Haunting the Web Since 1999
Unearthed from the collection of amateur photographer George Jefferies, a new 8mm film of Kennedy in Dallas comes to light. “The silent, 8 mm color film is ‘the clearest, best film of Jackie in the motorcade,’ said Gary Mack, curator of the Sixth Floor Museum, which focuses on Kennedy’s life and assassination.” Also, via Ted, Case Closed author Gerald Posner parses the footage.
“Gilliam came nearest to inventing his own country with Brazil (1985), one of the key political films of the late 20th century. Brazil is one of the great political films, an extraordinary mixture of Fellini and Kafka, with a complex force of synthesized images, which belongs to Gilliam alone.” In Slate, critic Clive James assesses Brazil‘s take on torture, and what Michael Palin’s Jack Lint does and doesn’t tell us about the men usually holding the implements.
“‘This is something important, something he was focused on, something he was angry about,’ Fitzgerald said. ‘He had a motive to lie, and…he stole the truth from the justice system.'” The Scooter Libby case goes to the jury, and his flailing defense team doesn’t sound too confident: “‘If you’re not sure, that’s not guilty,’ said attorney Theodore Wells Jr. ‘It’s impossible to say with any degree of certainty that Mr. Libby is engaged in intentional lying.‘“
“What all of this means is not that Basra is how we want it to be. But it does mean that the next chapter in Basra’s history can be written by Iraqis.” While the Dubya administration continue to press for its “surge,” Prime Minister Tony Blair announces the withdrawal of 1600 troops from Iraq, leaving approximately 5,500 British soldiers in the now Shiite-controlled region of Basra. [video.] “Anthony Cordesman, an Iraq expert at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies, said though the British and American strategies appear to be opposite, they will achieve the same end: a consolidation of Shiite power in Iraq. The British have already acquiesced to a ‘situation of quiet sectarian cleansing’ in the south, and their decision to pull out of Basra simply marks ‘acceptance of a political reality’ of Shiite control in the region.“
At the halfway point and in their first-game after the All-Star Break, the Knicks knocked out their 24th win of the season against Orlando last night, 100-94, thus eclipsing last year’s woeful 23-59 full-season record under Larry Brown. I haven’t been posting about them much, but thanks to the magic of TiVo I’ve watched a lot of games this year, and there are definitely causes for hope among the Knicks nation, even if there’s not much chance of a serious playoff run, or even a playoff spot, this year. No, I haven’t climbed aboard the Isiah bandwagon, and I think we’d be better if he was gone from the Garden next year. But, in the emergence of Eddy Curry as a semi-consistent offensive force in the post, and the solid play of the second-years — most notably rookie/sophomore game MVP David Lee, who leads the league in shooting percentage and is a prime candidate for six-man of the year, the Knicks have a foundation to build on for the first time in a good long while. Let’s just hope Isiah doesn’t make any more panic trades that lock us in with overpriced underperformers — see Steve Francis, Jerome James, Jalen Rose, Penny Hardaway, Antonio McDyess, Vin Baker, Glenn Rice, Luc Longley, Shandon Anderson, Howard Eisley, all since Patrick left in 2000 — for the next 4-6 years.
“To not utilize that station the way I think it ought to be utilized is just wrong.” Forty-five years to the day after his historic orbit, space pioneer and former US Senator John Glenn makes a case for the International Space Station.
“A drop of Budweiser (the ‘King of Beers’) immersed in mineral oil will form a beautiful 4 sided pyramid with sharp edges. Tiny bubbles accumulate at the top of the drop acting like a buoy that pulls on the droplet to create the growing pyramidal shape. The bubble cluster eventually spouts off in unison to the surface.” Robotics engineer and old college friend Danny Sanchez has recently created VideoPhysics.com, a site containing mpgs of various scientific properties at work, all demonstrated with the safe confines of the Sanchez Laboratories. Check it out.
The last thing I or my dissertation needs right now is another MMORPG. Nevertheless, as my sis-in-law points out, the free stress test for Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar is this weekend, if anyone out there is so inclined. (Right on top of Comic-Con? Boo hiss.)
I know on this front I’m a very late adopter (although not the Late Adopter.) Nevertheless, since my local Blockbuster, which was only slightly farther away than my mailbox (particularly when you factor in Berk‘s walking needs), has now gone the way of the Betamax, I’ve signed up for Netflix, in the hopes of maybe edumacating myself about some of the films I really should’ve seen prior to now. Let me know if you want to share lists and/or become Flixfriends, or whatever it’s called. (And, yes, I know Blockbuster has long been a suspect company, but they hired me for my first job during a summer back in high school, so I’ve given them more credit than they’re due for years now.)
In the trailer bin today, Homer and family are ready for their close-up in the third preview for The Simpsons Movie, due out this summer. And Shaun of the Dead/Hot Fuzz‘s Simon Pegg embarks on a ruthless fitness regime, tiny shorts and all, in the new You-tubed teaser for Run, Fatboy, Run.
