Dorrk Dot Com

I don’t think I would argue your points on the corrosive nature, expect to say that the sheer amount of time radio and tv personalities are on the air (and therefore the number of issues on which they can spew forth drivel) seems to me to make them more corrosive than pop stars. But, certainly, [...]

All that aside, what I meant to convey with my initial post on this subject, was that I find the often superior and snide attitude driving contemporary protest rock to be just as, if not more so, corrosive to the so-called "national dialog" and individual attitudes toward the political process, as the usual accused culprits [...]

Matt wrote:
In the case of that Bright Eyes song, I was sorely disappointed because I thought that the usually interesting details and sense of craft that Oberst includes in his lyrics had been ditched in favor of a very vague attack that seemed like it had been written quickly and didn’t really have anything interesting [...]

Dorrk asked:
"Do like-minded fans of these bands find lyrics like that clever or funny, or do you cringe at the flaccid, simple self-righteousness of it?"
Hmm. In the case of that Bright Eyes song, I was sorely disappointed because I thought that the usually interesting details and sense of craft that Oberst includes in his lyrics [...]

A couple of weeks ago I endorsed Matt’s recommendation of the emerging indie rock group Rilo Kiley, having listened a few times to their 2002 album, "The Execution of All Things."
Then Matt passed me a copy of their newest album, More Adventurous. Here’s how the first song, "It’s a Hit," opens:

Any chimp can play human [...]

I love the stuff. One of the random quips printed on the packaging says, "It’s the new ketchup." I agree, and put it on most anything that I used to eat with ketchup. I even used it for salad dressing once. Fascinating, I know.
As if this weren’t mind-blowing enough, let me also share that I [...]

Geez, whose blog is this? Hello?
What a slacker. I’ll have to think of something.

Choose your own adventure, the webpage! Don’t care for any of the options? Write your own!
I ended up getting killed by Wil Wheaton.

For anyone who thinks that MapQuest or Google Maps (or Flight Simulator) is pretty cool, you need to download the amazing Google Earth.
Using very detailed sattelite imagery (of urban areas), it lets you take virtual tours of the globe. It’s not perfect: a lot of rural areas lack detail, it’s address locating is off (type [...]

A week or so ago, I ordered Joss Whedon’s science fiction series, "Firefly," on DVD. I started watching it about 3 days ago and finished the 14th (and final) episode today. I wanted to share my take on this show for Dorrk in particular, who has reservations about the series.
First, and most [...]

A new reason to loathe that show and its many mentally retarded fans.

Interesting article about a respected Jordanian journalist that has met with Al-Qaeda leaders and shares the 7 steps they want to take toward the Islamic Caliphate. Even if they don’t accomplish all 7 steps, just 1 or 2 is enough to start total chaos. Furthermore, the West’s (blame ourselves and America first) attitude [...]

Maybe the word "Clinton" should be an adjective: "one who believes in nothing at all other than their own self-advancement at all costs."
This from a novel writer (sounds like an apathetic liberal) who is subbing for Andrew Sullivan on his relationship with Hillary Clinton’s ghostwriter.
"I do have some insight into Hillary and it makes me [...]

Iraq is also a lot safer today than it was under Saddam Hussein according to a recent count of annual deaths. If you take out the Sunni Triangle, then Iraq is very safe today. However, you would never get that picture by watching the news coverage.
How ironic it will be if the US [...]

Yes, once again Israel is making the majority of the efforts toward Peace. And once again, terrorism is being rewarded by the West.
Let’s make a note of what happens in Gaza. Will it turn into a productive, self-sufficient society full of peace loving citizens now that they’ve been their land.
Or will it be [...]

Here’s a welcome segment from today’s Best of the Web:

The
Good News Is, the Good News May Get Reported
A heartening piece of metajournalism appeared in yesterday’s New York Times.
It seems the Associated Press has come under pressure from American editors
about the negativity of its coverage from Iraq. Rosemary Goudreau, editorial
page editor [...]

Aside from the heartbreaking spectacle of it, I have a couple of thoughts about this Israeli exodus out of Gaza.
First, I wonder if the Israeli troops would be encountering as much
resistance if the Israeli government had taken a different approach?
What if Sharon had said, simply, "Israel is withdrawing any assumed
jurisdiction from Gaza, which lies outside [...]

I was one of the ones that mentioned that Sideways was being considered over-rated by some reviewers and that the trailers made the film look heavy-handed. But a couple of months ago, I watched it on an airplane and found myself laughing out loud a lot. I really enjoyed the film. Yes, [...]

…from my review of Sideways, the movie also reminded me of the great time I had going out on my one and only wine tasting tour about ten years ago with Eric and his dad, Nick. We spent Memorial Day (I think; or was it Labor Day?) hopping from one Willamette Valley winery to another, [...]

I’ve updated the DVD Review links with three recent reviews of no consequence:
The Glass Shield
Cypher
Ice Princess

Nothing special there, but I have seen a few video releases in my spare
time that are worthy of note. First, the much ballyhooed Sideways
received underwhelming reviews from most of my friends that mentioned
seeing it. Being a big fan [...]