Caught About a Boy last night (thus missing Game 1, which is just as well), and while it was quite good for its genre (and Hugh Grant was surprisingly palatable), I do have some problems with its underlying premises. Mild spoilers to follow for those who haven’t seen it or read the book. Anyway, why was Grant’s character a “nobody” because he didn’t work for a living? Since when is one’s identity primarily formed by holding down a job you hate? A man should be more than the sum of his consumer choices, to be sure, but it seems to me he’s more of an individual for having decently informed opinions about books, music, and television than he would be for joining the rat race. (I guess that puts me in the High Fidelity camp.) Of course this wasn’t the only component of his ultimately invalidated “island” philosophy, but it still bugged me. I don’t remember the protagonist of Hornby‘s book being nearly so shattered by his presumed nothingness. I dunno…perhaps it’s where I’m at right now, but I think there’s much more to be said for striking out on one’s own. The kid was good, though. And Rachel Weisz is always easy on the eyes.
Month: June 2002
la soeur mal gardee.
Gill gets props for her premiere in la Fille Mal Gardee last Sunday.
Hail to Seamus.
The Clintons get a new dog.
Religion in the void.
An Israeli astronaut attempts to figure out how best to observe Shabbat in space. (Via Looka.) Just think how complicated it’ll get when we start orbiting other stars.
Liberals v. Progressives.
McCain-Feingold draws fire from liberal interest groups for choking off their money supply. Well, that was kinda the point, wasn’t it?
Doh.
Republican Mitt Romney’s bid for the Massachusetts governorship is complicated by his paying (significantly lower) Utah taxes the past three years.
President Rudy?
Giuliani appears to be spending his 9.11 mojo on possibly replacing Cheney in 2004. And we all know where that will lead.
Paradigm shift.
Atomic clocks in space might prep the way for post-Einstein revisions to the laws of physics.
How ’bout them Yanks?
With a slew of aerial volleys, America upsets Portugal 3-2 in their World Cup opener. And, unlike the fluke Colombia win in 1994, the US actually looked dominant throughout the game. With Ireland mustering a 1-1 tie against Germany, it’s been a good day for my teams.
Technical Foul.
Who knew Ralph was a Sacramento fan? Nader gets on the NBA about the lousy officiating in Game 6. Great stuff.