Word of the Day: Brosher

Bro, that time you puked beer out of your mouth and nose onto me was not brosher.

Your word of the day courtesy of The Nonpopulist is brosher.

Brosher: 1. Keeping within the limits of unwritten and often unspoken etiquette kept among bros. 2. a cousin of the term kosher, but not in a sacrilegious way, rather a totally chill way. 3. ex: True friends know it is not brosher under any circumstances to date a fellow bro's ex-girl.

I coined a new word today (as far as I can tell by searching Google no one else has used it.) What the crap did you do today?

How to keep it brosher: wine, flip flops, and khaki shorts combos.

These guys are putting on a clinic on keeping brosher. I didn't even point out they were next to a large body of water.

With this post I declare The Nonpopulist back in regular posting mode. Actually I plan to turn it up to "beast mode" by posting more than one time a day. We'll see how that goes, though. As NFL season heats up I plan too post a whole lot more over at The Gally Blog including a weekly NFL betting post and a division by division season preview.

Forget Lost, The 24 Series Finale Is Tonight!

Tonight may be emotional for me. 24 has been one of the most bad a$$ shows ever on television, and I have grown quite fond of it. I can't say the same for Lost. I never watched that show and couldn't give less of a crap than I do about it than I do currently. I've known a few people that were obsessed with and swore by the show, but I didn't get in at the beginning. I was planning to catch up with the DVD's, but then I started hearing about a smoke monster, a smoke monster? So this smoke has consciousness? It plans stuff for the people on the island? When does Scrappy Doo start air-boxing the smoke monster? Are you kidding me? You people watched six seasons of that crap? Alright, never mind about Lost. I'm glad it's over. Lost fans (known as Losties *coughqueercough*) are almost as annoying as SEC footballs fans, but not quite complete a$$ douche level like an Arkansas Razorback fan. I think that is probably why I dislike the show so much even though I've never even watched it. I also have a natural predisposition to pick sides. If I don't like something I have an impulse to denigrate it. If I'm into something I sing its praises. I've been told it's an endearing quality. Then again, some guys have been told it's alright if they can't get an erection. Not that I have ever... never mind. Scratch that from the record.

That is probably my favorite 24 animated gif.

24 ends tonight, and say what you will about this season, I am still sad the show is ending. As I have said before a bad season of 24 is better than 85% of the other crap on television. Never has a show so captured the zeitgeist of America like 24 did. Jack Bauer's painful crusades have been cathartic in an age of fear and terrorism. Those of you with fuzzy memories may not recall, but 24 debuted after 9/11/2001 amid controversy. Kiefer Sutherland discusses it a little in this Entertainment Weekly article. I found it odd in that interview what Sutherland assumes after being asked this question:

"What will be the legacy of 24?
That the issues we’re dealing with in 24 no longer exist, and that it is an earmark of a time gone by."

Is it really a "time gone by?" I'm no fear monger, but I'm fairly sure there is no way to declare the issues of terrorism or torture nonexistent. 24 is a reference point on the map of America almost as much as it is on television. Many people have taken issue with the perceived glorification of violence in the show. I always viewed 24 as having all of the issues they were juggling in a good context. Sure, there was violence and torture, but there were also consequences. The good guys won a lot, but in the reality of the show a nuclear bomb was detonated on American soil. The writers were smart. They didn't just have Jack and other CTU personnel torture suspected terrorists and put bullets in people's heads. There was a struggle between right, wrong, and many gray areas. I'm not sure how the struggle will end. Almost everyone thinks the show won't really end tonight since there is a movie "in production." You may think I'm crazy for floating this theory, but I think Jack will die tonight. I think he wants to die. He's tired of killing everything he touches in his personal life. The writers have been writing around this theme for at least two seasons. What if the whole 24 movie were just a ruse to fool us into not believing Jack will die? Remember this is the show where no character was safe except for Jack since he was played by the big star. Now that no one is under contract for a new television season I think Kiefer's character is fair game. If I'm right (long shot) it would be the biggest misdirection in television series finale history.

You've heard of the video game Red Dead Redemption? Renee Walker has a game she likes to call Red Head Erection. She gets me hot.

We know Renee Walker is dead now so if there is a movie who will be Jack's female lead? Chloe and Jack have always been platonic and Chloe is married with a child anyway. I think Chloe is going to be the one to kill Jack anyway. I think Jack will have sort of an assisted suicide, but more like a samurai than Kevorkian style.

Man, I always hated her character, Kim Bauer, on 24, but she sure is easy on the eyes... and my boner. What I'm trying to say is Elisha Cuthbert easily gives me a boner. There, you happy?
Too much boner talk.

Twitdown: Coining a New Phrase for the Twitter Meltdown

We've all seen them. We've all been entertained by them. The Twitter Meltdown. A Twitter Meltdown is when a twitter user busts off a series of inflammatory, defensive, or otherwise spastic tweets regarding something in their online or real life. They often include replies to users and retweets of what people have tweeted to the one melting down with additional commentary. There have been several notable twitter meltdowns in recent memory, but I am not here to name names. I'm here to coin a phrase. I propose that henceforth that we call Twitter Meltdowns "Twitdowns." The economy of space being ever critical when using the micro-blogging site it makes sense to combine and condense whenever possible. I have searched the term twitdown and have not found it used to mean what I am proposing here, but I am open to being shown if someone has coined it somewhere else first. I wouldn't want to be accused of stealing someone else's idea, or I may have a twitdown.


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An Internet Belletrist Creates and Settles an Argument about an Unimportant Topic

Roger Ebert has been carrying on about video games and their status as art it seems since time immemorial. I have tried my best to let it go without comment, but his original post on the subject is dated April 16, 2010. He has since retweeted about it over a dozen times. He won't let it die, and why should he? He has almost 4,000 comments on that entry alone so you can chalk this up to pure envy if you like. You should definitely read his piece since it will help inform the discussion I will attempt to have here and it is well-written, as most of his pieces are. So why would I put everyone's favorite Twitterer and recent winner of the Webby Person of the Year Award on blast? Let me get a few disclaimers out of the way before I go any further:

• I'm not an internet or real life bully by nature, and that is not what this post is about. I take issue at the premise of the argument and why 'video games as art' even needs discussion.
• I have read Ebert's reviews before and enjoyed them. I have also followed him on twitter for several months. I even use to watch At the Movies and liked it.
• No matter what you read after the current bullet list this post is not about hating on Ebert so much as the origins of argument of the video games as art debate. That is to say this is not another 'Ebert is old and doesn't get it argument.' I'm not internet attacking Ebert, but I am also not going to coddle his e-balls like everyone else does. It's like people are afraid to cross him online.
• I am not a hard-core gamer. I don't own a video game console. I have 4 PC games, one of which I play with any regularity, Left 4 Dead 2. Oooohh, I put the title in italics, does that mean it's art now?

The origins of the video games as art debate are suspicious at best. Not that it matters at this point, but a few people spouting off a faulty premise does not an issue that needs addressing make. No one is bringing their video games to Cannes to screen them. The people at EA are not wearing thick black frame glasses, berets, and going to coffee shops to cut themselves. Who said a video game is art anyway? From the second paragraph in Ebert's entry it appears two people on record made that assertion and prompted Mr. Ebert to write a post. I wonder if Ebert knew the all along his entry would be viewed as an attack on video games and cause gamers to put down their energy drinks, come to his blog, and comment so that they may stumble upon something that actually is art and quit wasting their lives playing video games.
Most people play video games simply to shoot shit or gather crystals and orbs to pass the time and have fun.. When I tell a friend about a video game I don't cut off my ear lobe and send them a letter advising him if we play this video game we may be moved to tears and be bosom buddies forever. I send an email and say, "Check out all this shit blowing up and all of these zombies we can shoot. Kick ass, bitch." It's not serious. My friends and I get drunk and play until 3am in the morning about once every two months at this point. We are old enough that it is not a focal point but more of an excuse to hang out and talk shit online- pure mindless entertainment. Even at the point where I was playing video games with the most frequency if someone would have asked me if I thought video games were art I probably would have retorted something like, "Is an anus a vagina? Why are we even talking about this?"
So now that Roger has generated this argument out of nothing, he proceeds to play you all for fools. I'm sure he had to expect people would just call him old and accuse him of "not getting it." Many commenters on his post played right into his hands. He continually pwned gamers short on defenses thought Twitter, the noobs.
The whole argument is pointless, though. Let me see if I can use a correlative metaphorical argument to demonstrate how I see this whole back and forth.

Person 1 (Ebert): "Hey, I don't think Gatorade is soup."

Person 2 (Many commenters on Ebert's video game post): "Really? Well, I never in all my... Certainly it shares so many characteristics with soup. It is made in a similar way. Well, have you tried the new G2? Try that and tell me it's not soup.

Person 3 (me): "It's not soup. It's Gatorade. It's different than soup. They have being mostly liquid in common, but that is about all."

Video games use images and sounds like some forms of art, but it has never even entered anyone's mind that a screen capture of Halo should be hanging in The Louvre. Hey, internet, forks are not combs. Do you want to fight about it? "... but that bird in The Little Mermaid said they were." Yes, I have watched The Little Mermaid, and it was obvious the bird was pulling that statement out of his butt. I have a little sister and growing up I was made to watch the whole Disney animated catalog with her multiple times. The Fox and the Hound will probably still make me cry if I watch it right now. I had almost every line from Aladin and Beauty and the Beast memorized for a while also. Go ahead. Make fun of me. I am so gobsmacked with the internet right now.

4/20 Post: The NFL and Pot and Hypocrisy

To me pot was a high school thing. I haven't touched the stuff since then, so pardon me if I eye roll at the mention of (huh-huh) 4/20. Pot has been making news recently in the sports world and the real world and today being a holiday for dank bakers everywhere I thought I would speak on it.
Alternet is an alternative news website that I check regularly. It's sort of like Deadspin, but with real news. That is a compliment to both sites. The title of this article from Alternet gets you thinking all by itself. Imagine what the article will do to you. "NFL Hates Pot, but Loves Alcohol and Violence." It's true. Look at how many beer sponsors the NFL has. The NFL wants fans to get tanked up on beer at games, but then comes out with a NFL fan conduct policy, the buzz kills. Screw that noise. The last two NFL games I have been to I got plenty drunk and cursed loudly and had a verbal altercation with other fans at one game where I was rooting for the visitor. I made an ass of myself and had a good time. The league's stance on the players is where the main hypocrisy is at. The best line from the Alternet story is

"This is the league’s policy. Go to a club and drink – No problem. Stay at home and enjoy a little marijuana – Get suspended."

 I would add don't sexually assault anyone or get a DUI when you drink and it's all good. Despite the NFL's drug testing policy and consequences to potential endorsements and public image current and potential NFL players still smoke hydro. Deadspin breaks down. how this year's draft class is rumored to have many pot users among them.  How dumb do you have to be to smoke pot when it could ruin your chances to make millions of dollars and be able to smoke pot for the rest of your life after a few years of work?
That's deep, bro. Have you ever thought about, like, how if animals could talk like on cartoons then the world would be in better harmony? Animals could tell us when people are hurting them and the environment. And then we could all just chill, bro. That was my best stoner impersonation. It sucked because I don't smoke pot. Now if it's ever legalized I may have to revisit some high school glory days. I hear a lot more mainstream support for legalizing pot nowadays than I have ever heard before. It may happen one day.

Stupid Baby Names Reaching a Fever Pitch

Hey ladies who are currently pregnant or may become pregnant and significant others, there is not a contest to see who can name their child the dumbest thing. If there were such a contest Gwyneth Paltrow would have already won it when she named her kid 'Apple.' It's getting harder and harder to look at people with a straight face when they tell me they named their child something like 'Maize' or 'Cerulean.' Wait, you named your child after a name for corn no one uses or a crayon color you only get with the really big packs of crayons? Why has naming a child something offbeat moved from mere isolated incidents to an out and out trend? The line is being blurred on what a normal name even is, and I really don't see a reversal in this trend. I'm not saying every boy should be named 'John' and every girl named 'Elizabeth', but 'Toshiba' is crossing a line. You may be wondering why I have a picture of Anna Paquin in this post. Well, besides sexing this place up a bit it is because of this Entertainment Weekly article in which Vlada Gelman discusses the recent spike in parents naming their girls 'Sookie,' the name of Paquin's character on her HBO series True Blood. It doesn't matter how much you like a television show, you don't name your kid after a character on one. Name your pet rabbit 'Sookie,' not your child whom you love and want to look out for. Parents are supposed to feel an obligation to protect their offspring, not make a joke by naming them after a flash-in-the-pan excuse to see some violence and boobs on HBO's Sunday night lineup.
I would give parents who are mulling over names like 'Tangerine' or 'Letter Opener' the traditional warning that naming your child something stupid may get them beat up or made fun of on the playground, but with the proliferation of weird names the kids who have normal names are going to have sore arms from all of the punching. If parents are really having a hard time with names you could just open up the Bible. Nehemiah is a kick ass name.

Bill Hicks Documentary Goodness

One of the news items I gleaned from the never-ending glut of South by Southwest coverage is the Bill Hicks documentary is done and was screened at SXSW. The title is American: The Bill Hicks Story, and it about another comedic mind that was lost too soon. The only release date on IMDB is a UK release for September 1st, 2010, but in this trailer the release date is Summer 2010. Giving yourself a wide berth, are you? Here is the trailer:




It looks like a must-see. Hicks died before I came of age to really understand and appreciate his genius, but thanks to Youtube I have caught up. Be careful before clicking that Youtube link. A day could be consumed on there.

O Florida, Never Change

The south always seems to find a way to not only live up to the heritage it has built for itself but create an ever-growing legend of dumb behavior. I say this as someone who has lived in the south my entire life. Many argue with me and say that Florida is not really the south. To them I say click on this link to a story about a 14-year-old in Florida who was so unsatisfied that his grandfather could not make his four-wheeler (ATV) work that he felt his only recourse was to attack his grandfather with an axe. Also, Florida fought with the Confederacy in the Civil War. That is the major criteria for being considered "southern." Never mind the grandfather had purchased the four-wheeler for his grandson. The result of the young man's failure at life is...

"Cody was placed under arrest and charged with two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, a third degree felony."

 Bravo south, you have done it again. The picture above I borrowed from WarmingGlow.

Alzheimer's Will Ravage This Generation

There is good news and bad news. Which do you want first? Good news: According to this ABC News report by Kristina Fiore having a purpose or goals in life has been shown in studies to "stave off" Alzheimer's. Bad news: Nobody has any purpose in life. We mostly sit around on the internet or our smart phones and get dumb waiting for someone to entertain us. Hell, according to this post at the website insidefacebook.com, Mafia Wars has 6.5 million daily active users. Farmville has over 30 million daily active users. 30 million! Sounds like a bunch of self-motivated, goal-oriented people to me. What I am trying to say is there needs to be more Alzheimer's research because we are all going to have it by the time we turn sixty-five.
Am I the only one that thought people were saying old timer's when I was young? It does affect old people so you can see how I could make that mistake. Do some crossword puzzles like my grandmother does, people. And smoke, she smokes too. And eat oranges and Raisin Bran. Hey, you are the one who said you wanted to emulate my grandmother. O, you said impregnate? I think she is all dried up down there, and you are nasty, dude. Seriously nasty.

Smoke 'Em if You Got 'Em

I thought of a funny addition to the title of this article from USA Today. The original title for the article is, "Obama Still Struggling with Smoking." My humerous rewrite would be, "Obama Still Struggling with Smoking, Being President." Boom, roasted. But seriously, folks, I do not have a problem with your praise or criticism of the president as long as it has some factual, political basis. I encourage people to engage in our political discourse even though most facets of our political process are bull crap. So what if he wants to smoke? So what if he wants to quit? I am tired of smoking and smokeless tobacco being demeaned in our culture. Do we not have free will anymore? In many places one can not even light up in a bar to enjoy their smoking with alcohol. What kind of crap is that?
If you are going to criticize the president, why not do it for something substantive, such as trying to ram a version of health care reform to which there has been the largest grassroots opposition since the Vietnam War? Let him smoke in peace. You people are getting on his nerves, sheesh. This is like when people were criticizing the president for filling out a NCAA tournament bracket last year. Give the guy a break. Let him have a little fun. You only work forty hours a week at your job. He should not have to be on the clock all day either. He should get at least an hour lunch and two, fifteen minute smoke breaks.
Politics is not funny, is it?

The Best News Headline I Have Read in a While

With a title like, "Drinking While Brown (or Gay) in Texas Will Get You Arrested" you have to click to read further, am I right? Racism/ homophobia in Texas? I am as shocked as you are. Texas is traditionally known for big things. I would not know. I think I have been in the state about three times in my life, and I do not recall anything being particularly bigger than usual. But this story is a big freaking deal. Does that count? Texas has the most over-reaching public intoxication laws and according to this story from Alternet by Adam Weinstein those laws are abused in a fairly heinous fashion. I have said this before, and I will say it again. Many cops have a power trip similar to Joseph Stalin, but their job dictates that attitude. They never know when their life will be in danger, so they become dicks as a defense mechanism. If someone looks at a police officer a way the officer does not like nowadays they are likely to be tazed. The officers referred to in this article were arresting people in bars for public intoxication. Yes, that is kind of the point of bars. And I agree, that is about as far-reaching a public intoxication law there can be save Minorty Report-style citing before someone even goes to a bar. The bigger issue is they were targeting latino and gay establishments 'just cause, man, I don't like dem hispanics and queers.' Luckily, the towns in Texas have already protested and received apologies from police chiefs and promises that the public intoxication laws will be reviewed. This seems like it should have been a bigger story, but that is why I go to Alternet, to get big stories that are not reported on widely.
In other, unrelated news, Ron Paul won his Republican primary in a landslide this week. Texans love them some Ron Paul, and I like him more than I like any other politician. That is not saying much, though.

Also, please vote in my poll to the top right as I go through a mid-blog-life crisis.

Elton John Said Whaaaaaat?

Controversial quotes are great if you want to be remembered. Elton John must desire a level of infamy or he may have been high when he gave this interview recently. Here is the actual quote that I predict will only further his gay legend of legendary gayness:

“I think Jesus was a compassionate, super-intelligent gay man who understood human problems. On the cross, he forgave the people who crucified him. Jesus wanted us to be loving and forgiving. I don’t know what makes people so cruel. Try being a gay woman in the Middle East — you’re as good as dead.”

Calling Jesus homosexual? Is that offensive? Faces of death thinks that is in poor taste. What, John Mayer's interview in Playboy did not want any of that? Ha, that was my Jim Rome impression. You probably did not get it, though. It is only fair that Elton John gets to have an opinion on Christianity. Enough Christians have an opinion on his lifestyle to balance things out I assure you. That is not to say his take is correct, though. The idea that Jesus was gay has no basis in historical or religious record, but if you say things while accenting them flamboyantly an education is not required, I guess. Even in the context of the rest of the interview Sir Elton's comments are not supported rationally. The two previous quotes deal with his addiction and psychosis concerning cocaine and how the drug was the building block of all of his romantic relationships. After that base of knowledge I am now supposed to take your views on religion seriously? Just be on your merry way, Tiny Dance, I like William Shatner's interpretation of Rocketman better than your original performance anyway.
Riddle finish: If the theory of intelligent design is false then how did Christopher Hitchens get so damn smart? Think about it. Get to the second level.

Our Stupid Kids Are Stupid and the Future

That makes the future pretty damn stupid. Children in school are mostly stupid. Yes, that was a broad generalization, but you can you disagree with it? I dare you. I have first-hand and second-hand knowledge on the matter. Let me share a little of it with you. I spend time with a group of kids in an informal classroom setting where I am one of the adults that supervises/teaches the group. These are normal kids of various races who do not drool on themselves, but they do have one obvious deficiency. That can not speak. They can not say words clearly. If a teacher's name was Mrs. Johnson they would call her "mi jonsu." They do not know how to say all of the letters. Did these little shits not have phonics in first fucking grade? It frustrates me so because the kids I will have will grow up with little shits probably worse than these influencing them to drop various consonants and pronounce long vowels short and short vowels long in the wrong words. This isn't fahkin Baaaaahstaahn for faaaahhck's sake.
Funny story about Boston: I visited there when I was much younger with my grandmother, mother, and little sister. It was about as much fun as it sounds. We were just a weird southern family in the big city and one night we were getting a pizza and there was some jag-off employee talking loudly on the phone and this is what I hear, "Nancy, are you gonna go to the potty with me tonight or not?" I was young at this time, but I was old enough to realize this was not something that people normally talk about with strangers present so I got my mom's attention and give her a look and a nonchalant nod toward the potty-goer as if to say, "Mom, I know we are in the big city and everything, but why are people talking loudly on the phone about going to the bathroom with other people? Is this one of those times we see on TV when we should be scared in the big city?" My mom reassured me that everything was ok and once we were safe in the car she explained the whole Boston accent thing to me about dropping their "r's" and what not. Thanks to her I was later able to get that Mark Wahlberg joke in The Departed years later. Thanks, mom.

 

I doubt the girl I heard on the phone looked anywhere near this good. This is probably a paid model.

Back to what triggered me to write this post today, click read more below...

Nonpopulist's Browsings of the Day

 

Quality link collection if I do say so myself. I meant to burn off some of these last week, but here they are now. Deal with it. If you are that mad about it then leave an angry comment. I will honestly take any comment I can get. I know people read this because I see the page views, but there are too many chickens with too little to add out there. That probably did not help, did it?

The phrase, "That's what she said," has been overused for several months, but somehow it is still funny to me. Sometimes I do not think things are funny until they are run into the ground, though. That is a me problem.[Huffington Post]

Roger Ebert interviews Leonardo DiCaprio.This is a great interview. Even though Shutter Island did well at the box office a lot of people are saying was not good. Good thing that does not affect me. I will see it because of the good will Scorcese and DiCaprio have built up over time and decide for myself. That is the nonpopulist thing to do. [Rogerebert.com]

Just like Grandma used to make. This seems like good news for bacon. Do I have your attention now? Interesting article by Harry Kreisler of Alternet. [Alternet]

U.S. troops being handicapped during Afghan offensive. After watching Generation Kill and knowing all the mistakes that have been made in Iraq and Afghanistan I understand it, but it is still very difficult for the soldiers. [MSNBC]

Liam being Liam. Liam Gallagher of Oasis fame (American translation- the guy who sang Wonderwall) made a twat of himself at the Brit Awards. What's new? I am an unapologetic Oasis fan even though I am an American. I definitely side with Noel in the breakup of the band. [The Telegraph]

Wow. Just read this. A college professor had his students dress up in a Muslim-style veil for a day. [Alternet]

Danny Glover dancing with predators. Nothing to see here. [FilmDrunk]

A touching passage of prose. Read it if you like quality. [Kelly Oxford]

Tom Morello or Rage Against the Machine is still raging against the machine- thank goodness. [OC Weekly]

We Should Be More Like the Swiss

You may have heard the quote, "I would never invade the United States. There would be a gun behind every blade of grass" from the Japanese Admiral Yamamoto before, but what you may not know is Switzerland has a leg up on even us gun-happy Americans. I got this link to "Why No One Invades Switzerland" from a helpful reader tip. Here's the video embedded at that page from brasscheckv.com.

From that video we learn that the Swiss are required to serve in the military for a time like South Koreans and several other countries, and it got me thinking. Why do we not do that in America? I wanted to go into the military after high school before going to college, and if it was mandatory my mom could not have stopped me. It would help sagging recruitment numbers in our armed forces which have been buoyed some recently by the current recession. A year or two of mandatory military service would help our country by instilling some discipline in and giving a skill set to our young adults. And it would make our country even more unfeasible to invade.

The Underbelly of America's Immigrant Workers

I am excited about the new book, Working in the Shadows: A Year of Doing the Jobs Americans Won't Do. I caught an interview by Bill Berkowitz with the author of the book, Gabriel Thompson, on one of my favorites websites, Alternet.org, in which the author gives a good run-down of the book's subject matter. Thompson went undercover for a year doing the work that mostly immigrants do in America, or the dirty work as I like to call it. The work he details most in the interview is working for a chicken slaughterhouse in rural Alabama, and it was not a pretty picture. He also cut lettuce in Arizona and worked as a delivery person for a restaurant and at a florist shop in Manhattan. As a rule, I like absorbing anything that is going to give me a different perspective and challenge my thinking, and this book appears that it will do that to a tee. I plan to pick it up. It is going on my list right after the 87 other books I have been meaning to read.

Super Bowl Commercials Are Gay Anyway

People who go to Super Bowl parties or watch the Super Bowl just for the commercials are infuriating enough, but the fact that people discuss commercials before or after the game... *pow, right to the moon.* Domestic abuse references aside, I hate commercials regardless of race, creed, color, political preference, or religion. The nauseating stir surrounding the Super Bowl ad space (which I will use to get food, beer, and relieve myself) this year is CBS is planning to air a pro-life ad featuring Tim Tebow while, at the same time, balking at showing an ad for a gay dating website. BFD! Is their money not green too? It is not as if the singular viewing of this commercial will turn all of our children into homosexuals thus ensuring the extinction of the human race. GLAAD is now calling CBS homophobic for their hesitation at running the ad. That makes me laugh. Have you ever thought about how homophobe and racist are two indefensible accusatory names? If someone calls you one of those two names, how would you defend it? "I have a gay friend" or "I have a friend of a different race than myself" are too cliched to work. CBS is in a precarious position, but not from me, I do not care what commercials you run because I will not be watching them.

Breaking News: NBC Hates My Demographic

TMZ has just broken a story about Conan O'Brien that is disconcerting for me. The rumor is that there could be a shakeup in late night television at NBC. Since it is NBC you can be safe in assuming the decision will probably suck ass. Jay Leno's show will go on hiatus for the winter Olympics in February and then after the Olympics is over Leno will be placed back in the 11:30 EST time slot for either 30 minutes or an hour. If it is an hour then TMZ reports that Conan will be out of a job. That is a travesty. Anyone who knows me knows I am a big Conan fan. I and many like me have grown up watching Conan's comedy and are very attached and loyal to him and to have him jerked out from in front of us now, when he has reached the pinnacle in late night, is a travesty. I am taking this serious because even though I basically loathe TMZ they know their stuff and probably have great sources. Therefore I am declaring a holy motherfucking jihad on NBC and Comcast's ass. The first step is speaking the television executives' language which I did in the title of this post with the word demographic. The next step is to contact NBC and let them know they will be screwing up if they mess with our Conan. Click here and tell NBC how you feel by clicking on the drop-down box and choosing "Tonight Show Conan" and filling out that form. We can not let this aggression go unchecked, people! When I figure out more to do I will be sure to update.

How Racist Is Your Subconscious?

This test designed by Harvard is designed  to determine how racist your subconscious is. Go to the site and click on "Demonstration" then "Go To Demonstration Tests" then "I wish to proceed" then choose one of the tests. I am not sure if the tests are truly scientific, but I see what they were working for. Maybe if they change the order around or made it more random somehow. I do not know exactly how to make sure it is scientific, but I could almost predict which pattern they were going to be set up in. I think the bigger issue, though, is not fault with their method, but the assertion that everyone is in some part racist. I agree with the assertion but not necessarily with their method. It is still cool. I plan on taking more tests. Here is the link:
http://implicit.harvard.edu
Thanks to Sole for posting this link on his twitter @mcsole.

2010 Declarations

2010 is going to be big. I have a feeling, and I have pretty good instincts usually.
2010 is about knowledge and action. I plan on owning myself and not paying mental rent to corporate presidents.
In 2010 I am about lighting up suckers, knocking out chumps, smoking fools, and then talking noise about it.
2010 is the time to quit believing the hype. Think for yourself, be true to yourself, be independent.
2010 is the time to get more independent from institutions, people, and ideas that make us codependent, especially the government. I do not need you to survive, endless bureaucracy. The people are retreating. I heard a smart man, Jack McLamb, say, "We've got the jury box, the ballot box, and the cartridge box." That is all we have left.
In 2010 I want the real revolution, which is the evolution of the mind.
I'm open to what 2010 has for me, and I will open up 2010 to what I have for it.
If you can not tell I have been watching a Public Enemy concert on my DVR.