It’s beginning to look a lot like summer, just in time for Santa..
Seriously. This will be the temperature map around Christmas.. 70 in DC.. widespread 50s and 60s. No snow, no chance of reindeer tracks.. no need for a sleigh..
No ice skating.. No nostalgic Christmas feeling. Instead you may get a hint of a notion to try to find Easter eggs and wear a bonnet.
The Heat Miser victorious in ‘15..
It’s this weekend..
It’s happening..
Star Wars is about to take over pop culture.. take over movie theaters.. take over the gift selection on Christmas morning.
But will the newest generation of movie going Star Wars fans awaken enough to accept Kylo Ren over Darth Vader? Will the newest generation appreciate the circumstances that befall the heroes of A NEW HOPE, the EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, and THE RETURN OF THE JEDI?
There are some prospects that this weekend’s movie going audience will make the FORCE AWAKENS’ profits swell to over $200 mil by the time we hit Sunday. Maybe more.
Actually probably more..
I think there will be more than a few that also see the movie more than one. Or twice.. or thrice..
There will be debates outside of movie theaters..in the seats.. people soiling and spoiling online without regard to kindness of those who have yet to see the film.
The NEW HOPE was seen by over 230 million people from 1977 through 1979, according to most estimates. This film? Maybe not nearly as much. So does that mean less of a pop cultural impact? Does that mean it’s going to amount to a less significant purpose in society?
Most likely nothing will ever be able to recreate the magic of the original STAR WARS series. Not even George Lucas was able to do that with the newest batch of forgettable flicks–except Jar Jar Binks, who we actually remember for all the wrong reasons. But this new movie may come close to redefining a series of a new generation.. one that has the unruly mayhem of Kylo Ren as the villain.. and a new generation of Jedis with attitude as the heroes and heroines.
Is THE FORCE AWAKENS going to give us heroes we want? Or heroes we need? Are we going to get the villains we want? Or potentially the villains who will remind us all too well of the madness on Earth?
There are lots of interesting comparisons STAR WARS can have to society at large, the planet of politics and international intrigue..
Pop culture awaits a decision by the movie going audiences of the planet earth. The force awakening? Or just tossing and turning during sleep…?
…I’m going to institute a self imposed ban on reviewing the film or giving any personal thoughts on it for at least 24-48 hours.. Much to digest. Much to contemplate.. Much to consider .. Expect something from your friendly neighborhood Coal Speaker.. Just not yet.
Amazing story.. A nearby (relatively nearby considering the vast distances of space and time) a planet rests that may be habitable ..
http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/17/world/wolf-1061-exoplanet-alien-life/index.html
Good article.. I have my own thoughts I’ll be writing.
This article goes to great pains attempting to explain why Stephen Colbert is failing in ratings.. One theory even says he is too smart for his audience.
I disagree.
If you read back in the annals of this website, I predicted it would fail.. I thought this was a moment for CBS to name a female host for late night.. It was the moment. They blew it.
People don’t like politics at night. For that, they turn to the DAILY SHOW. For late night, they want silly lip synch battles, or as David Letterman once did, sidewalk races..
People want something to make their minds forget the day before bed.
Colbert reminds them of everything about the day they hated.
And that is why they turned to Fallon and will not turn away.
Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai, who survived a Taliban shooting in 2012, called Donald Trump’s anti-Muslim views “tragic” and discriminatory, becoming the latest in a stream of luminaries, celebrities and politicians to condemn the Republican presidential front-runner’s comments on Muslims.
“Well, that’s really tragic that you hear these comments which are full of hatred, full of this ideology of being discriminative towards others,” Yousafzai, the youngest Nobel peace laureate, told AFP in response to Trump’s comments.
Wheaton College, a prominent evangelical school in Illinois, has placed a professor on administrative leave after she posted on Facebook that Muslims and Christians “worship the same God.”
The official school statement Tuesday about associate professor of political science Larycia Hawkins’s suspension said Wheaton professors should “engage in and speak about public issues in ways that faithfully represent the College’s evangelical Statement of Faith.”
Very interesting stuff.
I have actually had this same conversation with people as of late. In one room, I chatted with a Jehovah’s Witness, an atheist, and a born against Christian .. I made note that all of the people n the room believe they are 100% right about what they believe and that would mean the other two are wrong. They religious people disagreed, saying even though they have differences, they have the same foundations. I told them they don’t.. I made mention that there are Chinese and Italian restaurants too but that they are not the same.. even though they both serve food.
Imagine no religion>
It’s not easy.. even if you can.
Back to the POST story.. things sure can get silly.
But the FBI is a bit perturbed about the reporting of the San Bernardino shootings..
This is the wording from reporter Erik Wemple at the WASHINGTON POST:
A whoa moment here: FBI Director James B. Comey today told the media that the suspected assailants in the San Bernardino, Calif., massacre — Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik — wrote private messages to each other stating support for jihad. However: “So far, in this investigation we have found no evidence of posting on social media by either of them at that period in time and thereafter reflecting their commitment to jihad or to martyrdom. I’ve seen some reporting on that, and that’s a garble,” Comey said at a media availability during an event in New York City.
Maybe you should read that again. “No evidence” of something Jihad related.. ISIS related..
The smoking gun to connect this to a bigger issue of terrorism seems to be weak at best.
But that never mattered.. fear always win. Doesn’t it?
Nothing to fear but fear itself? The same person who said that also set up internment camps that later would be viewed as repulsive.
Yes fear wins. Facts lose.
From the WALL STREET JOURNAL:
For a story that takes place “a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away” a great deal of the technology in the “Star Wars” series actually has parallels today on planet Earth. Part of the reason is, ironically, how long the franchise has been around. Concepts and ideas that were the stuff of science fiction when the first “Star Wars” movie came out in 1977 have had almost four decades of science to become real.
If such stories like this continue, surely also will the swelling ranks of the Church of Jedi..
INFLATION!
Ticket prices back in the 1970s were .. oh.. a wee bit lower than the wallet bursting prices that greet consumers today.. on average then: $2.23. ON average now? A lot more than that..
So STAR WARS got $512 mil in ticket sales in 1977 and 1978 (theaters in some cities actually played the movie daily for two years) .. I saw a number today that approximately 230 million Americans saw STAR WARS A NEW HOPE..
Here is a good graph from BLOOMBERG today on how inflation has impacted STAR WARS’ release:
Yes the force will awaken. It will be gigantic.
But it will not be the new hope .. nothing quite will ever be the new hope..
There will be much exuberance after people see STAR WARS..There will be many positive reviews, like the one linked here from MASHABLE..
I think for me, I will not review the movie or say much about it for the first 24 hours. I am going to let things sink in..
I remember how much I hated–just hated–the newest incarnations of STAR WARS. Besides potentially the birth of Darth Vader in the most recent, nothing much in the films were memorable. Unless you count in Jar Jar Binks and how he became the picture of why people disliked the newest Lucasfilms..
In this case, all reviews–all of them are spoiler free at this point–are seemingly very happy after seeing the movie.
I think there is a cooling off period before you should talk about it.
Think about it..
Consider it.
And make a decision that will not be rash.
Will STAR WARS be good? Probably.. will it be great?
Wait 24 hours after seeing it and answer that question.
Let the force be with you. But don’t let it shade your perspective..
Debate polls show Trump and Cruz strong in last night’s Vegas brawl… While some thought Jeb, or should I say JEB!, did his best yet, the debate watching party he threw really doesn’t showcase strong support..
$30mil candidate with 3%..
http://www.weeklystandard.com/jebs-debate-watch-party-is-mostly-empty/article/2000239
A dermatologist has amassed millions of fans by creating a YouTube channel dedicated to ‘pimple porn’ in which she pops explosive spots and blackheads on camera.
The videos are divided into hard pops and soft pops..
Six million people have viewed the videos..
People asked why they love it say it caused them to stop picking their own skin..
I don’t know..
I just don’t know.
Lancaster county Pennsylvania on high alert for a not so jolly St Nick..
Water cooler moment of zen
A Federal Aviation Administration advisory committee has recommended that the FAA start discussions with the European Space Agency about commercial participation in an international lunar base concept promoted by the agency’s leader.
It would be called ‘moon village.’ It’s purpose could be mining and tourism..
Not science fiction…
Though some would say we are already on the moon..
Reporter Brooks Egerton at the Dallas Morning News is doing God’s work with his investigation story.. Frightening stuff included. And when you see the numbers of people who have died at the dentist you will be as surprised as anyone.
I went to a viewing last night for a friend.. I will skip the details, they are very personal and I wouldn’t want to exchange thoughts on such an instance to the world at large.. I wish I could write down most of what I am saying but if I do so, it will not be in a public forum. It will be kept private intentionally. There are some parts of the modern age of websites, Tweets, Facebooks, and blogs that I still don’t embrace. One of those parts is the emergence of saying everything and anything for all to read.
I will simply say this.. one of the saddest things to watch is a son stare at his mother in a casket—when that young man is not even of an age to understand what he is seeing.. When a child is so young that he cannot care for himself.. when a boy is just starting to mature and already his father and mother are both gone.. that is remarkably sad..
I cannot get the image out of my mind.. a well-dressed young man.. staring at his now at rest mother.. regardless of what anyone may say about the deceased—tacky as it may be, people don’t stop preachy gossip when someone dies—that young man has still lost a pillar, a rock of strength, and potentially the last remaining vestige of security he had..
You may not find this post much of help in your life.. but I ask you only to stop before you say something cruel. Cease your words before something vile comes from your mouth.. judgmental people abound. Dare to be different. Accept.
Because that grown adult you’re talking to today may have been the boy of yesterday who stared at his mother in a casket as his world changed.
I’m going to go to the opening night of STAR WARS.. I’m also going to be taking my son most likely next weekend. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a fan.
But I’m tired of seeing Star Wars everywhere.. It’s overdone, overkill, over the top..
What if the movie is awful?!
If it’s anything like the previous three, it could be. Maybe instead of Jar Jar Binks we will get a Mickey Mouse character ..being Disney and all.
Regardless of my fandom, it’s too much for me to handle. There’s no way to keep up with it. For God’s sake I even saw a Darth Vader toaster in a store appliance section. (Though I was considering buying it)
Just my two cents. The force is awakening. And so are credit card purchases of Star Wars products from sea to shining sea and a galaxy far far away.
THANK YOU FOR READING.
THANK YOU FOR LOOKING DAILY..
THANK YOU FOR FOLLOWING.
Continue to do that and I will continue as best I can to keep writing, posting, and attempting to educate your senses..
# # #
This song dedicated to Angie. RIP.
FROM THE AP:
Hundreds of shrimp peeling sheds are hidden in plain sight on residential streets or behind walls with no signs in Samut Sakhon, a port town an hour outside Bangkok. The AP found one factory that was enslaving dozens of workers, and runaway migrants led rights groups to the Gig shed and a third facility. All three sheds held 50 to 100 people each, many locked inside.
It has been a week since TIME magazine named Angela Merkel the person of the year.. and a week since people did not care.
Print is dead.
Long live print.
The idea of who TIME named used to matter. Those days are over.
For those following the madness, the quitting, the maybe returning, the quitting, the Sirius XM, the podcasting, the quitting, and the potentially return of Art Bell, you can check my other site http://horrorreport.com/ for that all..
There’s trouble afoot.
Lots of rumors to boot..
Is Bell done for good? Friday he was..
But now it’s Monday. In Bellland, days make or break..
Read this great article on Huffington Post today about the autism no one talks about.. And you should read it too
Mankind may only have a brief window to set foot on Mars before a disaster such as a third World War makes it no longer possible, Elon Musk has warned.
The founder of SpaceX, which was the first private company to resupply the International Space Station, fears such a war could set back technological advancements.
His company is preparing to announce its ambitious plans for rocket and space exploration..
A lot of people are laughing at Musk and his fear.. But consider what he is saying. Consider the chances.. And yes, it could become likely that a war to end all wars could also end all progress and humanity on this planet.
In the 21st century, it’s strange to think we fear a return to the Stone Age..
