I have been a little occupied with work recently but today I had a conversation about the most powerful scene in television history. Some said the final scene in Lost, some said the series finale of M*A*S*H, I countered with the carousel scene in the season finale of the first season of Mad Men. I defy you to watch this scene and not at least on some level get a little emotional. Be it from the superb acting in this scene or from some memory long seemed lost that is evoked by the brilliant writing and Jon Hamm's masterful performance.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=suRDUFpsHus
"This device isn’t a spaceship, it’s a time machine. It goes backwards, forwards. It takes us to a place where we ache to go again. It’s not called the wheel, it’s called the carousel. It lets us travel the way a child travels. Round and around and back home again to a place where we know we are loved."
Truly powerful.
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Enough is Enough
America is said to be the home of the free, the land of the brave, a place where all people are accepted regardless of their sex, race, or religion. Oh, I’m sorry I think I am wrong on that last part. That’s the message that you receive if you listen to the maniacal and downright disgusting teachings of one Reverend Terry Jones of Gainesville, Florida. If you’re not caught up on what this idiot is trying to accomplish, he has planned a burning of the Quran on the ninth anniversary of September 11th. His reasoning? An idiotic cry of “Islam is of the Devil.” No backing up his claims other than the attacks of the September 11th.
First of all people of all races, religions and genders died when the cowardly attacks were launched. So to proclaim it as a crime against Christianity is just plain stupid. This was an act of aggression against America. To proclaim something like that disrespects the memory of the diverse array of people who unfairly lost their life the day the towers fell, the pentagon was hit, and flight which fell in Pennsylvania. People like “good” reverend don’t understand is everything wrong with the world is not the fault of Muslims. We Christians do more than our fair share of messed and frankly downright sadistic things. But he does not lump us all together, nor should he. Don’t our Islam following brothers and sisters deserve the same respect? I think Stanley Fish of the New York Times said it best.
“The formula is simple and foolproof: If the bad act is committed by a member of a group you wish to demonize, attribute it to a community or a religion and not to the individual. if the bad act is committed by someone whose profile, interests and agendas are uncomfortably close to your own, detach the malefactor from everything that is going and characterize him as a one-off, non-generalizable phenomenon.”
I think what upsets me most is that this is just the latest in long line of examples of an anti Islamic sentiment in this country. From mosques being criticized and labeled as terrorist training camps to stabbing of cab drivers it has reached a boiling point. The sad part is these are the people who proclaim themselves to be most American, choosing to forget that this country was founded as a refuge from religious persecution. That whether you agree or not, man has the right to choose what brings him peace. Muslims could judge us for the actions of Adolf Hitler or Timothy McVeigh, but we aren’t.
Every group, no matter who you are has an insane person in it. Usually it leads to a lot of talk, but every so often a tragedy occurs because of that person’s insanity. You can’t blame an entire culture for the actions of one disturbed person.
Truth.
First of all people of all races, religions and genders died when the cowardly attacks were launched. So to proclaim it as a crime against Christianity is just plain stupid. This was an act of aggression against America. To proclaim something like that disrespects the memory of the diverse array of people who unfairly lost their life the day the towers fell, the pentagon was hit, and flight which fell in Pennsylvania. People like “good” reverend don’t understand is everything wrong with the world is not the fault of Muslims. We Christians do more than our fair share of messed and frankly downright sadistic things. But he does not lump us all together, nor should he. Don’t our Islam following brothers and sisters deserve the same respect? I think Stanley Fish of the New York Times said it best.
“The formula is simple and foolproof: If the bad act is committed by a member of a group you wish to demonize, attribute it to a community or a religion and not to the individual. if the bad act is committed by someone whose profile, interests and agendas are uncomfortably close to your own, detach the malefactor from everything that is going and characterize him as a one-off, non-generalizable phenomenon.”
I think what upsets me most is that this is just the latest in long line of examples of an anti Islamic sentiment in this country. From mosques being criticized and labeled as terrorist training camps to stabbing of cab drivers it has reached a boiling point. The sad part is these are the people who proclaim themselves to be most American, choosing to forget that this country was founded as a refuge from religious persecution. That whether you agree or not, man has the right to choose what brings him peace. Muslims could judge us for the actions of Adolf Hitler or Timothy McVeigh, but we aren’t.
Every group, no matter who you are has an insane person in it. Usually it leads to a lot of talk, but every so often a tragedy occurs because of that person’s insanity. You can’t blame an entire culture for the actions of one disturbed person.
Truth.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
My opinion on the subject everyone has been talking about
Over the past few weeks there has been a downright disgusting turn in the American discourse regarding a certain hot topic and regarding a certain person in our American family. The person I am referring to is Michael Jordan and the topic is of course mustaches. That’s right mustaches.
Recently my favorite basketball player has come under a little bit of scrutiny for his stache. Why you may be asking. Because his mustache is of the Charlie Chaplin variety. That’s right the Charlie Chaplin mustache. I am taking it back from those have chosen to give that facial hair style a negative stigma just because a certain murderous dictator decided to rock the same style. Why should one hair choice be demonized because one homicidal douchebag decided to make some reprehensible decisions that affected so many people.
The bald white guy look isn’t referred to as the Mussolini, if so we never would have had the delightful career of one Bruce Willis, Jason Statham or the most critically acclaimed actor of them all Stone Cold Steve Austin. The chubby Asian man isn’t demonized because of Pol Pot. Had it been would we be enjoying the enchanting performance by Ken Jeong every week on Community? (NBC, Thursdays this fall!) I think not.
So due to this I have decided to call this glorious piece of facial hair the “Charlie Chaplin” from the delightful silent film star. That’s right, Chaplin came to national prominence before the Austrian ass clown and unfairly has had his mustache choice du jour demonized ever since his rise to power. And in memory of the actor I am taking back the facial hair that he so resplendently made famous and not some dick who was a coward and flunked out of art school.
I’ll end by saying this, Brett Favre you can go and suck it.
Recently my favorite basketball player has come under a little bit of scrutiny for his stache. Why you may be asking. Because his mustache is of the Charlie Chaplin variety. That’s right the Charlie Chaplin mustache. I am taking it back from those have chosen to give that facial hair style a negative stigma just because a certain murderous dictator decided to rock the same style. Why should one hair choice be demonized because one homicidal douchebag decided to make some reprehensible decisions that affected so many people.
The bald white guy look isn’t referred to as the Mussolini, if so we never would have had the delightful career of one Bruce Willis, Jason Statham or the most critically acclaimed actor of them all Stone Cold Steve Austin. The chubby Asian man isn’t demonized because of Pol Pot. Had it been would we be enjoying the enchanting performance by Ken Jeong every week on Community? (NBC, Thursdays this fall!) I think not.
So due to this I have decided to call this glorious piece of facial hair the “Charlie Chaplin” from the delightful silent film star. That’s right, Chaplin came to national prominence before the Austrian ass clown and unfairly has had his mustache choice du jour demonized ever since his rise to power. And in memory of the actor I am taking back the facial hair that he so resplendently made famous and not some dick who was a coward and flunked out of art school.
I’ll end by saying this, Brett Favre you can go and suck it.
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