Issue 156

News: FREE ROMAN POLANSKI!
Well, yesterday, they finally did it. They finally had Oscar-Winning film director Roman Polanski arrested. In case none of you know what I'm talking about, I'm talking about an incident 30 years ago where he photographed a minor nude, and then had sex with her. After an arrest and plea bargain, he headed for France, where he has been based ever since. The girl has since agreed that the charges should be dropped, but thus far, attempts to overturn the conviction have been unsuccessful, especially in light of Polanski's arrest. Here's what I say: Let it go. The incident was thirty years old, and everybody involved seems to have moved on except for those people who were ultimately responsible for the arrest. Roman has suffered enough: he lived through the Holocaust, with his mother dying in the chambers of Auschwitz, his travel options have been limited for the last few decades as a result of living in fear, and now this. And as many of his acquaintances have said, it's not like he's going to do it again; and, as I see it, he probably wouldn't have done it once if he had been truly aware of the fact that minority ends much later here than it does in Europe. Hell, if California can let a footballer and mediocre actor get away with murder, or can let Hmong gangs get away with a more heinous variation on a very similar theme on the basis of culture [to wit, like Borat/Pam, but less funny], why not let a man who has just happened to be one of the big cinematic minds of the last century free? Incidentally, it appears that the foreign ministers of Poland and France (two countries that count Roman as a citizen) are doing everything in their power to grant Roman clemency, and the minister of Poland is considering petitioning Barack Obama himself for clemency. Well, if Obama is reading this, and I freely admit that the possibility is very slight, I must admit that I have been underwhelmed by his performance, doing comparatively little to undo the damages of Bush, as many want him to do,(admitting that he is, of course, not doing everything in his power to be like Bush, like McCain would likely have done), and if he really wants my support, even if he fails to do anything better, like get universal health care, undo the Patriot Act, actually get us out of Iraq (he has a timeline, but it remains to be seen whether he'll stick to it), or anything like this, he should at least set Roman free. In fact, I feel so strongly about this, I swear that if Roman's arrest has any effect on the release of his film project "The Ghost," I will vote third party in 2012, no matter if it means that Dick Cheney will sit in the White House.

Band Name of the Day: none.

Film Idea of the Day: An increasingly unstable hardboiled crime writer ends up embroiled in a bizarre plot, while writing a novel with a bizarre plot of its own (with twin clones of Hitler).

Review of the Day: Well, since I've found no new films truly worth the time it takes to review them in the past week, I'm going to review a book I read and loved (at least somewhat) recently; Anton LaVey's Satanic Bible. My thoughts on the book, simply: if you've read and enjoyed Blake's Marriage of Heaven and Hell, Nietzsche's Works, and Ayn Rand's novels, I have to admit that this book, or at least the first two sections/100 pages, are the next logical step. Personally, I think that the addition of "magical rituals" tends to detract somewhat from the book's philosophy, but nevertheless, it is still interesting to read. While much has been said of LaVey's admiration of Nietzsche, and he is alleged to have said that Satanism is, in essence "Ayn Rand with rituals" (three of which are described, and none of which, for the record, involve blood sacrifice), I think it is necessary to note that this work seems to owe a significant debt, possibly second-hand, to William Blake's Marriage of Heaven and Hell. The biggest similarities I've noticed are in the styles, especially apparent in comparison between Blake's Proverbs of Hell and LaVey's Book of Satan. In addition, the admiration of the Bible present in many of Blake's prophetic works is much less present in his Marriage, while the criticism of the institution of the Church is far more emphasized in the same work. By eschewing both, it appears that LaVey is taking the next logical step. In addition, LaVey's association of Lucifer with enlightenment should be seen in comparison with Blake's association of Hell with energy and eternal delight.

Quote of the Day: "And the County Judge/Who Held A Grudge/Will Search forevermore/ For the Band on the Run"
__________Paul McCartney.

Link: None this week.

Issue 155

News: Screw the Sea Kittens.
Recently, after RationalWiki got back online, I ended up going on the PeTA page, and was particularly struck by one part, where they talked about their attempt to stop the fishing industry. What really struck me was the fact that, as it turned out, they adamantly refused to call them "fish." Instead, they decided that it would behoove the movement to rename the entire class of animals from "fish" to "sea kittens," as if a different name would stop the fishing industry dead in their tracks, or even that fish even bear any deeper resemblance to cats than the fact that they share vertebrae. What is really bizarre about the campaign is that the entire campaign seems to be focused upon a site that seems more like they're advertising a show on Cartoon Network than trying to alleviate a big problem; the site is full of idiotic dialogue like the one sample that I have quoted below. If that's not enough, the site also has a game where you can create your own "sea kitten", and put it in makeup and a princess dress. I am sure that any real fish would rather get hooked then be forced to wear ridiculous clothing like this. The only possible reason this site exists is that PeTA is actually a deep cover organization trying to discredit the Animal Rights Movement by making them look like total idiots.

Film reviews: Inglorious Basterds. I finally saw this movie, and all that needs to be said is that, in the hands of any other director, this movie would have fallen flat on its ass in its own over-the-top-ness [To give the ending away, Hitler is shot to death by Jewish soldiers and the rest of the Nazi heirarchy is blown up and burned to death by two independent plots against them]. However, in the hands of Quentin Tarantino, it actually manages to be his best film since Pulp Fiction.
The Wicker Man. I also have wanted to see this movie for a long time, but the film's unavailability at the SPL has been a stumbling block. And the fact that the Neil LaBute remake is, by all accounts, an abomination that takes everything that made the film so original and nullified it, has certainly hindered me. But finally, it finally became available, but since the disc was literally unplayable, even on my laptop, but it turned out that it was on OnDemand. Finally, I managed to see it, and I must say that it must be one of the best horror films I've ever seen, partially because it was so differnet. It didn't seem to rely on big scares like most other films, and in the first half of the film, seems more like a musical than a horror film, but the atmosphere builds until the final twist and by this point, even though I knew exactly what would happen, it is clear that cannot dare stop the channel. Now, I think it's accurate to say that this is now one of my favorite movies. Incidentally, yes, my sample Sea Kitten was based upon Lord Summerisle's processional costume near the climax.

Quote: "Sea kittens talk to each other through squeaks, squeals, and other low-frequency sounds that humans can only hear through special instruments. Most ichthyologists—scientists who specialize in sea kitten biology—agree that this is just about the cutest thing ever."

Links are back: Just so you know I am dead serious about the Sea Kittens site existing.

Tract Reviews: Some Like it Hot. This has nothing to do with girl bands, gangsters, or transvestites. However, it's basically about a man and his grandpa going to meet Satan, and he talks about himself before going to the bottom level of hell.