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Battlestar Galactica 4.4: A Little More about Cylons
2008-04-28 18:55:00
A grim 4th episode of the final season of Battlestar Galactica on Friday, in which not much happened, not much was revealed, but we perhaps learned a little more about the Cylons on the ship...1. Roslin is telling everyone she doesn't have much longer to live. I'm wondering why this is being put so prominently into the story. It occurs to me that maybe it's a lead-up to seeing Roslin die, and come back to life on the Reincarnation ship.2. Tyrol's having a tough time of it. The best scene of the night was when he tells Admiral Adama, trying to comfort him about Callie, that he hated Callie's "vacant eyes" and more. He's coming to realize that his true love was Boomer, who of course makes perfect sense.3. And Tigh seeks comfort in Six, who looks to Tigh like Ellen. We know that Tigh is a Cylon. Does this give more weight to Baltar being a Cylon, seeing as how he has more or less constant visions of Six? And does Six know that Tigh is a Cylon?Soft, intriguing questions .....

Rev. Wright in Better Context in Bill Moyers PBS Interview
2008-04-27 18:45:00
I just saw Bill Moyers ' lengthy interview PBS interview with the Rev. Jeremiah Wright - Barack Obama 's former paster, who was been the center of considerable controversy for his "God damn America" and other inflammatory statements.I urge everyone to see it, because the sound bites that the media have presented, up until now, have taken Wright's comments seriously out of context.Let's look at his "God damn America" sermon, as one example. Now, I think America is the most free country in the history of the world. Despite its many flaws, I feel happy and lucky to be living in the nation that Thomas Jefferson helped create. So those three words, taken on their own, were and are highly offensive to me.But Rev. Wright did not say those just those three words in his sermon. He started that part of his sermon with a list of nations whose abuse of power, whose attempts to act like God, made them "fail". He mentioned Germany, Japan, Russia, and England (actually, the British Empire)....
More About: Interview , Context

Lost 4.9: Daughters, Rules, and Some Truth about Ben
2008-04-25 05:36:00
We got two rare glimpses into the true nature of Ben tonight in this brutally brilliant episode of Lost - one when he said goodbye to Alex on the island, a second in what we saw on his face in the flashforward second scene with Sayid - and we learned a whole lot about some other crucial things, too.1. I was wrong when I supposed that Ben might have been the one who shot Rousseau and Karl in Episode 8 (though not wrong at all about Ben's use of murder of innocents to further his agenda - see #2 below). But it was the bad guys on the boat, Widmore's men, who did the deed. Tonight they try to get Ben to surrender by threatening to kill Alex. Ben's tries to outsmart them, by telling them, truthfully, that Alex is not his daughter (and trying to disguise his love for her). Ben's bluff is called, and Alex is shot dead, right in front of his horrified eyes. (Keamy, played with fatal precision by Kevin Durand, does the deed.)Why Widmore's killers would give up this possible lever...
More About: Truth , Rules , Daughters

Final Pennsylvania Results: Clinton Wins the Vote, But Obama Still on Trac
2008-04-23 05:30:00
Well, there's now more than 90% of the voted counted in Pennsylvania , and too close to call changed to too early to call to Hillary Clinton over Barack Obama by 10%.I stand corrected about the polls - they did it pretty right, after all. Apparently the cell phone vote did not make that big a difference. And perhaps the debate last week did Obama a little damage, even though I thought he did just fine.But the numbers of the overall primary campaign - the "metric" as it is increasingly called - remain with Barack Obama. Ten percent is impressive, but it is far from a blow-out. The delegate split in Pennsylvania based on this vote will likely give Clinton 15 more elected delegates than Obama will get from Pennsylvania - a drop in the bucket, given his nearly 150 delegate lead. Nor are super delegates likely to bolt away from Obama based on Pennsylvania.But Hillary Clinton will be able to take the fight, newly empowered, to Indiana and North Carolina. She was strong and clear in...
More About: Results , Vote , Final

First Pennsylvania Returns: Too Close to Call = Obama Wins Whatever the Fin
2008-04-23 02:13:00
First reports on MSNBC, based on exit polls, say the Democratic race in Pennsylvania is too close to call.This means that, whatever the final results, Obama will make progress towards the nomination tonight. Even if Hillary Clinton gets a victory, it won't be anywhere nearly enough to stop Barack Obama from getting the Democratic nomination.What does this mean in terms of what we've seen in the past few weeks:1. Either Obama did fine in last week's debate (as I said in a blog post here), or debates don't matter much between Clinton and Obama at this point.*2. Polling techniques need improvement. Call ing voters on landlines, when many younger voters have only cell phones, does not make sense any more in our mobile age. (Exit polls are usually done in person, and so the cell phone problem doesn't arise.)**But see my Final Pennsylvania Results where I admit my errors on these points...And I'll be back later when more returns come in. An exciting night for democracy!listen t...
More About: Close , Wins

John Adams Concludes, The Tudors Continues, The First Amendment Abides
2008-04-21 07:01:00
A fabulous, instructive night for history on cable television - John Adams , the splendid mini-series, concluded on HBO, and The Tudors, the magnificent, searing series, continued with its second season on Showtime.The last episode of John Adams was mostly personal, and very powerful. Adams' daughter dies of breast cancer. Abigail dies. And Thomas Jefferson and John Adams die on the same day, July 4, 1826, after they have reconciled via letters.What was mostly at dispute between them was freedom of speech and communication, and the First Amendment . Adams, early in the hour, complains that all he'll be remembered for is signing the Alien and Sedition Acts - the closest our nation has ever come to abrogating the First Amendment .Its importance was wrenchingly, brilliantly portrayed in the two episodes (4 and 5) of The Tudors I saw tonight (on Showtime On Demand). Thomas More resists the law that Parliament passed on behalf of Henry, proclaiming him the ultimate religious authori...

Battlestar Galactica 4.3: Deaths, Lessons, Questions
2008-04-19 17:50:00
Battlestar Galactica isn't missing a beat in this riveting, powerful, adrenalin-coursing last season, and last night's show fit right in with the pounding pulse.It started unsurprisingly enough, with life on the ship continuing to wear on Callie Tyrol. Things get worse when she sees her husband Galen and Tory (two of the four secret Cylons) talking, and Tory making a move on him. Galen rejects this, but Callie doesn't see that.And then things get much much worse. Callie trails Galen to a meeting of the three Cylons (the fourth, Starbuck's husband, is on her ship, looking for Earth), and discovers to her horror that that's what they are. Back in her quarters, she beats Galen with a wrench, and takes their baby to a Viper launch tube. She's thinking of opening it, and killing her baby and herself.But Tory comes by. She's compassionate, sensible, understanding, and eventually talks Callie out of suicide. She takes the baby from Callie - and knocks Callie across the tube w...
More About: Battlestar Galactica , Questions , Deaths , Lessons

Passover and Politics: Reflections
2008-04-19 00:51:00
Hey, Passover starts tomorrow night - it's always been my favorite holiday.A fine feast, catchy songs, and a great storyline - what more can you ask for?The part I like best comes early in the seder. Why do we need to have a Passover ceremony - the answer is provided by a look at The Four Sons. The first son is highly intelligent - no need to have the story of Passover told for him, because he already understands it. The second son is evil - no point in telling the Passover story for him, because he deemed himself above all of this. The third is a little bit of a dim-wit - no need to have the story told to him either, because the meaning can be satisfactorily conveyed to his weak mind in just a few, simple sentences. But the fourth son - he who has not the capacity to even inquire - he is the reason that the Passover story must be told. It must be told, in other words, for those who, for whatever reason (perhaps because they are too young, or otherwise know nothing at all ...
More About: Politics , Barack Obama , Hillary Clinton , Reflections , Judaism

Obama Appeals to the Good Sense of Americans in 21st Democratic Debate Toni
2008-04-17 04:47:00
David Gergen on CNN thought both candidates were "pandering," Howard Fineman on MSNBC thought the debate was stale, and Patrick Buchanan, also on MSNBC, thought Barack Obama did not have a very good night ... but I thought it was the ABC-TV questioners who didn't have a very good night, and the candidates made this 21st Democratic debate the best so far. Hillary Clinton was her customarily clear debating self. But Barack Obama made some important progress in his continuing campaign to practice a new kind of politics in this election - one which respects the intelligence and rationality of the American.Obama was hit with bevy of volleys about not wearing a flag pin, his friendship with Weatherman radical William Ayers, his relationship with Rev. Wright, etc. And Obama pointed out that this is not what the election is about - and not what Americans are interested in hearing. These discussions do nothing to fix what is wrong with America.There were some important questions mixed i...
More About: Sense , Debate

John Adams on HBO: 6: Flawed President and Flawed Father
2008-04-15 22:46:00
People sometimes ask me why I'm so critical of John Adams - the real person in history, not the superb HBO series - and the answer is the damage done to, and near death of, our democracy brought by the Alien and Sedition Acts, signed into law by Adams. This grim episode, and Jefferson's protest that these acts trampled on the Constitution, were vividly portrayed in this 90-minute episode that covered the whole of Adams' Presidency.But the episode brought to light something equally lamentable about Adams - pertaining to his family not his country. Charles, the reprobate son, is disowned by John Adams . His son-in-law is turned away when in financial need. It's not that our culture was so different then. It's that John Adams could not overcome his stern New England upbringing, and give his son the love and emotional support, his son-in-law the economic support, that they needed. John Adams meted out punishment instead - just as he did to his country by jeopardizing the Firs...
More About: President , Father

New Amsterdam Bows: Lessons in Cons and Backsides
2008-04-15 04:18:00
New Amsterdam gave its final bow tonight - of the season, maybe of all time - with a line that it is destined to become classic, when John says to his annoying boss Callie (played by Susan Misner) "I won't kiss your ass - which isn't that great, by the way. The way you twitch it around, you'd think it was one of the seven wonders of the modern world."Well, it's looked ok to me, and Callie also gets creds for asking John at the end of the episode if he really meant this line, part of the little act the detectives put on to nab the bad guy (actually, a bad woman).We don't get to see John's answer, but we did get a fine final episode, in which the current police and the past part of John in historical New York are finally meshing pretty well. Con artists are the common thread, in the 1920s and the 2008 parts, and of course conning most of the people around him is just what John has been doing his whole 400-year life.Not to stretch this metaphor too far, but tantalizing the tel...
More About: Bows , Lessons , Cons , New Amsterdam

Obama's Words about "Bitter" Workers, Guns, and Religion: No Big Deal
2008-04-13 05:25:00
Barack Obama has been receiving considerable flack about this statement made earlier in the week - "It's not surprising then they [economically hard-pressed workers] get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations." Hillary Clinton and John McCain have gleefully called such words "elitist," Obama has regretted and clarified them, and the media have been having their customary field day, ever on the lookout for a possible slip by a major contender.You know what I think? It's no big deal.Why should working families having trouble making ends meet take offense at a Presidential candidate recognizing that they may be feeling bitter? That's a normal human reaction, and ignoring or denying it - as Clinton and McCain are doing - is plain hypocrisy.What about the linking of religion to this? Well, I thought that was supposed to be one of the social purpos...
More About: Religion , Guns , Workers , Barack Obama

Grand Opening of my New Bookshop in Second Life!
2008-04-12 21:08:00
That's right: I've moved my Second Life bookshop - The Soft Edge - to beautiful new quarters, in the Artists' Village in Second Life .And to celebrate this new opening, I'll be reading from the beginnings of each of my five novels - The Silk Code, Borrowed Tides, The Consciousness Plague, The Pixel Eye, The Plot to Save Socrates - at 4pm Eastern (1pm Second Life time) this afternoon!I'll also be giving away a copy of one of my novels in a contest, which will be open to only those who attend the Grand Opening today!If you're already my friend in Second Life, look for an announcement from me, 30 minutes before the reading, with a landmark you can use to get to the reading.If you're already on Second Life, but are not yet my Friend, I can be contacted at PaulLevinson Freenote - send me a note in Second Life, and I'll reply with a landmark to the reading.If you're not on Second Life, you can join for free any time at http://secondlife.com - after you've joined send me a message...
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Battlestar Galactica 4.2: Mysteries and Satisfactions
2008-04-12 07:20:00
Some sweet mysteries and deep satisfactions in the second episode of the final season of Battlestar Galactica tonight ...Minor mystery, though maybe not so minor: Why is Baltar talking to Baltar rather than Six? Baltar asks his conjured vision of himself if "he" is not really Six, and "he" doesn't really answer, but ... This gets us to focus, once again, on exactly what the palpable vision of Six that only Baltar can see has been all along. Somehow, not just something arising totally from Baltar's brain, since the vision gives him information that (presumably) Baltar couldn't know ... Unless, Baltar is a Cylon ... Nah, too obvious ... But, whatever's going on, it could be that this Baltar seeing Baltae rather than Six offers some clue to something profound....Big mystery/big satisfaction: What exactly is going on with the seven minus one (who is boxed). We see Six changing the Centurions' programming so that they riddle One (played by the always convincing Dean Stockwell) ...

The Tudors: Transformations and Assassins
2008-04-12 00:30:00
It's the season for history on cable television - John Adams on HBO, the return of The Tudors on Showtime - and it's proving to be a wonderful season, indeed.The Tudors this season is all about transformation.Charles Brandon (well-played by Henry Cavill ) was Henry's loyal buddy last year. But Princess Margaret died, Charles has remarried, and is changing his ways. He seems faithful to his new wife. He spends more time at home. And he is taking Queen Catherine's side...What happened? I've "grown up," Brandon says. And this growing is putting him on an ever more dangerous collision course with Henry and his supporters, as the King at last officially proclaims Anne.Thomas More is growing too. He can no longer serve as Chancellor, and is finding keeping quiet about his misgivings about Henry and Anne increasingly difficult. Henry is definitely "no longer Harry".And the Church is changing too, both in England and Rome, though The Tudors takes some literacy license and compr...
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New Amsterdam 7: What Kept John from Dying?
2008-04-10 06:05:00
Next to last New Amsterdam on Monday - at least, for this season, and no one is saying at this point if it there will be another. This hour moved the story forward on one crucial point:Apparently Dr. Sara is not the one for John . He's shot (again) at point blank range, comes close to dying, but survives. The implication is the attack would have killed a mortal man. Were Sara the one, and this reduced John to mortality, as per the original prophecy, he should have died.Reasons for John surviving, if Sara indeed was the one, and John was mortal, could only be if the damage done to him by the gun was not that serious. That would be a rather weak move for the story, so I'm assuming that's not the case.Another possibility - especially given the other main story in Episode 7 - is that John may be slowly dying from the lead in his body. This is what happened to John's prior partner. He was shot, survived, but eventually died of long-range complications.But I'm betting that wha...
More About: Dying , New Amsterdam

Barack Obama Gets High Marks for Speeches in Japan
2008-04-08 05:44:00
Obama's Speeches Get High Grades in Japan by PaulLevWell, last week was a good week for Barack Obama around the world - and I've been happy to do what I can to help.Yesterday, I posted a clip from the CBC's "Cell Phone: The Ring Heard Around the World," aired on April 3, in which I and the documentary praise the Obama campaign's savvy use of cell phones.Turns out I was also on the air in Japan last Friday - April 4 - giving Obama and his speech writer Ron Favreau very high marks (I also grade Hillary Clinton). The above clip with me, from NNN-TV News in Japan, was recorded in January (same week as the CBC clip). You can see the entire report in Japanese - with a comparison of Obama and Martin Luther King - on the NNN-TV News 24 website.listen to Light On Light Through podcast also iTunes Paul Levinson's books
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John Adams on HBO: 5: Jousting of Ideas
2008-04-07 22:54:00
An intellectually powerful and sophisticated Episode 5 of John Adams on HBO last night - the most vivid so far in the mini-series in portraying the contest of political philosophies that made this country. Indeed, the most compelling I've ever seen on television. We see:.John Adams , who believes the best (and only reliable) path to a continuing, free America is a strong central government. Towards this end, Adams even wants a monarch-like way of addressing the President - an idea soundly defeated in the nascent U.S. Senate. Adams protests that he's not really a constitutional monarchist, but it's difficult to see exactly the ways in which he is not..Thomas Jefferson , who shocks even Abigail Adams with his famous statement that "the tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants" - not insignificantly putting patriots ahead of tyrants in the blood letting. What's really at stake here is Jefferson's view that government is not the pr...
More About: Ideas

Barack Obama and the Cell Phone Revolution
2008-04-07 02:13:00
Barack Obama and the Cell Phone RevolutionUploaded by PaulLevWell, Canadians get it ... the above is a clip from CBC-TV's Cell Phone : The Ring Heard Around the World, aired in Canada on April 3, in which I talk about the intersection of the Obama and cell phone revolutions.... Nice to hear the Canadians say Obama may be our next President. Significantly, he is the only Presidential candidate featured in this show.You can see the complete 40+ minute program - with me talking my head off about the history of the cell phone and its growing importance in our lives - on the CBC's website. Some other fine guests on the show, too - including inventor of the camera-phone Philippe Kahn and the space-faring Richard Branson.Featured on the show...."A superb and often amusing account of one of the greatest revolutions in human history" --Arthur C. Clarkelisten to Light On Light Through podcast also iTunes Paul Levinson's books
More About: Barack Obama

Battlestar Galactica is Back and Bristling!
2008-04-05 05:04:00
Battlestar Galactica is back for its final season, and glistening, bristling with action, puzzles, and intrigue of the highest, deepest order.The puzzle is set out to us in the first lean, mean razor of a new opener: 12 Cylons, we know 7, 4 live in secret on the ship, so who is the 5th/12th?Caprica Six gives us a hint, when she says all five feel near to her.And that's not the only puzzle.Starbuck is back - after six hours on the clock for her, more than two months for everyone back on the ship (time dilation seems to be in the air this season - see also Faraday on Lost ). She's sure she's been to Earth. But Adama and Roslin are determined to keep the ship on its predetermined course, based on last year's clues - or, at least, Roslin is. As for Admiral Adama, his heart tells him Starback may be right...Other puzzles ... why did the Cylons pull back their apparently victorious attack? To give Anders some secret order, that even he is not aware of? Or, simply because they saw ...
More About: Battlestar Galactica , Back

The Fallacy in the Argument that Obama Lacks the Experience Needed to Be P
2008-04-04 03:33:00
I've noticed a fundamental illogic in claims that Obama does not have experience sufficient to be President - an illogic that deserves to be called out.Here's how it goes: Against the claim that Obama does not have enough national experience to be President, his supporters (including me) cite JFK and Theodore Roosevelt - two great Presidents who were criticized when first running for or assuming the office, as being too inexperienced to make a good President. To which Obama's opponents are quick to reply: yes, but JFK (Congressman for six years, Senator for eight) and Theodore Roosevelt (Governor of New York for two years, Vice President of the United States for less than a year)had much more experience than Obama.Well, first, regarding Roosevelt, I'd question whether his experience was more or better than Obama's - though I'd be willing to concede that being VP even for six months is certainly impressive.Much more important, however, is how the actual prior experience of J...
More About: Barack Obama , Experience , Fallacy

Obama's Best Moment on Chris Matthews' College Tour: Obama Finds Humor in
2008-04-03 04:31:00
Obama did fine on Chris Matthews' Hardball "College Tour " interview from West Chester University in Pennsylvania on MSNBC tonight, answering well on all the major issues. But sometimes it's the little exchanges that show the most about a candidate and make the most lasting impression.My favorite tonight was Obama's answer to Chris Matthews' light-hearted question about whether Obama ever has any moments in the campaign over which he laughs his head off later that night. That happens every day, Obama came back, then added, "but then I stopped watching cable news."That's what I like to see in a candidate. Not hostile to media, but putting the press in its place. You ask me a question about what I find funny, well, I find a lot of what you put on air about this campaign pretty funny, Obama says.This is part of what people mean when they say they see a lot of JFK in Barack Obama. Kennedy, a rarity in politics and the Presidency, understood the value of joking with the media, ...
More About: Humor , Obama , Moment

New Amsterdam 6: The DNA of Art
2008-04-01 05:35:00
Tonight's New Amsterdam - Episode 6 - started out great: John is called in on a case, and finds the victim looking just like his son - John's son from 1913, in his late teens.Now, we know that time travel is not one of the ingredients of this series, so the deceased could not be John's son who literally traveled from then to now.One possibility might have been that John's son somehow inherited part or all of John's immortality - and lived, not aging a day, from 1913 until now, only to die riddled by bullets. Perhaps John's son had found his true love, the one who would set him free from his immortality.Instead, the story took a more tame but still intriguing turn: this was a descendant of John's son who just happened to look like John's son. So we get get a nice episode tonight about another one of the many branches of John's family tree.Along the way, we get some good thoughts about the immortality of art - John's a painter in 1913 - and some fine scenes in which John...
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John Adams on HBO: 3 and 4: Jefferson and Space Travel of the Soul
2008-03-31 04:31:00
A powerful, beautiful Episode 4 of John Adams on HBO tonight - after last week's somewhat lackluster Episode 3, in which the highpoint if the tension was Adams getting sick of and in Europe.But let's look at Episode 4, bursting with brilliant scenes:.John and Abigail reuniting Paris - handled with sensitivity and passion, as Abigail forgives John for his years of absence..Adams and Jefferson in Paris (1) - Adams chastising Jefferson for the high opinion he has of human nature, at the same time that Jefferson chastises Adams for his low opinion of same. This difference of opinion is crucial, and will set the stage forever more in American history between those who want strong central authority to show the people the best way (Adams) vs. those who want to protect the people, capable of governing themselves, for the tyrannies of government (Jefferson)..Adams and Jefferson in Paris (2) - at the launch of the first hot-air dirigible. Adams doubts that it will fly; Jefferson (a Renais...
More About: Travel , Space , Soul

Open Letter to Obama Supporters from an Obama Supporter: Let the Contentio
2008-03-30 19:57:00
Senator Patrick Leahy called last week for Hillary Clinton to bow out of the Democratic Presidential contest. Not only is that not likely to happen, it's likely counterproductive to call for it. Hillary Clinton will drop out of the race when she's ready, and the only people she's likely to take counsel from about that are Bill and Cheslea. Further, if there is any chance, however slight, of Hillary winning, then why should she withdraw now?I'm an Obama supporter. But here, from that vantage point, are my takes on various contentious issues in the Democratic race to the White House:1. Let all the voting continue, in every primary yet to be held. There will be more than enough time, after the last primary in June, for the candidates to reassess their positions before the convention in August.2. Calls for a reduction in criticism of Obama and Clinton by Clinton and Obama are foolish. Although I by no means support some of the name-calling that has been going on (such as Jame...
More About: Barack Obama , Open , Cain , Letter

In Treatment Concludes (For Now)
2008-03-30 06:17:00
Laura and Alex, for very different reasons, are no longer in treatment In Treatment with Paul. So it was only appropriate that the finale week concluded with Sophie, Jake and Amy ... and Paul as patients.Let's start with Jake and Amy. As I've been saying throughout my reviews, I think theirs was the weakest, most obvious segment in the series. Nonetheless, it concluded on a pretty good note, if unsuccessful for their marriage. Jake could just not get over Amy's sleeping with her boss. Not even when she was punished by being fired. Not even when she made some affectionate moves to reconcile with Jake. Not even when Paul tried to get them to see that there was still some powerful energy in their relationship. All to no avail. The therapy got them - at least, Jake - to see that their marriage had to fail.In contrast, Sophie's final session was an uplifting success. We get to meet her father. Sophie finally lets him know how his leaving her, when he left her mother, was s...
More About: The Sopranos , In Treatment

Reading a Tantalizing Bit More of Unburning Alexandria
2008-03-29 20:05:00
You know you want to hear this ... you've regretted missing all of the readings I've done before ... So I'll be back this afternoon, on the Web, in Second Life, reading some new material from my novel in progress, Unburning Alexandria ...It's the sequel to The Plot to Save Socrates - but, if you haven't read that novel yet, not to worry, I promise I won't give anything away in my reading...The reading will take place on the Web in Second Life.If you're already my friend in Second Life, look for an announcement from me, an hour before the reading, with a landmark you can use to get to the reading.If you're already on Second Life, but are not yet my Friend, I can be contacted at PaulLevinson Freenote - send me a note in Second Life, and I'll reply with a landmark to the reading.The reading will be at the Bantam Dell Cafe in Second Life.If you're not on Second Life, you can join for free any time at http://secondlife.com - after you've joined send me a message here on Faceboo...
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Tooling Up for the Return of The Tudors - with Peter O'Toole!
2008-03-28 05:51:00
I saw the first episode of The Tudors , Season 2, on Showtime On Demand ... Not to worry, this is history, after all, so it's not easy to give much away, and I promise to be mum about anything embellished, in this or any review I may post before the episode's full-bodied airing...And The Tudors is as delightfully full-bodied this season as last, when I referred to the series as "history so real you can taste it".Jonathan Rhys Meyers as Henry VIII and Natalie Dormer as Anne Boleyn are as sensual as last year, and, who cares if this Henry's a rail like Abe Lincoln and not hefty like the real Henry. Rhys Meyers' performance still carries the requisite weight.But the actor who makes everyone else on this show a lightweight - the actor whose gravitas, in fact, has pulled every performance around him like puppets on a string, planets in the solar system, from the first we ever saw him in Lawrence of Arabia - plays Henry's adversary in the Protestant Reformation in this second season o...
More About: Return , The Return , Peter , Return of the

Ten Things You May Not Have Known about Sierra Waters
2008-03-27 21:30:00
from Sierra Waters ' MySpace blog...================================== ======================= Tags, Colors and Flavors and LoveCategory: Bloggingpost by Sierra WaterLance Strate tagged me.I confess to not knowing much about tagging in the first decade of the 21st century. But it?s been explained to me that I?m required to list 10 unknown things about me, and then tag 10 other people ... so here goes. (And I?ve got to admit that this should be fun...)1. My favorite color is sunset orange and my favorite flavor is peach-mango.2. I cry every time I hear the Beatles? singing "Real Love," because it was recorded with John Lennon?s voice, years after he was killed, and the Beatles added their voices and instruments to the record. Someday, after I finish my work in Alexandria, I may try to do something about this.3. Numbers and poetry and harmonies make my heart beat faster.4. I?ve recently realized that a cuddle with the right person can be almost as good as making love. Actually, I...
More About: Things , Cape Cod

Graceless James Carville Wants to "Brand" Bill Richardson for Obama Endorse
2008-03-25 20:53:00
I just saw James Carville on MSNBC refuse to apologize for calling Bill Richardson a "Judas" for Richardson's endorsement of Barack Obama . Far worse than not apologizing, Carville offered that he wanted to "brand" Richardson for this act of betrayal, so that everyone would know Richardson by that act.Actually, Richardson's endorsement of Obama was an act of outright courage - an act of standing up for what Richardson thinks is good and right for the country.What does Carville hope to accomplish by his "branding"? Frighten or caution other super delegates, who may be thinking of moving from support of Hillary Clinton to Barack Obama? Not likely to happen.Indeed, the only lasting effect of Carville's graceless attack on Bill Richardson is that it will long be remembered as an example of just how low gutter-sniping campaigns, politics by intimidation, can go.I know I certainly will plan on using Carville's remarks as an example of propaganda at its worst in the graduate course i...
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