John Masters, Author at Deep Something

So Much for Republican Bipartisanship

January 26, 2009September 29, 2018 B. John 546 Views 0 Comments Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, John Boehner, John McCain, Economy, Economic Simulus, Paul Krugman

That didn’t take long. John McCain is on TV this weekend saying he won’t vote for the stimulus package. Other leading Republicans are complaining about the package not having enough tax cuts…blah, blah, blah. Of course they’re also on all the Sunday morning talk shows complaining about the dangers of closing the Guantanamo Bay prison, and prattling on with the lies about all the released prisoners “returning” to the battlefield. The Republicans seem to have always thought that bipartisanship means that everyone must agree with them. For some reason, the spineless Democratic leaders in the House and Senate have gone along with the bullies, thinking somehow the Repubs won’t be so mean to them, if they just give them everything they want. I’m hoping that Obama is going to demand that Pelosi and Reid grow a spine. It sounds like maybe he has one. It’s been reported that Obama, during a White House meeting with Congressional leaders last week, said matter of factly, “I won.”

Movies Culture

Wrestler, The – A Movie Review

January 25, 2009 B. John 335 Views 0 Comments Drama, Mickey Rourke, Marisa Tomei, Evan Rachel Wood, Darren Aronofsky

Randy “The Ram” Robinson, a 1980s-era pro wrestler, has become a burnt-out shell of his former self. After he has a heart attack during a small-time match, a doctor tells him he could die if he fights again. In an effort to build a new life, Robinson takes a job at a deli, But the prospect of a rematch with his old nemesis, the Ayatollah, proves too tempting to resist, even if it means risking his life.

Culture Movies

Baby – A Movie Review

January 24, 2009 B. John 634 Views 0 Comments Feodor Chin, David Huynh, Juwan Chung, Drama, Asian, Gangs

A tragic tale of an Asian youth’s gang life in South East Los Angeles, set during the mid 80’s to the early 90s.

Politics Presidency

The Box That Brought Down Darth Cheney

January 21, 2009 B. John 557 Views 1 Comment george bush, Dick Cheney

Dick Cheney showed up at the Inauguration in a wheelchair. The official story was that he’d hurt his back while lifting a box the night before. Seeing him “crippled,” and being wheeled around on his last day as Vice President was a suitable coda to the worst administration in history of America, and while it may not matter anymore, I’m not buying the official story.

General

Bangkok Dangerous – A Movie Review

January 21, 2009 B. John 437 Views 0 Comments

The life of Joe, an anonymous assassin, takes an unexpected turn when he travels to Thailand to complete a series of contract killings. Joe, a remorseless hitman, is in Bangkok to execute four enemies of a ruthless crime boss named Surat. He hires Kong, a street punk and pickpocket, to run errands for him with the intention of covering his tracks by killing him at the end of the assignment. Strangely, Joe, the ultimate lone wolf, finds himself mentoring the young man instead whilst simultaneously being drawn into a tentative romance with a local shop girl. As he falls further under the sway of Bangkok’s intoxicating beauty, Joe begins to question his isolated existence and let down his guard–just as Surat decides it’s time to clean house.

Right Wingnuts Politics Presidency Religion Science

The Madness of Genuine Respect for all People

January 21, 2009September 29, 2018 B. John 504 Views 0 Comments christian, Barack Obama, Bishop Gene Robinson, Inauguration, Christian Anti-Defamation Commission

The fine christians (Dr. Gary Cass) at the Christian Anti-Defamation Commission have their knickers all twisted because Bishop Gene Robinson had the nerve to pray to God to help us get past mere tolerance and to a place of genuine respect for all people. Obviously, according to these demented idiots, we can have none of that. I mean really, what would Jesus think if we went around actually respecting one another.

Culture Movies

Defiance – A Movie Review

January 20, 2009 B. John 405 Views 0 Comments Drama, WWII, Daniel Craig, Edward Zwick, Jews, Holocaust, Liev Schreiber, Non-Fiction

Four Jewish brothers living in Nazi occupied Poland escape into the forest where they join up with Russian resistance fighters in battling the Nazis. Throughout the war they built a village inside the forest and saved the lives of more than 1200 other Jews. Based on a true story.

Movies Culture

Wackness, The – A Movie Review

January 20, 2009 B. John 498 Views 0 Comments Comedy, Drama, New York, Ben Kingsley, Pot, Josh Peck, 1994, Jonathan Levine

New York, summer 1994, the greatest year in hip-hop, a troubled teenage drug dealer trades pot for therapy sessions with a drug-addled psychiatrist intent on living his life to the fullest. The two form an unlikely friendship, but things get complicated when the kid falls for the doctor’s daughter.

Courts Religion Culture Music Featured Fun Stuff Politics Congress Constitution Presidency

The Inaguration – My Take

January 20, 2009September 29, 2018 B. John 510 Views 0 Comments Yo Yo Ma, Oath of Office, Inaguration, Bush, john roberts, Barack Obama

I took time out, as did a lot of Americans, and watched today’s ceremonies swearing in Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States. As you might expect, I have some opinions on the ceremony and some of the participants. I’m a sucker for the ceremonies of state, and today’s was “high church.” Barack and Michele Obama, and his children, were just the height of grace and beauty, and it does give me some hope that maybe a new day has begun.

Culture Movies Fun Stuff

Pineapple Express – A Movie Review

January 19, 2009 B. John 419 Views 0 Comments James Franco, Seth Rogen, Pineapple Express, David Gordon Green, Action, Comedy

Process server Dale Denton has a grudging business relationship with the laconic Saul Silver, deigning to visit only to purchase Saul’s primo product–a rare new strain of pot called Pineapple Express. But when Dale becomes the only witness to a murder by a crooked cop and the city’s most dangerous drug lord, he panics and dumps the Pineapple Express at the scene. When it’s traced back to him, Dale and Saul run for their lives–and they quickly discover that they’re not just suffering from weed-fueled paranoia. If they survive, these two just might become real friends. All aboard the Pineapple Express.

Culture Movies Movies I Own

Savages, The – A Movie Review

January 5, 2009 B. John 478 Views 0 Comments Drama, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Laura Linney, Tamara Jenkins, Philip Bosco

The last thing the two Savage siblings ever wanted to do was look back at their difficult family history. Having wriggled their way out from beneath their father’s domineering thumb, they are now firmly cocooned in their own complicated lives. Wendy is a struggling East Village playwright, AKA a temp who spends her days applying for grants, stealing office supplies and dating her very married neighbor. Jon is a neurotic college professor writing books on obscure subjects in Buffalo. Then comes the call that informs them that the father they have long feared and avoided, Lenny Savage, is slowly being consumed by dementia and they are the only ones that can help. We were pleasantly surprised.