Art Imitates Life

District 9 earned overwhelmingly positive reviews from critics. On the film review website Rotten Tomatoes, it currently holds a "Certified Fresh" rating, with 89% of critics giving it a positive review, with the consensus being, "technically brilliant and emotionally wrenching, District 9 has action, imagination, and all the elements of a thoroughly entertaining science-fiction classic".

Some critics have been ecstatic about the film. Sara Vilkomerson of The New York Observer writes, "District 9 is the most exciting science fiction movie to come along in ages; definitely the most thrilling film of the summer; and quite possibly the best film I've seen all year." Christy Lemire from the Associated Press was impressed by the plot and thematic content, claiming that "District 9 has the aesthetic trappings of science fiction but it's really more of a character drama, an examination of how a man responds when he's forced to confront his identity during extraordinary circumstances." Entertainment Weekly's Lisa Schwarzbaum described it as "...madly original, cheekily political, and altogether exciting..."

Merchants Of Death

Individuals, companies and corporations have always taken advantage of warfare to make enormous economic profit. For centuries, ordinary people, who suffer most from war, have resisted these war profiteers. One of the major factors in Harry S. Truman's (Give 'em Hell, Harry!) rise to the U.S. presidency was his relentless pursuit of war profiteers.

But now the nature and power of these war profiteers have changed. Instead of racing in after the war begins, they're stepping up before a war even starts. In the last 20 years or so, these war profiteers have acquired more and more power over U.S. policy-making. Our Stop the Merchants of Death [SMoD] program uncovers the many ways these corporations are literally calling the shots when it comes to deciding what weapons systems to buy, what countries to invade, what foreign resources to seize. At the War Resisters League we say, It's not so much true anymore to say that they make profit from war. They have such power that it's more accurate to say they now make war for profit.

In 1992, then-Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney hired a private company to answer the question: Is it economically feasible to outsource military logistics from the Department of Defense to private companies? That is, should we let private companies take care of building barracks, delivering fuel and ammunition, delivering and cooking and serving food, etc? Of course, the private company said, yes.

The private company's name was Halliburton.

In 1992, Cheney left public office and with no previous business experience at all, became the CEO of a major private company.

The private company's name was Halliburton.

For the next eight years, thousands of military logistics contracts were outsourced. One thousand of these contracts went to one private company.

The private company's name was Halliburton.

In 2000, Dick Cheney became the Vice President of the United States. A little over a year later, the United States went to war against Afghanistan. Halliburton's profits jumped.

About two years after that, the United States went to war against Iraq. Halliburton, whose former CEO was now Vice-President of the United States, got hundreds of no-bid contracts. That is, contracts for Iraq were simply given to Halliburton, with no competitive bidding at all. Half a billion dollars worth in 2003, three billion dollars in 2004, and eight billion dollars in 2005.

Halliburton's profits spiked again. And so did the value of Dick Cheney's 433,000 deferred stock options in Halliburton. We cannot help but wonder if there is a conflict of interest here. With so much personal profit at stake, can we honestly say that Dick Cheney was using his voice solely for the well-being of the United States?

The War Resisters League wants to stop all war profiteering. And we want to start by getting Halliburton out of the business of war-making. Halliburton has multi-billion dollar contracts for military logistics. Through their subsidiary, Kellogg Brown & Root (KBR), they have a multi-billion dollar contract for Iraqi oil.

Make no mistake. Halliburton's first priority is that of most corporations, to make as much money as they can. One set of results is predictable: shoddy supplies and service, and at least a billion dollars in charges not considered acceptable by the Defense Contract Audit Agency.

The other set of results is also predictable, the Merchants of Death and its agents are going to continue to push for war because there is so much profit in it.

(read more)

happiness

...is a warm gun!

(just to share the huge amount of love and happiness we've got during this trip... the kind of thing i wish every being on earth to achieve! ...and the same way i use to share my worries here i thought that this time i should share this another mood!)

Permanently Protect the Arctic Refuge!

Click here ~> Urge Congress to Permanently Protect the Arctic Refuge! - The Petition Site

North West Passage

The ice age is melting and the Arctic is turning into water. On some days temperatures can hover around 70 degrees fahrenheit ..turning ice shelves into tropical zones. For me, this conjures up images of smooth sailing, sunbathing on sandy beaches and swimming in emerald lagoons. But I’m a fucking dreamer who needs to see things the way they are. What this really means is greater opportunity for fortune-seekers looking for trade routes to China. What is now home to Eskimos, who still hunt whales and live in igloos ..is about to become an international trade zone ..occupied by oil barons ..land developers ..and casino operators. I have the feeling we are looking at the next wild frontier. Now I picture myself sailing through the North West Passage like it was California during the gold rush ..shooting polar bears instead of buffaloes.

I'm Going Home

The Un-training

The "un-training"...

everything you've been taught

is a lie...

well, not everything

and...

there are only two levels

above death...

acceptance and sharing

Selfish

"To me it seems that to give happiness is a far nobler goal that to attain it: and that what we exist for is much more a matter of relations to others than a matter of individual progress: much more a matter of helping others to heaven than of getting there ourselves."-Lewis Carroll

Imagine
Everyone in the world living selflessly.
We wouldn't have to worry about whether people had enough to eat,
or whether they had a good place to sleep.
We wouldn't fight over issues with health care,
and we wouldn't be fighting wars.
You'd be taking care of the others around you,
and the others around you would be taking care of you.
Why do we fear this kind of life?
What is so distasteful about peace?
People are so blind, so ignorant.
They're so stuck in what they already know.
You must discover love!
You must discover what is right!
I'm wrong, you're wrong, we'll all wrong starting now.
Figure it out, the truth, what do you see?
Death gives no satisfaction
Because how can you enjoy anything without life?
Satisfaction should be found in the eternal.
Our humanities should not depend on money or possession,
but we should invest in each other.
Humanity should be the controller of its destiny,
rather than the victim of its fate.
Work with me people.
Despite what I've heard,
it takes more than one boy's ambition to change the entire world.

Fire In The Sky

On November 5, 1975, seven men witnessed a spacecraft from another world hovering silently between tall pines in the Apache-Sitgreaves National forest of north-eastern Arizona. One of those men, Travis Walton, became an unwilling captive of an alien race when the other men fled in fear. See what these seven men experienced in the movie based on the true story, "Fire in the Sky."

"If I had to do it over again I wouldn't get out of the truck."

Pluto’s neighborhood

Admittedly, Pluto is a fringe dweller. It orbits at the outer-most edge of the solar system. Lately, however ..it’s been seen passing in and out of mainstream consciousness .. like the punks and the freaks we see in high school. Now, we may diss’ Pluto, and even question it’s right to exist as a planet ..but we can’t deny its presence. It’s there ..way out there ..twisted and possibly trans-gender .. but definitely there. And it’s not alone. It travels with a swarming pack of fellow Plutinos and other planetoids we still haven’t been able to identify. We know one of its peers is Neptune ..or what the early Vedic Seers called Varuna ..the goddess of the oceans. Another companion is Tau ..or what the local tribesmen call Quaoar .. a formless, genderless force that brought into existence some of the cosmic beings we know as Father Sky, Mother Earth and Grandfather Sun. I’d say Pluto lives in a pretty respectable neighborhood. I wouldn’t dismiss it as a backwater space entity any longer.

Running Up That Hill

Kate Bush - Running up that Hill
Uploaded by scopitones. - See the latest featured music videos.

Star Trek

I believe in a Star Trek world

I believe that food and housing and education

would seem to be better weapons against

extremism and violence

than murder, mayhem and war

I believe that when we put profit above human life

we are feeding on our young

Open your eyes to the new galactic perspective

we are not alone in the universe

human beings are but one race among many

I believe it is time to reject our

culture of scarcity and corruption

the drive for profit alone is self destructive

The New Age of Enlightenment is upon us

and Gene Roddenberry had a perfect vision of it in Star Trek

I believe it is time to change the world......

......we are feeding on our young

press sure

"You can ask any question,
as long as this* is the answer..*"
~ RE: Public CAN!

Elon Musk

Elon Musk (born 1971) is an American engineer, entrepreneur and philanthropist best known for co-founding PayPal, SpaceX and Tesla.

He is currently the CEO and CTO of SpaceX, CEO and Product Architect of Tesla Motors and Chairman of SolarCity.

The White Zombie

The oil industry doesn't want you to know about the electric car...
with an electric car and a small solar panel you could drive for free.

Zippy the Pinhead

"All life is a blur of Republicans and meat!"

...Zippy the Pinhead...

Message in a Bottle

Roz Savage, Ocean Rower

Roz Savage is a British ocean rower, author, motivational speaker and environmental campaigner. She has rowed solo across the Atlantic Ocean and is now rowing across the Pacific Ocean.

Roz Savage rows near Diamond Head in Hawaii. You can see where Roz is at any time using "RozTracker." (Roz & "Junk" meet...video.)

Roz Savage is my new hero. You can visit her website if you click on this post title. Godspeed and good luck to Roz. Wish I was there.

Do you share...?

I saw the mistakes of society and thought it was the governments fault.

Well, I believe I was wrong.
The world's condition can't be blamed on a few individuals.
The world's condition is solely dependent on all of humanity.
We all contribute to the world's state

Now that fact stumps me.
If the world's state depends on everyone,
well then how do we go about changing the world?
How does one boy's ambition matter at all?

Do you share my ambition?
If you don't, then mine doesn't matter.

Where did this ambition come from?
Haha, I laugh now at what I had once thought possible.
But I still won't give up.
I'm just stubborn like that.

Trouble in Paradise

In Reflection

(a response to Carlos Castaneda's A Separate Reality)

I do not wish to understand;

Only to learn.

I do not need to comprehend;

Only to experience.

I do not want to document,

But to live.

Don Juan says to live

Like a warrior.

He does not mention

“Think” or “talk;”

But only to live.

Don Genero leaped

Into impossibility -

But only if you do not See.

It was a wildly fantastic leap

Of will.

Not willfullness,

Nor resilience, nor

Stubbornness compounded;

His magic comedy

Simply is.

Indulgence in stupidity

Is, “I must understand,

Explain to me the ‘hows,’

A discussion must be had.”

Sorrowful tragedy of loss

This blinding

“Comprehension.”

District 9

Race-ism is prejudice

prejudice is blind

blind-ness is ignorance

ignorance is dangerous

End Of The Line

90 percent

of the big fish

in the oceans are

gone...

we ate them.

Island Lessons

A turtle is wise
and takes time with life.
Sturdy and steady,
Loyal and steadfast,
Armoured but vulnerable.
Finds her way in the dark
And knows intuition
leads the way.

Pirate ship sails
In moonlight and under the sun
Into the sunset
And the storms.
Demands a bountiful life
Embraces adventure
Follows the stars.

Anchor in love
Hold fast to soul
Reflect in morning coffee:
Intellectual self absorption.

Dance
Swirl and sing and sway
Explore cultures
Unlike your own
Remember that you are
A lovely woman
And to be proud
And garb yourself with love.

Treasure Maps prove
Magic exists
Follow your dreams
Literally.
“Impossible”
Does not exist
for pirates.

Rum to imbibe
From time to time
Next day’s headache will
Tell you when
You’ve gone too far.

Listen to the playlist
Of your life
Your melody is
What holds it all together.

Stories and poems
Tell us about ourselves
Read forever
Not to replace imagination;
To spark, instead.

You are the key.
Unlock your life.

(and when you get
really, really, really
scared . . .
just turn on your light)

Dr. Strangelove

Waaaaaaaaa-Hooooooooo!

(We'll meet again some sunny day)

(click title)

The Terrible Power of Fear and Ignorance

It has become disturbingly clear in the behavior of a significant portion of the American population since the election of an African-American to the Presidency of the United States that the fear that the results of this election has engendered needs to be taken seriously and thoroughly examined.

The irrational actions and comments made by participants of Town Hall meetings throughout the nation in recent days demonstrates a profound level of ignorance regarding the actual content of the health care reform legislation that is being considered by Congress in particular and a total lack of understanding of what constitutes the philosophical basis for the political systems embodied in Fascism, Socialism and Communism in general.

On closer examination of these events, it becomes clear that this ignorance and the underlying racism that seems to propel it forward is being exploited and manipulated by those who have an economic and social agenda that is seriously challenged by the current administration. The health insurance industry is promoting and financing the alleged grassroots opposition for obvious reasons: the creation of a meaningful public option for providing access to health care for the tens of millions of Americans who either have no health insurance or who have inadequate coverage would severely impact their profits. Within such a reality, they would be forced to provide a far more humane service than is currently available.

It is quite disturbing that much of the conservative media has been filling the airwaves with hateful speech and fabricated testimonials presented as truth with the blatantly-stated intention of undermining the Obama Presidency. Unfortunately, they fail to grasp the extent of the damage they are inflicting on the social order. They may not comprehend that they could be opening a Pandora’s Box of repressed and deep-seated feelings of fear, anger and discontent. Racism is very much with us and the focus of hatred and mistrust heaped upon an African American President, who also demonstrates extreme intelligence, may prove to be a convenient scapegoat, but highly injurious to the nation’s future.

The Disclosure Project

Our Collective Sickness

The American brand of capitalism is, in my judgment, the source of our collective malaise. The profit motive has become the essential driving force of our culture; it informs almost all aspects of our cultural life and does not seem to recognize or accept any ethical boundaries. It appears that those who live in the rarefied atmosphere of wealth and power feel that they are somehow exempted from the fundamental concepts of ethics and social responsibility that are essential for a society to be truly harmonious. There are many examples that adequately demonstrate this point -
• The financial debacle that has driven so many individuals and small businesses to ruination was powered primarily by the greed and unprincipled and arrogant behavior of the manipulators of capital. In spite of the horrendous damage that their behavior has visited on the financial well-being of the nation, the prime movers of this debacle have remained essentially unscathed. The corrupt Congress helped facilitate this catastrophe in many subtle and not so subtle ways.
• The abuse of the public trust perpetrated Corporate America as exemplified by Enron – the energy company that shamelessly boasted about the extent to which they screwed over California rate payers.
• The CEOs of major corporations who fashion golden parachutes for themselves while simultaneously disregarding the conditions of the very workers who are responsible for the actual productivity of their organizations. This includes the reprehensible behavior of the CEOs of the for-profit health insurance companies who put in place business practices whose primary function is to purposefully deny as much coverage as possible to their clients who fall seriously ill. The purpose of this draconian way of doing business is to ensure good returns to their stockholders and riches beyond the imagination to those in charge (estimates are that William W McGuire of United Health Group received 1.7 billion dollars worth of compensation, a value that represents one dollar out of every 700 dollars spent on health insurance in the entire nation).
• The many substantial corporations that have taken advantage of loop holes in the Federal Tax Law that result in avoiding entirely the payment of income taxes. There is apparently a complete lack of any sense of personal and social responsibility.
• The tobacco companies who continue to produce addictive products that are known to kill those who use them. It is estimated that approximately forty thousand people die each year from pulmonary diseases caused by tobacco. It seems that life is apparently not that sacred after all, especially when juxtaposed against the prospect of making huge profits.
• The military-industrial complex that in many ways coerces the nation into choosing armed conflict as the essential means to achieve political ends.
• The many corporations whose practices have burdened the planet with an array of dangerous chemical compounds, including, of course, greenhouse gases without any regard for the resulting damage to the public health and the global environment.
• The extent to which corporate money has corrupted local, state and federal governments and significantly eroded the public trust.

Commerce permeates nearly every aspect of modern living, and the will to profit inundates us all. In the long term, this worldview will bring the peoples of this nation and, presumably, the world to grief, for it is unsustainable.

The O'Jays

Free Market Economy My Ass

MONOPOLY.........HELLO!