society

Things a Bond flick must have to be a real Bond flick.

I just saw the new movie, Casino Royale, starring Daniel Craig, and enjoyed it. Too bad, it's not a Bond flick. Yes, the lead character is named James Bond, but that alone doesn't make it a Bond flick (see Never Say Never Again). In fact, while the Broccolis think there have already been 21 or 22 Bond films, there have really only been about six: Dr. No, From Russia With Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, and Diamonds Are Forever. In short, the Sean Connery ones. And not because I think Sean Connery is the best Bond. Frankly, I don't care who the actor is. No, there have only been 6 real Bond flicks because most of the scripts lack the requisite Bond-ness to qualify.

“Ubuntu” is evidently African for “F*ck Microsoft”

“Ubuntu” is evidently the African term for "F*ck Microsoft," because the latest version of this open-source Linux Operating System does pretty much everything the average user could ever want as well as, if not better than, Windows. True, it's a little crude in areas where Mac-enthusiasts like myself might notice (type rastering, for example). But for Windows users, the experience would differ little in appearances, and differ greatly in non-suckiness.

The Repubican Oath: Do Republican politicians know about this?

I was pretty shocked when I came across the Republican Oath. I mean, I grew up a Republican, but I've been voting Democrat ever since George "Mission Accomplished" Bush ran for president the first time. His way-too-far-right, religious zealotry, general ignorance and incompetence forced me Left—onto the side of the people who insist that pet owners be called..."Pet Guardians." Still, this oath makes me wonder who killed the real GOP.

Why the world needs more musicians and fewer 'recording artists.'

The talented singer, Stephanie Nilles, makes a point in her liner notes that bears repeating in this modern world of Copyright and Digital Rights Management issues. She reminds us that, at one point in time, musicians had to actually work for a living instead of recording one hit song and then living the life of a drug-addled jack-ass.

Milk does the Dairy Association good.

Evidently, milk doesn't do a body that good. According to a recent study, the American Academy of Pediatrics concluded that "neither increased consumption of dairy products, specifically, nor total dietary calcium consumption has shown even a modestly consistent benefit for child or young adult bone health."

Blog | 02.01.10 | By thecroz

Blog | 01.20.10 | By thecroz

Blog | 05.21.09 | By thecroz

Blog | 04.15.09 | By thecroz

Blog | 03.24.09 | By thecroz

Blog | 03.17.09 | By thecroz

Blog | 01.15.09 | By thecroz

BOOKS

I am America (And so can you!), Stephen Colbert—Sage advice for an ailing nation.
God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything, Christopher Hitchens—The case against belief.
The Fabric of the Cosmos: Space, Time, and the Texture of Reality, Brian Greene—A mind-bending romp through quantum physics.
Adam's Curse: A Future without Men, Bryan Sykes—It's not MY fault, it's my chromosome's.
1984, George Orwell—Who says no one can predict the future?
Nonzero : The Logic of Human Destiny, Robert Wright—It gives you hope for the future.
The Stranger, Albert Camus—Alienated existentialism at its best.
A Short History of Nearly Everything, Bill Bryson—Why aren't textbooks this funny?

POLITICS

Change Congress Help keep Big Money out of politics
Earmark Watch Bringing citizen oversight to congressional spending
Money And Politics Illuminating the connection
Open Congress The real story behind what's happening in Congress
Fortune 535 Find out how wealthy your local politicians are
OpenSecrets Center for responsive politics
Citability Making government accessible, reliable, and transparent
Data.gov Public access to high-value, machine-readable data sets
Public Markup Review and comment on proposed bills before they are even introduced
FedSpending Find out where your tax money is going
The Sunlight Foundation Shining light on money, lobbying, and government
Transparency Int'l. Stop corruption to save lives.
Congresspedia The citizen's encyclopedia of Congress

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