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A blog by someone who doesn't like or understand blogs.
A major theme of this blog is the love affair between the blogger and the city of New York.
Email me at david [at] danzig [dot] com.
Bloggers with whom I am personally acquainted, in real life, in alphebetical order by first name:
Caren L.
Dav C.
David D.
Eva J.
Jessica D.
Joclyn G.
Lauren P.
Sean S.
Steph T.
If you know me in person, and I forgot to put you here, definitely, please email me, and also please accept my apology!
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Thursday, July 31, 2003
THE BEST OF THE OFFICIAL RECORD.
External link:
Happy Anniversary, The Official Record! That's right-- I started this blog on July 31, 2002-- a year ago today. Where does the time go? Anyway, to "celebrate," here are some of my favorite articles from the past year. My five very, very favorites are marked with an asterisk (*) and described in red.
A CRAZY MCDONALD'S COMMERCIAL. (Wednesday, August 07, 2002).
A particular McDonald's commercial blatantly encourages over-eating.
SAD CLOWN. (Tuesday, August 13, 2002).
A sketch I drew that I liked and scanned in.
SEX IS OVERRATED. (Friday, August 30, 2002).
A convincing logical proof of same.
*WHAT IS REAL? (A POEM BY ME). (Friday, August 30, 2002).
Surreal poetry.
HAIKU (PLURAL). (Friday, September 06, 2002).
Some funny Haiku I wrote.
GROUND ZERO. (Wednesday, September 11, 2002)
Reflections on the anniversary of 9/11, and a link to some amazing pictures.
*BOOK REVIEW: SLANDER: LIBERAL LIES ABOUT THE AMERICAN RIGHT (2002) no stars (0 stars out of 4). (Monday, September 16, 2002).
This scathing review of Ann Coulter's miserable screed was, until this month, the most viewed and linked-to article I'd written, by far, and I still get several hits to it a week.
AN ARM OR A LEG? (Friday, September 27, 2002).
Which would you rather lose, and other tough choices.
"TOBACCO IS WHACKO ... IF YOU'RE A TEEN", IS, ITSELF, WHACKO. (Wednesday, October 23, 2002).
Being about a very annoying ad campaign that is obviously designed to actually increase teen smoking.
UNIVERSAL TRANSLATOR. (Tuesday, November 12, 2002).
Here's how to build one of the greatest inventions in human history, but nobody's built it yet.
HOW FORTUNATE. (Sunday, December 29, 2002).
How to make a really funny fortune teller
NEW FORMULA, SAME GREAT CONVERSION. (Tuesday, January 14, 2003).
A remarkably easy way to convert from Celsius to Fahrenheit in your head.
REVIEW OF REVIEWS. (Friday, January 31, 2003).
A summary of all my reviews up to that point, with links thereto.
EXACTLY WHAT'S WRONG WITH TELEVISION. (Tuesday, February 04, 2003).
I really think I've put my finger on it.
THE STORM OF THE CENTURY (SO FAR). (Tuesday, February 18, 2003).
The opposite of journalism.
*"PENN & TELLER: BULLSHIT" JUST JUMPED THE SHARK. (Thursday, February 27, 2003).
A blistering attack on those who oppose the New York City smoking ban.
LET ME ASK YOU SOMETHING. (Monday, March 03, 2003).
Maybe this is a little pedantic.
TOUGH CROWD. (Wednesday, March 19, 2003).
In which I roast my parents.
"HE MURDERS HIS OWN PEOPLE." (Thursday, March 20, 2003).
Eerie parallels between the unelected rulers of Iraq and the United States.
LET'S GO TEAM! (Friday, March 21, 2003).
A great and simple way to improve television sports broadcasts.
ON THE HOMEFRONT LINES. (Wednesday, March 26, 2003).
Why did the media completely ignore this explosion in Times Square?
GOTCHA! (Tuesday, April 01, 2003).
A successful April Fool's Day prank.
SEIZING THE MIDDLE GROUND IN THE ABORTION DEBATE. (Friday, April 04, 2003).
You can (and, I think, ought to be) both pro-life and pro-choice.
AL JAZEERA IS VERY BIASED. BUT NOT AS BIASED AS THE U.S. MEDIA. (Monday, April 07, 2003).
This media criticism article was linked to by FAIR.
I'M BEGGING YOU. (Friday, April 18, 2003).
Chronicling the mis-use of the phrase "begging the question".
FREEDOM WHINE. (Friday, April 18, 2003)
A funny slip of the tongue.
REALITY BITES. (Saturday, April 19, 2003).
My twisted idea for a reality show.
DON'T USE A CONDOM. UM, UNLESS YOU HAVE SEX. (Wednesday, April 23, 2003).
Somehow I managed to convince myself that I could convince religious conservatives to endorse condom usage.
CRISIS = DANGER + OPPORTUNITY. (Sunday, June 08, 2003).
In which I refute the wisdom of the Orient.
NOW WHERE DID I PUT MY PUBLISHER'S NUMBER? (Thursday, June 19, 2003).
An interesting book idea.
HOW I INVITED SOME FRIENDS TO VISIT ME: (Friday, June 20, 2003).
The invitation does include a couple disclaimers.
*THE BEST YOU CAN HOPE FOR. (Thursday, June 26, 2003).
An extremely depressing look at what's in store for all of us.
*FROM THE SPRING 1897 SEARS CATALOG, PAGE 176: (Sunday, July 13, 2003).
So many people told me they thought this was real, but I actually made it up-- "The Auto-Matic Praying Machine".
FLASHMOB #4: THE MOVIE. (Friday, July 18, 2003).
A video recording I made of a recent Flash Mob.
THE END IS NIGH. (Friday, July 25, 2003).
Why many people believe that the world will end on December 21, 2012.
THE BEST OF THE OFFICIAL RECORD. (Thursday, July 31, 2003).
This article which you are reading right now.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/best-of-official-record.html
Check for older comments: Archived comments on item #105962500287666202
Wednesday, July 30, 2003
BOOK REVIEW: TREASON (2003) 1/2 (half a star out of 4).
External link:
Although occasionally entertaining, Coulter's latest tirade is as inaccurate as her last book, as is well-documented throughout the Web. Here's a nice site that discusses many of the outright lies in her book, and I recommend checking that out.
It's fitting that she spends about half the book defending McCarthyism. Absurdly, she defends it by insisting that, at the time, the threat of communism was real, as though that were widely disputed by Americans. But while it's easy to see now that the threat of communism was exaggerated at the time, nobody criticized McCarthy for attacking an imaginary opponent. The only complaint against McCarthyism that I've ever heard is that the mere accusation of communism was enough to destroy a persons life or career, without the necessity of a conviction. This point, which to me is the essence of McCarthyism, is undisputed by Coulter. Rather, she concedes it, sarcasticly lamenting the people who had to flee the country after they were falsely accused of communism, saying how nice it is to live in Europe.
And, of course, Coulter is engaged in a witch-hunt of her own, falsely accusing her political enemies of treason. She seems to have just two tricks up her sleeves to defend her indefensible position. The first is the double-standard. Thus, when conservatives argue against liberal Presidents, that proves that the liberal President is a traitor on account of the veracity of those criticisms. But when Liberals argue against conservatives, that demonstrates that those liberals are traitors, on account of their opposition to the leaders of their own country. When a single historian or journalist makes a point favorable to Coulter's position, that proves Coulter's position. But when historians and journalists universally make a point unfavorable to Coulter's position, that is proof of the liberal bias of historians and journalists.
Coulter's other trick is to argue against a straw man. She takes the most outlandish position ever stated by anyone who Coulter decides is liberal, and declares it the mainstream liberal position. She takes two different, inconsistent views, held by two different people who she's decided are liberal, and then claims that this proves that the liberal position is inconsistent. She takes a single example of a liberal doing something bad and says that it proves that all liberals do this bad thing. And when she can't find even one liberal to argue for a position, she just makes it up. Over and over, she tells us that the liberals' true motives for taking a position are different from their stated motives, or what liberals would say about some hypothetical situation.
Oh, and here's a great quote that, perhaps, tells us a little about Coulter's true motives for innocently taking some of the positions she's taken. She says of all the foreigners who are more afraid of American aggression than they are of the terrorists, "They hate us? We hate them. Americans don't want to make Islamic fanatics love us. We want to make them die. There's nothing like horrendous physical pain to quell anger. Japanese Kamikazes pilots hated us once, too. A couple of well-aimed nuclear weapons got their attention. Now they are gentle little lambs." (page 230).
In short, either Coulter is joking or she is a joke. Either way, she is impossible to take seriously.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/book-review-treason-2003-12-half-star.html
Check for older comments: Archived comments on item #105961681890110244
Monday, July 28, 2003
BOOK REVIEW: PLAYER PIANO (1952) * * * (3 stars out of 4).
External link:
Kurt Vonnegut's First Novel is remarkably prescient. He anticipates the information revolution almost precisely asking the exact same challenging questions that we are asking today about our loss of privacy because so much of our personal information is stored in the global computer network. The writing style is also far ahead of its time. It doesn't have Vonnegut's distinctive staccato style, but it does sound like it was written very recently, instead of more than fifty years ago. Unfortunately, there really isn't very much to the actual story itself of the protagonist's struggle to regain his individuality.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/book-review-player-piano-1952-3-stars.html
Check for older comments: Archived comments on item #105944285544203746
BOOK REVIEW: DOWN AND OUT IN THE MAGIC KINGDOM (2003) * * 1/2 (2 and a half stars out of 4).
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This was three stories in one. The first was the story of where technology is headed. This part of the book is fascinating and thought provoking, even if some of the philosophical implications are dismissed too quickly. The second story is just a long-winded, fawning tribute to the Magic Kingdom. I like Disney World as much as anybody, but this just went on much too long without any real point. Finally it is a murder-mystery. While there is a bit of a clever twist here, it is extremely contrived and difficult to follow, and ultimately unsatisfying.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/book-review-down-and-out-in-magic.html
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Friday, July 25, 2003
MORE ABOUT FLASH MOBS #4 and #5.
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Here are nice accounts of Flash Mob #4 and Flash Mob #5 by my friend Jessica D., with whom I attended the events.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/more-about-flash-mobs-4-and-5.html
Check for older comments: Archived comments on item #105917489572294469
AUDIO OF FLASH MOB #5.
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In keeping with the Internet's largely unrealized promise of truly a multi-media experience, here's an audio recording of flash mob #5. The invitation exhorted not to use cameras, and I wanted to respect that request, so I put my video camera in my bag and just recorded this audio program. You can hear the bag rustling a bit, for which I apologize.
My personal account of the event is just a few articles before this one.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/audio-of-flash-mob-5.html
Check for older comments: Archived comments on item #105917318009307764
THE END IS NIGH.
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I was recently reminded about an interesting prediction that the world would end on December 21, 2012, which is just the sort of thing I would have blogged at the time I heard it, if I'd had a blog.
Basically, the deal as I understand it is supposed to be this.
First, civilization is becoming more advanced. And the rate at which civilization is becoming more advanced is increasing. And the rate at which the rate at which civilization is becoming more advanced is also increasing. If you graph the advancement of civilization over time, it is a curve getting steeper and steeper, until it goes practically straight up and down on December 21, 2012. There's no more curve after that day.
Second, the ancient Mayan calendar, created millennia ago, just happens to run our of dates on the day we call December 21, 2012.
Finally, that day happens to be the winter solstice, as well as the day our sun passes through the equator of the Milky Way, as well as a day when there will be a solar eclipse (visible in Australia).
I think the most difficult part of this to understand is how the advancement of civilization can become infinite. This page touches on that, but doesn't really address it. The first major advancement in civilization was the agricultural revolution (i.e., farming), 30,000 years ago. The second was the industrial revolution (i.e., mass production), 350 years ago. The third was the information revolution (i.e., computers), 50 years ago. According to the graph, there will be 61 more equally significant revolutions between now and December 21, 2012, with 18 of them happening that day, and 13 of those in the last second before the singularity.
How could that happen? Consider that the advancements of the industrial revolution greatly simplified the manufacture of computers, the creation of which would have seemed inconceivable without those advances in manufacturing. The next revolution will surely be something that would have been inconceivable without computers. In other words, machines did most of the work of building the computers, and computers will do most of the work of designing and building the next thing. And that thing will do most of the work of conceiving of, designing, and building the next thing. And that thing is going to really take off on its own with building the next revolution. By 2012, if the theory holds, something 47 revolutions past computers, which is only 2 revolutions past farming, is going to, all by itself, in a fraction of a second, create the next major revolution of society, which will, by itself, create the next one, and so on.
Under the graph, after the thirteenth revolution in a single second occurs, the singularity happens, and there will be an infinite number of advancements before the end of the following second, because each revolution will create the next revolution in less and less time. Even if this happens, this does not, per se, mean that the world will end in that second, but what will the next second be like? What will the next day be like? What will things be like a week or a year or a decade later?
There are an enormous number of resources about this stuff on the Web, many of which should not be trusted. An impressive collection is located at All About 2012, which is very poorly designed.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/end-is-nigh.html
Check for older comments: Archived comments on item #105916949301755133
ME IN THE NEWS.
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An Orlando Sentinal article about flash mobs ran Thursday (without referring to me), and a Boston Globe article about flash mobs runs Friday, quoting me:
"'I guess it's hard to see the point,' said David Danzig, 32, who has attended the last three flash mobs in New York. 'For me, that's a reason to keep going and to try and figure out the point. It's art.'"
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/me-in-news.html
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MOB #5.
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I went to Mob #5 this afternoon. After getting to the appropriate bar for my birthday, I received this information, which included a small map of the area:
---
*** MOB #5 ***
THE SITE:
Central Park -- near 81st & Central Park West. Enter between 80th and 81st, across from the museum [of Natural History]. Make your first hard left, merge with another path, then turn left again. Walk to the right in front of the ridge and face CPW [Central Park West].
START TIME: 7:18. DURATION: 8 minutes. Disperse at 7:26: no one should remain at the mob site after 7:28.
Stand still and stare straight forward. For the first three minutes, make as little noise as possible. If you can make a realistic bird call, you may occasionally do so.
By 7:21, you may all make bird calls, unrealistic or no.
By 7:23, you may also mumble, "bird noise."
By 7:25, you may also call out, "Nature here! Come get some nature!" to passersby.
At 7:26, chant "Na-ture" for 20 seconds; cheer, and disperse.
Please do not take photographs at the mob site until 7:23.
Please do not interview anyone at the mob site until 7:26.
---
So, that sounds pretty clever on paper, I think, right? But in practice, it was a little disappointing, I thought. In the first place, there were very few passersby, and the vast majority of people on the street were filming the mob, which was pretty awkward and silly (but not in a good way), I thought. In the second place, people did not follow the directions very well, and the mob was not in synch, and almost all of the stuff we'd been instructed to do from 7:23 to 7:26 got skipped. I guess that's no big deal, and it is, after all, the raison d'être of a mob to be unruly. But, I don't know. It felt a little hollow for things not to go off as planned, in front of almost no audience. It felt a little like the joke was on us, instead of on them.
I have an audio recording of the event, which I will upload as soon as possible. I made it using my video camera, with the lens cap on, in a bag, and I'm not 100% sure how to separate the audio from that, but I'm sure I'll figure it out. Check my more recent entries (above) to see if I have.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/mob-5.html
Check for older comments: Archived comments on item #105910804072250693
Thursday, July 24, 2003
OR MAYBE NOT.
External link:
I didn't see articles in the Globe or the Orlando Sentinel yesterday, after all.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/or-maybe-not.html
Check for older comments: Archived comments on item #105906240731098524
Tuesday, July 22, 2003
FLASHMOBBING IS ABOUT TO GET MAINSTREAM.
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The flash mobbing story, broken by us bloggers, is quickly becoming a big mainstream story.
Last week saw articles about the flash mob phenomenon in the Chicago Tribune, and on MSNBC's and the BBC's Web sites (all of which either quoted me or cited this blog or both).
Yesterday there was a feature article in the New York Post. Today ran a story (in which I was extensively quoted) in the Dallas Morning News.
Tomorrow I happen to know that a story is running in the Orlando Sentinel and in the Boston Globe, probably on the front page, and probably quoting me.
So, yesterday, today and tomorrow, that's The New York Post, the front page of the Dallas Morning News, and (probably) the front page of the Boston Globe. This story is about to go international.
I also lent my videotape of flash mob #4 to a reporter from Inside Edition who tracked me down through my work (Charge.Com, Inc., which was mentioned in the BBC article), and asked me for it, so they may do something with that.
Oh, and incidentally, I first brought flash mobbing to the attention of Sean S. of cheesebikini.com, who, in turn, widely publicized the phenomenon to the world and coined the term "flash mob," which seems to be the most popular term for the phenomenon.
What a silly waste of time.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/flashmobbing-is-about-to-get.html
Check for older comments: Archived comments on item #105893170515034173
FLASHMOB #5.
External link:
Here's a copy of an invitation to the next flashmob. All are invited.
---
You are invited to take part in MOB, the project that
creates an inexplicable mob of people in New York City
for ten minutes or less. Please forward this to other
people you know who might like to join.
FAQ
Q. Can there be more photographers at the next mob?
A. There seemed to be plenty at MOB #4.
Q. I was being sarcastic.
A. "Sarcastic"...?
Q. Meaning that my real question is the EXACT
OPPOSITE of that question. Can there be *fewer*
photographers at the next mob?
A. In general, people should feel free to take
photographs at the mob. But at certain times in
certain mobs, photography dampens the effect. From now
on, the instruction slips for each mob will specify
when and where NOT to take photographs during that
mob.
Q. OK. Hey, how about an uptown mob?
A. Are you being "sarcastic" again?
Q. No.
A. Well, then: sure.
INSTRUCTIONS - MOB #5
Start time: Thursday, July 24th, sometime after 7:15pm
Duration: 10 minutes or less
(1) At some point during the day on July 24th,
synchronize your watch to
http://www.time.gov/timezone.cgi?Eastern/d/-5/java/java.
(If that site doesn't work for you, try
http://www.time.gov/timezone.cgi?Eastern/d/-5.)
(2) By 6:55 PM, based on the month of your birth,
please situate yourselves in the bars below. Buy a
drink and act casual. NOTE: if you are attending the
MOB with friends, you may all meet in the same bar, so
long as at least one of you has the correct birth
month for that bar.
January, February, March: Dublin House, 225 W.
79th St. (just east of Broadway). Meet in the back by
the jukebox.
April, May, June: McAleer's, 425 Amsterdam Ave.
(between 80th and 81st). Meet in the back, by the
enormous television set.
July, August, September: Bourbon Street, 407
Amsterdam Ave. (between 79th and 80th). Meet in the
back, by the even more enormous television set.
October, November, December: 420 Bar and Lounge,
420 Amsterdam Ave. (at 80th St.). Meet in the back,
near the constrained tree.
(3) Then or soon thereafter, a MOB representative will
appear in the bar and pass around further
instructions. The instructions will specify the mob
site, the start time, and the duration. The
instructions will give you what you need and then
some.
(4) In particular, the instructions will tell you when
to disperse. Make sure that two minutes after the
specified time, you are no longer at the mob site.
(5) Return to what you otherwise would have been
doing, and await instructions for MOB #6.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/flashmob-5.html
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MORE PRESS FOR ME.
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I am quoted on the front page of today's Dallas Morning News, concerning flashmobbing.
In relevant part:
"Not even participants such as 32-year-old David Danzig really understand the allure of flash mobbing. 'It's interesting and fun,' he says. 'I'm not sure I saw any point to it, really. It's just the nonsensical nature and silliness of it all.'"
. . .
"The New York flash mobs have grown steadily in size. 'I think they're just going to get bigger with more press,' says Mr. Danzig. 'There's nothing stopping it.'"
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/more-press-for-me.html
Check for older comments: Archived comments on item #105889826101236688
Friday, July 18, 2003
AND I'M OFF.
External link:
I'm off to San Francisco for the weekend, with my family. I'll be back Monday night.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/and-im-off.html
Check for older comments: Archived comments on item #105854048311232543
THE OFFICIAL RECORD IN THE NEWS.
External link:
MSNBC links to The Official Record in a story about flashmobbing.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/official-record-in-news.html
Check for older comments: Archived comments on item #105851348723366877
FLASHMOB #4: THE MOVIE.
External link:
Here it is, the flashmob demystified. And here is a mirror of the file. And here is my own inferior mirror.
Much thanks to SamGrrrlDiabolico and JJFlash for hosting this five and a half megabyte AVI file! SamGrrrl's blog, at sanityofsam.com, is a charming, touching, well-written online journal. It is worth a read, just for its refreshing openness. And make sure to check out JJFlash's flashmob.fantasmaformaggino.it for the definitive Italian language coverage of the flashmob scene. Or, if your Italian is like mine, then check out the Babelfish English translation of the site.
If you can help to distribute the traffic load by hosting a mirror of the movie, please let me know.
Please, don't publish links directly to the movie, because some of them will definitely move or be deleted. Put a link to this article, and this article will link to wherever the movie may be in the future.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/flashmob-4-movie.html
Check for older comments: Archived comments on item #105851260878254205
Wednesday, July 16, 2003
FLASHMOB #4.
External link:
I just got back from flashmob #4. After meeting at the designated location, I received a slip of paper saying the following:
---
*** MOB #4 ***
NOTE--NEW DURATION:
5 minutes (Gather at 7:18; disperse at 7:23.)
THE SITE:
Otto Tootsi Plohound [an upscale SoHo shoe store] (273 Lafayette, just north of Prince). Leave Tom & Jerry's [The bar where people born in April to June were to gather] by 7:12.
YOU ARE:
* On a bus tour from Maryland. You are excited but also bewildered. It is as if the shoes were made in outer space.
* If you have a cell phone, dial a friend. Say, "Guess where I am." After a pause, say, "In a SoHo shoe store." Or: "In one of those New York City mobs."
KEEP THIS SLIP HIDDEN
MOB #5 IS NEXT THURSDAY
---
When I got there with my friend Jessica D., the crowd was enormous, with hundreds of people standing shoulder to shoulder in the normally spacious store. Just as I was getting to the door, the proprietor put his arm in front of me, and said no more people could come in, but I managed to sidestep him. Many of the people behind me weren't so lucky. There was a noisy, boisterous, but otherwise harmless crowd in the store for five minutes, and then we quickly left.
I filmed the whole thing on my brand new video camera, but apparently I need some kind of card for my computer, and the stores are all closed. I intend to get it tomorrow, so I can upload the video.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/flashmob-4.html
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Tuesday, July 15, 2003
THAT'S SOMETHING, INNIT?
External link:
I am quoted in an article by the BBC.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/thats-something-innit.html
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Sunday, July 13, 2003
FROM THE SPRING 1897 SEARS CATALOG, PAGE 176:
External link:
OUR NEW PRAYING MACHINE IS FULLY AUTO-MATIC.
The Family Model can do the work of twenty parishioners, in less than half the time. Steam-powered to provide reliable operation for many years to come, the Praying Machine is an achievement of the most modern engineering and theology of to-day. It is styled in a manner both sleek and functional, creating a useful item that is virtually maintenance-free, excepting for occasional lubrication.
Ensure self and others against disease, misfortune, damnation, &c. Old-fashioned "man-powered" prayers frequently go unanswered and must be repeated. But with our Praying Machine such unanswered prayers or "unprofitable prayers" are completely eliminated through our patented three-step process. Your prayers are distilled to their essence, without the extraneous details that may annoy or offend God and Jesus.
Reclaim your Sundays for increased leisure time with your wife or mistress. Alternatively, receive greater profit with a seventh working-day at one of the great new factories of the dawning Industrial Age. In this manner, you will find that the Praying Machine can quickly pay for itself many times over, particularly if you are one of those persons who has fathered many children of an age where they may become gainfully employed in some manner of profession or trade.
ONLY $8.95 ea. post paid.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/from-spring-1897-sears-catalog-page.html
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MOVIE REVIEW: THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN (2003) * * * (3 stars out of 4).
External link:
As far as mindless action movies go, this one is clever, fun, and visually engaging in really unique ways. The premise is that the LXG is the Superfriends of the 19th century, teaming up Allan Quartermain, a Vampire, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the Invisible Man, Dorian Gray, Tom Sawyer, and Captain Nemo, to fight for the greater glory of England. It isn't nearly as good as the book, though. It certainly does not deserve the many horrible reviews it's gotten.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/movie-review-league-of-extraordinary.html
Check for older comments: Archived comments on item #105810256138465503
MOVIE REVIEW: TERMINATOR 3: RISE OF THE MACHINES (2003) * * (2 stars out of 4).
External link:
T3 does not measure up to T2, much less the first Terminator movie, in terms of either action or intelligent science fiction. A once extremely clever series has become straightforward and formulaic and family-friendly.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/movie-review-terminator-3-rise-of.html
Check for older comments: Archived comments on item #105810206594008882
MOVIE REVIEW: CHARLIE'S ANGELS: FULL THROTTLE (2003) * * * 1/2 (3 and a half stars out of 4).
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This movie was much better than the first one, and much better than I expected. It works great just as a light-hearted comedy that had me and the audience roaring. And it also works great as a straight-out action movie with action scenes that are nearly as innovative, in their way, as The Matrix or Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon were when they first came out, except without resorting to unrealistic tricks, like walking on leaves or bending 110 degrees at the knee and then standing back up. That is, they do things that are just as crazy and impossible, but without seeming to bend the laws of physics.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/movie-review-charlies-angels-full.html
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MOVIE REVIEW: HULK (2003) * 1/2 (1 and a half stars out of 4).
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Even though my expectations had been lowered by many negative reviews, Hulk still managed to disappoint. The movie is drawn out and long and boring. It lacks direction and focus, and the characters are much more two-dimensional than they are in the comic book version (which has been excellent since Bruce Jones took over the writing a couple years ago). Some of the special effects are amazing, and it may be worth renting and fast forwarding just for that. But at the same time, sometimes the effects are so poor and cartoonish that it takes you right out of the reality of the movie.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/movie-review-hulk-2003-12-1-and-half.html
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MOVIE REVIEW: FINDING NEMO (2003) * * * (3 stars out of 4).
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This was an entertaining, funny movie, which would be totally suitable for a child, but is written at an intelligent level for adults. The computer graphics are very impressive, and are sometimes eerily realistic.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/movie-review-finding-nemo-2003-3-stars.html
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Wednesday, July 02, 2003
FLASHMOB #3.
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I just returned from Flashmob #3. This was called "The Grand Central Mob Ballet," and was supposed to involve claiming to be waiting for a train, and writing the word "MOB" on a one dollar bill, but none of that came into play.
Instead, we got a form saying:
*** MOB #3 ***
Change of Plans
If you are reading this, we have decided to change venues.
(1) By 7:02, walk out to 42nd St. and look for the main entrance to the Grand Hyatt. Enter and take the escalator up one flight to the main lobby. Loiter until 7:07.
(2) At 7:07, start taking the escalator and elevators up one floor, to the wraparound railing overlooking the lobby. Stand around it, looking down. Fan out to cover as much of the railing as possible. If asked why you are there, point down to the lobby and say, "Look."
(3) At 7:12, begin applauding. Applaud for fifteen seconds, then disperse in an orderly fashion,
(Note: the exit on that floor is not a pedestrian exit.)
I was actually a little suspicious that this was someone's attempt to divert the mob, so I found another Mob project representative at Grand Central who handed me the exact same form.
The turnout was about 300 to 500 people, I'd estimate. It went off just as it was described, and much as you'd imagine, with very nervous security people very nervously scampering about, but never interracting or thinking to ask anyone what was going on.
The Grand Hyatt, scene of the latest flashmob.
The mob goes up to the mezzanine.
A security guard makes a nervous telephone call.
The flashmob, assembled.
The flashmob disperses in an orderly fashion.
For more on flashmobbing, see cheesebikini.com
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/flashmob-3.html
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Tuesday, July 01, 2003
COULDN'T HACK IT.
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Buddy Hackett just died. I saw him in Vegas with my family once, and it was just about the funniest thing I've ever seen. While on stage, he drank an entire fifth of vodka, chugging it straight out of the bottle, like I would drink water on a hot day. One has to wonder if that sort of behavior didn't contribute to his death.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/07/couldnt-hack-it.html
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