Category Archives: Pop Culture

Harley and the Open Road

Harley-Davidson has this incredible ad on the back of the May 12 Sports Illustrated. Masterful writing which captures a lot of things about the Harley experience–freedom, country, cynicism, love of the open road, self-empowerment, and a touch of outlaw. Here it is:

We Don’t Do Fear
Over the last 105 years in the saddle, we’ve seen wars, conflicts, depression, recession, resistance, and revolutions. We’ve watched a thousand hand-wringing pundits disappear in our rear-view mirror. But every time, this country has come out stronger than before. Because chrome and asphalt put distance between you and whatever the world can throw at you. Freedom and wind outlast hard times. And the rumble of an engine drowns out all the spin on the evening news. If 105 years have proved one thing, it’s that fear sucks and it doesn’t last long. So screw it. Let’s ride.

I don’t identify with that spirit, but I want to. Makes me want to go buy a Harley. Or I’m just a guy in a mid-life crisis.

They have a website tied to this ad. Go there, and the ad is read in a Flash graphic, with a big open road behind it. Cool.

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The Crime-Fighting Mac

Two thieves broke into Kait Duplaga’s New York apartment and stole thousands of dollars of stuff, including a Mac laptop. Duplaga works for an Apple store.

Someone told Duplaga that her Mac was online. Using a different Mac, she gained control of her stolen laptop’s system using a remote access feature built into OSX Leopard.

A camera is built into Mac laptops. Duplaga took a photo of the thief sitting there in front of her stolen laptop, and retrieved a photo of the other thief. A roommate recognized both guys, who had been party guests a few weeks earlier. Both have now been arrested.

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True Love in Hollywood

Read an article in Time about Charlton Heston, who died last week. Most impressive part: he and his wife were married for 64 years. Now there’s a Hollywood maverick for you.

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Spinning Our Christian Wheels

clooney_darfur300.jpgThe March 3 Time magazine featured an article about George Clooney. I like him a lot. He’s got journalism roots, which brings a degree of open-mindedness, of considering both sides of an argument, plus a heavy dose of cynicism. Legions of celebrities think they’re smart, and flaunt their actual ignorance (Hail King Sean Penn!). Clooney is, indeed, smart, but he’s sufficiently wise to avoid over-using his celebrity platform. He views himself with realistic self-depredation.

This article (by the hilarious Joel Stein‚ÄîI always read his articles) mentions “Not On Our Watch,” an organization Clooney founded to help Darfur ($9 million so far). He had recently returned from Darfur. But instead of trumpeting his adventures and good deeds, Clooney mused about the futility of using celebrity to spotlight world problems. “I’m terrified that it isn’t in any way helping. That bringing attention can cause more damage. You dig a well or build a health-care facility, and they’re a target for somebody.”

Then he said this: “A lot more people know about Darfur, but absolutely nothing is different. Absolutely nothing.”

Think about the church. We regularly hear sermons and attend Sunday school classes in which we are reminded of the importance of prayer, of Bible reading, of witnessing, of not gossiping, of serving, of giving sacrificially. And yet, look over your fellow parishioners, who have dutifully absorbed these messages year after year. Is anything, truly, different? And if anything is different, is that a result of the abundance of words, or because of other dynamics?

There are certain causes I tackle on this blog–the plight of poor people, factory farming, US-sponsored torture. My mindless harping might bring a tiny bit of awareness to the six people who visit my online abode. But even if thousands of people tuned in, would anything be, in reality, different? Harping doesn’t work.

Barack Obama says the US keeps electing the same people to fight the same problems in the same way. Or something like that. It seems that we in the church spin our wheels in a parallel way, without behavior changing. Great things are happening in some churches, indeed. But it’s, sadly, not the norm.

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Most Powerful Hollywood Christians

Beliefnet lists the “12 Most Powerful Christians in Hollylwood.” There is a page for each person, along with info about why that person is included in the list. I raised my eyebrows a few times as the next page appeared and I saw the name. But the descriptions were quite interesting.

  1. Mel Gibson
  2. Denzel Washington
  3. Patricia Heaton
  4. Tyler Perry (writer and director)
  5. Ralph Winter (producer)
  6. Angela Bassett
  7. Martin Sheen
  8. Martha Williamson (producer).
  9. Kristin Chenoweth (actress)
  10. Philip Anschutz (producer)
  11. Howard Kazanjian (producer)
  12. Scott Derrickson (director)
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Internet Usage in China vs. the US

The number of internet users in the US and China is now equal. But they don’t use the internet the same way, according to an interesting study.

  • 78% of Chinese internet users visit social-networking sites, compared to 54% in the US.
  • 54% of the Chinese play online game “frequently or constantly,” compared to 27% in the US.
  • 56% of Chinese spend at least ten hours a month in a virtual world (like Second Life), compared to a mere 6% in the US.
  • Three times as many Chinese download or watch films online frequently.
  • Chinese are five times more likely to use online dating service (only 3% in the US).
  • 40% of Chinese internet users own a smartphone, that can do email and surf the web. Only 6% of US internet users own a smartphone.

The demographics–age breakdown, number of men vs. women–were the same. But very different populations. China’s huge population and fast development means they’ll very soon–maybe even now–have the world’s largest base of internet users.

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Paris Hilton – the New Nelson Mandela

Yep, I watched Larry King interview Paris Hilton last night. What a farce I am. Here is how the hour increased my understanding of this earthly plane of existence.

  • I am glad prison was a life-changing experience for Paris, and that she now intends to transcend the cartoonish blonde character she fashioned for herself, and which she plays with such aplomb. It reminds me of when Larry Flynt became a Christian, and when Michael Bloomberg became a Republican. Seems to be working out real well for them.
  • Too bad about that claustrophobia. Being in an 8×12 foot prison cell makes Paris feel hemmed in and causes her to freak out and go into hysterics. I will think about that every time I see her riding in a car. And you know I’ll be watching.
  • Her jailhouse writings were, uh…profound? I think that’s what she thought they were, as she proudly read them to millions of people. We seem to have found the successor to Kahlil Gibran. Paris is wise beyond her 26 years and GED. Proof that blondes not only have more fun, but can masterfully string together boatloads of cliches.
  • Paris is, of course, an utterly normal girl. I’m glad she emphasized that point. It was a revelation to me.

Okay, enough with easy targets. Paris, Nicole, Britney, Lindsey–you enrich our lives and give our sorry souls meaning. May you prosper, and always drive on a road where I’m not.

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Comments on Imus

For several years I reveled in listening to Imus in the Morning during my 25-minute trip to work each morning. His fascinating assortment of guests–politicians, reporters, columnists, authors–tended to be far more candid than they would be on any other talk show. Imus ruled over the true “no spin zone.” He didn’t let his guests degenerate into their talking points. And so, people who bore me silly with their predictability on other talk shows–Chris Dodd, Pat Buchanan, John Kerry, John McCain, and a slew of others–actually provided enlightenment. Nobody else that I’ve found, on TV or radio, gets that level of candidness—and fun–out of guests. If they wouldn’t be candid and good-humored, he wouldn’t invite them onto the show.

Some years ago, the local radio station that carried Imus discontinued the program. My life has been lessened because of it. Now I listen to ESPN. From an intellectual standpoint, Mike & Mike is not an upgrade.

The type of comments for which Imus is now being chastised unmercifully were not the heart of the show. Yes, inappropriate utterances dotted every show, usually sexist things (in no way can you call Imus racist). I blame producer Bernard McGurk as much as anything; his on-air statements were usually crude, and he often prompted Imus to take things further (as was the case with the Princeton basketball team comment). But the heart of the show was the call-in guests and their commentary on current events. And he had an amazing cast of guests–Tim Russert, David Gregory, Tom Brokaw, Buchanan, Andrea Mitchell, the various presidential historians, Frank Rich, Kinky Friedman…on and on. No show on TV or radio matches what Imus did. He was a voice of reason amidst hurricanes of spin. Unfortunately, he also lapsed occasionally into being a voice of Really Stupid and Gratuitous Idiocy.

Should he have been fired? Yeah (I say reluctantly). I dislike the hypocrisy and showboating of Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson and crew, but I can’t fault NBC. And I won’t fault CBS if they drop his radio show.

Could the Imus show have been redeemed? Sure. He doesn’t need the Shock Jock stuff. Stick to interviewing guests and keeping them honest and candid. That’s why I listened.

If CBS drops the Imus radio show, there’s a possibility that Imus could move to satellite. That’s what I hope happens. Then I can once again listen to him–a clean-up Imus–as I drive to work.

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Anna Watch

Just checked the news stations. MSNBC, Headline News, and Fox News were all covering Anna Nicole Smith. Only CNN was doing something substantive (an interview with Bill Richardson, who I really like). My read is that Fox and Headline News are drifting increasingly into fluff and general cheapness. MSNBC is on the rise, and CNN leads the way in doing real news. Yeah, I know, our Republican puppetmasters claim that CNN is liberal and that only Fox can be trusted. Baloney. Who can I trust? I’ll take CNN over Fox any day of the week.

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All Anna, All the Time

I got up this morning and turned on the TV to watch some news, catch up on the headlines. But all I could learn about was Anna Nicole Smith, now dead for two days. MSNBC, CNN, and FOX are doing wall-to-wall coverage, for which intellectual viewers are grateful. Maybe somebody should just launch an Anna Nicole Smith Channel–All Anna, All the Time. Even in death, she continues to inspire the world.

With new alleged fathers falling from the sky, this thing will continue for some time. I’m sure Nancy Grace, Greta, and Paula will milk it for all it’s worth. I see Geraldo is lending his journalistic gravitas to the mix with a special.

Somebody will eventually gain control of the baby, which means they got control of what they really wanted–the money. They’ll pocket the money and turn the baby over to a nanny. I doubt that this baby will grow up feeling loved and wanted.

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