Monday, August 16, 2010

Oakland Cleveland Heights neighbors consider private security

In the wake of Oakland police budget cuts and crime rate that's not adjusting for the city's dismal budget, the City of Oakland and neighbors in Cleveland Heights, also known as Haddon Hill, consider private security as a solution.

But first, what's Cleveland Heights / Haddon Hill?

It's a neighborhood bordered by Park Boulevard, E 18th Street, Lakeshore, and The Mac Arthur Freeway, and contains the now-closed Parkway Theater and The Merritt Bakery. It has an estimated population of over 7,400 people according to City-Data.com.

Oakland Coucilmember Pat Kernighan issued this email to the Cleveland Heights Yahoo Group:



Dear Cleveland Heights neighbors,

I am writing to ask for your input to help out the residents in a nearby area. The north part of Beat 17Y has been hit hard in the last month by very brazen robbers. The neighbors there are interested in hiring a private security patrol. I recall that during one of the earlier crime waves on Haddon Hill, some of you had investigated and hired one of the companies who have cars that drive around the neighborhood. Can you tell me if that worked out and what the company was? I will share that with the Bayview folks. Thanks.

Pat Kernighan
City Councilmember,District 2
1 Frank Ogawa Plaza, 2d Floor
Oakland, CA 94612
510-238-7002
pkernighan@...
www.patkernighan.com


The listed answer was for an alarm and patrol firm called Safety Dynamics listed at 4663 Harbord Dr in Oakland, but it's not know what experience anyone has had with them.

Other than Safety Dynamics, it's hard to find another Oakland-based private service. There's the Guardian Angels and San Francisco Security Guard, which isn't in Oakland.

Cleveland Heights neighbors must get to know each other

Even with National Night Out, there are not a lot of people in the Cleveland Heights / Haddon Hill area who really know each other on a first name basis and feel free to call out a problem as it unfolds. Knowing each other well is the best security there is.

Victor Cruz shocks NY Giants, NY Jets, and Monday Night Football

Exterior view of the new Meadowlands Stadium a...Image via Wikipedia
Victor Cruz, a little-known 6-1 200 pound free agent from Massachusetts reportedly said this before the Monday Night Football game against the New York Jets, to open the New Meadowlands Stadium:

"There's definitely a rivalry. You always want to beat them…actually you kind of always want to beat the crap out of them."

Then Victor Cruz went out and did it. Shocking the New York Jets, The New York Gisnts he plays for and the ESPN Monday Night Football broadcast crew, not to mention the crowd, Cruz six catches for 145 yards and three touchdowns.

Cruz first touchdown catch was a circus one-handed grab for a 64-yard score (from Giants.com):



Now, the New York Giants, who won the game 31 to 16, are rich at wide receiver and have to figure out who they're going to get rid of to make sure the free agent trash-talker who can back it up stays on the team.

Michael Douglas has Throat Cancer; Wall Street star optimistic

Michael Douglas 
Hollywood Legend Michael Douglas has been diagnosed with throat cancer. The 65-year old star actor, who won the 1988 Oscar Best Actor in A Leading Role for his performance as Wall Street Investment Banker Gordon Gekko in Wall Street 1987, and is set to star in the sequel Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, is confident that eight weeks of treatment including radiation and chemotherapy will eliminate the tumor found in his throat.

Douglas told People Magazine "I am very optimistic," regarding the chances for complete recovery.

Douglas has busy fall

Michael Douglas has two movies he's got to finish work on in the fall. He's got to help market the upcoming Wall Street sequel, then he's in Steven Soderberg's action film Knockout

Douglas Wall Street performance was classic

Michael Douglas is one of this blogger's favorite actors for his no-holds-barred portrail of the hard-driving Wall Street investment banker of the 80s in the form of a character called Gordon Gekko. Here's part of the famous "Greed is Good" scene that won Michael the Oscar, a segment done with one speech, and no break. And for some reason this video starts where Douglas says "Greed is Good," when it point of fact, that starts about two-thirds of the way into his dramatic statement. It's hard to find a video of Douglas' full speech. But here is the most famous part of it:



That speech game to define the 80s, and even my relationship with my then girlfriend, such that our plan was, if we hit it big, for one of us to take the other to the 21 Club for dinner.

As readers of this space know, this blogger makes an annual trip to New York for The NFL Draft, which always includes dinner at 21.

What started all of that was Michael Douglas in Wall Street.

May he recover quickly.

Brian Westbrook to SF 49ers gets Twitter trash from Darnell Dockett

Brian WestbrookImage via Wikipedia
Brian Westbrook should look for #90 
After eight seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles, Running Back Brian Westbrook was released seven weeks ago. Westbrook, who's well-decorated career was marred by concussion problems last year, joined the San Francisco 49ers for a one year, $1.25 million deal.

And upon news of the transaction, Arizona Cardinals Defensive Lineman Darnell Dockett, number 90, who will play Westbrook and the 49ers twice this year, took to Twitter to welcome Westbrook with some trash talking:

Ahhhhh hell naw Brian westbrook one of my best friends !! This is BS! Oh well I hope he know its not personal! but fuck it! #MNF #HITSTICK
about 3 hours ago via ÜberTwitter

And Darnell Dockett wasn't done with his trash tweets of the 49ers. His next target was linebacker Takeo Spikes:


@TakeoSpikes51 *cough * *cough* hmmmmm!
about 3 hours ago via ÜberTwitter in reply to TakeoSpikes51


It wasn't the first time Darnell Dockett took off after the San Francisco 49ers on Twitter. He saved from choice tweets for Glen Coffee when the Niners running back announced his retirement:


Dear: Glen Coffee, don't retire just yet! just wait till after the MNF game then you will have a legit reason to retire!! #EVL
4:14 PM Aug 15th via ÜberTwitter


In all, Darnell Dockett uses Twitter as an extension of his mouth, sparing no one from NFL players on enemy teams to friends. But some of his tweets are cool. Like the one about the Houston Texans Antonio Smith:

It was good playing against my brother from another mother @antoniosmith94 yesterday, I wish him success and a healthy winning season!
10:06 AM Aug 15th via ÜberTwitter


The San Francisco 49ers play the Arizona Cardinals Monday Night November 29th in San Francisco. It's a sure bet Darnell Dockett will have sent out more trash tweets by then.

Rooney Mara Lisbeth Sanders"The Girl with Dragon Tattoo" by Suzannah B. Troy





Rooney Mara is to play Lisbeth Sanders in the Americanized, "The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo".


Why do I care?  BECAUSE I LOVE THE BOOKS!!!!!!!!!  The Swedish actors are superb and I do not think the Americanization of it will be as good....it was as if the Swedes were born to play the role and I keep dreaming they will take on the role and do a TV series -- a long extended one with all the details.  I tell you why in YouTubeland I love Lisbeth Sanders so much!!!!!

That being said, I will run not walk to see David Fincher's film version of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.  Original title:  The Men Who Hate Women" which is a powerful true theme as are all of messages Stieg Larsson was sharing with his audience.  Sad and shocking he died not knowing what a success his books are and that his live-in love who has book 4 on her computer has been cut out of the royalties by his father and brother who treat her like some of the bad asses in the book treat Lisbeth!

I have a YouTube series on the book and movie but here is just one!  The rest you can look up in YouTubeland.  Thanks for tuning in.

Mel Gibson hits Malibu w/ Maserati does not blame Jews! by Suzannah B. Troy



Mel Gibson hit Malibu (actually some big rocks) in Malibu with his Maserati but it least he did not hit a woman so again Mel is making progress.


TMZ my favorite celebrity tv show  (and that is because of Harvey Levin- the old guy on the show) has an exclusive on Mel Gibson driving his Maserati into some major rock....why?  No real answer but here is Suzannah B. Troy's exclusive live from New York.  He did not blame the Jews, African Americans, Hispanics, Gays or Women for his mistakes and inadequacies so he is making some progress!

Was he drug tested or given a breathalyzer ?  I have no idea.

I could see his ex-girlfriend, what's her name...oh, Osanka running to the  judge and demanding their child not be allowed in a car Mel Gibson is driving!

Do you think Mel Gibson told LAPD it was Malibu's fault.

Well Mel Gibson hit some rocks but when is he going to hit bottom?   He needs a strait jacket not a Maserati!

Tune in to TMZ later to learn more!

Video of Oakland-based psychologist Dr. Christina Villarreal discusses trends in mental health


Part 1 of a 3 part series featuring Dr. Christina Villarreal, a Clinical Psychologist in private practice in Oakland, California. In this segment, Dr. Villarreal reflects upon current trends in mental health care, American responses following the election of President Barack Obama, her path of higher education and clinical training, her association with the sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha, Inc. and utilizing mentors and professional networking in her community.

The show host is Bay Area native Kymm Wilson of Ground Level Perspective, which he began as an online radio show based out of Oakland, CA, which he expanded into a television series broadcast on U-Verse channel 99, Comcast East Bay channel 7/28 featuring Peralta TV. The producer/director is James Calhoun, a former producer of R&B/Hip-Hop music. James is a prominent producer in the video/film industry earning local Emmy nominations in 2009.

On Tila Tequila attacked and Craigslist Killer suspect dies

"Tila Tequila attacked" and "Craigslist Killer" or "Craigslist suspect dies" bring up the same range of thoughts, and because of the YouTube comments from some members of the group called the Juggalos on this video:



There's a comment war, and the similarity between some of the Juggalos who went to The Gathering of The Juggalos, the event started by music group The Insane Clown Posse, and Philip Markoff, The Craigslist Killer, is that both may appear to be quite normal but have very dark sides to them. Both either harmed or advocated for women, in this case Tila Tequila, to be harmed.

The comparison brings to light an issue of concern and that's the "underground angry" dude. That person can't be stereotyped, accept that the person's generally male. It could be Omar Thornton, or a Juggalos member, or Philip Markoff, The Craigslist Killer, who committed suicide over the weekend.

Insane Clown Posse perform in a 2007 concert t...Image via Wikipedia
Insame Clown Posse Performs for Juggalos

In Philip Markoff, The Craigslist Killer's case, he was set to marry the lovely Melissa McAllister, who for some reason believed he was a normal guy. Meanwhile, Markoff was said to have been using Craigslist's Erotic Services area to lure other women and murder them, although now that he's dead, that will never reach a court of law to determine the truth of.

Still, Markoff was in jail and apparently thought his life going forward wasn't worth living. Apparently, because foul play has not been ruled out in his death.

Anti-Social Behavior on The Rise?

Is anti-social behavior on the rise? Until the Gathering of The Juggalos and the Tila Tequila attack, and then the numerous comments that Tila "deserved" what happened to her, which is a sick thought, this space would not have believed so.

But there's a lot of activity to demonstrate otherwise.

In closing, this blog is not intended to be a put-down of The Insane Clown Posse, only to point to an issue they, as the creators of the Juggalos Movement, need to get a handle on ASAP.

Doug Biviano for Assembly! Media doesn't cover challangers! post by Suzannah B. Troy



When it Comes to Reporting on Government,

Our Press is Dysfunctional Also

Doug Biviano, candidate for NY State Assembly, asks a simple question of the local media:  “If you want to throw the bums out for what they have done to our state, why are you not following the candidates who are challenging the bums?” Biviano is so frustrated about the media’s lack of ability to perform its primary function of informing the public that he decided to make a short Michael Moore-type film about it

View Biviano’s Online Video

The film shows Biviano visiting and being turned down by almost every major media company in the city, in his quest to get the press to cover his campaign.  Biviano’s odyssey demonstrates that not only does the press refuse to cover the small handful of challengers running this year, they are not even open to discussion or debate about their decision.

Biviano is not an insider like most candidates running for office nowadays. He is just an average working guy who is outraged at what Albany has done to our State and to our families.  Biviano needs the press to inform the voters of his integrity and his creative ideas for how to fix Albany.  He does not have family ties to connected politicians, or lobbyists and special interest groups supporting him financially.  He has no personal fortune to help him run for office and to pay for the endless mailings needed to win election.

He is forced to run against a government funded incumbent who gives out member item money to community and senior groups for political support, and uses her Assembly staff and mailings in her campaign.  Biviano believes that it is the fault of the press that this vicious cycle of corrupt insiders controlling Albany is never broken.  The media blackout prevents independent challengers from getting their messages across to voters.

Biviano’s film starts out in the graveyard of Trinity Church where the father of modern journalism, John Peter Zenger, is buried in an unmarked grave.  Zenger was jailed in 1732 for trying to inform New Yorkers of the truth about their government, which should be the primary function of any journalist.

The film shows the NY Times editorial board hanging up on Biviano while he is in the lobby of the Times office building asking to speak to them about the May 16, 2010 editorial which said that if Albany did not fix itself up, New Yorkers should vote out incumbents - Jobs for Albany’s Do-Nothings.  Biviano wanted to tell the board that it was their 2004 editorial “Casting A Meaning Vote,” which encouraged him to run his uphill campaign against a well entrenched incumbent.  Doug wanted to tell the Times that his opponent, Joan Millman, as chairperson of the Election Law Committee is responsible for knocking dozens of challengers off the ballot every year.  Doug believes that if those candidates who were knocked off the ballot over the last several years were allowed to run, a few would have won and gone on to Albany and fixed many of the state’s corruption and dysfunction problems.

At the Daily News Biviano wanted to talk to the editorial board about the three editorials written in the past year, calling Millman a “scoundrel” for having deceived her constituents by cutting the MTA budget in Albany, while protesting the transit agencies threats to cut the student Metro Cards in her district.  One, Two and Three.  The Daily News would not meet with Doug, despite the fact that on July 26, 2010 they listed his opponent Joan Millman, as one of the ”Albany Bums to Throw Out.”

When Biviano visited 30 Rock (WNBC TV), he was told to make an appointment with the assignment desk. When he called the desk, they refused to see him or schedule a meeting.  He wanted to discuss with Gabe Pressman his article “A Culture of Corruption in Albany” the long time journalist had posted on the station’s blog describing most Albany elected officials as corrupt.

At NY1 Biviano was told that if he wanted coverage, he should create an event. Biviano replied that the campaign IS the event.

Biviano believes that today’s press, like Albany, is at best dysfunctional, at worst willingly protecting the insiders in government.  Why else would the press report on the corruption and dysfunction in our state government, but not cover the rigged election system and the few challengers who are able to get through it?

“This generation’s journalists and publishers have failed to keep the public informed,” said Assembly candidate Biviano.  “This failure means that more New Yorkers will lose their jobs, education and senior services will face additional cutbacks and most dangerous of all, it virtually guarantees that Albany’s problems will grow worse as incumbent after incumbent is reelected.”

“Perhaps not all the circulation losses by newspapers are the fault of the Internet,” Biviano continued.  “I think it has to do with the trend towards soft, fluff, gossip-type coverage and the lack of ability to inform the public as John Peter Zenger did almost 300 years ago.”

Doug Biviano believes that without a properly functioning free press, our Democracy and nation are in trouble.  He has decided to run to get this message out, to protect his family and to protect you.

Please join the fight:

http://bivforbrooklyn.com/blog/116-ny-press-cover-the-bums-challengers


Press Release and superb YouTube by Gary Tilzer

Spike TV Renews Deadliest Warrior For A Third Season

Deadliest WarriorImage via Wikipedia
Pay attention to Deadliest Warrior as an example of the future of entertainment.

To show how entertainment is rapidly becoming multi-plaform and meeting success in the process, Spike TV, a unit of MTV Networks and at Spike.com, has announced that it's renewed Deadliest Warrior, it's first original franchise hit, for a third season, according to Sharon Levy, executive vice president for original programming for Spike TV.

Deadliest Warrior is produced by 44 Blue Productions, Inc. with Rasha Drachkovitch and Tim Warren serving as executive producers, and described as a series that...

enlists warrior-specific, world-class fighters and experts to provide insight into what makes these combatants tick, analyzing every facet of their unique skills of destruction, culminating in a head-to-head final fight between two legends of the battlefield that will produce the deadliest warrior. The recent second season featured such iconic warriors such as SWAT, Attila the Hun, Alexander the Great, Aztec Jaguar, Jesse James Gang, Al Capone Gang, Roman Centurion, India’s Rajput Warrior, Somali Pirate, KGB and CIA.

But, in keeping with the multi-plaform nature of Deadliest Warrior, there's a video game called Deadliest Warrior: The Game, which is for Xbox LIVE Arcade, and has sold 140,000 copies since its June 14th release.

If you've never seen Deadliest Warrior, here's an inside look courtesy of Leah D'Emilio:



Catch Deadliest Warrior; the third season will premiere 10 episodes in Summer 2011.

Chevron Ecuador lawyer Steve Donziger: statement that destroys case

Steven Donziger is the central lawyer who has spearheaded the alleged environmental damage lawsuit against Chevron by Ecuador.

He's also one of the central figures of the movie Crude, which claims to document the case against Chevron in Ecuador. But video that was removed from the final cut of crude reveals a Donziger willing to do almost anything to "get the money" from an oil company.

This space has long held that Donziger was as interested in making billions for himself, as anything else.



And while Donziger claims to represent the "indigenous people of Ecuador," the reality, given his working relationship with the President of Ecuador Rafael Correa, as well as the fact that Ecuador's own attorney general has said that Ecuador will receive "90 percent" of a damage award against Chevron, means the lawsuit really has little to do with the people of Ecuador.

Now, this statement Donziger made, which found its way into the movie Crude, before it was removed, proves it. While this news has been out there, this blogger reiterates it in a call for the actual video to be shown to the public.

What Donziger said is from the document, “Chevron Corporation’s Memorandum of Law in Support of Motion for a Preservation Order, and to supplement and enforce the subpoenas,” filed by Chevron’s lawyer, Randy Mastro, with Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, and obtained via Bob McCarty, a fellow blogger who's followed the Chevron Ecuador case. You can download it here, but this is what Donziger said:

"Hold on a second, you know, this is Ecuador. . . . You can say whatever you want
and at the end of the day, there's a thousand people around the courthouse, you're going to get what you want. Sorry, but it’s true. Because at the end of the day, this is all for the Court just a bunch of smoke and mirrors and bullshit. It really is. We have enough, to get money, to win."

According to the filing, Donziger made the statement "during a meeting with Plaintiffs’ U.S. environmental consultants Charles Champ, Ann Maest, and Dick Kamp, after Maest tells him, point blank, that they need evidence of groundwater contamination, because Plaintiffs did not submit any and 'right now all the reports are saying it’s just at the pits and the stations and nothing has spread anywhere at all.'" In other words, the groundwater contamination Donziger claims Chevron was responsible for, never occurred. Donziger's lawyers were concerned that they lacked evidence to back his claim, thus Donziger statement that, essentially, issuing "bullshit" would win the case for them.

The rest of the document reports Donziger made this statement on camera: "There’s another point I got to make . . . with these guys, but I can't get this on camera." At that point, the filing reads, the camera's turned off.

Crude Movie Did Not Tell The Whole Story

Now we can see why Crude Movie Director Joseph Berlinger fought to keep the footage taken out of the movie from being seen - it would have destroyed his attempt to paint Chevron in a bad light and made Donziger look like a hero.

The bottom line here, for years, has been that Donziger's not a hero and Ecuador itself is responsible for the oil spills and environmental damage that has occurred since Chevron's departure.  Berlinger should show every part of footage from his movie, so everyone can see the truth.

Going back to urban planning school, my issue with some under-developed nations like Ecuador has been that they don't take steps to make life better for their poorest people. They allow them to be exploited by people like Steven Donziger for their own personal gain.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates to step down in 2011

Official portrait of United States Secretary o...Image via Wikipedia
Secretary Robert Gates 
Defense Secretary Robert Gates is expected to step down from his post in 2011.

Secretary Robert Gates is a Republican, and one of the best examples of the point of a classic textbook on government called The Irony of Democracy by Thomas R. Dye and L. Harmon Ziglar.

In The Irony of Democracy the U.S Government is ran by elites, for whom class values, power, and economics, all overshadow party affiliation.

In the case of Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who served in the same role with President George W. Bush, he was an early supporter of President Obama's Afghanistan-oriented war strategy.

Keeping Gates between Presidents was borne of Obama's desire to calm the military that the new President wasn't going to come in and make whole sale changes.

Senator Obama was never a critic of the military as a whole, but of certain practices within it. Those liberals who expected Obama to dramatically reduce defense spending and stop all wars don't understand Washington's elite culture.

 The Military Industrial Complex, the interplay of technology, weapons, jobs, politics, warfare, and anti-terrorist efforts after 9-11 have more to do with the maintenance of essentially the same defense policy between Presidents Obama and Bush.

The only factor that can significantly change that as of this writing is the poor performance of the economy and the need to cut defense spending because of it.

Lindsay Lohan Might Get Out of Rehab Early by Tina




Lindsay Lohan might get to leave rehab this week! That must be some good behavior she’s putting out! First, Lindsay serves just 13 days of her 90 jail sentence and is released to a MANDATORY 90 day rehab program. But now it looks like she'll only have two weeks of her rehab sentence as well...what's up?

A – Either Lindsay's problems weren't as serious as doctor’s first thought. That would mean – gasp – Dina Lohan may be right saying it was a setup, propaganda and wrong for Lindsay to be in jail. OK, not really, but we just wanted to give a shout out to Dina. Seriously, Lindsay might not have been doing as many or as hard of drugs as were first thought.
B – Or Lindsay is faking her way through rehab really, really well. And since this is her fourth visit in just a few years, it could be possible, though unlikely, that Lindsay is working the system.

Now, I doubt she could fool that many professionals, so maybe there was a combination of both options. Lindsay’s substance abuse problems weren’t as severe as predicted, thus leaving Lindsay with time to quickly heal and get on the right road. Rumor has it she is helping younger girls in rehab deal with issues and offering encouragement to them.

The real problem, it seems, is her family. Dina is going on TV proclaiming her daughter is innocent – even though we know she isn’t and did get in trouble in 2007. Then there is her dad Michael, who paints her as an addict who needs more serious help than what she is currently getting. Who will scream about an early release for Lindsay more - her dad or the media? Do you think Lindsay deserves to be let out early if the doctor’s say it is OK?

Christine Quinn insincere hypocrite St. Vincent's & tax payers by Suzannah B. Troy

The New York Post

Christine Quinn had no problem voting herself a raise when the NYPD's starting salary was lowered.    She takes huge kickbacks aka campaign donations from developers so she comes as a complete insincere phony.  She is Mike Bloomberg's mini-me which means she is pro-developers, screw the people.  She has sucked the tax payers dry with high priced defense attorneys that specialize in White Collar Crime including approving the high of Sullivan & Cromwell, the same firm Goldman Sachs for her staff all at the tax payers expense.  Her staff are known to be more interested in their BlackBerrys than the displacement and community crushing development by NYU, Columbia and Cooper Union and Donald Trump.  Who does Christine Quinn think she is kidding?













http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuW2iUG_LvI

Click on the link above and than look in the text portion for just a few ways Christine Quinn screwed the people of New York.

President Obama and the rise of racism in America

the 44th President of the United States...Bara...Image by jmtimages via Flickr
Obama  needs to take control of the banking system
The New York Observer has a post worth reading on the rise of racism in America since the Obama Presidency.

It gives value to the observations made by many African Americans that some who are white and conservative are actually angry that America elected a black president in Barack Obama.

This blogger has personally wondered if that also translated into some large banks deliberately throwing a credit choke chain around the American economy, with the idea that it would not be removed until Obama was out of office.

President Obama should order the banks to make loans under a national security-related executive order. In other words, such actions as available credit are necessary to maintain national security.

Sounds far fetched? Think again.

Tila Tequila attacked - TMZ video shows Gathering of the Juggalos attack

TMZ.com has obtained what it claims is exclusive video of Tila Tequila being attacked the Gathering of The Gathering of the Juggalos Festival last Saturday morning.

The video, which has already been copied many times over on YouTube (and those versions may be pulled down by TMZ.com) shows Tila singing to the crowd, while several men, including Comedian Tom Green, form a barrier between her and a hostile crowd.

But, with the exception of one person, the video does not show the many hordes of people rushing the stage to get her. Then again, the video cuts off before Tila Tequila leaves the stage.

As I state in my video, the attack was premeditated.



Since my video, some Juggalos have said Tila had it coming to her for doing the Gathering of the Juggalos in the first place. One annual Gathering of the Juggalos attendee, Molly McAleer, blogged this:



Yeah, yeah, beating up a woman (or anyone) is pretty shitty, but it’s obvious that Tila was being seriously disrespectful of what is considered to be a sacred experience for an entire subculture....

I will say that I’m sad for the FAM right now. This is the kind of incident the press was looking for and they got it. The media and Internet love to paint Juggalos (ha) as particularly violent folks because of the themes in their music and jargon, but in actuality, there are huge fights at every music festival. We’re always hearing about performers getting things thrown at them on stage or fans getting rowdy. Remember when a bunch of non-Juggalos ruined Woodstock, for cryin’ out loud? WOODSTOCK. And remember when that chickenhead died during Pearl Jam’s set at a festival in Denmark a couple years ago?...

IN SUMMATION: Tila, you’re a fake bitch and you had it coming. Don’t disrespect the FAM that feeds you. Juggalos, I love you, but next year y’all gotta show them that you’re different. Our society is in an unfortunate place where we pick and choose who it’s OK to discriminate against (although everyone will claim discrimination is unacceptable when asked outright), and at this moment in time, you are a prime target.


Tila Tequila has said she will sue the producers of the Gathering of the Juggalos.

Scarlett Johansson David Fincher please no Dragon by Suzannah B. Troy



Gate Crasher of The New York Daily News reports Scarlett Johansson may be a shoe in for the American version of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.   Please say it isn't so.   Why?  Scarlett Johansson is a talented beautiful woman but she is not equipped or perhaps too equipped to play the role.

She would have to lost about 50 pounds to play Lisbeth Sanders and her male fan base which is very large would not approve.  Noomi Rapace, the Swedish actress who plays Lisbeth is so superb truly she is Lisbeth.

If David Fincher wanted to get this film just right he needs to fly to Sweden and court Rapace.  Noomi Rapace is the female Johnny Depp.  She lost weight for the role so she had "no curves".   There is a reason Lisbeth Sanders has no curves and Scarlett Johansson has too many curves for the role.

Michael Nyqvist who plays Mikael Blomkvist is Mikael Blomkvist.   David Fincher cannot find any actors better than these two Swedish actors to play the role.  Truly the way to go is to make the 2nd version of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo in to an HBO series....a very long series starring the original 2 actors with the high quality of a BBC production.

Whom ever Fincher casts as Lisbeth Sanders must be small, very slender to the point of almost anorexic but in great athletic shape.  Scarlett Johansson could never pull off  the Lisbeth Sanders role and she is very talented.  I remember her first film Manny and Lo.

Lisbeth Sanders is a spectacular woman character so I was disappointed the title "Men Who Hate Women" was translated as "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" bcause Lisbeth is all woman.  The series of books deal with misogyny 101 exposing the usual ways hateful men and their gal counterparts attempt to neutralize powerful women by saying they are crazy, lying about them and of course there is always violence.  In telling you this I have not given any of the story lines away but an important theme that better not get lost in the "Americanization" of the film.  

The film is very important because it does address misogyny, prejudice and much more.  Lisbeth Sanders is a techno-savvy hero from the 21st century with a touch of  Charles Bronson - Death Wish. 

Here are three YouTubes I have made about Stieg Larsson's books and films.  I show you me talking about "The Girl Who Plays with Fire" so you can see right away how I feel about Lisbeth".




Tim Tebow scores first TD; what do Jerry Jones and Jimmy Johnson think?

Jerry Jones, owner of the Dallas Cowboys.Image via Wikipedia
Jerry Jones 
Former Florida Heisman-award-winning quarterback, now Denver Broncos NFL 1st Round Pick Tim Tebow had what has to be graded as an outstanding first go at being an NFL Quarterback, even with the matter of his throwing motion still an issue - at least here.

You've got to wonder what his detractors, like Dallas Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones, think?

Remember that just days before the 2010 NFL Draft, Jerry Jones was recorded getting off a drunken blast against the idea of drafting Tim Tebow:



What does Jerry say now?

But that aside for a moment, Tim Tebow showed why Denver Head Coach Josh McDaniels said he's got "that something" that makes him a winner, and made the Broncos select Tebow as the 23rd pick in the 1st Round of the 2010 NFL Draft.

Tebow started in the 4th quarter against the Cincinnati Bengals and finished 8 of 13 for 105 yards, and 10 yards rushing, with one touchdown. One near-fumble was ruled an incomplete pass, and it looked like the Bengals just missed picking off two of Tebow's passes because of that still-long wind-up of his.

But one play showed why Tim Tebow's going to be a star in the NFL.

The ESPN Play-by-Play reads like this:





1st and 10 at CIN 40 - (Shotgun) T.Tebow pass deep right to B.Davis pushed ob at CIN 7 for 33 yards (K.Hebert).


But what it doesn't show is Tim Tebow, a left-hand-thrower, scrambling to his right, then as he ran throwing a nice spiral down the field to Davis for 33 yards.

Even my Mom, who loves NFL football and misses watching it with my late stepfather (which is one reason I make these trips to Georgia), had to stop and watch Tim Tebow on the kitchen TV set. "He's one to watch, and I like him" she said. With that scramble play, Tim Tebow passed the Mom test, with flying colors - and that was before he scored his first touchdown.

You can't help but wonder what all of his detractors think. Remember Kelly at Aventine Bar in San Francisco, who got off this hilarious anti-Tebow rant:



Or what about Eric Berry, the Tennessee Volunteer who was the 1st Round Pick of the Kansas City Chiefs, and who said to this video blogger that Tim Tebow was the hardest player he'd ever hit?



What do all of these people - Jerry, Kelly, and Eric - have to say? What about the rest of the Tim Tebow hater-nation? Which, come to think of it, has it's own website, TimTebowHaters.com. As of this writing, they're silent on his first game performance.

Or what about former NFL Head Coach Jim Johnson, who came into the NFL when Jerry Jones bought the Dallas Cowboys, and who said Tim Tebow couldn't play in a pro-style offense?

What do all of these geniuses have to say? Stay tuned.

Oh, and Tim Tebow's next objective should be to learn to throw the classic three-quarter-to-overhand delivery starting from his shoulders, not his mid-chest region.









Enhanced by Zemanta