The Phone Company

I'll be in Romania until Monday morning. I'm going to be a best man. I've never been a best man before. I got this little book that claims it can teach you Romanian in no time. And you know what? It's right. There is no time that I will ever know Romanian.
La revedere. posted by Kermit at 10/30/2003 01:27:00 PM |

Is movie violence inherently bad? You all know what I think, but in talking with both my students and co-workers I have been realizing that I am quite out of touch with the average square. I saw Kill Bill two nights ago and walked out with such a smile and feeling of contentedness, the likes of which I hadn't felt since seeing Alien a few nights previous. No, erlich gesagt (honestly), it's a rare feeling to see a movie and not feel like you just spent $8 on something dirty. Usually I simply feel used. But Kill Bill was an experience. It was almost perfection. One of the bright spots of Tarantino films is the dialogue, but I saw it in German. My German is good enough to follow the story and mood, but definitely short of catching nuance. But that being said, I was really satisfied. Visually, the movie was soma. The soundtrack was brilliant in both selection and editing as well. The film was simply a pleasure. They don't make movies like this any more. It felt like turn of the 70's film. My favorite era. But it was extremely violent. Is that a bad thing? I mentioned the movie to my students and gave it the two big thumbs up, but they seemed really turned off by my mention of how violent it was. I feel obliged to warn people about the blood spattering action, but all too often, it is taken as an instant strike against it. But these same people who have problems with violence , have no problem with Saving Private Ryan. Private Ryan depicts actual events and that earns it a pass. The lesson learned here is that violence is only OK when it's real or tries to emulate reality. Stylized fictional violence is a problem but educational violence is, well, educational. Discuss the gore in Spielberg's film and people speak gravely about the realism, but mention the blood in Tarantino's and get subjected to all manners of tsk-tsks. Kill Bill is an audio-visual splendor that actually left me eagerly awaiting the sequel. Many movies are merely an excuse for bloodletting, but in this treat, bloodletting is the excuse/justification for the movie. If only most other films could provide such a crutch/foundation. I'd much prefer two hours of severed heads to two hours of J-Lo and car chases. It's the spaghetti western for the new generation. Go see it and after the violence turns your stomach, go cast a ballot for Schwarzenegger. posted by Kermit at 10/29/2003 12:09:00 AM |

Ok. Politics now. I'm sure most of you have heard about the suicide bombing in Iraq yesterday. Lots of people killed, destruction and death. But don't worry!!! It's just progress. You see, the more success we have, the more violent Iraq will get. The bombing is actually proof of our success. The worse it gets, the better it gets. As Bush said today, "The more progress we make on the ground... the more desperate these killers become, because they can't stand the thought of a free society." Oh the sweet smell of success. So let me get this straight, our proof of success is violence, so therefore a day of peace is failure. I can't believe this. So if a nuclear device goes off in Iraq, killing millions, we have truly succeeded? If violence is the true measure of success, then we have a long way to go. More people could be dying. We want results!! Considering the money that we are pouring into this operation, anything less than 200 deaths a day is clearly unnacceptable. Clip a coupon or two. Get that bang for your tax-dollar buck. But come on, let's be serious... a week of peace and they'll be wrapping themselves in so many kudos that they'll lopok like aisle 6 at Stop & Shop. Sorry, my bad, Super Stop & Shop. Seeing as I'm marooned over here in the land of weissbier and accordions, I can't get a fix on whether the people are buying it or not. Is this shit flying? Now I see why cutting school funding is a priority. If people get a decent education, they might not equate the deaths of scores of people with progress. What's going on? It's not the just events that really have me down, but also the willful indifference/distortion that the administration (that boss of this fiasco) surrounds them with. If they can't be honest about it, then either they're lying, or they are totally incapable of effectively ascessing and dealing with the problems we are facing. Choose your poison. I'm depressed and can't even think of a joke to lighten things up a little.....................................................................Not even a pun, and puns are easy. Ok one pun. In Germany "8 legged Freaks" is called "Arak Attack." Guess what my pun is. posted by Kermit at 10/28/2003 10:48:00 PM |

In response/retaliation for an email I received last night, I feel that I must clarify something. This is very personal and important so prepare yourselves......... Leaving your email address when you write a comments is completely OPTIONAL!! You are neither compelled nor expected to post an email address. The only thing you are expected to do is leave some kind of comment like our new all-stars: Andy and Mom, who, for being the first to comment on the site, will both be receiving absolutely nothing. posted by Kermit at 10/28/2003 11:36:00 AM |

I just saw Kill Bill and I am really happy. This is a beautiful film. It's also extremely violent. In a good way. It's something special. I'll have a bigger review later but I just had to say that it really made my day. That is all. posted by Kermit at 10/27/2003 02:15:00 AM |

Ok. We've sent people to the moon. Multiple times. We can bomb a tiny hut from 50,000 feet, but we can't figure out a way to avoid the problem of dueling busy signals. What are dueling busy signals you ask? This phenomenon occurs during a phone conversation when one of the parties tries to adjust the volume on the receiver and accidentally hangs up the phone. Overly aggressive chins are another common culprit. What happens next is all too familiar. Both people keep calling each other back thus resulting in nothing but busy signals for all. One person usually gives up and the problem ends. But there is also the potential for both people calling it quits at the same time. See, it can get messy. So what I want to see, is a phone system that recognizes that two parties are calling each other and simply connects them as opposed to simply being busy. We have call waiting and ID and *69 and, well, lots of other *s, but this problem still persists. There must be a solution. posted by Kermit at 10/26/2003 07:03:00 PM |

I'm heading out to Romania on Thursday for a wedding. Jimmy and the vampire. I'll be going by train. It's 15 hours each way, and all to get here. It should be pretty fun. I'm looking forward to a real dancing on the tables Rumanian wedding. The train ride should be pretty cool too. I'm going through Vienna and Budapest and mountains and things like that. I'm actually traveling on one of those Agatha Christie trains with beds and a restaurant. I've always wanted to do that. I have to get a cigar for that. I hate cigars, but you need one on a train like that. Or maybe spectacles. Yeah spectacles. That's what I need. Otherwise the train ride just won't feel right. Oh and I need pastries too. And I have to be smuggling something. I need a cover story. I want to be an interesting traveler so I need a very interesting or mysterious reason to be going to Romania so as to entertain the other travelers. Or maybe I'll just sleep. posted by Kermit at 10/26/2003 12:15:00 AM |