(a) Dick Cheney
(b) Donald Rumsfeld
(c) Charles Graner
(d) George W. Bush
(e) none of the above
there is a reason why The Pentagon screened The battle of Algiers in 2003. the flyer for the screening read:
Children shoot soldiers at point-blank range.
Women plant bombs in cafes.
Soon the entire Arab population builds to a mad fervor.
Sound familiar? The French have a plan. It succeeds tactically, but fails strategically.
To understand why, come to a rare showing of this film."
commissioned by the Algerian government, based on the memoirs of one of the rebel leaders, directed by Gillo Pontecorvo, scored by Ennio Morricone, The battle of Algiers is a riveting film.
the movie chronicles the uprising of the Casbah, an episode in the Algerian war of independence. the uprising uses urban guerrilla tactics against the French authorities
the local police is overwhelmed. soon, a battalion of French paratroopers arrive in Algiers with a plan and a strategy
I don't often talk about movie 'extras', but I'll make an exception for this movie. The Criterion release of Battle of Algiers consists of three discs: the movie is in the first one, the second has a long interview with director Pontecorvo and technical details of the film, the third goes into questions of warfare and national security. all three discs are must-watch.
I should have done more animal posts. Oh well, there's always next year. It was a bit weird to be posting every day. I used to do it all the time, even several posts a day. I guess I've just been in the low part of the posting cycle for an extended period of time this time until NaBlo came around again.
Anyway, congrats to all who made it through. Go us!
Now I'm off to study. And get something to eat. And study. Tick tock, tick tock.
I leave you with today's superpoop. Go ahead and click on it - it's the funneh.
It's a bright Autumn morning in the small town of Chester's Mill. Claudette Sanders is having a flying lesson and Dale Barbara is hitching a ride out of town. Neither make it to their destination...
Inexplicably, an invisible barrier had descended over the town. a woodchuck is chopped right in half; a gardener's hand is severed at the wrist; the plane explodes and Dale Barbara, Iraq war vet turned short-order cook, is forced to turn back into the town he so desperately needed to leave
As the residents speculate about what has cut them off from the rest of the world, the Army searches for an inside man. "Barbie" is put in charge. But Big Jim Rennie, the mad who holds the town in his powerful grip, has other plans. And the Dome could just be the answer to his political prayers.
As food, electricity and water run short and children start to have premonitions of a terrifying Halloween, Barbie is forced to take on Big Jim, and his renegade supporters. Now time is running out for those under the Dome. Can they find out what has created in before it's too late?
Stephen King's mesmerizing new masterpiece - his biggest, most riveting novel since The Stand - features spectacularly sinister characters and a terrifying phenomenon. Under the Dome is a high-octane thriller, an apocalyptic vision and a fascinating allegory on a tyrannical state of political darkness.
Loved it. It is mesmerizing, it is big and, after an initial hiccup a little way in, it is riveting. The speed of moral decay is frightening and the division between Law and Order scary beyond measure. Buy it. Borrow it from the library or a friend (I'm in Harrow, if you wanna borrow my copy) - whatever. Just read it. It is good.
Or maybe not.
Was Thanksgiving really just a few days ago? Wow. It's a distant and faint memory to me now. I think I'm losing my mind a little bit, but not as much as Memory Man from Friday. That seems like it happened forever ago, too. I'm not sure if that means I actually have punched through the space-time continuum, one of my life dreams, but it works for me.
I didn't get much of anything done this weekend but I had a good time. 'Sall good.
I forgot to pack my lunch today which ended up being fine because I also forgot I have a lunch meeting. Good thing he called to confirm. See - life works itself out on its own without my need to fret over it.
Here's another example of how time and the universe like to work in harmony for our benefit. This ad featuring Tiger Woods ran in today's WSJ.
Later, gators!
Here's how I'm doing so far:
Books read in November: 22
Books read in 2009 so far : 245
Money raised so far: $360.25 (mostly promised; $100 officially donated on my First Book page so far)
Best books read in November: Fallen (Lauren Kate), Under the Dome (Stephen King), The Secret of Joy (Melissa Senate), Mudhouse Sabbath (Lauren Winner), A Friend of the Family (Lauren Grodstein) and UR (Stephen King).
What I'm looking forward to in December: the new Sue Grafton book.
In case you are curious to see what I've read so far, visit this page.
If you would like to donate to First Book now instead of at the end of the year, you can access my (currently ultra-generic) page here. You can also donate in installments, which is what I'm doing. :)
Finished Reproduction is the Flaw of Love by Lauren Grodstein.
This is completely unlike her other novel, A Friend of the Family.
Miller and his girlfriend Lisa might be about to become parents. The novel takes place during the time while he buys the test and then while they're waiting for results. While he's waiting to learn if he's about to be a father or not, he reflects on his life, his ex-girlfriend Blair (who he still loves) and Lisa.
I think A Friend of the Family is the better book but this is the easier read. Either way, both are worth reading.
I biked for 20 minutes and treadmilled for 20 minutes!
It felt good.
Now out to change the pond filter once more before it snows! And to take the chickens some leftovers from Thanksgiving. They love the rutabaga and corn.....there's a few crumbs of pumpkin pie and other stuff that isn't fit for human consumption which the chicks will enjoy, too! :)
My father called my sister last week and left her a voicemail that went something along the lines of this:
Oh hi S, just calling to see if I could catch you today. I'm going up to Sam's Club to pick up a pie. Hopefully I can talk to you later. I love you very much. Oh, by the way H.J. was given six months to live. [click]
Sigh. That's my father for ya. Of course, Sister and I always joke about his ineptitude at delivering bad news - or any news for that matter, and this was no exception, however, I am really saddened by this revelation.
I did talk to dad yesterday and got the whole story on H.J. H.J. is a friend of our dad's from way back when. I always was fond of H.J., he never talked down to Sister or me (as some adults do when you're a kid) and he has a couple of sons who were a lot of fun to hang out with when we all got together.
He served in Vietnam and was exposed to Agent Orange...Agent Orange that is now going to take away his life from him while he's still in his 50's. He was on a marrow transplant list, but they decided the other day to take him off of it and gave him 6 months to live. Apparently the cancer has spread like wild fire, he even has lumps growing off of his back and under his arms.
Apparently, the VA had to fight just to get the government to acknowledge that Agent Orange was the cause in order for him to secure the treatment he's had to date. Of course, I don't have all the details on this piece of it, but why does it have to be this way?
The way our government treats our soldiers as disposable is deplorable. I understand that it's a soldier's job to put his life on the line, but what about when that soldier survives the war? Why aren't we taking better care of them? These are the types of issues that have always severely bothered me in general, but now I see it happening to a family friend and it makes me ashamed, sad and utterly helpless. By the end of my conversation with dad, who is also a Vietnam Vet, we were both crying.
Veterans deserve our attention every day, not just on a designated holiday. Read the news, pay attention, write to your congresspersons and do what you can to ensure that not only are our soldiers treated fairly in the field, but that our veterans are taken care of for life. It's the least we can do for what they do for us.
Welcome to the House of Dying Appliances.
Dishwasher -
Dead and gone. Sadly, not actually gone - still waiting for the delivery of new Dishwasher and collection of old Dishwasher. This should have happened Saturday, but we have heard nothing. I hate Currys!
It died last week, so I have had a whole week of washing up for six people. Bugger that - now I remember exactly why I got a Dishwasher in the first place.
Fridge-Freezer -
As you know, this is not that old. So when the fan started making a terrible, grating whirring sound, we were worried. Fortunately this is still under Manufacturer's Warranty, so we just had to make a calll. Simple - well, no. Because my life does not suck enough. I phoned the Repair Line, told the nice lady all about my troubles, she said "OK I will put you through direct to the manufacturer's Repair Centre". But she screwed that up, and put me through to the Parts Department. No, I want an Engineer. So I call the Repair Line again, only to be told the computers had crashed, and to phone back later.
So I did. And the lady at LG said "What is the serial number of your fridge?"
Well, I do not know that.
"It will be on the left hand side" she said.
So I looked, and looked, and looked. And failed to find it.
"Well, I am very sorry", she said, "I must have that before I can book an Engineer Visit."
I was gutted. Than I liooked again and thought "Fuck - mayber I should get Left and Right tattooed on my hand"
That was on Thursday. All is good now - the man cam this morning and fixed the fan. Verdict - don't put so much in your freezer that air cannot circulate. Whoops! OK, I will be more careful in future.
Washing Machine -
This died Saturday morning, just as I put a load in. And we do all the washing for the six of us on Saturday / Sunday / Monday due to working the rest of the time. So I phoned my Washing Machine Repair Man, who said he should be able to do it Monday but he is having an operation on Tuesday. So I am waiting to hear from him. Fingers Crossed!
We had a shitload of washing - siz bags, and one laundry basket. I spent three hours at the laundrette (and may I say thank goodness for laundrettes!). It was so freaking BUSY in there, and hot. And expensive!
Vacuum Cleaner -
We bought this, and it was crap. You need training to use it properly and if I get the kids to vac, they break the band that turns the beater, so it stops being any good for pet hair. I finally said I must have a new one, when it, too, died. What is it with this house this past few weeks? Luckily, someone we know runs a business selling and maintaining professional vacuums (for hotels, conference centres, anywhere they use lots of cleaners and need them to be ready to use at all times). So he is selling us one, cheap, and we get it later today.
I hope the Appliance Killing Field leaves the area soon.
Links from my Family
This is what it looks like. I know what you are thinking...
Sarah Palin's "Going Rogue"...
A look at Palin's most frequently used words capture some...
When people think offensive remarks about homosexuals,...
Child protection or censors...
In effect, she [ Beth Cook] removed the book from circula...
"How Do You Draw Asian Wome...
beautiful eyes...big beautiful lips....mountains of hair....
