A bridge over many troubled waters. · Friday August 3, 2007 by colin newell
A bridge has fallen in Minnesota.
Is it a domino in a much bigger picture of infrastructure decay in America?
The society of civil engineers in the U.S.A. think so.
In their shocking report they reveal that one fallen bridge may be the tip of the ice-berg.
The writers at the Coffee.bc.ca blog place the blame squarely where it belongs: At the feet of George W. Bush and Dick Cheney.
-for robbing the taxpayers of America in their largely imagined war on terror
-for diverting billions of dollars from crumbling American infrastructure to greedy-gut friends in the military industrial complex
George. Dick.
The blood and dust and heartbreak of lives lost is at your feet.
Shame. Shame.
Movie review - Inland Empire · Friday July 6, 2007 by colin newell
Ok. I do not actually do movie reviews. But I am making an exception for those so unfortunate as to fall into the World of David Lynch. Here is your warning.
David Lynch’s latest movie (and I most certainly use this term loosely) Inland Empire is an utter mess.
Inland Empire is an amalgam of all the Lynchisms ever cast on celluloid.
And unless you knew this already, Lynch is the ultimate trickster – using obvious visual metaphors and simple stories to create the illusion of complexity and plot.
Inland Empire has no plot. There is no story. It is one manipulative juxtaposition after another – woven like a spider on LSD.
Inland Empire has it all; Dark corridors. Men and Women in rabbit suits. Dark language speaking gypsy freaks. Simple dialog repeated – delivered in circles. More dark corridors. More blood. Bare breasts. Heck, there is even a monkey.
Bottom line – if you are thinking of spending some money to see this movie. Do yourself a favor. Give the money to a stranger or street person. Or visit a bar on the wrong side of town. Walk up to a prostitute and offer her (or him) 50$ to take the night off. Anything. Just don’t see this movie.
David Lynch’s Inland Empire is film-making proof that the man that brought us Twin Peaks, Blue Velvet, Wild at Heart and heck, even Dune has lost his marbles.
Colin Newell lives in Victoria and writes about pop culture, the arts, politics and Western Living. His only hope is that he is never forced to see a movie this bad… ever again.
Comment [3]
Too innocent to arrest to dangerous to fly 2 · Saturday June 30, 2007 by colin newell
Alistair Butt and Alistair Butt both have the same problem — they can’t fly because of their name.
One Butt is a 15-year-old Ottawa boy — a star athlete and 2003 Ontario junior citizen of the year. The other Butt is a 10-year-old home-school student from Saskatoon who just finished Grade 4.
Both Butts were barred from their flights after their name popped up on a no-fly list, which is intended to flag airline security threats.
Canada’s no-fly list in an obvious waste of time and money that will do nothing for aviation security.
What’s more, when one of the Butt parents asked what they could do to fix this situation they were told:
“...perhaps it would be best to change the child’s name.”
Why? Because the child could be barred for flying for life.
And he will never be told why.
Because it’s a secret.
Fcuk. Fcukity Fcukity Fcuk.
Who stole Canada?
Comment [3]
Too dangerous to fly - Too innocent to arrest · Friday June 29, 2007 by colin newell
The neo-cons I have coffee with every morning do not get it.
“Very few innocent people will be caught in the snare of heightened security at Canada’s airports…”
That is not the point, I keep harping.
Canada’s No-Fly list was a bad idea from the get go.
It needs to be abandoned, scrapped, shelved, whatever.
This is Canada after all – not America.
My coffee buddies argue: “There are only 1000 people on the list right now…”
Yes, I reply. 1000 too many. And there are 5000 other people that have the same name as these people.
And how guilty are these 1000 people on the list?
Well, apparently not guilty enough to arrest.
Apparently we are entering a time in Human history where it is against the law to think about stuff… not actually do anything bad but contemplate doing something contrary to public order.
In some countries, for instance, this blog entry would be considered an act of terrorism.
Boom.
