The Crisis of Credit Visualized from Jonathan Jarvis on Vimeo.
Another excellent description of the credit crisis we currently find ourselves in, but this one is about 10 minutes long. Lines things out beautifully!
Pity it needs explaining at all, of course…as we shouldn’t have been in this mess in the first place…but that’s another story…
So, KMIZ, the ABC affiliate out of Columbia, MO., made the national gaming news blogs with their coverage of the Mid-Missouri Internet Crimes Task Force, specifically with their interview of Andy Anderson, who said: “There is no reason an adult should have [Animal Crossing: City Folk]” for the Wii. The whole thing makes Missouri look pretty dumb, as nearly all of the posts say either “Missouri Police” or “a Missouri Task Force”…
In the original report from KMIZ, they write “If your kids play interactive video games, like the Nintendo Wii, be on the lookout. The Mid-Missouri Internet Crimes Task Force is warning of predators using games like, ‘Animal Crossing- City Folk,’ to target kids.” This statement is only a little bit sensationalist, but more importantly is quite mis-leading…
The game is kinda like Sim City or The Sims, but a bit more complicated (you can run a shop, go fishing, do some gardening, etc.) with interactions that you have with other people over the internet (using an included peripheral microphone that sits above your TV). The thing that the Wii does, however, is use “Friend Codes,” which is a 12-digit randomized number that an individual must input into their system in order to contact someone else (i.e. I have to have your Friend Code plugged in, and you have to have my Friend Code plugged in), soooooooo…I’m very curious how any pedophiles could even contact someone through the game, as it’s impossible without a Friend Code exchange. The only way it could work is if a child exchanged their Friend Code with a stranger through the interwebs, or in person…which is the parent’s fault, not the Wii’s.
The idea that this game shouldn’t be played by adults is also rather absurd, as it’s a pretty popular series and has been bought by millions of adults, not just kids. It certainly isn’t a game I’m interested in, but to say that only pedophiles play it, or that only kids should be allowed to play it, is absurd.
The key here, as always, comes down to one thing: the parents are responsible for keeping an eye on their kids. Parents should know what games their kids are playing, the books they’re reading, the television they watch, the movies they watch, the kids they interact with at school, etc…especially when they’re at a young age (obviously, the ability to monitor them by middle school/high school gets reduced…). If parents are going to allow their kids to play games on the internet with a PC, or use a console system like a Wii, the parents should know about the capabilities of the system (such as Parental Controls) and the kinds of games that are available.
For more information on all that, though, check out What They Play, which is the “parent’s guide to video games”…great site for all kinds of information, not just for parents…
People should stop blaming things on the medium and learn to take some responsibility…
For the most part, when it comes to movies based on comics/graphic novels, I’m typically all over it. Certainly with Marvel or DC comics, I have a manageable grasp on the primary characters and a basis to follow when watching movies based on a given hero. Watchmen is something of an anomaly, however, as I’d heard of the graphic novel, published by DC Comics back in 1986-87, but certainly knew nothing about the story or what happened. So far as I understand, “Watchmen” actually adheres to the source material relatively well, but I couldn’t begin to tell you where the differences lie.
Essentially, here’s the idea… In an alternate past (mid-1980s), Nixon is a third-term President and we are under threat of nuclear annihilation from the U.S.S.R. Back in the 1920s/1930s, “masked vigilantes” took to the streets to help clean up crime, leading to a few generations of masked heroes that would go on to protect the citizens of the U.S. These people were a bit more grounded in “reality,” in that the kinds of people that were acting like heroes were generally benevolent, but sometimes sociopaths (i.e. just a bit crazy…). These heroes were inserted into historical events, including the Kennedy assassination, Vietnam, and a variety of different protests and riots. Very few heroes, with the exception of Dr. Manhattan, actually had any powers, so they were more like a Batman than a Superman…
As a result of the Keene Act, all masked vigilantes had to quit what they were doing, or risk going to jail. Most of these heroes went underground, and/or retired to private life. In the 1980s, however, two events spark their return: the threat of nuclear holocaust, and to a greater extent, the fact that some of their brethren are being knocked off one by one.
The movie switches between the past and the present, making these events even more confusing than they read above. For the most part, the story is rather interesting and engaging, making you wonder what’s really going on until the very end. Again, I can’t say how well this story is outlined as compared with the source material, but it does eventually make some sense. One of the complaints lodged against the film, however, is that it isn’t quite as “elegant” in switching back and forth in time, but I think the movie did as well at it as it could.
For a bunch of “no name” actors (save Billy Crudup), they all did an outstanding job. They were very believable in their roles, and made you feel for them (there’s a lot to feel for them as the movie progresses…). The effects were decent, but not the best I’ve seen. Honestly, there weren’t all that many special effects so far as the fight scenes go (besides some slow motion action, etc), but some of the bigger scenes depicting nuclear holocaust and Mars (the planet…) were acceptable, but not the best available. Dr. Manhattan especially, while impressive, didn’t seem to get the “mouth movements” quite right when speaking, as he was a digital character with Crudup’s face motion-captured on to him. The movie’s been in production for a long time, so maybe it’s just a few years late on that front.
Overall, I think it’s worth seeing if you want an interesting story, or if you like comics at all. The ending was rather shocking, in my opinion, but still has a decent resolution. It comes in at 2 hrs and 40 minutes, so make sure you get a soda and popcorn before it starts. Considering that the special effects weren’t that impressive, you could wait for the DVD, as seeing it on the big screen didn’t seem to add much to the experience. Still, considering mostly nothing else is out right now in theaters, it isn’t a bad choice!
If anything, it makes me want to pick up the graphic novel and actually read something. I can’t think of many movies that make me want to do that!
The “media” has apparently been all over this supposed “battle” between Jim Cramer, host of CNBC’s “Mad Money,” and Jon Stewart, host of “The Daily Show.” The whole thing started last week with Jon Stewart lambasting the financial news network for not seeing this crisis coming, while they were telling their viewers to “buy, buy, buy” a variety of stocks, including the companies that would fold in the coming weeks.
Well, the “media” made with it and ran, calling it a battle between Cramer (whom Stewart referred to, yes, but certainly didn’t focus on) and Stewart, culminating in Cramer coming on the “Daily Show” Thursday night for a looooooong interview…with Stewart, in the end, beating the crap out of Cramer.
Honestly, Jon Stewart is the best interviewer on television, as he can get away with asking almost anything and making his guests look like idiots. I really felt sorry for Jim Cramer. It’s an excellent interview and shines new light on the issue. You all should watch it!
Note: The video above is part 2 of 3 (the most interesting part, I think), but the whole interview is really good.
As we were watching “House” Monday night, we got to wondering:
If being “disinhibited” (or “uninhibited,” for that matter) is redundant…
…is “inhibited” dundant?
“Rather than furthering discovery, our government has forced what I believe is a false choice between sound science and moral values,” Obama said. “In this case, I believe the two are not inconsistent. As a person of faith, I believe we are called to care for each other and work to ease human suffering.”
As reported in an article from the Associated Press, President Obama recently reversed Bush policies that disallowed the use of embryonic stem cells in research paid for by NIH funding (except for a select few stem cell lines that were already available, but few of those were considered useful by the scientists using them).
For those that don’t know, the NIH (National Institutes of Health) comprise the vast majority of research dollars spent in America, not only funding public entities but also private, through your tax dollars. For the most part, in order to reach tenure at a research-driven university, you need what’s known as an “R01” NIH grant, usually giving $1 million in funding for a period of 5 years (with the possibility of renewal). That’s why Bush’s policy was such a big deal. By saying that “no NIH funding will pay for embryonic stem cell research,” he essentially limited the funding to select funding bodies (e.g. foundation grants), meaning that what could have been lots of research into stem cells over the last 8 years turned into very little.
So, on the one hand, it’s a big deal that stem cell research is back in the purview of the NIH. The more important part for me, and for the rest of the country, is the other part(s) of Obama’s speech today, outlined above: political ideology will no longer play a massive role in what’s funded and what isn’t by the NIH; science will again have a voice in government; and scientific thinking will have a friend in the White House.
If evidence shows that embryonic stem cells was a stupid thing to look at, then by all means its funding will be cut. However, if it shows promise, more money will go to it and it will provide all the cures that have been promised (that remains to be seen, in my opinion…). That’s how a lot of science works, through Natural Selection: the programs that are productive, find cures and discover new treatments to help people are the ones that are favored. Government policy shouldn’t try to limit these solutions before they’re even tried, especially when based on misguided ideology and/or lobbying groups. As Obama points out:
“But let’s be clear: promoting science isn’t just about providing resources – it is also about protecting free and open inquiry. It is about letting scientists like those here today do their jobs, free from manipulation or coercion, and listening to what they tell us, even when it’s inconvenient – especially when it’s inconvenient. It is about ensuring that scientific data is never distorted or concealed to serve a political agenda – and that we make scientific decisions based on facts, not ideology.”
That’s a picture from I-55 in northern Arkansas. Terrible place. Seriously. Their Department of Transportation has got to be the most inept in the nation. See the clear skies?! It snowed the DAY BEFORE and there was ice all over the place. It took us over an hour to go 15-20 miles toward Memphis.
There are more pics…feel free to check those out, of course…
Either way, that was on the way down to Hot Springs, AR. Brooke decided she wanted to go on a little trip, just to get away for a little bit. It’s a relatively easy drive (minus the aforementioned DOT from Arkansas), and a place neither of us had ever been to.
Anyway, it was a pretty good trip! Brooke made reservations at Hilltop Manor, a bed-and-breakfast right by the national park. The weather was pretty awesome, for the most part, so we spent Monday walking around the town, went up to the top of the mountain and went up in the observation tower, then walked along Bath House Row (and toured an old bath house maintained by the National Park Service), and otherwise chilled for the rest of the day in front of a fire place, reading and gaming (on the DS, of course :-)).
The trip back was less eventful than the one down, so that was a big plus. In any event, I’m glad to be back and catch up on all the TV shows we didn’t get to last week. And, maybe even get some science done tomorrow…
