The Warcraft Retrospective II

Part two of Gametrailer's The Warcraft Retrospective is now out. The segment covers Warcraft III, its expansions and the Defense of the Ancients fan mods.

Warcraft Retrospective I

From Gametrailers comes the history of the Warcraft franchise from its beginning to the World of Warcraft. Part one of four covers the games origins through to Warcraft II. If your a fan of video games, this series of retrospectives are a must see.

Watchman and Friday the 13 Teasers

Watchman Teaser Trailer II - Another teaser trailer for Watchman that aired with the Spike Awards. It is a mix of new footage and same footage from the first teaser. I have read the graphic novel and if they manage to properly translate the movie and keep its themes intact my hats will be off to them. The trailers continue to count on images to sell the movie rather then story which doesn't bode well. On the bridge side this trailer shows more of the gorgeous Malin Akerman. Embedding has been disabled so just click the link above to see it.

Friday the 13th Teaser Scene - As part of the Spike Awards, a scene from the movie aired. I continue to remain unsold on the "reinvention" of the franchise in part because Jason doesn't look threatening enough and in part because horror movies of late have been a bit dull.

Friday the 13th: Exclusive First Look

Special Comment: What is "Pro-America"?

Keith Olbermann aired another special comment (transcript here), this time directed as VP nominee Sarah Palin. He asks "What is Pro-America?" in light of her suggestion (and other republicans) that essentially anyone that isn't for the Republican Party is by definition against America. That criticism of how it is run and those that run it is un-American. They don't seem to realize that these are the very ideals that America. It is Palin that is un-American to suggest that those that disagree with her don't belong or love their country. Is the Republican Party capable of running and winning without using fear and hate as a cornerstone of their campaign? For them it always comes down to an "us vs. them" argument. It doesn't see so looking at even the last 50 years of history. America and all Americans are better then that. Its too bad they don't see it.

Colin Powell, Palin on SNL, Map of Voting Tech, and Bachman

Colin Powell Endorses Obama - Former Secretary of State Colin Powell officially announced his endorsement of Obama as President. While the pundits spent Sunday and today making noises about it (and republicans condemned it or dismissed it as racial), I can't help but wonder what the big deal is. After the disaster of Iraq, Powell has little credibility and at this late in the game does anyone really believe that the fence sitters where waiting for Powell before making a decision? I don't. I think the result of this is free publicity for Obama and not much else. Little voters are going to be swayed by the endorsement making it valueless beyond bragging rights.

Real Sarah Palin on SNL - Governor Palin showed up on SNL this weekend and the result was a ho-hum effort at best despite the able assistance of Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin and Mark Walhberg. The cause seems the just lack of humor that was conveyed. The sketches where about making fun of SNL rather then making fun of Sarah Palin and the political process (the usual pastime when politicians show up on SNL). Whether this is because Palin vetoed such an attempt or the writers themselves is unknown. Considering she needed the assist of no less then 7 other players to help in her sketches I am thinking she (or the McCain camp) vetoed most of the ideas leading to the dull result that aired.



Map of Voting Technology - Click the link for a map that breaks down the technology that the various states are using this November to help in the election. In general, the more tech, the easier to hack but the less likely that voter error will occur. The suggestion seems to be a trade off is the result. Personally I am all for the tech as long as paper record is required with every vote that is randomly audited to verify that electronic record matches. All the talk about ACORN, the problem in securing voter integrity isn't making sure that people that don't exist doesn't get on the voter rolls, its making sure that legitimate voters do vote and their vote is counted correctly. A hacked machine can undo thousands of votes and only requires one person. ACORN's efforts would require hundreds if not thousands of people to execute their so-called plan of voter fraud. Which do you think is more likely to occur?

Michelle Bachmann: Liberal = Anti-American - In McCain's quest to paint Obama as terrorist, Bachmann went a bit too far (as if she wasn't already) by claiming that essentially all liberals are anti-American. She went so far as to suggest that her fellow Congressmen should be investigated for being un-American. I am betting she would have loved the McCarthy era. She is up for re-election. Anyone that thinks sharing a contrary viewpoint is un-American shouldn't be holding office.

Minifig Anatomy, Lego Video, TVGuide Sold, and Portable Dreamcast

Anatomy of a Lego Minifig - Interesting diagram that breaks down the internals of a Lego minifig with all that medical jargon and images. Rather creepy but cool too.

Lego Tower Construction Video - Cute video of the 460,000 brig, 96.73 feet tall Lego tower that was built in Vienna with the help of Lego experts and 3000 kids.

TVGuide Sells for a Buck - In a rather strange business development, Macrovision sold the magazine (not the online stuff) to OpenGate Capital for one dollar and then threw in a $9.5 million low interest loan. There has to be more to the deal but I am betting TV Guide staff is very unhappy folks right now.

Handheld Dreamcast - Created by Hailrazer, a working portable Dreamcast. Click the link for info and gallery.

Final Debate Wrap-Up

The final Presidential Debate has ended and all that remains is for people to shut up and put up by voting. The feel of the debate was different. John McCain's goal was less selling why to vote for him and more about saying why not to vote for Barack Obama. For Obama the goal was to sell himself and to deflect McCain's attacks.

The result is on the substance and the issues, Obama was the clear victor of the debate. On creating seeds of doubt, I give the win to McCain. At this point, frankly there is no excuse for someone to be undecided. If someone hasn't made a decision by now, they are either incapable of making a decision or looking for an excuse to commit to a choice they have already made. Usually that excuse doesn't have much to it and often based on something negative which only helps McCain. Time will tell if my thoughts on this bear out. Overall though, the "inexperienced" Obama managed to beat McCain three times out of three.

On a side note, its interesting to hear all the pundits spend the last few weeks make the argument I made way back in January on what the election should and is about - the middle class.

Links
Debate video
Compare Candidates on Issues and Fact Check Debate

CNN Poll - based on 620 debate viewers
Won debate: 58% Obama, 31% McCain
Favorable Opinion: Obama - 63% before, 66% after; McCain - 51% before, 49% after
Handle economy better: 59% Obama, 35% McCain
Better job on taxes: 56% Obama, 41% McCain
Better on health care: 62% Obama, 31% McCain
Better expressed views: 66% Obama, 25% McCain
Stronger leader: 48% Obama, 25% McCain
Time attacking: 7% Obama, 80% McCain
Like typical politican: 35% Obama, 54% McCain

CBS Poll - based on 638 uncommitted voters
Won debate: 53% Obama, 22% McCain, 25% Tie
Trusted on health care: Obama - 61% bfore, 68% after; McCain - 27% before, 30% after
Will raise taxes: 65% Obama, 50% McCain
Share their values: Obama - 54% before, 64% after; McCain - 52% before, 55% after
Trusted in crisis: Obama - 50% before, 63% after; McCain - 78% before, 82% after
Trusted on enonomy: Obama - 54% before, 65% after; McCain - 38% before, 48% after
Understands needs, problems: Obama - 66% before, 76% after; McCain - 36% before, 48% after

Dow Jones, Lego Battleshift, Tilt Shift Videos, and Panetierre PSA

Dow Jones Rebounds a Touch - Monday the stocks rebounded a record 976 points after news that banks around the world, including the US, where going to be partially nationalized in an effort to avoid a depression. One day does not a turnaround make, so the road ahead remains long.

Lego Battleship - Click the link for gallery of the HMS Hood, a Royal Navy battlecruiser built in 1920 made completely out of Legos. It took about 7 months to build and around 100000 bricks.

Tilt-Shift Time-Lapse Videos - Link to several videos that show people at various locations that has a model look to it thanks to use of shift lenses.

Beached from Keith Loutit on Vimeo.

Howard Out, Cheadle In for Iron Man 2 - The role of Jim Rhodes, War Machine, is being re-cast due to Terrence Howard and Marvel being unable to reach an agreement on money. More then likely Howard asked for a crap ton of money and Marvel said pass. Marvel is new to the movie making business but already they are off to a good start by playing hard ball on issues such as this. While I liked Howard's performance, the simple fact is it was not and would not be critical to any future success of the franchise making him easily replaceable.

Hayden Panetierre PSA - Funny video that has Hayden sarcastically asking for people to vote for John McCain. For some reason I found the way she says "f$@ck" to be the best part of the video, but then I have a bit of a crush.

See more Hayden Panettiere videos at Funny or Die

Special Comment: Control Your Campaign

Another special comment (transcript) from Keith Olbermann, this time directed at John McCain's current campaign against Barack Obama where the goal seems to be to fan the flames of hate rather then discuss the issues. I guess focusing on the economy isn't worth while to McCain when they can play their association game where knowing Ayers means you are a terrorist. Since Keating was a terrorist too, McCain didn't just know a terrorist, he colluded with one to defraud the government and people. McCain's negative campaign is getting problematic and as more reports come in of hate filled shouts of rhetoric, it is also getting dangerous.

PG Porn, Castle Trailer, and Zombie Legos

PG Porn - A hilarious video series via SpikeTV from James Gunn that is a send up of old style porn but without the nudity. It’s had the bad acting, bad storylines, bad sets and bad lighting of the era but with a twist. Its star Nathan Fillion, Michael Rosenbaum, and multiple real porn stars. I guess they plan is a new clip a week but not really sure.

Trailer for Castle - A mid-season replacement staring Nathan Fillion (fan since his Firefly days). The show is about a mystery writer who helps the police solve crimes. Yeah another quirky procedure in the vein of Bones but like that show Nathan has the charisma to make it fun to watch.


Lego Tower World Record - At a height of 96.73 feet (24.485m), the Lego tower built in the Rathaus Platz enters the record books. It was built over four days with 460,000 bricks.

Lego Zombies - Click the link for a gallery for a Legoized depiction of a zombie invasion. Very cool use of the Legos to create a city block devastated by brain eaters and the military.

Voter Fraud, McCain, Stupid and Dow Hit Again

Voter Disenfranchisement Begins - The New York Times is reporting that voter fraud has begun as multiple battleground states currently under the control of republicans has begun its annual attempt to purge mostly poor, blacks, etc (that tend to vote Democrat) from the voter roles. While Republicans pretend the fear is one person voting twice (so an ID is needed), the real problem is behind the scenes bureaucrats summarily removing thousands of registrants for no reason.

Olbermann on McCain Terrorist Ties - Keith continues to use the Republican Transitive Property of Terrorism on McCain where apparently being on boards with someone means you support terrorists. Turns out that McCain has associated with a few terrorists of his own (besides Keating) going by that unreasonable standard.

The Stupid Shall Inherit the Earth - A video that shows a mob mentality that has begun infecting the McCain/Palin supporters. Even worse, most seem utterly incapable of articulating why one candidate is better then the other based on issues and the like. Nope their reasons come down to his name; it’s oh so scary Muslim sounding. I wish I was kidding. How hard is it to say on this that and the other issues, McCain (or Obama) does or does not align better with me. Sadly, it seems fear continues to rule the day for most people.


Dow Takes Another Hit - Well the collapse of trickle down economics continues as investors worldwide continue to show zero faith in the market. For the first time in five years it drops below 8000 points and sadly the bottom probably hasn't been reached.

2nd Presidential Debate Wrap-Up

Well a little late but here it is. My brief wrap up of the debate (video here). Long story short, Obama won it. McCain needed a victory, the bigger the better, but it didn't happen. Obama simply landed more hits to McCain's rather weak "he doesn't understand" attempts. Sadly the debate itself focused only briefly on the economy before shifting focus to foreign policy which essentially resulted in the same answers as the first debate. Brokaw as moderator was a fail as his questions didn't really provide any new insight on why undecided’s should choose one candidate over another.

I think the net result on polling will be a slight bump for Obama but hard to tell if that is because of the debate or because a continuation of his momentum which will probably hit a ceiling soon (only so many undecideds left after all). If your already pro a particular candidate you probably didn't hear anything to make you doubt your choice. I still don't think the election accounts for closet racism which will lead to a much close election then polls currently indicate.

At this point I don't see the third debate accomplishing much of anything. I doubt either candidate will commit major gaffes of any importance (sorry "that one" in context of the guy standing next to him isn't a gaffe) that will alter the campaign. For the undecideds that remain, more then likely they will not make a decisive decision until they walk into booth to vote and then I am betting most will vote along whatever party affiliation they have in the past.

Fact Check debate statements

Polls
CBS - poll of 500 undecided voters
Impact on voter preference: 15% Obama, 14% McCain, 70% uncommitted (basically no change from VP debate, net result a wash)
Trust on Economy: McCain - 41% before, 49% after; Obama - 54% before, 68% after
Understands Needs: McCain - 35% before, 46% after; Obama - 60% before, 80% after
Ready to be President: McCain - 80% before, 84% after; Obama - 42% before, 57% after
Answer questions: 57% yes, 42% no for both candidates
Again a wash. Obama is strong on economy and needs but lack of faith overall in prepared for the job of being President mitigates those gains.

CNN - poll of those that watched the debate
Stronger leader: 54% Obama, 43% McCain
More likeable: 65% Obama, 28% McCain
More intelligent: 57% Obama, 25% McCain
Clearly expressed himself: 60% Obama, 30% McCain
More Negative: 63% McCain, 17% Obama
Answered questions: 50% Obama, 37% McCain
Care more about problems: 50% Obama, 36% McCain
Seemed like "typical politician": McCain by a 16pt margin
Favorable opinion: Obama - before 60%, after 64%; McCain - unchanged

Gas Profits, Obama Gains, McCain's Healthcare Plan and Colbert

Where Gas Money Goes - A nice little diagram that breaks down where all that oil profit and money goes. The picture to the left is tiny and hard to read so instead click here to view the full size one.

Obama Gains in Bush States - In a sign of just how bad things are, even traditionally Republican states are turning on McCain. North Carolina went from easy win to dead heat, he trails in Ohio, New Hampshire and Wisconsin are now Obama leaning and Florida is now a toss up. Overall, current polling puts McCain at a 1:9 shot in winning the election.

McCain's Healthcare Plan Costs - On paper McCain's plan is pretty straight forward. He bribes the average America with $2500 credit (that does straight to your insurance company). In reality it’s more complicated. First off, do your really think if you spend less then five thousand you will get that back? Of course not. Second, he intends to tax the insurance your company currently pays for. So go ahead and add about $10,000 to your adjusted income to get an idea of what kind of increase that will bring come April. Now, pray to your HR reps that they just don't use this as an excuse to cut your insurance entirely. Because if they do (as predicted about 50% of companies will), then suddenly the problem isn't paying taxes on $10,000 or so, its paying for the monthly insurance fees that will double or triple (assuming you don't have a pre-existing condition, otherwise no insurance for you). As the article above reports, there is now a new wrinkle. It turns out to pay for his bribe; McCain is going to cut Medicare and Medicaid by $1.3 trillion. That generally means increasing the age people get into the program (ouch about to retire? Might want to wait), cutting what is covered (ooh heart condition, no go for that surgery), and probably increasing the rules of eligibility (just how handicapped are you really?). While both candidates’ plans need a lot of work, it’s pretty clear that McCain's is a disaster waiting to happen.

Stephen Colbert Talks Colbert and Politics - An interesting summary of one meeting between Stephen Colbert and Ariel Levy where he discusses his show, his character and politics in general. A very good read.

Special Comment: McSmear's Campaign

Keith Olbermann aired another special comment last night, this time focused on the McCain/Palin ticket's choice of renewing its campaign of distraction. Rather then focus on say the economy, McCain and Palin have instead decided to play a bizarre game of connect the dots. The basic argument is Ayers set off bombs that killed no one when Obama was 8. 40+ years later Obama attended a part that Ayers happened to host. So by the Republican Transitive Property of Terrorism, since Ayers is a terrorist, and Obama went to his house, Obama must support terrorism.

Now if we consider the Republican Transitive Property as political law, which McCain and Palin clearly do, then this brings us to Keating. The man caused the last economic fiasco that cost around $500 billion in bailouts. He helped destroy the lives of thousands of families and businesses which sounds like a form of terrorism to me. McCain attempted to block investigations into Keating because of his support of his campaign. So by the above rule, if Keating is a terrorist, McCain attempted to circumvent the law to protect Keating, then McCain must support terrorism.

Palin's turn. Palin credits a clergyman with her ascension to becoming Governor. The clergyman was a witch doctor in Kenya where he cause the death of a woman by claming she was a witch. That sounds like terrorism to me. So terrorist "clergyman" who helped kill a woman. Palin supports this "clergyman". By the Republican Transitive Property, Palin supports terrorism.

So again, by the Republican transitive property, we have two supports of terrorists running for President and one for VP. So the question then becomes which is worse. The "terrorist" that killed no one (Obama) or the one that destroyed unknown number of lies very much like what is happening right now (McCain).

Know I don't think any of the above is true but if McCain wants to play this game of smearing by the transitive property, he really needs to sweep around his own door first. Anyway, the transcript of the comment is here, video below.

Post VP Debate Fun

SNL Palin / Biden Skit - Hilarious skit where Tina Fey once again becomes Palin with eerie accuracy. The skit skewers both VP candidates and pretty scathing to boot.


Palin Debate Prep Flow Chart - Funny picture from that pretty much summarizes Palin's entire debate strategy. While people compliment her "exceeding expectations" short of her crying on stage I don't know how she could not have. Her answers to questions not asked lacked substance, her need to change the conversation when she didn't have a canned response, and inability to think on her feet did nothing to make me think she is capable of leading a PTA meeting much less the country.

David Letterman's Debate Recap - The Late Show editor's had fun mashing up words from Sarah Palin during the debate to create some rather funny statements from her own mouth. A tool I am sure the McCain camp may copy in their attempt to change the campaign conversation into Obama's character rather then the problems the country is facing.


Dow Takes Another Tumble - Speaking of issues, the Dow Jones took an 800 point nose dive dropping below 10000 points for the first time since October 24, 2003. It’s being read as a sign that the bailout bill isn't going to address the credit problems mostly because of lack of confidence in the government. As I said before, the stock market is 1 part data, 3 parts illusion and this is a further example about how that plays. Currently there is zero information to support or contradict this lack of confidence but sadly once people doubt, it tends to feed itself creating self-profiling prophecies.

"Make Believe Maverick" - An article from Rolling Stone that pretty much summarizes the history of John McCain. In essence he was an incompetent pilot (crashed multiple planes), who caved to the Vietcong (multiple "confessions", while other POWs didn't), exaggerates his war experience and record (not much), womanizing, and just a generally petty man whose history of being a maverick is backed only by words but not by deeds.

Post VP Debate Analysis

The only VP Debate of the year is over and Palin is probably breathing a big sigh of relief as she actually didn't do half bad and it seems the polls and pundits agree.

The main theme for Joe Biden is "change" and that McCain is more of the same. For Sarah Palin it was McCain "is the Maverick" and also "change". In both cases the goal and the focus was to sell their Presidential candidate with less focus on themselves. The main difference was style. Biden focused on facts and information, Palin focused on connecting with the audience.

I have the opinion that the election is decided on three main things. First is party, second is likeability and in a very distance third are the issues. When it comes to likeability, Palin's focus on "gosh shucks" type talk and keeping things simple with "beauty pageant" type responses that lack substance but are pleasing to the ear probably will be a big boom to the McCain campaign and something to build on. Just keep her away from the press as she demonstrated that she clearly was working almost exclusively from prepared responses and the unpredictable nature of the press is still beyond her skill set.

Biden did better on facts but I think failed to connect with the audience. He tried to avoid being condescending but sadly did little to alleviate the "elitist" badge that somehow was tied to the Democrats. His frequent use of "let me repeat that" type moments probably didn't go over to well and should have been avoided. His best moment was towards the end when talking about his wife and child but that wasn't enough. For those that are focused on the issues he was a clear winner but likeability trumps issues so his inability to sell the "he is like me" to the electorate washed out his strong showing.

The net result is the Biden "won" the Vice Presidential Debate. However, because expectations where so utterly low for Palin, she is going to be given a huge boost for getting out of the debate without major errors. So while Biden technically achieves the victory, the increase in profile and likeability for Palin results in a wash.

For those that already like each of them will simply like them more. For those already leaning towards one just received confirmation of a decision they had really already made but wasn't willing to admit. The true undecideds (which I think only represent about 8% at this point) will remain neutral as the debate did nothing except make them more receptive to Palin and thus McCain. As a result they will probably wait it out for the final two presidential debates.

In the overall electoral college and state polling, same thing. There will be movement but ultimately already leaning blue will become bluer and leaning red will become redder. Any gains in one state will be offset by losses in another, resulting in at most a +1 or 2 advantage for Obama. Not enough to lock the election.

Some links:
Debate transcript - Something worth reading as your getting just the information without voices, body language and the like that may impact it. What I noticed is what you pic up watching the debate vs. hearing the debate vs. reading the debate can lead to different conclusions on certain answers.
Debate Video - from CNN, the full debate.
CBS Reality Check - Quick summary of mis-information from the debate on both sides.

CNN Poll - quick poll of those that watched the debate
Won debate: 51% Biden, 26% Palin
Likability: 54% Palin, 36% Biden
Exceed Expectations: 84% Palin, 64% (a sign of how little people expected)
Qualifications: 87% Biden, 42% Palin (not good for Palin but that can be built on, as long as doesn't talk to the press)

CBS Poll - poll of 473 uncommitted voters
Won debate: 46% Biden, 21% Palin, 33% Tie
Committ to ticket: 18% committed to Obama/Biden, 10% McCain/Palin, 71% remain uncommitted (this just proves my point, those already leaning in one direction got the excuse they needed for a decision they had already made)
Improved opinion of VP candidate: 53% Biden, 55% Palin (I figured Palin's numbers would be much higher considering expectations)
Worse opinion of VP candidate: 5% Biden, 14% (higher then want but not a big deal)
No change of opinion: 42% Biden, 30% Palin
More knowledgeable about issues - from 43% before to 66% after for Palin, from 79% to 98% after for Biden (Palin's credibility is still a huge sticking point)
Prepared for VP job: from 39% before to 55% after for Palin, from 81% before to 97% after for Biden (again credibility and issue for Palin)
Effective as President: from 35% before to 44% after for Palin, from 66% to 91% for Biden (ditto)

538.com - Excellent website that tracks polling across the country and uses statistically math to project the election based on current information.

Nintendo DSi, Cox Three Strikes, Fox News Funny and More Palin

Nintendo Announcements - Click the link for a summary of information that came out from Nintendo as it shows its cards for the next year. The highlights include a new version of the DS called DSi, Club Nintendo for North America, Wii Speak Channel (with peripheral), "hard drive" solution, and new games including Punch Out!!. The DSi is about the same as current DS but has slightly larger screen, no GBA slot, two cameras, SD slot, and 12% thinner.

Cox Three Strikes Policy - In a sign that people either need to complain or switch carriers, Cox Communications has instituted a three strikes DMCA Policy that has no basis on the law. In collusion with the RIAA and MPAA, they will cut off internet service to any one that gets three DMCA notices. The problem, other then they don't have to do that, is that those notices are usually not based on any real proof, just a suspicion. It’s a large reason why the RIAA keeps losing most of its copyright cases. It’s a bad policy, setting a bad precedent that can only lead to these companies becoming more big brother and charging more for less. Keep in mind that a bandwidth cap is probably on the horizon and this kind of crap only encourages it when customers don't react.

"It's Split" - Fox News either can't count or desperate to make the race closer then it is (which isn't fair nor balanced but good for ratings). The reporter asks for a show of hands of who is voting for who and gets none for McCain, most for Obama and says "It's split" which results in people in the room laughing at him. The guy either isn't very bright or is trying to be ironic.


Another Cafferty Comment on Palin - Once again CNN's John Cafferty lays it out there on exactly what is wrong with Sarah Palin. She claims to be want to be treated like any other candidate (while crying foul when they do) but sometimes the truth hurts. She is clearly incompetent of Bushian levels. The fear isn't VP Palin; the fear is if it becomes President Palin.


Parker Starting to Feel the Pain - Kathleen Parker did something rather extraordinary for Republicans last week. She actually disagreed with party leadership and said that Palin should step down as a VP candidate. Dissent is no-no of the party where individual opinions are frowned upon when not first derived from party leadership and the result was apparently a rather violent backlash of "Dixie Chicks" levels, at least for Parker. Funny how she finally gets what people like me has been complaining about for years.

Diebold vs. Homer Simpson - Hilarious spoof of the notorious flaky Diebold machines (always to Republican favor) from this year's annual Treehouse of Horror episode.

More Politics, Terminator, Dunst and Box Office

McCain, Healthcare Question - For once an editorial board of a newspaper made itself useful when it asked a pretty important question of McCain: "Throughout your adult life, am I right, as a veteran and a member of Congress and now someone over sixty five, throughout your adult life have you been covered by a taxpayer-financed health care plan?" McCain has spent his entire life on public paid health insurance and seems to like it yet doesn't want the same for the average American.

Sarah Palin A Good Debater - The Huffington Post has provided a pretty good point that Palin will actually be a threat at tomorrow's debate, ironically because of her lack of knowledge. As the clips below show, she is good at giving "pageant" answers that sound good to the ear but are actually vacant and lack no real information or detail. It’s also the exact kind of answers the electorate tends to eat up and not analyze and is hard to combat without appearing like a bully.


Terminator Canceled? - The news has been rather bleak so far for returning shows this season as the fall out from the strike continues without most shows losing viewers including the Sarah Connor Chronicles. The problem for the Monday shows is pretty straight forward - they are all competing for the same audience (geek, male, cash flush) that are usually watching football or watching one of the other programs they like (Heroes, One Tree Hill, Two & a Half Men). You would think a TV exec would have enough sense to try to a new night first before swinging the ax. It’s worked for other programs (see House), why not try it again.

Kirsten Dunst Up for Spider-Man 4 - In a no brainer, Dunst is up for reprising her role of Mary Jane. Currently Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire are considering it but probably the only sticking point is the amount of money being thrown at them. For Dunst, thanks to the realization by the public that her acting is subpar and she is starting to get a "worn" look thanks to her personal life hijinks, it’s probably the only real work she will get for a while.

Weekend Box Office - A few days late, but here you go. Shia LaBeouf's Eagle Eye (logically makes no sense but very entertaining) took the top spot with $29.2M. Nights in Rodanthe (boring, slow, but the missus will owe you a big one if you behave through it) took in $13.5M. Lakeview Terrace (it was ok, Jackson chews the scenery as always) sat at third with $7.0. Fireproof managed to snag fourth ($6.5M) and Burn After Reading (crap, crap, crap) took fifth ($6.1M).