Mar-A-Lago Theory

Trump took docs, FBI wanted them back, Trump refused to give them back to provoke the FBI to act so he could play the victim.

Math

Legit question: what was wrong with the old way math was taught?

Logging

Film: Blackhat

Probably the worst Michael Mann film and I still prefer to rewatch over any MCU movie. I remember liking and defending the movie when it came out because there are parts that are memorable - the set pieces, in particular. But the casting in the film is off. Hemsworth seems to be playing some weird amalgam of Val Kilmer and DeNiro from Heat with hacking skills. And the first act has no flow or rhythm. The scenes just jump into each other. It's odd. Also, the 3rd act conceit of Hemsworth going it alone feels beyond implausible. But still...I fully plan to rewatch the directors cut at some point.

Film: Coda

The film grew on me. And I love, love, love the Academy voting for it for best picture. It was a completely subversive, fuck you move from within the Academy to the toxic combination of people now employed in the town - the strange bedfellows of the business school MBAs/careerists who are in tenuous alliance with the woke sociopaths. It was a call for help from within the house of sappy old movie lovers who were like: look, this is how you make a Hollywood movie. We are going to need a lot more of this type of political rebellion to make Hollywood great again.

TV: Selling the OC

Never again.

Amy Klobuchar 

Is smart, pragmatic, and solution-oriented which is precisely why the Democrats will never nominate her to be President.

Movies

The most obvious explanation for why movies feel like a dying form is the movie studios stopped prioritizing them. 

Filmmakers

It ought not escape our notice that many of the great filmmakers are Jewish or Catholic. Someone ought to study why this may be. I have some ideas.

Conspiracies Around 2020 Election

So, I'm pretty sure there are two demonstrable conspiracies that tipped the 2020 election away from Trump:

1) Democrats pressuring Pfizer to delay the announcement of vaccine readiness by needing "more testing" to post-election.

2) The FBI telling Facebook to censor election related information such as the Hunter Biden laptop story that would cast shade on - in this case - Joe Biden

But the weirdest irony of all - Trump contested the election using WORSE and UNTRUE arguments about voting machines and dumping ballots and all the rest. His instincts about the establishment corrupting our systems against him were correct, but his facts and evidence and understanding of those systems were incorrect. 

And yet, to me, the system was somewhat vindicated in their actions by how far Trump took his election denial. 

Student Loan Forgiveness / Badness

1) It will increase inflation

2) It is unfair to those who paid off loans before or didn't take loans to begin with

3) It is regressive - and mostly helps stressed out 20-somethings who will be able to pay these things off on their own, but just don't want to.

4) It perpetuates the problem of students taking on too much debt

5) It perpetuates the problem of increasing tuition costs

6) It creates a moral hazard and will encourage others to take loans in the future

7) It is terribly expensive and will increase our national debt

It's a straight out bribe to a core democratic constituency and it's this time of thing that causes societies to collapse.

Maybe Why We Ought to Study Art...

Because it helps explain contradictory beliefs that are nevertheless coherent--

Because all of this is simultaneously true: 

In the past, casting White actors as obviously Asian characters or Native American characters was pretty ludicrous and punctured our ability to suspend disbelief.

We are making a similar mistake today by every show and movie having a diversity mandate, so Black characters pop up in premodern England, every show features a gay romance, and Pam Anderson had an Asian friend (no way). 

And yet, I'm excited about James Franco playing Che Guevara and Ana De Armas playing Marilyn Monroe.

Better With Age

Strange to say, but I think Bon Jovi has gotten better with age. Maybe that's a reflection of bad taste, I have no clue.

Distinction

Perhaps a lot of our social conflicts are not so much about race, class, gender but those who view things from a long term perspective versus a short term perspective.

Weed and Psychedelic Use Soars For Young People

You may thank all those who favored legalization, by which I mean just about everyone I know.

We vastly underestimate the impact of what I'd call popular non-socially conservative policy reforms such as drug legalization, gay marriage, and sports betting. We operate under a presumption that anyone who makes these choices are all consenting, mature adults able to make their own decisions. But what in fact is happening: our society is sending a signal of approval for these behaviors, all of which will have major unintended consequences.

Student Loan Debt Cancellation

Anyone want to bet on there being an increase in 10K student loan applications for next year?

In related news, when the electric F150 became eligible for a tax rebate of $7500, Ford promptly increased the price of their electric F150 by $7500.

Great job, government.

Mask Policy

I notice a lot of employers still require masks. Maybe we should edit the mantra to read "Follow the science when it suits our emotional disposition." 

Robert DeNiro Fact

Casino and Heat both came out in 1995. 

My 2004 Self

I wonder what my 2004 self would be more surprised by:

1) In 2022 there will be a large swath of people who "identify" as a different sex and normal, everyday Americans will regard this as normal and not a psychological disorder.

or

2) In 2022, emotional support animals will be allowed in workplaces, on airplanes, and in classrooms - so in effect, people basically bring their pets everywhere.

or 

3) In 2022, Ben Affleck and JLo would just be tying the knot. 

Logging

Film: The Outlaws

Solid South Korean cop and robbers flick - watched mostly to get Don Lee vibes. 

Film: Top Gun

Unquestionably better than the sequel, as enjoyable as the sequel is. Actual real emotion - a strong love story. And wonderful supporting cast.

TV: House of the Dragon Pilot

First 30 minutes were rough. Really rough. Wanted to turn off the show during the c-section treated as action set piece. Got more interesting in the 2nd half. Like the faces of some of the cast. But it's fairly obvious to me from this early stage - has completely lost the best parts of GoT - the surprising plot twists, the uplifting character moments (and score), and the wit in dialog scenes. But they managed to keep the superficial elements of gore, nudity, and white hair...

Film: Coda

First 30 minutes or so. Decent stuff, but hardly best picture material. Feels like a scream for help from within the Academy.

Film: Drunken Master 2

First 30 minutes or so. Pleasurable action set pieces, but with much of the Hong Kong Jackie Chan films I find myself wanting to like the movies more than I actually do. 

Film: Karate Kid

Only the wax on and wax off sequence. But a brilliant sequence it is.

Can Quentin Tarantino Guess Movies by ONLY Hearing the VHS Box Description?

GOAT

Starbucks

While I'm generally pro-union, these Starbucks employees don't really pass the smell test.

The staff, made up of mainly college students, reached out to the corporation multiple times to bargain but have yet to hear back.

And then there's the old problem of what economists call substitutes. The fact that I can brew my own coffee for about .15 a cup instead of paying more than $3 for a cup.

Sorry kids, I think this is the wrong fight.

Oh My God

This is remarkable. She is saying nothing. Literally nothing. Meaningless word vomit. This is a Monty Python sketch. Or a joke uttered by a 4 year old. Anyone heard a 4 year old tell a joke? They're brilliant. They understand how a joke has a form, but miss the details and meaning. So they say, "What do you call a feather and a donkey mixed together?" "What?" "A dum-dum." Hahaha. They find it funny and they are proud of themselves because they mimicked what adults and older kids can do. 

The only weird part about this: it comes from our actual Vice President. And the thing it mimics is a leadership speech. Good god.