U.S. Troops Make Video Parody

My brother served for a year in the Middle East and I know from him that during the "down times" soldiers are always looking for a way to keep themselves occupied. I discovered this video today and completely enjoyed it. I really don't "get" Lady Gaga, but it's nice to see troops using their down time to create Art, even if it is parody. Pray for these men.

Keep Your Eye On the Ball and Not the Hand That Moves It

GM is playing the video below all over the place. I've seen it on broadcast tv, cable tv, in a pop-up internet advertisement, and heard it as an ad on the radio. It's a really slick and well-made ad. However, it's also mostly lies.



Early last year GM received an $8 billion loan from the federal government. In addition, it also received nearly $59 billion in TARP funds. GM is operating in the red right now, so essentially what they did was take part of the TARP funds they received and used those to "payback" the loan they received. Make no mistake GM is in trouble, but with the U.S. and Canadian federal governments owning more than 50% of the company, expect to see lots more slick advertising like this to make you believe all is well.

March 2010: Media Consumed

Books Read
*Young Jesus Chronicles by Spencer Smith & Mark Penta
*Children at Play: A Cul de Sac Collection by Richard Thompson
The Skinny on Willpower by Jim Randel
Three Frenchmen and a Goat by John Goldsmith
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith
* The Complete Peanuts 1973-1974 by Charles Schulz
+The Dark Tower: Treachery by Robin Furth, Peter David, et al.
Cosmic by Frank Cottrell Boyce
+The Dark Tower: The Fall of Gilead by Robin Furth, Peter David, et al.
+Heroes: Volume Two by Various
*14 Years of Loyal Service in a Fabric-Covered Box by Scott Adams

* = denotes a collection of comic strips
+ = denotes a graphic novel or trade paperback of comics

The best book I've read all year, so far, is Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. Written by the guy who wrote Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, and the creator of an entire new sub-genre of literature, the book is fascinating not only because it's a great fictional story, but because the amount of research that went into the book to make the real historical people, events, places, and writings match up with the fictional world that is created. I learned more about Abe Lincoln and his associates reading that book than I did the rest of my life.

Cosmic is a great young adult novel written by the man who wrote the book Millions. It's a great little story and I highly recommend it, too. Three Frenchmen and a Goat is a self-published work that still remains as the authoritative volume about the DeMoulin Brothers Company and their early history manufacturing fraternal initiation devices.

I was really excited to read the latest collection of comics in The Gunslinger comic series as well as finishing off the 1973-1974 collection of "Peanuts" strips. One of these days I'm going to actually go back and read King's entire Gunslinger storyline as well as get and read all of the "Peanuts" reprint books.

Movies Watched For the 1st Time
A Perfect Getaway
Tinkerbell and the Lost Treasure
Alice in Wonderland (2010)
The Crazies (2010)
Shutter Island
How to Train Your Dragon

Of the movies I watched for the first time this month, there weren't any that I thought were terrible. A Perfect Getaway is a good yarn with Steve Zahn in a role he doesn't usually get to play. I thought was a good continuation/reviving of the original stories by Lewis Carroll. The Crazies was chilling. Shutter Island was a great adaptation of the book (and it's one movie that the book and movie are almost identical) and How to Train Your Dragon was much better than I expected it to be.

Interesting Facts About Food

Here are some interesting facts I learned today from reading the book 1,001 Facts That Will Scare the S**t Out of You.

*According to government and industry estimates, almost 40% of bottled water is ordinary tap water, often with no additional treatment.

*Red-colored grocery items like fruit punch and strawberry yogurt are often dyed with carmine, which is made from ground-up cochineal beetles. For some, carmine can case severe allergic reactions and can even lead to anaphylactic shock.

The Muppets and "Stand By Me"

"Stand By Me" is my favorite song of all time. I'm also a huge fan of the Muppets. I came across this video today and loved it. It's hilarious. The Muppets are back and it's good to see.

This Would Sell Millions

Came across this video today. Thanks to Jack Hager for posting it on his site.

Watch This Movie.

My friend, Joel Hager, made a movie not long ago. It's a documentary about some very talented people recording an album in an old grain silo. The film is fairly short (a little over an hour) and looks gorgeous, so even if you don't enjoy watching documentaries you might actually enjoy this because it is short and the visual images are so beautiful. I think everyone should check it out. Also, if you like the movie you should buy the album.

Go here:

http://www.stukenbergsucks.com/index.php?pg=store

The oPad

Came across this video today. Provides an excellent analogy of the iPad and health care in the U.S.A.

ABRAHAM LINCOLN VAMPIRE HUNTER

I read this book last month. I have to say it was one of the most enjoyable reads I've had in a long time. There's a movie version coming out in 2011. Enjoy.