Book Review: TV'S GREATEST GAME SHOWS

I’ve always been a fan of game shows. The best game shows aren’t just entertaining, but include an element of education, whether through trivia, word games, or musical memory. I’ve auditioned for several game shows, but have never been selected as a contestant. I also enjoy watching episodes of old game shows. The best ones are still entertaining today. Some of the best game shows ever to air on American television are reviewed in TV's Greatest Game Shows.

The book begins with a preface by the author where he discusses his love for game shows and his experiences on trying to get on JEOPARDY! and WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE? An introduction follows that gives a short history of U.S. game shows.

Each of the games reviewed begin with a snapshot of the show’s main credits: the dates the series aired, the network the show aired on, the hosts of the show, the series creators, the show’s producers, and the show’s director. If a show was revived or aired on a different network, that information follows the credit info about the original show in the same format. Following the credit info, there is a short synopsis about the show. Depending on the popularity or impact of a game show, the synopsis is as short as a paragraph or as long as several pages. Usually some bits of trivia or lines from the show are included. There’s also a section discussing some of the most famous of game show hosts. Shows included in the book range from AMERICAN GLADIATORS to JEOPARDY! to MATCH GAME to PASSWORD to WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE to I’VE GOT A SECRET.

The book is really easy to read. Like the best game shows, I found it both entertaining and informative. TV's Greatest Game Shows makes a great reference guide about game shows as well as a nice gift for anyone who enjoys game shows.

The Death of Western Philosophy

--from The Wild and Twisted World of Rubes by Leigh Rubin

Winnie the Pooh in an "Argyle Sweater"

--from 50% Wool 50% Asinine by Scott Hillburn

Reading CRAZY LOVE

A few months ago, a good friend sent me a copy of CRAZY LOVE. It's a book I had been wanting to purchase myself, but never had, yet. I read the introduction about a month ago, but because of a show I was involved with, I never got any farther than that. I continued reading the book last week and have finished the first chapter.

I know I've just read the first chapter, but the book is a great book and one I highly recommend. It's encouraged me about the way I've tried to live my life, while at the same time challenged me to live even deeper. The overall message of the book is one that is relevant to both people who are "new" Christians and those who have been believers most their lives. I think believers around the world can take something away from the book, but it's clearly aimed at American Christians.

As a way to increase interaction, Francis Chan made several videos to accompany the book. These videos are free, short, and can be found online not only at the website for the book, but on YouTube, too. Here and there, as I'm reading through the book, I'll post one of the videos. The one below goes with Chapter 1. It raises some good questions. Tell me what you think.

The Lincoln Family in "The Argyle Sweater"

--From 50% Wool 50% Asinine by Scott Hillburn

Children's Book Review: A DELUGE OF DOGS

In the world of children’s publishing, one of the easiest books to write and publish is the alphabet book. Alphabet books are supposed to be designed to help children learn the alphabet by having a line or lyric about each letter. Take, for example the classic, “A is for apple, B is for ball, C is for cat, etc.” I’m not a very big fan of alphabet books. The majority of them tend to be trite and drivel that really don’t attempt to contribute to expanding a young person’s (or a person learning English) knowledge of the English language. On the other hand, there are some alphabet books that though they don’t contain any great word play, they are filled with gorgeous illustrations that are works of art. It is rare that one comes across and alphabet book that tries something different, has great illustrations, and is fun to read for both kids and adults. A DELUGE OF DOGS is such a book.

The book takes the concept of the alphabet book and ties it together with dogs. Kids love dogs and many adults do, too. However, the author takes the concept one step further by using some entertaining wordplay through the use of alliteration, assonance, and rhyme. There are 26 different dogs in the book, each beginning with a different letter of the alphabet. The words that the author uses with the names are unusual and great for expanding one’s vocabulary. A few examples include “A is for Astro aglow in a tree”, “Q is for Quentin quenching his thirst”, and “X is for Xerxes exhorting a yak.”

Accompanying the H.C. Fargot’s text are the vibrant illustrations by Wrolf Bronesby. Not only are the illustrations works of art in themselves, but they give the words an added layer of meaning. For instance “M is for Murphy making ends meet” we see the dog Murphy sniffing the rear end of another puppy and in “R is for Riley realizing the wurst” we see a dog named Riley running down the street with a link of sausages in his mouth.

Alphabet books are a dime for a dozen, but A DELUGE OF DOGS is a superior alphabet book that both children and adults will enjoy reading and looking through.

THE ARGYLE SWEATER Meets VeggieTales

Another strip out of 50% Wool 50% Asinine by Scott Hillburn.

More Thoughts About the Dumbest Generation

"The decline of school-supporting leisure habits--lower reading rates, fewer museum visits, etc.--created a vacuum in leisure time that the stuff of youth filled all too readily, and it doesn't want to give any of it back. Digital technology has fostered a segregated social reality, peer pressure gone wild, distributing youth content in an instant, across continents, 24/7. Television watching holds steady, while more screens mean more screen time. What passes through them locks young Americans ever more firmly into themselves and one another, and whatever doesn't pass through them appears irrelevant and profitless. Inside the classroom, they learn a little about the historical past and civic affairs, but once the lesson ends they swerve back to the youth-full, peer-bound present. Cell phones, personal pages, and the rest unleash persistent and simmering forces of adolescence, the volatile mix of cliques and loners, rebelliousness and conformity, ambition and self-destruction, idolatry and irreverence, know-nothing-ness and know-it-all-ness, all of which tradition and knowledge had helped to contain. The impulses were always there, but the stern shadow of moral and cultural canons at home and in class managed now and then to keep them in check. But the guideposts are now unmanned, and the pushback of the mentors has dwindled to the sober objections of a faithful few who don't mind sounding unfashionable and insensitive."

p. 200 of The Dumbest Generation by Mark Baurerlein

Thomas Has a Very Valid Point

I'm named after the Apostle Thomas and portrayed him once in a short musical. I love this comic. I found the comic online here.

Another Argyle Comic

- from the book 50% Wool 50% Asinine by Scott Hillburn

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD comic

Here's a funny "Argyle Sweater" comic parodying To Kill a Mockingbird. It's from 50% Wool, 50% Asinine by Scott Hillburn.

Some Thoughts About TWILIGHT and Christianity

A man I respect introduced me to the following video. Whether you agree or disagree, it does raise some very interesting points that are worth thinking about, discussing, and contemplating.

Some Words From THE DUMBEST GENERATION

Even though I have a mountain of other books I'm reading, I recently came across this book, The Dumbest Generation by Mark Bauerlein, and purchased it to read. Even though I'm not currently teaching, I try to stay abreast of educational trends, theories, etc. as well as what young people are into. The book is chock-full of facts and figures about the young people in our country and how instead of becoming more intelligent they are actually becoming more ignorant. What follows are a few quotes from the introduction to the book.
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"We have entered the Information Age, traveled the Information Superhighway, spawned a Knowledge Economy, undergone the Digital Revolution, converted manual workers into knowledge workers, and promoted a Creative Class, and we anticipate a Conceptual Age to be. However, overhyped those grand social metaphors, they signify a rising premium on knowledge and communications, and everyone from Wired magazine to Al Gore to Thomas Friedman to the Task Force on the Future of American Innovation echoes the change....

And yet, while teens and young adults have absorbed digital tools into their daily lives like no other age group, while they have grown up with more knowledge and information readily at hand, taken more classes, built their own Web sites, enjoyed more libraries, bookstores, and museums in their towns and cities...in sum, while the world has provided them extraordinary chances to gain knowledge and improve their reading/writing skills, not to mention offering financial incentives to do so, young Americans today are no more learned or skillful than their predecessors, no more knowledgeable, fluent, up-to-date, or inquisitive, except in the materials of youth culture. They don't know any more history or civics, economics or science, literature or current events. They read less on their own, both books and newspapers, and you would have to canvass a lot of college English instructors and employers before you found one who said that they compose better paragraphs. In fact, their technology skills fall well short of the common claim, too, especially when they must apply them to research and workplace tasks.

The world delivers facts and events and art and ideas as never before, but the young American mind hasn't opened....

Teenagers and young adults mingle in a society of abundance, intellectual as well as material. American youth in the twenty-first century have benefited from a shower of money and goods, a bath of liberties and pleasing self-images, vibrant civic debates, political blogs, old books and masterpieces available online, traveling exhibitions, the History Channel, news feeds...and on and on. Never have opportunities for education, learning, political action, and cultural activity been greater. All the ingredients for making an informed and intelligent citizen are in place.

But it hasn't happened....They have all the advantages of modernity and democracy, but when the gifts of life lead to social joys, not intellectual labor, the minds of the young plateau at age 18. This is happening all around us. The fonts of knowledge are everywhere, but the rising generation is camped in a desert, passing stories, pictures, tunes, and texts back and forth, living off the thrill of peer attention. Meanwhile, their intellects refuse the cultural and civic inheritance that has made us what we are up to now."

A Couple of Star Wars Videos.

Here's a couple of funny Star Wars related videos. The first is from the zany people at Improv Everywhere who go around New York performing seeming "random" acts of "improved" hilarity.

The second is from the folks at CollegeHumor.com. It pokes fun at some of the "myths" surrounding Sept. 11th by using Storm Troopers talking about the destruction of the Death Star.

Final THE WIZARD OF OZ Reminder

A final reminder, tonight is the beginning of the final weekend for The Wizard of Oz. If you're anywhere near the area (Highland, IL), you'll want to stop by.
I hear the Cowardly Lion would win an Arts for Life Performance award if Highland, IL were 4 miles closer to Clayton, MO. You really don't want to miss out.


The Wizard of Oz
Produced by Hard Road Theatre in association with the Highland Arts Council and sponsored by Scott Credit Union

Final Performances:
Fri., Aug. 6, 2010 @7:30 P.M.
Sat., Aug. 7, 2010 @7:30 P.M
Sun., Aug. 8, 2010 @2:00 P.M.

All performances are held at the Upper Elementary Auditorium, 1800 Lindenthal Ave., Highland, IL 62249.

Ticket Prices: $9 adults, $8 seniors, $7 children

For more information go to www.hardroad.org

Another Oz Comic

Here's another THE WIZARD OF OZ comic strip. This one's from the book The Wild and Twisted World of Rubes by Leigh Rubin.

At the Other Premiere of THE OTHER GUYS

So, late yesterday afternoon I went with my brother to St. Louis. St. Louis beat 19 other cities out in an online voting contest to hold the Other Premiere for THE OTHER GUYS, a new movie starring Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg. Ferrell and Wahlberg were scheduled to make an appearance and my brother is a huge Ferrell fan. The red carpet line-up was scheduled to start at 7:30P.M.

The first celebrity to appear was one that was completely unexpected: the one and only Don King.

The radio DJ's who were emceeing the event were completely caught off guard by that one. They weren't as surprised when a couple of expected guests arrived shortly after: Ozzie Smith & Mayor Francis Slay.

The DJs recoginzed some St. Louis Blues players, but they had no idea who any of the St. Louis Rams were, including offensive lineman Phil Trautwein who was dressed in a giant Elf costume. Poor Rams. Maybe if they'd win more than 1 or 2 games a season, people would start caring about them again.

After a couple of hours waiting near a barricade (and seeing one woman almost faint from heat exhaustion nearby), Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg finally arrived.

The Mayor gave them keys to the City of St. Louis. Ozzie Smith gave them Cardinals jerseys with his number, but with their names. Someone from the Rams gave them Rams jerseys. They chatted for a bit. Then they "drove away" apparently to return to the theatre to take some questions from people who were lucky enough to get in to see the movie. Overall, it was quite a memorable evening.

OZ Reminder

Just a reminder, tomorrow is opening night for The Wizard of Oz. If you're anywhere near the area (Highland, IL), you'll want to stop by. The show's worth watching just alone for the performance of the actor portraying the Cowardly Lion. I hear he is amazing.


The Wizard of Oz
Produced by Hard Road Theatre in association with the Highland Arts Council and sponsored by Scott Credit Union

Performances: Fri., July 30, 2010 @7:30 P.M.
Sat., July 31, 2010 @7:30 P.M.
Sun., Aug. 1, 2010 @ 2:00 P.M.
Fri., Aug. 6, 2010 @7:30 P.M.
Sat., Aug. 7, 2010 @7:30 P.M
Sun., Aug. 8, 2010 @2:00 P.M.

All performances are held at the Upper Elementary Auditorium, 1800 Lindenthal Ave., Highland, IL 62249.

Ticket Prices: $9 adults, $8 seniors, $7 children

For more information go to www.hardroad.org

President Obama on THE VIEW?

This morning as I looked at the news blurbs from Yahoo! News one in particular caught my eye: "Obama opens up on 'The View'". I did a literal double-take. I thought to myself that there's no way that could be correct. But, it was. The President of the United States appeared on morning television at a women's coffee klatch.

Seriously?...Come on, really?... Seriously???

Barack Obama is the President of the United States. I opposed him when he was a candidate, but he won. Even though I disagree with many of the policies and laws he's campaigned Congress to enact, I've tried to give the man the respect that a person in the Office of the President deserves. I pray for the man. But when you are the President of the United States and you are a guest on "The View" you not only set yourself up for ridicule, but it shows nothing but disrespect and disgrace for the Office of the President. You make yourself not only to be a laughingstock, but also the Office of the President in general and by extension the entire United States. It leaves me flabbergasted.

I Write Like...

According to the website, "I write like" (www.iwl.me), I write like David Foster Wallace. Here's the link to the badge.

http://iwl.me/s/d7939cdb

I think that's a decent comparison. I was hoping for Flannery O'Connor myself, but David Foster Wallace is good, too.

Yoda Voice Recording Session

Here's a hilarious video from Tomtom with Yoda recording for their GPS system.

WIZARD OF OZ Comics

The following comics come out of the book 50% WOOL 50% ASININE by Scott Hilburn. They are strips from "The Argyle Sweater". I found them funny and since they are all THE WIZARD OF OZ connected and I'm currently in that show, I thought it appropriate.

TWILIGHT Vs. TRUE BLOOD

Remember when vampires were evil creatures of undead? Remember when vampire hunters were heroes? Remember when vampirism was a metaphor for all the evil (though very appealing stuff) that you should stay away from?

Yesterday I discovered this hilarious video. It pretty much sums up how incredibly ridiculous this whole new vampire fad is.

Hard Road's Production of THE WIZARD OF OZ

FYI, I've been spending most of the summer rehearsing for a musical. Hard Road Theatre is putting on The Wizard of Oz and I'm acting in it. I'm portraying the Lion, you know the King of the Forest who's really just a big old coward.

If you are anyone else you know of is interested in seeing the show (or just seeing me for that matter), below is the information you'll need. I hope some of you will be able to come out and see it.

The Wizard of Oz
Produced by Hard Road Theatre in association with the Highland Arts Council and sponsored by Scott Credit Union

Performances: Fri., July 30, 2010 @7:30 P.M.
Sat., July 31, 2010 @7:30 P.M.
Sun., Aug. 1, 2010 @ 2:00 P.M.
Fri., Aug. 6, 2010 @7:30 P.M.
Sat., Aug. 7, 2010 @7:30 P.M
Sun., Aug. 8, 2010 @2:00 P.M.

All performances are held at the Upper Elementary Auditorium, 1800 Lindenthal Ave., Highland, IL 62249.

Ticket Prices: $9 adults, $8 seniors, $7 children

For more information go to www.hardroad.org

What I'm Reading Right Now

Here are the books I'm reading right now.

Media Consumed: June 2010

Books Read
Wicked Gregory Maguire
Blockade Billy Stephen King
High Soft Lisp Gilbert Hernandez
Shrek Graphic Novel Various
A Barnstormer in Oz Philip Jose Farmer
101 Things I Learned in Film School Neil Landau
The Complete Peanuts 1975-1976, Vol. 13 Charles Schulz
Word Pictures Brian Godawa

Wicked is a book that I had been looking forward to reading for sometime. Since I'm in a production of The Wizard of Oz and knew I was going to see the stage version of Wicked in July, I figured now would be a good time to read it. Well, the 1st half of the book is pretty interesting, but after that the story and actual writing just goes downhill. It really isn't a great book and this is an instance where the stage show is actually a major improvement upon the original material.

Blockade Billy is the latest work from Stephen King, a writer whom I really enjoy. It's a bit different from some of his more typical writing. The book contains two novellas, "Blockade Billy" and "Morality" which are similar in style, but very different in theme. It's not typical King, but I've found that I usually like those stories better than his usual, spooky stuff.

A Barnstormer in Oz was a book I read as part of my research for OZ. It didn't help in any way and the story ends rather abruptly. I wish Farmer would have gotten around to writing a sequel. Overall, I liked the story as it presents a world in which much of the events in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz actually happened and that Dorothy had been a real person who gave an exclusive interview to L. Frank Baum.

I'm a major "Peanuts" fan and was very excited to read the latest installment of the Complete Peanuts books being published by Fantagraphics. The !975-1976 Collection is an interesting read as it is the first collection where the Peanuts have jumped completely into the realm of the absurd.

Lastly, Word Pictures was a book that I really enjoyed. Basically, it's about how the Bible and God can't really just be understood on a completely literal level and that there has to be some literary elements to it as well; the visual is just as important as the written word. Jesus was the Word of God, but he also was a man who really did live and breathe.

Movies Watched For the First Time
Trick 'R Treat
They Saved Hitler's Brain
Marmaduke
9
Used Cars
Horton Hears a Who
Wicked Wicked
The A-Team
Midgets Vs. Mascots
Collateral
Toy Story 3

They Saved Hitler's Brain is a terrible B movie that is almost worth watching for the payoff of seeing Hitler's "brain" towards the end (notice I said almost).

Used Cars is an earlier Robert Zemeckis directed feature from 1980 that stars Kurt Russell. The movie has an amazing finale that is worth watching for that.

Wicked Wicked is a movie not available on DVD or VHS, but airs occasionally on cable. It's a low-key thriller that's notable because it's viewed almost completely on a split screen.

The A-Team movie is a pretty decent adaptation of the 1980s television series and I enjoyed it.

Midgets Vs. Mascots is the last movie starring Gary Coleman. Besides the excessive foul language, the movie is actually very funny and has appearances by some people who are now more famous thanks to Glee.

Lastly, the best movie of the year is Toy Story 3. It probably won't win Best Picture because Hollywood doesn't really acknowledge that an animated film can be better than a "regular" film, but Toy Story 3 is by far the best movie of the year and can be enjoyed by anyone from very young children to the elderly. It speaks volumes about loyalty, friendship, family, growing up, and the end and return to innocence. If you haven't seen it yet, you must. Go to the theatre today and watch it. It really is that good.

Proposed Postage Stamp Increase

The U.S. Postal Service proposed today a stamp increase of 2 cents that would begin Jan. 2. That would increase the rate of a stamp from 44 cents to 46 cents. In addition, a whole slew of other rate increases are included in the proposal. The Postal Service cites "ever-declining mail volume as people and businesses shift to the Internet and the declining economy reduces advertising mail," as the principle reasons for the proposed increase.

Even though the Postal Service doesn't receive any tax income, it is still a federal agency and, boy, does it show. When a business is losing revenue, you don't increase the price of your product in order to increase that revenue. Instead, a business lowers the price of the product and then when things have started to pick-up you gradually increase the price. That's just a basic principle of business and economics. But, as many of us know, the federal government doesn't follow basic business and economic principles.

I like the Post Office. I'm one of a few who actually enjoy going to the Post Office and getting stamps for letters and sending out packages. I've collected stamps since I was about 8. I still write hand-written letters and I try to support my local Post Office as much as I can (Post Offices in small towns are part of the town's livelihood). Yet, it really irritates me when the people at the Post Office propose such bone-headed decisions. Come on people, get with the program.

Christianity, Social Justice, and Politics

I've read C.S. Lewis' The Screwtape Letters at least three times. There is so much in the book that continues to be relevant in this post-post-modern era we now live. Below is a passage from the book about social justice and politics. Read it and see if you can recognize how it's being used in certain political circles today.

From a letter from Senior Tempter Screwtape to his nephew Wormwood, who is in training to tempt Christians:

About the general connection between Christianity and politics, our position is more delicate.

Certainly we do not want men to allow their Christianity to flow over into their political life, for the establishment of anything like a really just society would be a major disaster.

On the other hand, we do want, and want very much, to make men treat Christianity as a means; preferably, of course, as a means to their own advancement, but, failing that, as a means to anything—even to social justice.

The thing to do is to get a man at first to value social justice as a thing which the Enemy (God) demands, and then work him on to the stage at which he values Christianity because it may produce social justice. For the Enemy will not be used as a convenience. Men or nations who think they can revive the Faith in order to make a good society might just as well think they can use the stairs of Heaven as a short cut to the nearest chemist’s shop. Fortunately it is quite easy to coax humans round this little corner.

The Screwtape Letters, pp. 126-127. [A special thank you to Justin Taylor for posting this]

Happy Independence Day!

Happy Independence, America! To help celebrate here's a couple of good videos. The first is a sequence from ABC News about Frank Buckles, the last living American WWI veteran. The video is from a year ago when Frank was 108. He is now 109.

The second video is of some of the Muppets performing the "Stars and Strips Forever". There's very little more American than Muppets and John Philip Sousa.

Book Review: THE COMPLETE PEANUTS 1975-1976

The 13^th Volume in Fantagraphics republishing of the complete Peanuts, THE COMPLETE PEANUTS 1975-1976 could also be subtitled “The Peanuts of the Absurd”. In the past Schulz had toyed with some absurdist plotlines, e.g. the talking school building. However, between 1975-1976, Schulz took those ideas to a whole new level. The talking school returns but ends up falling apart because of depression, Charlie Brown’s pitcher mound floats away during a major rainstorm, and Snoopy’s stomach (and later feet) has conversations that Snoopy sometimes hears and sometimes doesn’t.

The longest sequence in this volume is where Snoopy breaks his leg. There’s about six to eight weeks worth of consecutive strips (including some Sunday strips) dealing with the saga of Snoopy breaking his leg and trying to recuperate. I’m not sure, but I have a feeling that either Schulz or someone in his family must have broken a leg sometime not too distant from this storyline.

Besides Snoopy breaking his leg, this volume introduces us to one of Snoopy’s brothers, Spike, and a sister, Belle. I never knew about Belle until I saw the SNOOPY’S REUNION special. However, Spike was one of my favorite Peanuts characters. I’m not sure what it was, but there was something about Spike’s lonely existence in the Arizona desert that particularly appealed to me. Snoopy goes to visit Spike and Spike comes to visit him for Thanksgiving which leads to a memorable holiday for both dogs.

Peppermint Patty is featured in a majority of strips in this volume. There’s a storyline where Peppermint Patty spends Halloween in a pumpkin patch with Linus. There’s the storyline where Charlie Brown’s school building collapses and he ends up having to share a desk with Patty at her school for several weeks. There’s a story where Peppermint Patty and Marcie try to fly Snoopy’s doghouse to a Powder Puff competition in Michigan and there’s an incredibly long storyline where Peppermint Patty leaves regular school to attend a private school recommended to her by Snoopy, the Ace Obedience School. She graduates near the top of her class and thinks she’s done with school for life until she is shown the truth.

It seems that Schulz thought about introducing a new character to the strip, a girl named Truffles back in 1975. Linus and Snoopy get lost in the woods and are rescued by Truffles. They both fall head over heels for her, but Snoopy is more quick in the ways of love that poor Linus. After a few weeks of strips about Truffles, she leaves to return home and other than a Christmas card at the end of the year she’s never heard from again in this volume. Truffles has an appearance completely different than any previous Peanuts character.

Towards the end of this volume I came across a strip that is featured in the revival edition of the musical YOU’RE A GOOD MAN, CHARLIE BROWN. It features Charlie Brown and Linus talking about Linus’s grandfather and how old he is. It should also be noted that it is in this volume of strips that the Cat Next Door’s name is revealed. The vicious cat that Snoopy is frightened of, yet still teases is named World War II.

The introduction to THE COMPLETE PEANUTS 1975-1976 is written by Robert Smigel.Like some of the other introduction writers, it’s fitting that a person of Smigel’s humor write the introduction for this absurdist collection of “Peanuts” comics. His introduction is one of the best in the series so far and touches not only how “Peanuts” influenced his own life, but how the strip interacted with and reflected parts of history. This isn't the best collection of "Peanuts", but it does capture the evolution of the strip into a new era. It's a must for any "Peanuts" fan or anyone who is a serious fan of comic strips.

A Children's Book Recommendation

From the illustrator of The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales and The True Story of the Three Little Pigs comes this humorous little book about a monkey, a jackass, and a mouse delivering a story about the power of books.

I can't ever recall a time in which I read a story about the power and permanence of books that starred a jackass as one of the main characters.

Older elementary kids and younger middle school boys will love this book, but if I had a younger child, I'd think I'd let her read it, too, even if there is a jackass in the story.

Sarcasm and Christianity

I worked at a Christian summer camp for several summers. During the majority of those summers during the staff training it was pounded into our heads over and over and over that, "sarcasm has no place at camp." I understood why the trainers emphasized that, but it didn't quite seem right to me. Sarcasm is overused in our culture, but that doesn't mean all sarcasm is evil. I couldn't express these thoughts very well at the time, but I recently finished reading a book that has done it better than I could have. The book is Word Pictures by Brian Godawa. Here's part of what he says about Christianity and sarcasm.
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"Some Christians feel that sarcasm or satire is harsh and unloving--not befitting a Christlike treatment of people. And a cursory look at American culture confirms that concern to a degree....It turns out that an examination of the Bible yields a rather startling revelation: God uses sarcasm and mockery as an important tool of truth-telling.

God is often sarcastic in humor. And particularly in relation to sin....

Sarcasm is not below God's character, and neither is it below his people's character. The same laughing derision that God himself employs toward the wicked is also played out dramatically through God's appointed mockers--I mean messengers.....

Of course, these biblical examples do not justify all sarcasm. We many not receive actual visions or direct words from God like they did, but we can draw the principle that satire may be appropriate when applied to public sins or evil done by men who openly defy God's law, but not necessarily to the private sins of individuals with whom we have personal relationships....

The danger of using sarcasm notwithstanding, it is certainly one of the most potent tools to make a moral point and expose sin, lies, and hypocrisy with an edge of humor. The essence of comedy is precisely that we laugh at our faults and frailties, and yes, even at our sins, which elevates the excellent and the virtuous as superior. Sarcasm reinforces the values we believe in by showing the absurdity of those values that we don't. God is the original satirist. And he has built his comedy on the foundation of his apostles and prophets."

Toys Make Kids Fat

Last week I came across an article that described a lawsuit the "Center for Science in the Public Interest" was threatening to file against McDonalds. Basically, according to the organization McDonald's was responsible for making thousands of children obese because of Happy Meal toys. Toys make kids fat. That was a new one to me. Food and no exercise makes kids fat.

I realize that this lawsuit is just a big publicity campaign for the "Center for Science in the Public Interest". Still, you know if they are threatening a lawsuit but never follow-through, someone somewhere will.

Also, where did these people come up with their name? "Center for Science in the Public Interest"? There is no science involved in their lawsuit and suing McDonald's because you believe toys make kids fat is definitely not in the public interest. If anything, they should be thanking McDonald's because that little toy actually encourages a child's imagination and gets them to play and kids using their imaginations and playing are much better than kids sitting around watching tv 12 hours a day.

Stephan Pastis Strikes Again

"Pearls Before Swine" is the best comic being written right now, hands down. Stephan Pastis has a nice posting about a strip that his editor wanted changed because he thought the word "banana" was offensive. You can read the post here. Also, if PEARLS BEFORE SWINE doesn't appear in your local newspapers as part of the comics offerings, you should write to the paper's editor requesting and then demanding that it do so.

The Thin-Skinned President

When I first starting preparing to enter acting as more than just a hobby, one of the things I kept hearing over and over and over was that performers have to have a thick skin. Rejection is a constant in the business and for every job someone says yes to you, you'll get at least 100 nos. People will constantly be judging and evaluating you and if you want to be successful, you can't take everything that's said personally. You have to have discernment and grow some "rhino-skin".

Though there are differences, the same advice goes for politicians. Everything you say or do will be examined, judged, and critiqued and you have to have discernment and some rhino-skin. That doesn't mean you don't listen to the people who elected you, but it does mean that you can't take every little thing personally.

Apparently President Obama doesn't have much discernment nor a very tough skin. Yesterday he fired the commanding general of U.S. operations in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, for some comments he and some of his staff made in an impromptu interview with a Rolling Stone reporter. Neither McChrystal nor his staff disrespected the President, but they were rather critical of Vice President Joe Biden and other members of Obama's administration. Some media sources have been quoted as saying that McChrystal's "resignation" came about because of his insubordination to the President which is utterly absurd. Insubordination involves a willful disobedience to a direct order and though it is frowned upon and usually punished, there are times when insubordination is called for (e.g. raping women that you are supposed to be protecting). McChrystal's comments were NOT insubordination. Perhaps they were foolish and misguided, but that's about it.

There have been comparisons to Obama's firing of McChrystal to that of Lincoln removing Gen. George McClellan of his command during the Civil War and Truman's dismissal of Gen. Douglas MacArthur during the Korean War (the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is one such newspaper that made the comparison). Such comparisons are invalid and show a willful ignorance of history. Lincoln gave McClellan every opportunity to win the Civil War early and fast, but McClellan was indecisive and lost numerous battles and a high cost and even his few victories came with large numbers of casualties over an extended period of time. McClellan wasn't a very good war-time general. Truman's dismissal of MacArthur was for the opposite reason. The U.S. was fighting in Korea as part of a U.N. conflict. Under MacArthur's guidance, the early part of the war went well. However, China started flooding North Korea with troops and equipment and the early victories were eradicated. MacArthur wanted to make a full fledged invasion into North Korea and if needed into China. Truman was against it because it would mean the U.S. fighting alone and Truman didn't want to upset those countries who were allied with us. MacArthur, however, was convinced a massive invasion was needed and continued making plans not only to invade the northern part of Korea, but even into China. Truman fired MacArthur for that, something that is closer to insubordination than McChrystal's criticizing politicians and poking fun at Vice President Biden. (By the way, MacArthur was probably right, in my opinion).

President Obama's firing of McChrystal is more akin to a spoiled teenager having his parents bail him out for breaking a school rule than that of a Commander-in-Chief leading a country's military. It was an action that was far more dictatorial than Presidential.

Ken Jennings Speaks Out

Ken Jennings, the guy who holds the record for most consecutive wins on JEOPARDY! and has won the most money ever on game shows, has written an interesting article for THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS about reality tv and the dumbing down of America. Dumb tv shows might not a dumb nation make.

Book Thoughts

I picked HIGH SOFT LISP up to read because of the cover and the title. The woman on the front attracts the eye, but the color scheme plays with the mind on some sort of psychological level. The blurb on the back also was intriguing.

It's by far, the most bizarre book I've read this year. If you like under ground or alternative comics, you might enjoy it. Teenage boys might get a kick out of it, too because there are moments in this TPB that verge on soft-core porn. Other than that, I'd just stay away. Your life will not be enriched if you do read it and it won't be any less lively if you don't.

Come On, America! Are You Really That Dumb?!

- Almost 60% of Americans know the names of the original THREE STOOGES, but just 17% are able to name three former or current U.S. Supreme Court justices.
- 8 out of every 10 e-mails that are sent are spam.
- 14% of Americans between 18-24 can't find Iraq on a map, %18 can't locate
Afghanistan, and %10 can't locate the U.S. on a blank world map!
- 70% of Americans cannot identify the source of the phrase "life, liberty, and the
pursuit of happiness."
- Most political speeches are geared to the comprehension level of an average 7th grader. 50 years ago political speeches were, on average, spoken to people who had graduated high school.
- "karoshi" is a Japanese phenomenon of being worked to death, but even the Japanese take more vacation time than Americans.

Taken from the book 1,001 Facts That Will Scare the S#*T Out of You by Cary McNeal

VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER Teaser Trailer

THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA are my favorite books of all time. I enjoyed the first two movie adaptations, though I was a little disappointed by PRINCE CASPIAN (too much spirituality and fun fantasy were cut). Part of the reason for the rather lackluster reception was because Disney was the distributor and Disney is notorious for watering down everything. Fox is distributing the films now and the teaser trailer for VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER is now available. I have to say it looks gorgeous and I'm glad to see that the monopods did make the final cut. No images of a dragon, though, so I'm not sure if one of the most spiritually significant parts of the novel is in the movie adaptation. Nevertheless, I'm very exciting to see this movie.

Charlie Brown in a Rubes Cartoon

I love Charlie Brown. In many ways, I'm a living version of the character. Below is a comic I came across in the book The Wild and Twisted World of Rubes by Leigh Rubin. I found it to be hilarious.

Some Fun Facts

-Lightning strikes the Earth more than 5,000 times every minute.
-Once lightning enters a building, it may run through the electrical system, phone lines, plumbing, tv and radio antennas, and cables. It is also possible for lightning to pass through metal in concrete walls or flooring.
-Male desert rats can copulate up to 150 times in an afternoon.
-A tiger shark's bit is powerful enough to slice through a hard turtle shell.
-Sharks find the colors yellow and orange particularly irritating.
-A giraffe has 12-inch hooves and legs that can kick in all four directions; giraffe kicks have been known to decapitate lions.
-Swans have been known to capsize boats, attack humans on jet skis, and strangle dogs to death.
-A polar bear can rip the head off a human with one swipe of its paw.
-Pigs can become alcoholic.

These facts are taken from the book 1,000 Facts That Will Scare the S#*t Out of You by Cary McNeal.

Sea Turtle Takes Video From Sea

This video has just gone viral on YouTube. A military person lost his camera around Aruba about a year ago before it washed up in Key West, Florida. Somewhere between that time a sea turtle got a hold of it and turned it on. There's mostly just a lot of movement in and out of the water with a few shots of the turtle here and there, but the picture quality is gorgeous. It's just neat that the turtle turned the camera on, even if accidentally. Of course, those reptiles aren't that dumb. For instance, I worked with a tortoise that was rather adept at moving barricades out of the way that were keeping him from "expanding his horizons".

What I'm Reading Right Now (June 10, 2010)

Below are a list of books I'm reading at the moment.

Moments With the Savior by Ken Gire
Word Pictures by Brian Godawa
1,001 Facts That Will Scare the S#*t Out of You by Cary McNeal
Hot For Words by Marina Orlova
101 Things I Learned in Film School by Neil Landau & Matthew Frederick
The Complete Peanuts, 1975-1976 Vol. 13 by Charles Schulz
A Barnstormer in Oz by Phillip Jose Farmer

World Cup Star Wars Commercial

I like this commercial because it's a parody of STAR WARS. However, I think the funniest thing about it is that they have to have people like Snoop Dog and Jay Baruchel in it because American audiences have no clue who the football players in the commercial are.

May 2010: Media Consumed

Books Read
*Signature Wound: Rocking TBI G.B. Trudeau
*Jeremy & Dad Jerry Scott & Jim Bergman
*Star Trek: Spock Reflections Scott & David Tipton
Tassel-Free Living for Grads Tim Wesmann
The Talisman Stephen King & Peter Straub
*50% Wool 50% Asinine Scott Hillburn

The two books that I recommend reading from the ones I read in May 2010 are The Talisman and 50% Wool 50% Asinine. The Talisman is a novel by Stephen King and Peter Straub written in the mid-1980s. I'm a pretty big fan of King and usually enjoy whatever of his I read. I was enchanted by The Talisman. I thought most of the story was great. The reason I say most of the story is because I felt that the story was great until the moment when the lead character in the story reaches the Black Hotel where the Talisman, an object he has been searching for during the whole story, is kept. Once he gets to the Black Hotel, the story unraveled. In short, the concluding chapters of the story just don't seem to fit with the rest of the story. Conclusions can be difficult, but I expect better from King. Still, even a let down of an ending can't ruin the "odyssey tale" woven before.

50% Wool 50% Asinine is the 2nd book of "The Argyle Sweater" comic strip collections. This book was hilarious. Comic strips are such a great way to get a dose of daily humor. You just have to read the right comic strips, because lets face it as much as I enjoy reading them, "Blondie", "Hi and Louis", and "Family Circus" probably aren't going to make you laugh as much as you'd like or need.

Movies Viewed for the First Time
Look
April Fool's Day (1980's version)
Iron Man 2
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1925)
Robin Hood (2010)
Robin Hood: Men in Tights
Shrek Forever After
The Wizard of Oz (1910)
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1933)
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
Spies Like Us

Iron Man 2 was a great movie. Robin Hood is perhaps the best Robin Hood movie ever made; it tries to tell the origins of Robin Hood and actually tie it to real history. Prince of Persia is a good action-adventure mind candy flick. Lastly, I hadn't seen Spies Like Us since I was a kid. It's a hilarious movie. Ackroyd and Chase make a great comic duo.

April 2010: Media Consumed

Books Read
*The Wizard of Oz John Kane, adaptation
#Young Pillars Charles Schulz
Jane Austen Peter Leithart
#Math, Science, and Unix Underpants Bill Amend
#The Wild and Twisted World of Rubes Leigh Rubin
#Ziggy Goes For Broke Tom Wilson
#Fox Trot Sundaes Bill Amend
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz L.Frank Baum
The Unlikely Disciple Kevin Roose
#The Twilight Zone: The Monsters Art Due On Maple Street Marke Kneece

* = denotes a play
# = denotes a book of comic strips, graphic novel, or TPB

Out of the books I read in April of this year, The Unlikely Disciple is the one that deserves a special mention. The author of the book was a student at Brown University who after meeting some students at Liberty University decided to spend a semester there and see firsthand just how great the "God divide" really is. Unlike a lot of books I've read that promise to be honest and unbiased, The Unlikely Disciple really is. It's an honest look at some parts of the Christian subculture by an outsider who really does his best to keep an open mind.

I read a lot of comic strip collections in April. Comic strips are great.

Movies Viewed For the First Time
Clash of the Titans (2010)
The Silo Project
Hot Tub Time Machine
Strange Invaders
Invaders from Mars (1986)
Kick-Ass
Chaplin
Earth Vs. the Spider

The remake of Clash of the Titans was basically crap. That remake had so much potential, but the filmmakers blew it.

The Silo Project is a documentary about a guy who records a folk-music album in an abandoned grain silo. It's directed by a close friend of mine and looks gorgeous, which is even more amazing considering he had no real budget.

Hot Tub Time Machine was a surprise that I really enjoyed. A time traveling movie hasn't been that fun since Back to the Future. I really enjoyed Kick-Ass, despite the whole "children committing violence" thing. Lastly, Chaplin wasn't as good as it could have been, but the acting was phenomenal and overall the movie was good.