP.

Robbed.

Mickey Rourke: Robbery Victim.

Playboy Losing Its Mojo?

Reports seem to indicate Playboy magazine is going tits-up.

The house that Hef built has posted losses of over $150 M for 2008, making it a poor risk for investment and a poor brand to call on for other opportunities. With an octogenarian readership and nothing to stimulate their own package, Playboy looks to be headed for the attic footlocker of publishing memory.

There go the seventies.

Movie Recommendations

Recently, I've watched a ton of movies. That's right, I've watched 2000 pounds of movies.

Some of these were excellent, some merely good to great. None of them was bad, since I don't watch bad movies if I can at all help it. If something starts to suckin' I turn it off, simple as that.

Recently watched and enjoyed: The Wrestler, Waltz With Bashir, Vicky Christina Barcelona, Sabrina (the Bogart/ Hepburn/ Holden/ Wilder one, not the more recent version with Han Solo in it), Slumdog Millionaire, Casablanca, Gone Baby Gone, The Country Girl (excellent), The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, To Catch A Thief, The Conversation, Helvetica, Sons of the Desert, Robocop, Sunset Boulevard, West Side Story, Chicago, The Story of Three Loves, An American in Paris, Dr. Strangelove, Teacher's Pet, Stepbrothers, Pineapple Express, Safety Last, Gone With the Wind, Run Lola Run and Lawrence of Arabia. Many of these I saw on Turner Classic Movies, the single best reason to get basic cable. Classic movies, uncut and commercial free.

I'd recommend any and all of these movies. Some of them I've seen numerous times, some were new to me. Believe it or not, this was my first viewing of Lawrence of Arabia and The Conversation. That's what is so great about movies: there are always more old movies you haven't seen before. And more great new movies coming out every week. It's mind-boggling.

I don't have much to add; this post is just sort of a mash note to movies. Still the safest way to travel.