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A thought for George Lucas…   Those who failed to oppose me, who readily agreed with me, accepted all my views, and yielded easily to my opinions, were those who did me the most injury, and were my worst enemies, because, by surrendering to me so easily, they encouraged me to go too far… I was then too powerful for any man, except myself, to injure me. —Napoleon Bonaparte, emperor of France (1769-1821)

So can someone tell me who thought this was a good idea in the first place?!?   Plan for 'terror market' canceled   Let me get this straight, the Pentagon was planning to set up an online futures market to "help predict future terrorists strikes"? Sounds a lot like the Hollywood Stock Exchange , except instead of using play money to bet on which movie or actor is doing well this month, here we'd be using real money to speculate on who's going to take a bullet or get blown up next!   Browsing the article, it comes as no surprise to find out that "the Policy Analysis Market is under the supervision of retired Adm. John Poindexter, the head of the Terrorism Information Awareness program and, in the 1980s, national security adviser to President Reagan."   DARPA and John Poindexter… in an administration that's been stunningly arrogant when it comes to foreign policy, these guys just managed to set the bar that much lower.

The hazards of blogging while distracted…   “But I’ve come to the realization that lately I understand a lot more about writing and storytelling and what works and does not work for me. I simply don’t have any more patience for scenes, acts, moments or effects that don’t serve some purpose in the story.”   Ok, that may well be one of the most obvious statements I’ve ever made. Or at least it reads like one. What it sounds like I’ve said is that if the scene doesn’t serve some purpose in the story, then I don’t have any patience for it. Well, duh! If it doesn’t serve any purpose in the story, it doesn’t belong there in the first place! So patience doesn’t even enter into it.   What I meant to say was that I don’t have a lot of patience with these overly long action sequences if there’s nothing going on in the scene that propels the story. The scene itself may move the story along, but the scene can still be too long if all the elements of the scene aren’t moving the story along

My Shakespeare moment at the movies today…   As I sat through the seemingly interminable mess of destruction that is the first third of Terminator 3 , I couldn’t help but think of William Shakespeare’s famous movie review…   “…it is a tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing.” (That’s from Macbeth, act V: sc 5,in case you were wondering.)   Admittedly, Will was actually talking about life here and applying this line to anything as banal as the ephemera passing itself off as movies this summer is really trivializing the sentiment behind the quote, but it really just seems to sum it all up for me.   (I do have to say that the ending of T3 really surprised me and was probably the perfect ending for that film, so it went a long way toward saving the film for me.)   But I’ve come to the realization that lately I understand a lot more about writing and storytelling and what works and does not work for me. I simply don’t have any more patience for

And while we're on the subject of annoying politics…   "Already $38 billion in the red, the state is expected to have to finance a $30 million referendum on a governor who was just elected last November." (from NYTimes Backer of California Recall Feels Heat Directed at Him )   Yeah, good choice. Let's waste another $30 million on a pointless recall. What the hell are we having elections for in the first place, if any a-hole with enough money can finance a recall simply because he doesn't like the governor? (I heard Bill Maher on KROQ the other day commenting on this one—"it's like the Republican party is willing to do anything they can to get in office… aside from actually winning an election." I think I like Bill Maher again.)   The only good news in that whole article is that the moron pushing it (Representative Darrell Issa) is virtually unknown by voters in recent polls. Hopefully, we'll all be smart enough to reject this waste of ti

Not that taking down these 2 goons isn't a good thing…   But isn't this a little premature?   Bush Declares End to Saddam's Old Regime   Bush: Saddam's 'regime is gone'   I mean, yeah, you got a couple of the kids, but no-one knows for sure what's up with Daddy, do they?   I'm just saying. (But then, Bush doesn't really seem to sweat the details much, does he?)

I’d claim I’m embracing my liberalism…   But really, I’m just afraid of the ultra-conservatives that seem to be driving Washington these days. So, a couple of things that I think are important right now…   Oppose the Federal Marriage Amendment: “Anti-gay extremists, stung by the U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down sodomy laws and by Canada's recognition of same-sex marriage, are mobilizing. Their vehicle is the Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA), and Senator Frist, the Senate majority leader, has emerged as their spokesperson. 37 states have adopted "Defense of Marriage" laws in the last seven years, and the federal DOMA passed overwhelmingly, so FMA is very much of a threat.”   Freedom To Read Amendment: One of the many abuses of our civil rights built into the Patriot Act allows the FBI to conduct secret searches of individuals' library and bookstore records without even suspecting the person of a crime. This amendment to an upcoming funding bill atte

Kinda says it all, doesn't it?   "Seriously. We're talking about 'Charlie's Angels.' Who cares about the story?" —Cameron Diaz, after being asked to describe the plot of her new movie.   MSNBC.com, July 10, 2003.

This is an enhancement ?   "Under a system deployed on the White House Web site for the first time last week, those who want to send a message to President Bush must now navigate as many as nine Web pages and fill out a detailed form that starts by asking whether the message sender supports White House policy or differs with it.   "The White House says the new e-mail system, at www.whitehouse.gov/webmail , is an effort to be more responsive to the public and offer the administration "real time" access to citizen comments.   "Completing a message to the president also requires choosing a subject from the provided list, then entering a full name, organization, address and e-mail address. Once the message is sent, the writer must wait for an automated response to the e-mail address listed, asking whether the addressee intended to send the message. The message is delivered to the White House only after the person using that e-mail address confirms it.   &q

Hey, who knew Tony Blair did stand-up?   "The prime minister also thanked Congress for awarding him the Congressional Gold Medal, though he joked that he had mixed feelings knowing the first one had gone to George Washington for helping drive the British out of Boston.   "Blair also delivered a personal apology for the British burning of the Library of Congress in 1814. “I know this is kind of late, but sorry,” he said as lawmakers laughed."   Bush, Blair defend war in Iraq

Just 'cause it doesn't always have to be politics…   The great tragedy of science—the slaying of a beautiful hypothesis by an ugly fact. —Thomas Huxley, biologist and writer (1825-1895)

And speaking of irony…   Last week I was talking about Michael Chabon's new book, McSweeney's Mammoth Treasury of Thrilling Tales and its stated goal to reinvigorate the plot-driven short story. When I read the intro, with Chabon's description of the current short story market as filled with "stories that are plotless and sparkling with epiphanic dew", one of the first stories that came to mind was the movie Wonder Boys . A friend of mine had gushed over this movie before it came out and told me I had to see it. When I went to it, I discovered it was another in the seemingly endless “university professor in midlife crisis surrounded by hot undergrad” stories. I understand why these stories are so popular… I mean, look at how many authors ARE university professors who have either experienced the midlife crisis surrounded by hot undergrads, or have witnessed others going through said experience. So, copping to the truism that “you write what you know” sooner or

I was just going to ignore this…   But REALLY… don't you people have better things to do with your time?!?   Fans Ask FCC To Investigate 'Idol'

More fun with WMD…   Go to www.google.com   Then type: "weapons of mass destruction"   Don't press SEARCH; Click the "I'm Feeling Lucky" button   Read the whole error message carefully   And the links are great fun, too.

Ok, so I haven't posted one of these in at least a day or two…   The only sure bulwark of continuing liberty is a government strong enough to protect the interests of the people, and a people strong enough and well enough informed to maintain its sovereign control over its government. —Franklin D. Roosevelt, 32nd US President (1882-1945)

At one point, I think I respected Spike Lee…   Lee Cites Free Expression, Drops Suit "As an artists and a filmmaker," Lee's statement goes on, "I feel that protection of freedom of expression is a critical value and I am concerned that my efforts to stop Viacom from using the Spike TV name could have the unintended consequence of threatening the First Amendment rights of Viacom and others."   I thought the lawsuit was BS to begin with (sorry Spike, you can't copyright a name, not even your own) but the settlement and this statement just show how BS the whole thing was.

Why do they keep talking to this man?   "Maybe this is just my esoteric theory, but it could be that people just feel like doing something else than going to the theater," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of Exhibitor Relations. "Maybe they did so much moviegoing last year that they're burned out." ( Is this a lousy movie summer? )   Earlier this week, Dergarabedian said he couldn't understand the dip in summer movie revenues this summer. And THIS is his theory on the problem?   "Maybe they did so much moviegoing last year that they're burned out."?!? Come on Paul, get a clue! The only thing people are burned out on are too many pointless freaking sequels and no damn content to the movies. (The poll on CNN lists "Too many dopey sequels" at 40% of "what's wrong with this summer's movies", followed by high ticket prices at 29% and "too much FX, not enough people" at 21% of the problem).   Get a cl

So how's THIS for irony…   The other day I was in the bookstore browsing, looking for something—anything—interesting to read and I stumbled on a new anthology edited by Michael Chabon (the guy that wrote The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay ). Chabon's new book, McSweeney's Mammoth Treasury of Thrilling Tales is a short story anthology with this simple concept: “…the stories are driven by adventurous plots and narrative action, in contrast to the current trend toward stories that are ‘plotless and sparkling with epiphanic dew,’ as Chabon writes in his introduction.”   “About time,” I thought. Being a confirmed “genre fiction” reader (and writer), I find that a lot of modern fiction—the stuff that gets filed in the literature section, as opposed to SF, Mystery, etc—bores me senseless. I’m tired of the slice-of-life character study… the “triumph through adversity, oh but I learned who I am” type of stuff. Give me a little action (and plot), actual storytelling

Maybe Lincoln was wrong…   You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time. Abraham Lincoln   According to a July 2 Gallup poll, three out of four American have concluded that the President is a “strong and decisive leader,” and 65 percent think he’s “honest and trustworthy.” Those are bankable numbers in political terms, encompassing many voters who don’t agree with his policies. Never mind that Administration officials might not have been telling the truth about what they really knew about WMDs in Iraq in the lead-up to war. Forget the shameless accounting gimmicks in the tax-cut legislation Bush signed last month. He’s widely seen as a strong leader trying to do a good job. (from MSNBC News Article Is Bush a shoo-in for 2004? )   Well, I guess since these percentages aren't 100%, we'll have to grant that Lincoln was probably right, but still… 65% of those surveyed thought the Preside

And then there's stuff that isn't about writing…   Authority without wisdom is like a heavy axe without an edge: fitter to bruise than polish. —Anne Bradstreet, poet (1612-1672)   And we all know who we're talking about here!

Can I help it if I like cool quotes about writers?   The great mass of human beings are not acutely selfish. After the age of about thirty they abandon individual ambition — in many cases, indeed, they almost abandon the sense of being individuals at all and live chiefly for others, or are simply smothered under drudgery. But there is also the minority of gifted, wilful people who are determined to live their own lives to the end, and writers belong in this class. —James Joyce, Irish novelist and short-story writer, "Why I Write", 1946   It doesn't hurt that Joyce was a brilliant writer.

And, in recent movie news…   Movie revenues this summer are running about 5 percent behind last year's, said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations. "I really don't know why. That's the million-dollar question, or hundred-million-dollar question," Dergarabedian said.   Terminator 3' Annihilates Competition   Those of us actually attending the sequel-heavy, CGI-laden, story-free dreck coming out this summer could probably tell you why, Paul. But nobodies really listening, are they?   (Those of you paying attention will notice that this is the second time in as many posts that I've bashed on the whole CGI thing. Don't get me wrong, I have no problem with good CGI—when it serves the needs of the story. The problem here is that it's pretty much taking the place of story, character, plot and anything else that goes into good movie making. CGI for CGI's sake is pointless. So let's get back to making mov

McG Throttles Hot Wheels…   In the June issue of Cinescape magazine, in the Development Heck section, they've got a quote from McG talking about the new Hot Wheels movie, which he says will have "all the warmth and humanity of your favorite James Dean movie…"   After seeing the utterly soulless CGI fest that is Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, this really is the height of irony.

Wow, a whole week's worth of good news…   Well, at least a couple of days worth. Last week it was the Supreme Court smacking down the Texas anti-sodomy law , then today I find these two articles in the New York Times:   New Wal-Mart Policy Protects Gay Workers   Court Orders Removal of Monument to Ten Commandments   Maybe there's hope for the country after all!   Of course, I could be wrong. After all, there's this bit of news as well: Senate Majority leader Bill Frist endorses ban on gay marriages   So okay, it's not all good news. There's still hope. And I'm clinging to that idea.