I will miss Herman Cain...
Tower Heist
I saw "Tower Heist" this past weekend and was pleasantly surprised. Not that I didn't think that Eddie Murphy wouldn't be his usual funny self, I was just a little unsure about the all-star cast and how they would all play together. I've seen a few movies with a lot of star cameo appearances but this one isn't that type of movie. These all-stars all have meaty roles and in my opinion worked well together. With the title having the word "heist" in it, it's a no-brainer that there will be something stolen but the reasoning behind the heist would make just about anyone feel it justified. Not to give it totally away, I'll just say go check this one out for yourself and have a few laughs while you're there.
Occupy Wall Street to Occupy Everywhere
The "Occupy Wall Street" movement is a series of nonviolent protests that began on Wall Street in New York 30+ days ago whereby people are coming out and uniting to express their views on social and economic inequality, the power of corporations, and of lobbyists over government and their contribution to the shrinking of the Middle Class. The slogan "We are the 99%" refers to the difference between the wealth of the top 1% and everybody else. The Occupy Wall Street protests have inspired similar events around the U.S. and in many countries throughout the world who have similar views. Here is the timeline thus far according to NPR.org:
"After more than 30 days, the Occupy Wall Street movement has evolved from a protest in New York City into a growing international movement. And it all started in July, as a single blog post inspired by the Arab Spring.
Here's a look at significant developments in the Occupy Wall Street timeline, as it gathered momentum and spread to other U.S. cities.
Timeline: Tracking Occupy Wall Street's Growth
July 13: Adbusters publishes a blog post calling for "a shift in revolutionary tactics" and urging tens of thousands of people to converge on lower Manhattan. The plan: "set up tents, kitchens, peaceful barricades and occupy Wall Street for a few months. Once there, we shall incessantly repeat one simple demand in a plurality of voices."
The protest will have no leadership, the post notes. And its sole demand will not be determined until the gathered mass of protesters agree on what it should be.
But the post's authors can't resist offering a candidate: "[We] demand that Barack Obama ordain a Presidential Commission tasked with ending the influence money has over our representatives in Washington. It's time for Democracy Not Corporatocracy, we're doomed without it."
The post, signed "Culture Jammers HQ," also introduces the #occupywallstreet hashtag.
July 26: The Occupy Wall Street website is launched; the group also uses Twitter and Facebook to promote the Sept. 17 demonstration. Adbusters calls for similar protests to be held in central financial districts in Germany, Japan, Britain, and around the world.
Aug. 23: The activist hacking group Anonymous releases a video supporting Occupy Wall Street and uses its Twitter feed to promote the demonstration.
Sept. 17: The rally and march take place, and the protesters set up a temporary city in lower Manhattan's Zuccotti Park. Soon it will have its own newspaper, food supply chain and WiFi. Reports of arrests and clashes with police emerge almost daily. Many of the incidents are filmed and posted on YouTube.
Sept. 24: New York police officers arrest more than 80 protesters as they march to Union Square. The conflict brings fresh charges that the police were overly zealous in using force and pepper spray.
Oct. 1: More than 700 demonstrators are arrested during a march across the Brooklyn Bridge. Police officials say they targeted only those protesters who clogged traffic lanes instead of taking the pedestrian walkway.
Oct. 5: Many of America's largest unions announce their support for Occupy Wall Street, as the movement holds a large march in Manhattan. In a poll, the group's approval rating is measured at 33 percent — 19 points higher than that of Congress.
Oct. 6: Demonstrations spread to more cities, including Washington, D.C., where protesters pledge to remain in place for weeks to come.
Oct. 11: Reports spread about a group seeking to counter Occupy Wall Street by claiming to be "the 53% of Americans subsidizing these people so they can go hang out on Wall Street to complain." Inspired by conservative blogger Erick Erickson's blog post on Oct. 5, the group's slogan is a play on "the 99 Percent."
Oct. 12: New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg visits the protesters' camp in Zuccotti Park, telling them they have two days to vacate the park, so that its owners, Brookfield Office Properties, can clean it. His office cites "unsanitary conditions." Protesters begin cleaning the park themselves.
Oct. 14: Brookfield Properties announces that it will not force Occupy Wall Street to leave Zuccotti Park. On his radio show, Bloomberg says the company bowed to pressure from elected officials.
Oct. 15: Loosely coordinated demonstrations inspired by Occupy Wall Street take place in 951 cities in some 82 countries, according to organizers.
Oct. 17: Adbusters proposes an Oct. 29 "#RobinHood Global March" — and a candidate for the group's unifying demand: "On October 29, on the eve of the G20 Leaders Summit in France, let's the people of the world rise up and demand that our G20 leaders immediately impose a 1% #ROBINHOOD tax on all financial transactions and currency trades."
Oct. 19: The New York City Police Department says that one its officers — who famously pepper-sprayed women during a Sept. 24 protest — will be disciplined and is likely to lose vacation days."
Mini Minaj
Check out the pure joy that these talented little girls express at meeting their idol Nicki Minaj. I'm pretty sure this won't be the last of them we'll see...
Are You Up For a Qwiki?
Qwiki at TechCrunch Disrupt from Qwiki on Vimeo.
Qwiki iPad App Demo from Qwiki on Vimeo.
Russell Simmons Blogs on Troy Davis
Here's an excerpt from Russell Simmons' blog regarding the execution of Troy Davis. This execution is causing many to reflect on how our country deals with crime and punishment.
"11:08pm September 21st, 2011 was the moment that America lost a piece of her
soul. Tonight America lost more of her innocence when she injected Troy Davis
with a lethal drug cocktail that took his life for the belief that he
was the person who murdered police officer, Mark MacPhail. Before I
continue with my thoughts, I want to express my deepest condolences to
the family of Mr. MacPhail, who not only lost their son, brother, father
and husband, but also have been unfairly tortured during the past twenty years."
2011 White House Correspondents' Dinner
If you didn't get a chance to check out this year's White House Correspondents' Dinner, you missed some good laughs. The President poked fun at himself about his birth certificate and at the biggest joke...Donald Trump who happened to be there. Seth Meyer spent some time on Trump as well. Check it out!
My Lite Review of "Limitless"
I just recently saw the movie "Limitless" starring Bradely Cooper (The Hangover) and Robert De Niro and really liked it. It's pretty much the story of what you would expect to happen if a someone who is down and out were to get a hold of a magic pill of sorts that removes all internal barriers and unlocks every area of the brain that maximizes your intelligence. That fictional pill is called NZT.
Of course the timing of this type of film is perfect with so many real-life people having tough times in this economy. The fantasy of being able to rise above it all and become highly successful is a nice escape from reality. However as they say, what goes up must come down and this movie explores the good and the bad of it.
Check out the trailer below and see this movie!
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Of course the timing of this type of film is perfect with so many real-life people having tough times in this economy. The fantasy of being able to rise above it all and become highly successful is a nice escape from reality. However as they say, what goes up must come down and this movie explores the good and the bad of it.
Check out the trailer below and see this movie!
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My 3 Favorite Super Bowl 45 Commercials
I did not have a favorite team to root for this year but my congrats go out to the Packers just the same. I am however, a fan of ads. Here are my 3 favorite Super Bowl 45 commercials.
Coming Together
Yesterday, President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama traveled to Tucson, Arizona to attend a memorial service for the victims of this past weekend's shooting. The President, along with Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer and others spoke to an audience at the University of Arizona Tucson.
Here is the video of the President's speech and the full text follows.
"To the families of those we've lost; to all who called them friends; to the students of this university, the public servants who are gathered here, the people of Tucson and the people of Arizona: I have come here tonight as an American who, like all Americans, kneels to pray with you today and will stand by you tomorrow.
There is nothing I can say that will fill the sudden hole torn in your hearts. But know this: The hopes of a nation are here tonight. We mourn with you for the fallen. We join you in your grief. And we add our faith to yours that Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and the other living victims of this tragedy will pull through.
Scripture tells us:
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy place where the Most High dwells.
God is within her, she will not fall;
God will help her at break of day.
On Saturday morning, Gabby, her staff and many of her constituents gathered outside a supermarket to exercise their right to peaceful assembly and free speech. They were fulfilling a central tenet of the democracy envisioned by our founders — representatives of the people answering questions to their constituents, so as to carry their concerns back to our nation's capital. Gabby called it "Congress on Your Corner" — just an updated version of government of and by and for the people.
And that quintessentially American scene, that was the scene that was shattered by a gunman's bullets. And the six people who lost their lives on Saturday — they, too, represented what is best in us, what is best in America.
Judge John Roll served our legal system for nearly 40 years. A graduate of this university and a graduate of this law school — Judge Roll was recommended for the federal bench by John McCain 20 years ago, appointed by President George H.W. Bush and rose to become Arizona's chief federal judge.
His colleagues described him as the hardest-working judge within the Ninth Circuit. He was on his way back from attending Mass, as he did every day, when he decided to stop by and say hi to his representative. John is survived by his loving wife, Maureen, his three sons and his five beautiful grandchildren.
George and Dorothy Morris — "Dot" to her friends — were high school sweethearts who got married and had two daughters. They did everything together — traveling the open road in their RV, enjoying what their friends called a 50-year honeymoon. Saturday morning, they went by the Safeway to hear what their congresswoman had to say. When gunfire rang out, George, a former Marine, instinctively tried to shield his wife. Both were shot. Dot passed away.
A New Jersey native, Phyllis Schneck retired to Tucson to beat the snow. But in the summer, she would return East, where her world revolved around her three children, her seven grandchildren and 2-year-old great-granddaughter. A gifted quilter, she'd often work under a favorite tree, or sometimes she'd sew aprons with the logos of the Jets and the Giants to give out at the church where she volunteered. A Republican, she took a liking to Gabby and wanted to get to know her better.
Dorwan and Mavy Stoddard grew up in Tucson together — about 70 years ago. They moved apart and started their own respective families. But after both were widowed they found their way back here, to, as one of Mavy's daughters put it, "be boyfriend and girlfriend again."
When they weren't out on the road in their motor home, you could find them just up the road, helping folks in need at the Mountain Avenue Church of Christ. A retired construction worker, Dorwan spent his spare time fixing up the church along with his dog, Tux. His final act of selflessness was to dive on top of his wife, sacrificing his life for hers.
Everything — everything — Gabe Zimmerman did, he did with passion. But his true passion was helping people. As Gabby's outreach director, he made the cares of thousands of her constituents his own, seeing to it that seniors got the Medicare benefits that they had earned, that veterans got the medals and the care that they deserved, that government was working for ordinary folks. He died doing what he loved — talking with people and seeing how he could help. And Gabe is survived by his parents, Ross and Emily, his brother, Ben, and his fiancee, Kelly, who he planned to marry next year.
And then there is 9-year-old Christina Taylor Green. Christina was an A student; she was a dancer; she was a gymnast; she was a swimmer. She decided that she wanted to be the first woman to play in the Major Leagues, and as the only girl on her Little League team, no one put it past her.
She showed an appreciation for life uncommon for a girl her age. She'd remind her mother, "We are so blessed. We have the best life." And she'd pay those blessings back by participating in a charity that helped children who were less fortunate.
Our hearts are broken by their sudden passing.
Our hearts are broken — and yet, our hearts also have reason for fullness.
Our hearts are full of hope and thanks for the 13 Americans who survived the shooting, including the congresswoman many of them went to see on Saturday.
I have just come from the University Medical Center, just a mile from here, where our friend Gabby courageously fights to recover even as we speak. And I want to tell you — her husband Mark is here and he allows me to share this with you — right after we went to visit, a few minutes after we left her room and some of her colleagues in Congress were in the room, Gabby opened her eyes for the first time. Gabby opened her eyes for the first time.
Gabby opened her eyes. Gabby opened her eyes, so I can tell you she knows we are here. She knows we love her. And she knows that we are rooting for her through what is undoubtedly going to be a difficult journey. We are there for her.
Our hearts are full of thanks for that good news, and our hearts are full of gratitude for those who saved others. We are grateful to Daniel Hernandez, a volunteer in Gabby's office.
And, Daniel, I'm sorry, you may deny it, but we've decided you are a hero, because you ran through the chaos to minister to your boss, and tended to her wounds and helped keep her alive.
We are grateful to the men who tackled the gunman as he stopped to reload. Right over there. We are grateful for petite Patricia Maisch, who wrestled away the killer's ammunition and undoubtedly saved some lives. And we are grateful for the doctors and nurses and first responders who worked wonders to heal those who'd been hurt. We are grateful to them.
These men and women remind us that heroism is found not only on the fields of battle. They remind us that heroism does not require special training or physical strength. Heroism is here, in the hearts of so many of our fellow citizens, all around us, just waiting to be summoned — as it was on Saturday morning. Their actions, their selflessness poses a challenge to each of us. It raises a question of what, beyond prayers and expressions of concern, is required of us going forward. How can we honor the fallen? How can we be true to their memory?
You see, when a tragedy like this strikes, it is part of our nature to demand explanations — to try and pose some order on the chaos and make sense out of that which seems senseless. Already we've seen a national conversation commence, not only about the motivations behind these killings, but about everything from the merits of gun safety laws to the adequacy of our mental health system. And much of this process, of debating what might be done to prevent such tragedies in the future, is an essential ingredient in our exercise of self-government.
But at a time when our discourse has become so sharply polarized — at a time when we are far too eager to lay the blame for all that ails the world at the feet of those who happen to think differently than we do — it's important for us to pause for a moment and make sure that we're talking with each other in a way that heals, not in a way that wounds.
Scripture tells us that there is evil in the world, and that terrible things happen for reasons that defy human understanding. In the words of Job, "When I looked for light, then came darkness." Bad things happen, and we have to guard against simple explanations in the aftermath.
For the truth is, none of us can know exactly what triggered this vicious attack. None of us can know with any certainty what might have stopped these shots from being fired, or what thoughts lurked in the inner recesses of a violent man's mind. Yes, we have to examine all the facts behind this tragedy. We cannot and will not be passive in the face of such violence. We should be willing to challenge old assumptions in order to lessen the prospects of such violence in the future. But what we cannot do is use this tragedy as one more occasion to turn on each other. That we cannot do. That we cannot do.
As we discuss these issues, let each of us do so with a good dose of humility. Rather than pointing fingers or assigning blame, let's use this occasion to expand our moral imaginations, to listen to each other more carefully, to sharpen our instincts for empathy and remind ourselves of all the ways that our hopes and dreams are bound together.
After all, that's what most of us do when we lose somebody in our family — especially if the loss is unexpected. We're shaken out of our routines. We're forced to look inward. We reflect on the past: Did we spend enough time with an aging parent, we wonder. Did we express our gratitude for all the sacrifices that they made for us? Did we tell a spouse just how desperately we loved them, not just once in a while but every single day?
So sudden loss causes us to look backward — but it also forces us to look forward; to reflect on the present and the future, on the manner in which we live our lives and nurture our relationships with those who are still with us.
We may ask ourselves if we've shown enough kindness and generosity and compassion to the people in our lives. Perhaps we question whether we're doing right by our children, or our community, whether our priorities are in order.
We recognize our own mortality, and we are reminded that in the fleeting time we have on this Earth, what matters is not wealth, or status, or power, or fame — but rather, how well we have loved — and what small part we have played in making the lives of other people better.
And that process — that process of reflection, of making sure we align our values with our actions — that, I believe, is what a tragedy like this requires.
For those who were harmed, those who were killed -- they are part of our family, an American family 300 million strong. We may not have known them personally, but surely we see ourselves in them. In George and Dot, in Dorwan and Mavy, we sense the abiding love we have for our own husbands, our own wives, our own life partners. Phyllis -- she's our mom or our grandma; Gabe our brother or son. In Judge Roll, we recognize not only a man who prized his family and doing his job well, but also a man who embodied America's fidelity to the law.
And in Gabby — in Gabby, we see a reflection of our public-spiritedness; that desire to participate in that sometimes frustrating, sometimes contentious, but always necessary and never-ending process to form a more perfect union.
And in Christina — in Christina we see all of our children. So curious, so trusting, so energetic, so full of magic. So deserving of our love. And so deserving of our good example.
If this tragedy prompts reflection and debate — as it should — let's make sure it's worthy of those we have lost. Let's make sure it's not on the usual plane of politics and point-scoring and pettiness that drifts away in the next news cycle.
The loss of these wonderful people should make every one of us strive to be better. To be better in our private lives, to be better friends and neighbors and coworkers and parents. And if, as has been discussed in recent days, their death helps usher in more civility in our public discourse, let us remember it is not because a simple lack of civility caused this tragedy — it did not — but rather because only a more civil and honest public discourse can help us face up to the challenges of our nation in a way that would make them proud.
We should be civil because we want to live up to the example of public servants like John Roll and Gabby Giffords, who knew first and foremost that we are all Americans, and that we can question each other's ideas without questioning each other's love of country and that our task, working together, is to constantly widen the circle of our concern so that we bequeath the American Dream to future generations.
They believed — they believed, and I believe that we can be better. Those who died here, those who saved life here — they help me believe. We may not be able to stop all evil in the world, but I know that how we treat one another, that's entirely up to us.
And I believe that for all our imperfections, we are full of decency and goodness, and that the forces that divide us are not as strong as those that unite us.
That's what I believe, in part because that's what a child like Christina Taylor Green believed.
Imagine — imagine for a moment, here was a young girl who was just becoming aware of our democracy; just beginning to understand the obligations of citizenship; just starting to glimpse the fact that some day she, too, might play a part in shaping her nation's future. She had been elected to her student council. She saw public service as something exciting and hopeful. She was off to meet her congresswoman, someone she was sure was good and important and might be a role model. She saw all this through the eyes of a child, undimmed by the cynicism or vitriol that we adults all too often just take for granted.
I want to live up to her expectations. I want our democracy to be as good as Christina imagined it. I want America to be as good as she imagined it. All of us — we should do everything we can to make sure this country lives up to our children's expectations.
As has already been mentioned, Christina was given to us on Sept. 11, 2001, one of 50 babies born that day to be pictured in a book called "Faces of Hope." On either side of her photo in that book were simple wishes for a child's life. "I hope you help those in need," read one. "I hope you know all the words to the National Anthem and sing it with your hand over your heart." "I hope you jump in rain puddles."
If there are rain puddles in heaven, Christina is jumping in them today. And here on this Earth — here on this Earth, we place our hands over our hearts, and we commit ourselves as Americans to forging a country that is forever worthy of her gentle, happy spirit.
May God bless and keep those we've lost in restful and eternal peace. May He love and watch over the survivors. And may He bless the United States of America."
Text of speech provided by AP
Video provided by PBS.org
Tucson Tragedy
I believe that the poor state of our economy and the increased violent rhetoric over the years by media types like Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, and others has helped to put many public officials in danger of the mentally ill who may take this rhetoric and twist it into a reason to act out violently.
Yesterday Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and 18 others were shot while attending a public function in Tucson, Arizona. It's eerie to see the video below of Giffords speaking just this past March about how things are heating up and the vandalizing of her office.
Now Giffords is in critical condition fighting for her life and 6 others are dead after a senseless shooting.
Although the motives of the Tucson shooter are unclear at this time, it is still important that we realize that words DO matter. For those of us who can listen to the rhetoric from all sides and temper our emotions so that we function day to day as decent, caring human beings it isn't so much of a problem. But there are those that hear these sorts of messages over and over and over who are mentally unbalanced and could just take things to the next level causing harm and even death to others.
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