Archive for the ‘oddities’ Category

The Ultimate in counter programing

Posted: December 31, 2010 by datechguy in oddities, media, blogs, culture
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While the rest of us on the right pick apart Colman McCarthy over this Washington Post column Robert Stacy McCain decides in a brilliant bit of counter programing to tackle the issue that has sadly been ignored, namely the best tactics to ahem; stimulate the economy of the movie industry:

The question of what it takes nowadays to get people to go to the multiplex and pay $9 to see a movie they can catch a few months later on HBO or Netflix is a perplexing question for Hollywood. But when a chick says to her boyfriend, “Hey, you want to go see a ballet movie?” it’s kinda helpful if she can follow that up with, “You know, the one with the Natalie Portman lesbian scene.”

He then follows up 20 paragraphs on the cultural history of the “lesbian scene” in print and film including this gem:

It would be a worthwhile project for some “cultural studies” grad student to go through the 1971-79 Penthouse archives and count how many girl-on-girl pictorials they published. And you could probably get a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to do that research.

The irony of course being that you likely could get a grant from the NEH for such research and this is precisely the type of scholarship that our Mr. McCarthy would prefer our kids in college study as opposed to ROTC and the like.

This is usually the hit starved season for bloggers but Stacy knows that the phrase “natalie portman lesbian scene” will generate hits for years to come in search engines not yet invented to shore up his slow days. Why comment on the news of the day when you can make a long-term investment that will guarantee you hits and page views forever?

Update: Nothing like an Instalanche to start the new year, between the 63 (so far) at my party and this it’s quite a start. Don’t forget to tune into WCRN AM 830 tonight at 9:30 for DaTechGuy on DaRadio with DaScienceGuy and Barbara Espinosa of American Freedom. And remember two weeks from tonight Glenn will be my guest on the show (Jan 15 9 p.m. ) Mark that on the calendar! Listen live here. And if you are a business or a blogger looking for hits, you can’t do better than that for a draw.

The story of my parents first date

Posted: December 29, 2010 by datechguy in oddities, personal
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This may sound counter-intuitive but the great skank debate reminds me of this story of my mother’s first date with my father back in 43.

My father had a brother named Sam ( I named my oldest after him) he was never married but was very “popular” as evidenced by the group of elderly ladies in the back of the church that people avoided looking at during his funeral. He also had one son who is one of the best looking men I’ve ever seen.

One day in 1943 my mother was at I believe the Elks club with a couple of girls she knew when Sam came swaggering in. Sam noticing the three of them came over. With the exception of my mother the girls were smitten and were all over him while my mother didn’t give him the time of day. This of course peaked Sam’s interest in my mother to the point where the other girls were displeased ending in one of them spilling a drink on her dress.

After coming out of the bathroom my mother was angry and did the one thing she could think of to get back at the two of them, though uninterested in Sam she agreed to go out with them the following week.

Well Sam being Sam was all hands and although times were different in 43 my mother being my mother was having none of it. Finally she had him pull over, got out of the car and took a Taxi home having enough of his amorous attempts.

When Sam got home his younger brother (my dad) asked how his date when, and Sam answered: “Cripes Dominic I’ve never seen anything like it, let me tell you something; if you want a good Catholic girl, that Mary is the one, she wouldn’t let me get anywhere with her.”

My father laughed, Sam laughed and the both forgot about it.

Two weeks later My mother was at the Elks again, this time with her older sister Grace and her husband. My father (a good-looking man in his own right) walked in wearing his Navy blues and was getting some attention when he noticed my mother.

My father was a much different kettle of fish than his older brother and noting the three at the table assumed that Grace (10 years older than my mom) and her husband (many years older than Grace) were her parents. So he approached the man who would eventually be my uncle and asked permission to dance with his “daughter”. Aunt Grace’s husband was taken aback a sec but decided to have a bit of fun with him and pontifically gave his permission. My father having done what he considered the proper and honorable thing then approached my mother and had this exchange:

Excuse me miss, your father has given me permission to ask you to dance.

(suspicious) My father? When did you talk to my father?

(slightly confused) Just now. He gave me permission so may I have dance?

(very suspicious) What are you trying to pull? My father isn’t here!

(confused and embarrassed) But he’s right there, I asked him and he gave permission (pointing to my future uncle now laughing)

Oh, well that’s my brother in law, not my father, but I’ll dance with you.

My father made a date with my mother for next week but was very embarrassed and told the story to his brother Sam that evening. When Sam asked the girls name he said excitedly “Mary Quartarone? That’s the girl I was talking about! Boy Dominic that’s the girl for you!”

Needless to say things worked out, his future father in law was impressed by the story and my parents were married in 1947 and enjoyed 40 years together until my dad death back in 87.

Why does this remind me of the Assange case? Just this. The best way to avoid a bad situation is to avoid it. The right thing is generally the smart thing and the smart thing would have been not to have Assange in the house. Does that mean the ladies “had it coming”? Certainly not. Does that mean Assange is guilty? I don’t know the facts and frankly neither does anyone outside of the parties involved, but one of the side effects of moral norms are the protections they provide to people.

If Assange is guilty he will hopefully get what he deserves, (and given the damage his wikileaks has done he deserves a lot) but I would suggest to any star struck young lady who finds herself in a social setting with a “player”, that my mother’s 68 year old example is the one to follow.

Let’s stay thankful on Christmas Eve

Posted: December 24, 2010 by datechguy in oddities
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Victor Davis Hanson reminds us that with all the problems we have, we still have a lot to be thankful for:

Could yesteryear’s Great Society have promised nearly all Americans that they would soon have instant information at their fingertips on almost any topic imaginable, from treating migraines to wiring a house to understanding Dante’s Inferno? Surely the kings, corporate magnates, and Wall Street fat-cats of earlier times would have paid fortunes for the knowledge that is now accorded to almost anyone with a computer at home, work, school, or a library, without the need of expensive specialists, scholars, or books.

Today, Americans have cheap GPS navigation systems superior to what jet pilots used 30 years ago. James Bond’s gadgets seem passé compared to the accessories available on today’s iPhones — all made available to us without a government program.

That’s just a start, after a page of examples he concludes with this:

this Christmas we should all at least give ourselves some credit. In the last three decades, the United States — through technological breakthroughs, improved worker productivity, and the importation of globalized production from abroad — has achieved a level of material prosperity for its 300 million citizens unmatched at any time in the history of civilization.

Quite simply, yesterday’s royalty would not make it into today’s middle class.

This BTW was the subject of one of the best articles the web had ever seen a few years ago, if you haven’t read Bill Whittle’s piece from 5 years ago called Sanctuary pt 2 you missed one of the coolest Birthday presents I’ve ever received:

As an exercise in perspective, let’s briefly compare our civilization to another. Let’s compare our supposedly soulless, banal, hum-drum society to the splendors of ancient Egypt.

And let’s tie both hands behind our backs while we do so. Let’s not compare the Great Pyramid to one of our skyscrapers, or airports, or hospitals, or even our shopping malls. Let’s take a moment to compare the Great Pyramid of Cheops with the most common and drab and ordinary structure on the block: The Great Pyramid vs. the 7-11.

Assume that we could transplant a corner 7-11 to the Egyptian desert, with all of the support systems that make it what it is. It is a tiny speck compared to the gleaming white marble sides of the pyramid. It looks small and poorly made. From afar.

Pharaoh comes by barge and litter to inspect the competition, laughing at the mismatch. He and his princes and a retinue of servants approach the plain, unadorned metal doors and step inside.

By the Gods! It is cool inside! As cool as the desert night, here, in the middle of the relentless day! Outside the servants sweat and minor officials fan themselves, but Pharaoh is, for the first time perhaps, comfortable in the middle of the desert sun. He turns to exclaim this wonder to his underlings, and — By the Ghost of Osiris!! The walls! You can see right through them!

Ten seconds into the contest, and already Pharaoh has been rendered mute by miracles.

The full essay is about perspective and continues:

Pharaoh is no longer happy. Like many of that era, he suffers from terrible toothaches. There is so much sand that even the grinding of flour produces bread that erodes the tooth enamel. Pain is a constant companion for him, and like many of his age – like many of every age, before our own – he suffers in silence. That is his life. This, the most powerful man on the planet, suffers just like the poorest. But here, in this bland, ubiquitous convenience store, there is mercy for rich and poor alike. Cold medicine. Medicines to reduce fever. Medicines for toothache, too. And medicine for pain.

In fifteen minutes, this Great Pharaoh will know a few moments free of pain. His children, whom he loves as we love our own – also free of pain.

What would the most powerful man in the world give for such a thing? How much gold? How much land? How many lives?

The pain subsides. And although perhaps not a good or a wise send off for a man with a toothache, the transcendental look of joy on Pharaoh’s face when he first encounters a Coke and a Snickers bar is a sight that his children will never forget. Even after he is long dead, they will always remember him thus, as they ride toward the river on the dark night of the new moon, the little palace glowing in the dark like a beacon visible for fifty miles and more.

Now, on the other hand, the Great Pyramid of Cheops is a massive, beautifully decorated and cunningly designed pile of stones.

Keep all this in mine and remember that 200 years ago, a sea-captain who had the power of life and death over people on his ship, still had to tap his biscuit on the table so the weevils would crawl out before he ate it.

Merry Christmas and let’s be thankful for what we have.

Assorted thoughts as Christmas gets closer

Posted: December 22, 2010 by datechguy in Afghanistan war, oddities, opinion/news, Uncategorized
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Christmas is getting closer, I’m not all that excited about a lot of things today but I have a lot of things I’m thinking about:

Watch Hugo Chavez slowing take absolute power is like watching a horror movie for the 27th time. Every single time you shout don’t open that door” but you know it’s going to be opened. No comment from the Sean Penn’s of the world.

The fact is that the first rule of being a good leftist is the enemy of the US is my friend.

This is one of the reason why Obama drives some on the left nuts, by deciding not to lose the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan he has betrayed them.

And Julian Assagee is driving ultra feminists nuts too, there is a conflict between their belief that America is an evil patriarchy and the idea that almost all sex is rape. It’s for this reason that the left confronted by this conundrum choose to attack…Robert Stacy McCain .

Or Sarah Palin.

The more I read about Arlen Specter the more I’m proud of the tea party that helped get people like him out of government.

Do you remember the conventional wisdom that Pat Toomey couldn’t win a general election? I do. Conventional wisdom is correct until it isn’t.

Then again I thought that three Massachusetts seats would flip, turns out the answer is 1, that is we have lost a democratic seat that will likely end up Red elsewhere.

If I live to be 77 I expect to see Massachusetts with a six seat delegation or less unless we change. I can’t help but think this is good for America as a whole.

I plan a longer post on the subject but someone needs to explain to the left that you can’t vote the dead unless they’ve been born first.

Bill Whittle is a national treasure, and I need to get him on my show.

Yesterday on O’Reilly there were comments on what people gave to charity. I don’t like this. I itemize my taxes but claim no charity, not because I don’t give but because I don’t believe it taking a tax deduction for it. I’ll wager there are a lot of folks like me.

They also played the flash mob Hallelujah choir, I absolutely love that and the silent monk one too. Both are creative.

How much great classical music has it’s roots is Christianity? Must be a conundrum for liberal elites.

I always smile when I get an e-mail from Andrea Shea King, she once did a favor for me that might seem small but meant a lot to me at the time. I’m very sentimental like that.

Can we finally admit that Global Warming/Climate change is a religion?

Considering the geological age of the Universe in general and the earth in particular how arrogant is it that our current “climate” IS the climate that we must maintain?

And another thing, if man is just another animal why is don’t we simply accept that it is our “nature” to “change climate” just like it is like a lion’s nature to eat antelope?

The anniversary of one of stupidest things that elites in this country every came up with Secession was this week. I see a direct line from this to liberals today. I also think that if it hadn’t been for secession and the civil war slavery in America would have continued well into the 20th century in the US until perhaps World War 2.

That deserves a longer essay that I will write later.

Am I the only guy who was not surprised when the North Koreans did nothing after days of bluster over South Korean war games etc?

How exactly does a story end up on memeorandum? It can’t be just hits or Instapundit would be there every day?

I’ve given Hallie Miller a lot of my time lately, she is now in the top 10 (8th in the Explore Modeling contest) in the Savvy Magazine modeling contest. I’ve been fascinated on how close the vote is. There are 351 votes separating the current 12th place lady and the 6th place spot. With under 10 days to go in my opinion no spot outside the top 3 or 4 is safe and I expect a lot of movement in the last few days of the contest to get those 10 winning spots.

Hallie was in the 100’s when she first left a comment on the blog. The irony is that I would have likely help any person who had asked first. Half the battle is showing up.

Barney Frank went on about what did the children of the rich do to deserve their parents money? Tell me Barney what did YOU do to deserve it?

Anyone who thinks that the Military won’t handle the repeal of DADT professionally doesn’t know the military.

I think the MSM and the left aren’t strong enough to force us to lose Afghanistan.

BTW anyone who thinks that Sarah Palin can’t win in 2012 is deluding themselves.

Also anyone who thinks Barack Obama can’t win in 2012 is also deluding themselves.

And if John Stewart actually had political clout outside the elites republicans wouldn’t have won 63 seats.

That will do for now. Read you all later. and go vote for Hallie

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