Democracy For Me, But Not For Thee
You know what’s really awful? When private individuals manipulate the government for the benefit of their own special interests. Especially when they do this at the expense of the general good.
Just ask Paul Jacob. He’s got a righteous anger at the way those evil unions are always depicting Wal-Mart as a company that violates human rights, adds to the flood of dangerous imports, and destroys the American manufacturing base.
Now, to be fair, Jacob doesn’t think that groups should be prevented from smearing Wal-Mart in such a horrendous way – they just shouldn’t be allowed to bring political pressure to bear on them.
Of course, nagging is their very right. It is the continual use of the unions’ political teeth that should elicit opposition. Throughout the country, Wal-Mart’s union-sponsored harassers have attempted to ply the force of law to block Wal-Mart from opening new stores, from reaching customers (who very much want that choice). They’ve also pressured politicians to micro-manage what Wal-Mart pays in salary and benefits. By law.
Of course, there’s nothing particularly unusual about radical libertarians defending Wal-Mart. What makes Jacob’s defense unusual is that he’s currently under indictment for suborning the democratic political process in the state of Oklahoma. Jacob’s commitment to free market principles is so totalizing that when he brings initiative activists into a state to collect signatures — even when state law forbids such practice — Jacob makes sure the activists are paid by the signature, just like piecework was done in our own turn-of-the-Century American sweatshops, back when America was a free market paradise. Naturally, you can imagine the results that come from this paid-by-the-signature approach are, on occasion, somewhat questionable.
But hey, if the consumer indicates that there is a strong market demand for political corruption, then it must be allowed, because any attempt to regulate the market will take away our freedom. After all, this is what the market wants, and the market represents all of us. It’s not like one or two individuals could ever have an undue influence over an entire political market — is it?
Gavin adds: Hey, petition fraud is the hip new fad; all the cool Republicans are doing it:
As you can see in the video, the petitioners said that their petition would “help children with cancer,” and then proceeded to instruct well-meaning students to sign several petitions that were attached together on a single clipboard. The petitioners clearly tried to obscure the language on the petitions, using a rubber band to make it difficult for anyone signing to read beyond the first page. When pressed, the petitioners described some of the other issues (besides curing cancer) they were advocating, but their descriptions of the petition language on eminent domain and [the ‘California Counts’ electoral-vote-shifting scheme] was unclear or inaccurate.
According to an investigation from the UCSB Daily Nexus, the petitioners in Santa Barbara said that they work for Arno Political Consultants (APC), a notorious Republican consulting firm which has previously contracted to get signatures for tobacco companies, Mobil Oil, and they’ve been discovered tricking people into registering to vote as a Republican. APC has been in courts all over America, as you can see here.
And as usual with these things, it just gets better and better…
Over a four-hour period, witnesses testified to having seen signature gatherers forge the names of those who had signed a [Massachusetts] petition that would allow the sale of wine in grocery stores onto the anti-gay petition. Citizens told of how they’d realized they’d been duped into signing the anti-gay petition when signature gatherers pretended that the anti-gay petition was the wine petition.
Speaking of the market, the market demands that poor countries like Malawi submit to Chicago-school style shock treatment.
But maybe they just need fertilizer.
P.S. This might not fit the exact facts of your post, Jillian, but it’s along those lines. AKA pampered hypocrites pontificating poisonously.
You can threadjack me anytime you like, Thunder – I think you rock.
Besides, I have schock doctrine stuff on the brain – I saw Naomi Klein speak last night, and I think I’m in love.
libertarian = selfish asshole
More importantly, I’m sure Jacob would rate himself as having “excellent” mental health, too…
That’s an oversimplification. Frequently libertarians are merely hopelessly naive.
They may be hopelessly naive, phleabo, but they’re never merely hopelessly naive. A bit of the old I-got-mine-so-you-get-yours is always present.
They’re hopelessly naive until the very second something bad happens to them. Then it’s off to teh lawyers for some justice.
Now, be nice, GD.
Oh. You are being nice, I see.
Forget I said anything.
Carry on.
Hadn’t heard the Bork story, Thunder. Niiiiiice.
Man, I ran afoul of these people myself a while back. Me and a friend were wandering around aimlessly and we saw someone gathering signatures in front of a Trader Joe’s. Nevada law prohibits doing that for political purposes without express permission from everyone concerned in the plaza (nearly impossible), so we called the police and had them removed.
Our later wanderings brought us to the library, where a number of local Dem activists were trying to keep people aware of the TASC advocates’ ridiculous behavior. (TASC was the local equivalent of TABOR and those damn eminent domain initiatives – the ones that allow Wal-Mart domain but prohibit schools.)
My friend had a harmonica, and on the fly we busted out ‘TASC Done Took My Baby Away’. I don’t remember the lyrics, but the Dems found it hysterical and the TASC people were grumbling and moaning about it, so woo.
I’m no fan of today’s trade unions for many reasons but I have never walked into a Walmart and I doubt I ever will.
I don’t like the way they do business. At all.
Off Topic, and I expect Michelle Malkin or somebody to cover this in depth Real Soon Now:
“While family members of soldiers recovering at Walter Reed from physical injuries are provided free lodging and a per diem to care for their loved ones, families of psychiatric outpatients usually have to pay their own way.”
The fact is, you all are just giant poopy-heads and I’m just sick of this.
Alec, fight that TABOR-like crap with everything you’ve got. I live in CO and I can see what TABOR did to this state, and its not pretty. We only started to catch up on needed (but deferred) infrastructure repairs when citizens voted in a 5 year TABOR holiday. The governor at the time was a staunch rethug, and he actively supported the holiday idea; his reward was Grover Norquist stating that the gov’s future in republican politics was OVER, period. Just a few years earlier that gov (Owens, a Colorado Springs xtian type) was being touted by the party machine as an up and comer on the national scene, but his support of the TABOR holiday totally shot him out of politics (that and his divorce, since the Focus on the Family assholes weren’t happy about that either).
Norquist is a malevolent little libertard machine prick, and I guarantee he is behind any TABOR-like initiative in your state. Too bad the Abramoff indictments didn’t get that weasel as well.
It’s no wonder the new Iraq has now been ranked the third most corrupt country in the world. Republicans created it.
Mission accomplished!
“And the extent of the theft is staggering. Some American officials estimate that as much as a third of what they spend on Iraqi contracts and grants ends up unaccounted for or stolen, with a portion going to Shiite or Sunni militias. ”
I wonder what percentage of Blackwater money should be considered unaccounted for or stolen? I lean towards “all of it”.
No, Thunder, all that Blackwater money is just part of the military Keynesianism that is at the heart of Cheneyist strategy. The percentage of military spending in the War on Terra that gets funneled into crony’s pockets is a feature not a bug.
Now the bags of greenbacks Bremer was throwing around, well, they’re gone forever, but most of that Blackwater money will show up again back here as consumerism. It’s the new trickle down.
…most of that Blackwater money will show up again back here as consumerism.
If by consumerism, you mean Republican crime family donations.
After a semester in a legal aid for students program, people who sign things without reading and understanding what the hell they’re signing make me want to take people across my knee and administer a whuppin’.
I can’t remember where I saw this, but a very smart alecky lad got a lot of college-aged women to sign a petition to end Women’s Suffrage.
Eeesh.
Have you heard about the dangers of dihydrogen monoxide?
The facts:
I love that I can come here n see so many others who’ve read the Shock Doctrine and taken it to heart.
I swear, it’s getting into my dreams. Most important book in a long, long time.
I’ve never seen this kind of petition trickery in person, but I am always careful to read what I’ve been asked to sign, especially if the petitioner seems to be in a hurry.
Gotta love the Republican devotion to democracy – defining it as “forcing an appearance of majority approval of our pre-planned ideas no matter the cost in money or human life.”
FREE PAUL JACOB
WE’RE PROUD OF PAUL AND HOPE THAT YOU’LL JOIN US TO STOP THE CRIMINALIZATION OF POLITICS
I know that all of us like to make fun of libertarians, but admit it: you have to admire a man who believes in something so strongly that he’s willing to go to jail for it.
FREE PAUL JACOB
WE’RE PROUD OF PAUL AND HOPE THAT YOU’LL JOIN US TO STOP THE CRIMINALIZATION OF POLITICS
I know that all of us like to make fun of libertarians, but admit it: you have to admire a man who believes in something so strongly that he’s willing to go to jail for it.
—————————————————————————————————–
Oops — I didn’t read the post. I assumed that “Free” was as in “Free Beer”. I can’t believe it — the guy could go to jail, and he’s still writing columns? I always thought that the first thing that any competent lawyer does is to tell his client to shut the fuck up until the trial is over.
Why, yes. Everyone who has ever believed in something so strongly that they went to jail for it is someone to be admired.
Like this guy.
Or this one.
No, actually, I don’t really have to admire someone for being willing to go to jail for what the believe; particularly if what they believe is, you know, stupid.
Chill, Jillian. It was an attempt at a joke.
I’m not upset….didn’t mean to come across that way.
Sorry to interrupt this serious discussion, but, realistically, I have nothing of value to add to it, and I’m sitting here wondering:
Would there even BE an electric razor business without christmas?
I mean, when your niece or something gives you one, do you actually USE it?
mikey
mikey: When you have breast cancer and they remove a lot of your lymph nodes, they tell you to from thence forward shave your armpit(s) with an electric razor to minimize the risk of infection from cutting yourself with a regular razor.
Other than that, the NöelCo business does seem seasonal.
Shhhhh….
After the Nazis were finished using their time machine to tutor American school children in fascist gesturing, we bought it on the cheap and initiated Operation Christmas: Phase I.
In Phase II we partner with Jenny Craig to render Santa skinny and clean-shaven.
Phase III: PROFIT!
I have fond memories of that little Norelco Santa gliding thru the snow on a 3-blade electric razor. Just grow a beard and they’ll stop buying them, unless you have a really mangy beard.
I have an electric razor with a little trimmer thing that pops out that’s useful for getting those hard to reach sports and that annoying neck hair. It was an Xmas present.
My god, mikey is right! Christmas IS a vast conspiracy by Norelco and… uhh.. Bic? WHoever the hell else makes them.
So, this guy is another one of those “if only government would let business do whatever the hell they want, screw the consequences” guys? Everyone knows that negative repercussions are for ETHNIC people!
I hate to caveat this thread but can I say how sorry I am to have missed last night’s anthrax/college football discussion ? I could have added a LOT to that but here on this one, not so much. There’s this rubber band around my frontal lobe…
Carry on….
Just finished shovelling the 5″ of anthrax we got in St Paul. My neighbor shovelled half my sidewalk for me. I’m of an age and appearance that people think I should drop dead if I exert myself. Sometimes it’s nice to go with that. I have no ethics in that regard, but I do punch people who are soliciting signatures for questionable political causes.
The fact is you are all biased and full of BDS and hate for USA and troops who are protect your freedom!
I think we may now have a glimmering of understanding about gbear’s, er, distaste for representatives of law enforcement…
mikey
Fortunately we’re reality biased.
The fact is that you’re all a bunch of overeducated smarty-pantsed poppy-heads who think you know everything but don’t even have the decency to go to church on Sunday like real Americans.
I mean poopy-heads. Although poppy-heads is in fact correct as well.
Heh. I’d forgotten about that one. And when we were in grade school we used to alarm the younger kids by telling them their epidermis was showing. Hur, hur, hur!
I once got into a rather intense conversation with a man who was collecting sigs for some third party candidate. I was perfectly willing to sign, but when I asked him a question about the party’s position on a couple of issues he got annoyed and finally broke out “Look if you don’t wanna sign it, just say so.”
I honestly think he’d just had a lot of refusals – perhaps due to his charming demeanor – and maybe didn’t know the answer, not that he was being sneaky.
But I seem to recall telling him to engage in some physical action or other with himself.
Maybe I need to take Yoga lessons.
Hey, don’t put me in with those other people who punch people. I know that I am morally justified in my actions. Sometimes you just have to do the right thing. It’s for the good of America and in keeping with my flawless mental health.
Maybe I need to take Yoga lessons.
Yoda lessons.
“Once you start down the dark path of dishonest petitions, forever will it dominate your destiny.”
I have fond memories of that little Norelco Santa gliding thru the snow on a 3-blade electric razor.
Ha! That was the same thing that I thought of when I read Mikey’s comment too. There was something very essentially Christmasy about that image, at least for an impressionable little fan of things televisual in the 70s like I (and, I suspect, you) used to be.
If libertarians were merely selfish assholes, that’d be okay (well, no, really it wouldn’t I guess). The thing that really pisses me off is that libertarians claim that bein a selfish asshole is a virtue, and that anyone who actually gives a shit about the environment, human rights, or, you know, people not being horribly poor is a misguided and ultimately destructive fool. I do so wish we could set up a big isolated area for them a la Atlas Shrugged, but maybe as a reality show.
Doctor, I think they already made a movie about that.
Mad Max was about peak oil, I thought. I bet Beyond Thunderdome is the one you’re thinking of.
” I do so wish we could set up a big isolated area for them a la Atlas Shrugged, but maybe as a reality show.”
Or a B&B; The Atlas Shrugged Inn !
You know, Mel Gibson puts out so many documentaries like that, I can’t keep them all straight. He’s like Ken Burns on steroids or something.
SamfromUtah, I think it was that style of animation that was memorable too. Do you remember the Brylcreme commercials where the woman chased the guy around a giant tube of the stuff? Very wierd and funny but, as you say, the kind of image that can lodge in a kid’s brain.
I think it was that style of animation that was memorable too.
Now that you mention it – IIRC, it was done in a very Rankin-Bass style and must have pushed my Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer button. That puppet movie was a big part of Christmas for me when I was tiny.
Do you remember the Brylcreme commercials where the woman chased the guy around a giant tube of the stuff?
Sadly, No – I wish I did. It sounds like a hoot. I do remember one odd non-animated commercial about some guy receiving some really strange gifts, like a woven wicker deer’s head, all while a warbly synthesizer version of “Good King Wenceslas” played. I have no idea what that commercial was for, though.
I don’t know why, but I have a lot more Christmas Spirit – in multiple senses, both goodwill and crass commercial – than usual this year. I’ll just go with it.
Nah, it’s not just Xmas keeps the electric razor people in business — there’s also Father’s Day!
(Actually my partner swears by one of the little “beard trimmer” models for keeping his facial fur this side of Grizzly Adam’s, not to mention trimming the extra hair off the dog’s pads so they don’t slip on the wood floors.)
As for Free Paul Jacobs, are they selling him by the pound?
Or “Surviving with the Stars!”
SamfromUtah, the Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” airing was the epitome of Christmas TeeVee for me as well! Every year, I was astounded that the reindeer children had forgotten the lesson they had learned the very year before and made the very same mistakes. Poor Rudolph had to walk everyone (including himself) through the lesson that sometimes differences are strengths…or something like that.
It has affected me to this day. So much that sometimes, my hair flips out and looks like Herbie the Dentist Elf. Those are bad hair days.
jcricket, I know what you mean. I watched that show every season as a kid, and now every year I look more like Santa.
The unions are all a bunch of blood-suckers who use the dues of their workers for far-left political purposes regardless of whether individual workers agree, the NEA for example sends to leftist causes without regard for the individual teacher’s wishes. The very existence of unions cause lower wages overtime and can eventually bankrupt a business. The fact is, Walmart is right in not allowing unions as they are all a bunch of radical leftist bloodsuckers who ruin the economy. The fact is, the economy was in much better shape and hardworking business owners had much more leway to do as they please before the existance of unions.
New thread please.
Somebody just took a dump on this one.
And the government has absolutely no right to tell private businesses not to have an anti-gay petition. Thats the problem with the federal buearcracy, they usurp positions of authority that our Founding Fathers intended to be for private individuals.
It is only fair to shift California’s electoral votes to individual districts. The fact is, in the 2004 Presidential election Bush won more districts in California than Kerry. Bush also won the majority of the White vote in California and New York two “solid blue states.”
Every year, I was astounded that the reindeer children had forgotten the lesson they had learned the very year before and made the very same mistakes.
Heh, I can see that. Somehow, I had grasped the idea of narrative and that a story was the same every time you heard it from a very early age. My dad says I could summarize TV shows and movies even when I was a toddler. And I had a very high tolerance for repetition of viewing which I keep to this day.
The Bumble did scare the crap out of me every year until I was into that 7- or 8-year old macho phase, though.
The fact is, before government regulations and unions, America was a Free-Market Capitalist Nation just as our Founding Fathers intended, and the economy was in much better shape because of it.
Yep. I agree. The Bumble was pretty scary.
Way to piss all over Sam’s and jcricket’s and gbear’s chrismalicious spirit, Scrooge. Jeez.
So, Saul. How would you rate your mental health?
Excellent my friend thank you for asking.
My mental health is excellent because I have God on my side and when I get down I have the shoulder of God to cry on.
“Aaarrghhhh”
Yea, and my shoulder is as soggy and wrinkled as a newborn. Find somewhere new to whine.
Way to piss all over Sam’s and jcricket’s and gbear’s chrismalicious spirit, Scrooge. Jeez.
Thanks, Mortician, but I’ve found it’s pretty easy to ignore the Li’lest Rabbi.
So: what do the kids do for Christmas fun these days on the TV? It’s certain that the fond childhood memories of the middle-aged of 2032 are being formed right now, but what must that be like?
I rather liked that goofy Olive, the Other Reindeer cartoon from a few years back.
Imagine Orsen Welles doing the narration instead of Burl Ives.
I can only speak for my fam, but my son gets plenty of viewings of the classic animated Xmas specials on DVD. “A Charlie Brown Christmas” is a particular favorite, which does my heart good since it has as its basic message “The commercial aspect of Christmas is BS!” A little ironic considering the saturation merchandising of Peanuts characters back in the day, but there ya go.
The fact is, a new poll by Fox News shows that all top 5 Republican Presidential candidates Fred Thompson, Rudy Guiliani, Mitt Romney, John McCain and Mike Huckabee all lead Hillary Clinton ( who already has your party’s nomination practically) in a General Election match up. Looks like were going to have another Republican President my liberal friends.
I’ve always thought that Santa Claus Conquers the Martians was a hoot. The bad guy looks just like Frank Zappa.
Frank just told me to go fuck myself.
That Frank, heheh, he’s such a kidder. Hey where’d everybody go?
Hey where’d everybody go?
We’re not worthy!
“Santa Claus Conquers The Martians” was pretty good as far as bad holiday cinema goes, but nothing beats the Mexican movie “Santa Claus”. St. Nick suddeny turns out to be our only hope against Satan, or at least one of his mincing, badly costumed minions. For some reason, Merlin is also aiding Santa in his mission to bring toys to the children of the world. Great film if you’re comfortably numb; otherwise, prepare yourself for teh payne!
The poll is right here, http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSN2645320920071126
…nothing beats the Mexican movie “Santa Claus”.
That one is sure weird. Probably the most factual about Santa Claus, though.
And then there’s paragraph 2 of that Reuters story. I know, I know, it’s hard to read that much.
Clinton’s top Democratic rivals, Barack Obama and John Edwards, still lead Republicans in hypothetical match-ups ahead of the November 4, 2008, presidential election, the survey by Zogby Interactive showed.
Cool. I’d never heard of that Mexican movie. Sounds like a hoot. Can I get it thru netflix?
Hillary Clinton has a 20 point lead over Obama and Edwards only has 10% of the Democratic vote. Hillary already has the Democratic nomination its only a matter of when its official.
Paul Jacob is the crook who managed to get thrown in a Federal pen for refusing to register for the draft in 1980. He openly flaunted the law, making speeches, working on Libertarian campaigns, and passed himself off as a martyr then, too.
Funny thing was, only five people ever went to jail, and they only went because they made an open show of defying the law. You see, Paul Jacob thinks that his country (the one he has a right to jackboot all over with his creepy ideas) doesn’t have any right to ask him to serve in the armed forces in time of war.
Funny thing is, and a testament to PJ’s “intelligence” had he just signed up, he’d NEVER HAVE HAD TO SERVE! If he’d have just refused to sign up, he’d NEVER HAVE SPENT A DAY IN JAIL!
Of course, if his drunken father wouldn’t have missed while trying out anal sex, PJ NEVER WOULD HAVE BEEN BORN!
What a guy! (Sheep everywhere are nervous at his approach.)
I haven’t been paying attention – are “Saul” and “Gary Ruppert” typically the same person or what?
Imagine Orsen Welles doing the narration instead of Burl Ives.
Hey, Both Orson and Burl think that’s just a GREAT idea!! We’ll give it a a shot and tell you how it goes. THANX!
Are “Saul” and “Gary Ruppert” typically the same person or what?
They’re “what”.
I like “Scrooged.” Bill Murray and Bobcat Goldthwait. It’s funny.
Are “Saul” and “Gary Ruppert” typically the same person or what?
They both sure seem to like pie, but that’s not proof they’re the same.
God – I’ve only ever seen the Mexican Santa Claus movie as a Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode. I bet you could find the unridiculed version at the DVD store bargain bin if you did a bit of omniscient rummaging around. If you want the MST one, I’m sure you have some great connections among the tape traders, or check the Digital Archive Project or myspleen.net.
Does anybody make Christmas movies anymore, or did we Liebruls manage to kill off the Christmas movie industry through our sneaky manipulation of Hollywood to make only really crappy live-action remakes of classic Christmas stuff like the Grinch?
“National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” has a few good moments in it, too.
“Scrooged” was pretty cool, although it feels a little bit like a “celebrity clown-car” movie at times. Bill Murray keeps it going, though.
Pagan that I am, I still like “The Preacher’s Wife”. Well, you know, Denzel Washington doing *anything*. Also, it’s kind of nifty that the only Caucasians in the whole film are a couple of extremely nominal extras (a social worker, some carolers) who get a total of maybe 50 seconds of screen time. True, Whitney Houston can’t act, but she’s believable as a PK who’s so repressed that she’d trade Denzel for the poor earnest schlub she happened to have married.
I’m Mr. Green Christmas
I’m Mr. Sun
I’m Mr. Heat Blister
I’m Mr. 101…
Ahem. What?
I like the 1951 version of A Christmas Carol with Alastair Sims. Seems like I watch that one every year. It has a truely scary ghost of Christmas yet to come.
One year I noticed that the scene with Scrooge waking up on Christmas day has a blooper. When Scrooge looks at himself in the mirror, you also see a guy with a white shirt and crewcut slip into the mirror’s reflection. I try to ignore that now.
I don’t really like the televisual christmas memories. They seem, I dunno, sorta “canned”.
My best christmas experiences are olfactory. The smell of pine, and frost, steamy windows and christmas soup. And yes, the smell of pie. My mom’s perfume in the warmth of the car heater. Rain and wet pavement, sparkling lights and department stores at night. Remember when Penny’s and Sears had popcorn machines? So did Wolworths when we went to get wrapping paper and scotch tape.
And later, New Years eve on the beach, with the bonfire fueled by everyone’s christmas tree. The sea in the night fog, everyone bundled up, the grownups with their “beverages” while we kids amused ourselves lighting the various flotsam and jetsam on fire when no one was paying attention.
These were my childhood memories. We’ll leave the later ones out, for now, in order to preserve the early seasonal glow.
But I will say that into the third generation, the christmas soup tradition does in fact live on…
mikey
Arky – the Miser songs in that movie are, IMO, the only part of it that’s worthwhile – but boy, do they make that movie worthwhile.
Oh, and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy did a version of those songs that’s been in heavy rotation on my MP3 player for over a year.
God – I’ve only ever seen the Mexican Santa Claus movie as a Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode. I bet you could find the unridiculed version at the DVD store bargain bin if you did a bit of omniscient rummaging around. If you want the MST one, I’m sure you have some great connections among the tape traders, or check the Digital Archive Project or myspleen.net.
Definitely check MySpleen for your MSTed “Santa Claus” DVD needs! Right now there are 4 seeders on that movie, so you can probably get it fairly quickly.
_____________________________
“I’m OD’d on whimsy right now!”
Thanks Sam.
We’ve already found out that Orson can’t carry a tune in a bucket so we’re going to have to let Burl do the singing. Hopefully Orson can lip sync better than Ashlee Simpson. His timing has never been all that good but we’ll see. Wish us luck!
That Norelco Santa on the electric razor commercial is the only one I remember when I was a kid. In a strange way, it was the start of my impatient wait for christmas. The other thing I associate with my childhood christmas is commericals for a movie called
The christmas that almost wasn’t. I have no idea what it was about as no one I knew ever admitted to watching. It was shown faithfully for years in the NYC area during the 70s.
Sorry but you’re going to have to tell me what MSTed means.
Oh! Mystery Science Theater. Got it. I thought it was some high tech thing.
MSTed=given the “Mystery Science Theatre 3000” treatment, aka snarked on.
Ah, but you got it anyway. See, I KNEW you were omniscient.
I really like “Scrooged,” too, though I have to turn it off a bit early. The ending is sort of a double helping of cheese with extra cheesy topping. I’m lactose intolerant and that much cheesiness pretty much makes my intestine go boom in a fairly ugly way.
Like the theme song, though.
Does anybody make Christmas movies anymore, or did we Liebruls manage to kill off the Christmas movie industry through our sneaky manipulation of Hollywood to make only really crappy live-action remakes of classic Christmas stuff like the Grinch?
Well, Sweeney Todd is opening on December 25, and I’m sure many people looking for respite from their Nukalur Famblies will consider that an excellent Christmas movie…
There are still “real” Xmas movies being made — I just saw an ad for what looked like another African-American-focused release called “This Christmas”. Biggest problem with funding new Xmas movies, of course, is that the old ones are not only infinitely recyclable but (as this thread proves) attractive because the potential viewer wants to see the same movie s/he remembers seeing for the past x years again. So, it’s either small-budget niche pictures or giant stinking vanity projects like that Grinch abomination.
You’d think there would be more wallace-and-grommit artists making their own Xmas / solstice projects. There are certainly enough beloved Xmas tales out there which haven’t been video’ed yet — I’d love to see an animated version of the Moomintroll story where the Moomins are rudely woken from their usual hibernation by an aggrieved neighbor and decide that “Christmas” must be some kind of monster that needs placating with lights & gifts & eggnog. That was a great anti-commercialist little story, and quite non-denominational too.
I thought Will Ferrell’s Elf was pretty cute.
Yeah, the ending of “Scrooged” is awfully cheezy. I love David Johannsen as the cab driver though, and Bill Murray is perfection.
“How the Grinch Stole Christmas” is still a favorite too.
So, it’s either small-budget niche pictures or giant stinking vanity projects like that Grinch abomination.
Interesting. Sad, but it makes sense.
You’d think there would be more wallace-and-grommit artists making their own Xmas / solstice projects.
I’ll have to poke around and see if it looks like any indies are doing stuff like that. I’ve found a few things like the “Animusic” DVDs that are fun and don’t seem to be distributed through the big flashy channels. With how cheap it is to make DVDs and distribute stuff online, there could well be something out there.
I’m down with Elf.
I always loved the songs from How the Grinch Stole Christmas; that bass voice thrilled me as a kid, and does ‘interesting” things for me as an adult.
What?
I’m a total wimp. I even like “It’s a wonderful life.”
I like mikey’s Christmas memories.
Do you know, I never saw the ocean – any ocean – until I was sixteen? Weird, huh.
stringonastick: Boris Karloff narrated, I think, and I loved the songs too. And that poor little dog with the tree branch tied to his head.
g.
I was twelve before I ever saw snow. And then, it was only for a couple hours.
mikey
Meet the wonderfully-named Thurl Ravenscroft, singer of “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch”.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thurl_Ravenscroft
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Jillian said,
December 2, 2007 at 20:12
You can threadjack me anytime you like, Thunder – I think you rock.
“Besides, I have schock doctrine stuff on the brain – I saw Naomi Klein speak last night, and I think I’m in love.” OHH,OHH!!me too,me,too.I’ve had a crush on her for the longest.Does anyone else think Naomi Wolf is as sexy as I think she is.What’s with women named Naomi,is it Biblical or something.Talk about burning bush,know what I’m sayin?I don’t know what I’m sayin,but ya know what I’m sayin?Carry on you beautiful bastards!!11!
God said,
December 3, 2007 at 3:11
Oh! Mystery Science Theater. Got it. I thought it was some high tech thing.
Y’know, sure, you suspect this kind of thing, but it’s still shocking when you actually find out it’s true.
Well last time I messed with the equipment there was a bit of a bang here. There’s still a nebula around the outlet. I leave that stuff to the electricians now, but I’m still in charge of the mess I made. I’ve been trying to clean it up but it’s like sweeping dustbunnies. It just keeps spreading out and recombining. Actually, it’s been pretty interesting to watch. Take care and be good.
I had something similar happen to me, some woman asked me to sign a petition about human rights abuses and when I looked at the language the entire thing was purely an anti-Israel rant. I bitched her out hard. What a shitty thing to do, to trick people into supporting something because the real cause you are pushing is too shameful to openly expose.
Hey, I don’t even remember what movie they’re from. I just remember those songs. And I think Mother Nature was their mom?
I was never that crazy about The Grinch as a kid but I still love the Grinch’s song. No War on Christmas season is complete without it, and now I have to find the BBVD version. Thanks for the tip.
Sometimes He falls asleep in His easy chair with the TV on, with His mouth hanging open. His snoring scares the dog. I like to hide His slippers and He gets so mad when He can’t find them when He wakes up. It’s so funny.
The Universe can be a cold and slippery place without proper footwear. You know that. Now be good.
He seems so kind and benevolent to the outside world. But He didn’t tell you that He sent Me to My room.
Jesus, they don’t need to know every detail about you. Seems to me that the unknown stuff has worked pretty well in your favor. I mean, if you would have first gone down there to have your own reality show, it’s likely no one would even know your name today. Count your blessings.
Oh, and we’re running into some issues with the show. Orson is insisting that we change the title to Rudolph of the Crimson Proboscis and the tone of the story is becoming rather dark. We may have to take the music out as Burl is balking at the changes. The writer’s strike isn’t making this any easier as Ronald Regan is the only actor willing to cross the picket line. We’ll see how this all works out.
Oops. Reagan. I still don’t know how he got up here. He’s such a ham.
$mas films? Bad Santa meets Jan Brueghel.
Well, the show must go on…
“The unions are all a bunch of blood-suckers who …”
Hey, no posting items from The Onion without attribution. Violation of copyright laws are not allowed here.
Ed
I was never that crazy about The Grinch as a kid but I still love the Grinch’s song. No War on Christmas season is complete without it, and now I have to find the BBVD version. Thanks for the tip.
To be clear – the BBVD thing is the Heatmiser/Coldmiser song, not the Grinch song. Somebody else did do a pretty good cover of the Grinch song, but it’s quite a bit harder to find and I forgot who it was. I’ll have to check when I get home.
$mas films? Bad Santa meets Jan Brueghel.
Pretty damn funny, Herr Clyde. I think I am inspired to learn the dark arts of Photoshop at last. I’ll post a funny picture by next xmas.
Meet the wonderfully-named Thurl Ravenscroft, singer of “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch.”
Thanks RB! He is indeed a wonderfully-named Grinch-song singing man.
Late to the dance here, but…
One, why is it the phrase “criminalizing politics” is only used by those who commit crimes to forward their political aims, thus actually criminalizing politics? Two, how is it that people are so incredibly stupid that they don’t see directly through this BS?
If ever there was a phrase that needs to be taken back and its real meaning given a boost, this is it. I’m all for stopping the criminalization of politics. I want to see every sack of shit that commits crimes get tossed in the stripy hole for them, and be banned from public office. That sounds like the way to stop the criminalization of politics to me.