Month: June, 2008

Why doesn’t the cost for an oil change go up with the price of crude oil?

Gasoline is currently hovering at around $4 a gallon.  I heard a talking-head expert on CNN say that it may climb to $6 a gallon before the end of summer.  Normally I’d say he was just making it up, but he was wearing a tie and a tweed blazer. He obviously looked like he knew what he was talking about.

Why does gas cost so much?  The experts say that it’s because of the price of oil.  The price of a barrel of crude keeps rising to astronomical levels.  Oil futures climbed all they way up to $143 a barrel this past Friday.

One of the things I don’t understand about this whole process is why gasoline fluctuates, but motor oil doesn’t.  Gasoline isn’t the only thing derived from crude oil.  Motor oil comes from crude too.  It costs around $25 bucks to have my car’s oil changed at one of the national chains.  That’s what I was paying ten years ago.  Why has the price of an oil change not risen at the same exponential rate that gasoline has?

With gas at $4 a gallon, why doesn’t it cost $80 for an oil change?  All things being equal, you would think that it would.

2 Comments by Rick on June 29, 2008
filed in General
tagged , ,

Mrs. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is a hottie

Mrs. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is a hottie

Her husband might be a beady-eyed, Holocaust denying whackjob, but you’ve got to admit that the First Lady of Iran is a real looker.

Obviously she is his trophy wife.

Link

1 Comment by Rick on June 29, 2008
filed in Things That Make Me Laugh
tagged , , ,

Frakkin’ $75 toaster!

If you attend this year’s San Diego Comic-Con, you will have the opportunity to buy one of these snazzy official Battlestar Galactica toasters. They are being made available from NBC Universal at $75 each. The production run is limited at 1,000.

The term “toaster” is a racial slur used by the Colonists against their hated enemies, the Cylons.

Link

by Rick on June 29, 2008
filed in Science Fiction
tagged , , , ,

Michael Turner passes away

Comic book artist Michael Turner has died. He was 37.

Comic Book Resources has a nice article about him and his eight year battle with bone cancer. I think Newsarama has also written about Michael Turner passing, but it’s muddled under articles about Wizard World Chicago and the new Wall*E movie that opened this weekend.

Michael Turner was an extremely talented artist. More importantly, he seemed like a very nice person.

Michael Turner will be missed. This really sucks.

1 Comment by Rick on June 28, 2008
filed in Books & Comics
tagged ,

Rose McGowan is the new Brigitte Nielsen

Proving once again the Hollywood ran out of original ideas a long time ago, USA Today is reporting that Robert Rodriguez will be producing a new Red Sonja movie. Playing the title role will be none other then 34-year old Rose McGowan, star of Rodriguez’s Planet Terror. She’s also the woman Rodriguez left his wife and five children for.

Very classy.

Directing the movie will be longtime Rodriguez associate Douglas Aarniokoski. I wonder if Rodriguez has any worries that Rose McGowan might leave him for Aarniokoski. She seems to have a thing for directors. Maybe she only screws the married directors.

USA Today reports that the movie will be taking it’s cues from both the comic books and the original works of novelist Robert E. Howard, the creator of the original Sonja. Both McGowan and Rodriguez claim to have not seen the 1985 version of Red Sonja staring Brigitte Nielsen.

by Rick on June 28, 2008
filed in General
tagged , , , ,

Creepy scientist accused of anthrax attacks cashes in

Steven Hatfill, former Army scientist named “a person of interest” in the 2001 anthrax attacks will receive $5.8 million to settle his lawsuit against the Justice Department. Former Attorney General John Ashcroft wont have to pay a cent of that figure even though he’s the one that made a public spectacle in naming Hatfill.

I miss John Ashcroft. Not only could he sing a pretty tune, he once lost an election for the U.S. Senate against a dead man. How funny is that?

Back in 2001 when the anthrax attacks were going on, Steven Hatfill worked at Fort Detrick in nearby Frederick. I used to work with a guy whose wife worked at Fort Detrick. Though she didn’t personally know Hatfill, she knew who he was. She said that everyone that knew Hatfill immediately suspected him of the attacks. When it comes to knowing how to manufacture weapons grade anthrax, there aren’t that many people with the skill and knowledge required. Not only did Hatfill have both of those things, he was also supposedly really weird. Supposedly he just gave people there the creeps.

And these are people that work around the world’s most dangerous pathogens on a daily basis.

by Rick on June 27, 2008
filed in Maryland
tagged , , , ,

The death penalty for child rapists

The United States Supreme Court recently handed down a decision concerning the death penalty. In a 5-4 decision, they ruled that those convicted of child rape cannot receive the death penalty. The five justices said the imposition of the death penalty “for the rape of a child where the crime did not result, and was not intended to result, in the victim’s death” is prohibited in the US constitution which prohibits “cruel and unusual punishment”.

Does anyone really think that it is cruel to execute someone that brutally sodomizes a small child?

Maybe I’m just out of touch with the rest of civilized society, but I don’t have much sympathy for someone that would do something like that.

Personally, I’m against the death penalty. I don’t think it solves anything other then taking vengeance against those that commit crimes. I don’t think the government should be in the vengeance business, especially against its own citizens. With that said, I think that if you are going to have the death penalty, you might as well include those that rape children into the mix.

If one drug dealer kills another drug dealer, he could very well face the death penalty for his crime. Am I supposed to believe that his crime is somehow more heinous then someone who rapes a young child?

I don’t think so.

8 Comments by Rick on June 27, 2008
filed in News
tagged , ,

Imus certainly stepped in it this time

Don Imus is once again in hot water over something he said on his radio show. Last time is was about the hair style of the Rutgers ladies basketball team. This time it was concerning former Tennessee Titans defensive back Pacman Adam Jones.

Maybe the I-Man shouldn’t talk about sports?

He and the rest of the people on his show were discussing Jones and how he has been arrested multiple times for multiple offenses. This is what Imus said:

Imus: “What color is he?”

Warner Wolf: “African-American”

Imus: “There you go. Now we know.”

Maybe it’s just me, but I think any time you begin your statement by asking what color someone is, it cannot be good.

I thought much of the Imus outrage the last go around was overblown.  I thought what he said about the lady basketball players was stupid, but I did not think it was as bad as most people pretended it was.  With that said, I think this statement is worse then what he said about the lady basketball players.  A lot worse.

Don Imus is just a big old racist idiot.  He needs to just go away.

4 Comments by Rick on June 27, 2008
filed in Radio
tagged , , , , , , ,

The Supreme Court says it is OK to defend yourself with a handgun

The Supreme Court has struck down the Washington D.C ban on owning a handgun. I can’t imagine why anyone would feel the need to defend themselves with a handgun within the confines of our Nation’s capital.

It’s such a safe place to be, especially late at night.

I of course am being extremely sarcastic. I once took a wrong turn when I left and Washington D.C. Ronald Reagan National airport. I thought I had somehow crossed some kind of temporal wormhole and had come out in a post-apocalyptic alternate Earth. I had to fight off the urge to cry like a little girl until I got back on the George Washington parkway.

It’s not a happy memory.

Personally, I think this is a good decision. The people who shouldn’t own a handgun probably already have one. This merely allows law abiding people to own a gun if they feel the need.

Link

by Rick on June 26, 2008
filed in News
tagged , , , ,

Comics journalism: Carrots, sticks, threats, and spankings


If you are a fan of reading any of the various comic book news sites or blogs, you need to check out the podcast from one of the panels held at the recent Heroes Con in North Carolina. The panel was entitled, “Covering Comics: Criticism, Reportage, and Gossip“. It was moderated by Tom Spurgeon of the Comics Reporter. The panel was comprised of Johanna Draper Carlson (Comics Worth Reading), Matt Brady (Newsarama), Heidi MacDonald (The Beat), Tim Hodler (Comics Comics), and Carlton Hargro, editor of the local alt-weekly Creative Loafing.

After listening to the entire panel, I was the most impressed with Carlton Hargo and Johanna Draper Carlson.

By far the most interesting segment was when Matt Brady spoke about repercussions from comic publishers. It’s at around the 20:00 mark if you want to jump ahead. He pointed to two stories that he believed put Newsarama on the map. He mentioned the Siegel/Superman stuff and the DC Comics/Wildstorm deal. He stated there would be multiple hoops to jump through and there would be “repercussions” if those topics were covered today.

He then talked about “carrots and sticks” and “threats and spankings”. He went on to say that there have been many times where he has had to think about the long term picture before breaking a story. He admitted that he sometimes worries about repercussions from the publishers if he (Newsarama) is the first to break certain stories. He said that sometimes he has had to ask himself if it was more prudent to “hang back” and allow certain stories to break elsewhere — like a blog or a rumor column — and comment on the story then.

Wow.

I felt uncomfortable listening to it on my iPod. I cannot imagine sitting in the room and hearing it in person.

1 Comment by Rick on June 25, 2008
filed in Books & Comics
tagged , , , , , ,

Could someone please do Shaquille O’Neal a favor and kindly tell him how his rectum tastes?

For some unknown reason NBA superstar Shaquille O’Neal is curious what his rectum tastes like. In fact, he wants fellow NBA superstar and former Lakers teammate Kobe Bryant to taste it and tell him what exactly it tastes like. I’ve got to say I find the request to be extremely troubling. Why would someone want to know what their ass tastes like?

Somethings are much better left not knowing.

Also, why would he want Kobe Bryant to be the one to find this information out? This would require Bryant to place his tongue on O’Neal’s rectum. I would think O’Neal being the rabid heterosexual man — he has fathered five children to two women — that he would not want another man to place his tongue on his body.

That includes his rectum.

I’m not sure if the NBA has any rules against players tasting the body parts of other players. If there’s not a rule in place against it, there should be.  Hopefully NBA David Stern will weigh in on this matter.

Link

by Rick on June 25, 2008
filed in Sports
tagged , , , , ,

The Herald-Mail’s war against Councilwoman Kelly Cromer continues

I promised myself a while back that I would stop writing letters to my local newspaper, the Herald-Mail. I wrote a letter last year where I referred to the deceased Rev. Jerry Falwell as “an idiot”. My comment was edited by someone at the Herald-Mail to read that I called him “a fool”.

They made me sound like Mr. T.

I read something this morning that made me do a reversal on my self imposed no-letter to the editor policy. It was a heavy-handed piece of drivel pretending to be an editorial calling for, among other things, Cromer to write a check to the United Way (huh?) for claiming that a Hagerstown police officer was “lying” when he submitted a report stating that she asked him if he “knew who she was” when he stopped her for speeding.

I doubt they will publish my letter. If they do, I will make sure to link to it. If don’t publish it, I will post it here.

This isn’t the first time the Herald-Mail has editorialized about the Cromer traffic stop. On June 14th they published an editorial accusing Cromer of being too quick in accusing the police of a vendetta.

What they failed to mention was that it was the Herald-Mail — not Cromer — that came up with the word “‘vendetta’.

I read a post over on the Herald-Mail message board written by someone claiming to be a friend of Cromer’s. Among other things, this person claimed to have been with Cromer when she received the phone call from the Heard-Mail reporter asking about the incident. This person claimed that at no time did she hear Cromer use the word “vendetta” when talking with the reporter.

Huh?

Last week I emailed the reporter who wrote the story and asked him if Cromer said the word “vendetta”. I got a response almost immediately. He wrote:

I never quoted her directly as saying that. I asked her whether she felt some city officials and some members of the police department had a vendetta against her. She said, “Yes.”

So there you have it. The mystery is solved.

2 Comments by Rick on June 24, 2008
filed in General
tagged , , , ,

Pig shaped earbuds

Pink Pig EarbudsNot sure when these will make their way here to the United States — if ever — but Japanese company Greenhouse is releasing these wonderfully designed ear buds that make it look like you have a pig in your head.

If I had a nickel for every time I’ve been called pig-headed, I could easily pay the suggested retail price of around $12.

They also come in white and black, but I personally prefer the pink.

(link – Gizmodo)

1 Comment by Rick on June 23, 2008
filed in Cool Things
tagged , , ,

ICV2 gets it wrong concerning the Michael George murder case

Comic book retailing news site ICv2 posted an article yesterday about the sentencing of Pittsburgh Comicon organizer and comic book retailer Michael George.

They make a rather huge factual error:

With no witnesses, physical evidence, or confession (see “Greed, Sex, and Power”), the prosecutors basically convicted George on motive (a $130,000 insurance police), opportunity (by casting doubt on alibi), and his behavior after his wife’s death (he reportedly hit on a woman at his wife’s funeral). This sensational cold case trial gained nationwide attention as the result of a feature on NBC’s Dateline.

No witnesses? The reason doubt was cast on his alibi is because the prosecution had a witness that put Michael George on the scene at around the time of Barbara’s murder. Michael Renaud testified that he called the comic book shop at around the time of the murder and spoke to Michael George on the phone.

To say that there were not witnesses is really kind of silly. It makes me think that whoever wrote the article over ICv2 never watched the Dateline feature they referred to.

5 Comments by Rick on June 22, 2008
filed in Books & Comics
tagged , , , , , ,

Now I know what it feels like to be offended

The new Get Smart movie offends me. It really, truly offends me. It bothers me that anyone would take a true masterpiece of comedy goodness from the 60’s and rehash it into a movie for theater goers in 2008. If there was ever an old TV show that should have been exempt from a do over it’s Get Smart.

I understand that Hollywood is filed to the brim with uncreative hacks that must constantly tap into the creations of yesteryear to make a living. When they remade The Beverly Hillbillies, Dukes of Hazzard, Bewitched, or even McHale’s Navy, I of course didn’t watch these movies, but it didn’t bother me that they had been made.

Get Smart should have been off-limits.

by Rick on June 21, 2008
filed in General
tagged , , , , , , ,

John Nee resigns from DC Comics?

All the various comic book news sites on the Internet are all a flutter over the fact that John Nee, DC Comics Senior Vice President of Business Development turned in his resignation. A week ago.

Who the heck is John Nee?

I’m sure he is a nice guy with lots of talent and ability, but I honestly have never heard of him. I don’t even know what exactly someone in charge of Business Development actually does. I would be hard pressed to name you the person in charge of Business Development over at Marvel Comics.

I think the only reason this is being treated like news is because there were multiple rumors floating about that said there was going to be a major shake up over at DC Comics. Some were speculating that Dan Didio, Executive Editor at DC Comics, was going to get the ax.

Instead of Dido getting fired, we find out that Nee turned in his resignation. In fact, today he was supposedly over at the DC Comics offices doing whatever he does.

Link

by Rick on June 20, 2008
filed in Books & Comics
tagged , , ,

You’re doing it wrong

The last time I saw something like this, my dog went on to have a litter of puppies.

Spain’s Fernando Torres (right) stretches with teammate Pepe Reina at the Euro 2008 European Soccer Championships in Austria and Switzerland. I don’t care what particular muscle this exercise stretches, I would rather just injure it.

(AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

2 Comments by Rick on June 20, 2008
filed in Sports
tagged , , , , , ,

How badly do the Yankees need pitching?

The New York Yankees have signed ex-Oriole prospect Sir Sidney Ponson to a minor league contract.

The guy is such an asshole that the Texas Rangers recently released him from the team even though he had a 4-1 record and a 3.88 ERA so far this season. What’s funny about this, is this is his second time with the Yankees. He pitched briefly for them in 2006. The Yankees already know the level of trouble he can bring to the clubhouse.

They go and sign him anyway. Ha-ha!

Link

by Rick on June 20, 2008
filed in Sports
tagged , , ,

Michael George to be sentenced today

Convicted murderer and Pittsburgh Comicon promoter Michael George is scheduled to be sentenced today in a Michigan courtroom. George was only recently convicted of murdering his wife Barbara George 18 years ago in the comic book shop they both owned. George was having an affair with one of his employees who he later married.

The case was recently featured in a two-hour episode on the NBC show Dateline.

The sentencing today is all but a formality since he is facing mandatory life in prison.

The prosecutor in the case, Assistant Prosecutor Steve Kaplan said that he expects several of Barbara George’s relatives to speak at the sentencing.

Michael George is still listed on the Pittsburgh Comicon website concerning the 2009 show. His photo remains there too.

Link

by Rick on June 20, 2008
filed in Books & Comics
tagged , , , ,

If there is no vendetta, why was the story leaked?

Hagerstown Police Chief Arthur Smith is weighing in on comments made by Hagerstown City Councilwoman Kelly Cromer concerning a supposed vendetta against her for looking into the city’s take-home vehicle program.

He wrote a memo to Hagerstown City Administrator Bruce Zimmerman asking that something be done.

From the Herald-Mail:

“This traffic stop was conducted on May 26, well before any contentious debate in reference to take-home vehicles.”

That’s not entirely correct. I remember reading about Councilwoman Cromer’s interest in the take-home vehicle program before May 26. In fact, I emailed both Councilwoman Cromer and Herald-Mail reporter Dan Dearth about this subject on May 19. Something I read in the article caught my attention:

In February, The Herald-Mail filed a public information request seeking the cost the city incurred to provide employees with vehicles for fiscal year 2006-07 and to date for fiscal year 2007-08. The city responded almost a month later, saying, “There is no document that satisfies your request.”

This didn’t sound right to me. I used to have a job where I was given a company car. One of the things I had to do was to keep a detailed record of the miles I drove each week. I had to keep track of both the miles I drove on company business and the miles I drove for personal reasons, such as driving back and forth from my home. These personal miles had to be kept track of so that a dollar value could be determined and then this dollar amount would be reported on my W-2 as taxable income.

The City of Hagerstown has to keep track of the cost of all personal mileage. Otherwise they would not be able to correctly report this figure to the IRS. That’s something they simply don’t have a choice in doing.

As far as vendettas are concerned, why did someone from the Hagerstown Police Department leak the story about the traffic stop to the Herald-Mail three weeks after it happened? If Police Chief Arthur Smith doesn’t appreciate what Councilwoman Cromer is saying about one of his officers, maybe his police department shouldn’t have leaked the story to the newspaper.

by Rick on June 19, 2008
filed in General
tagged , , , , , ,

Rick Reilly is kind of creepy

I was perusing the sports section of Waldenbooks the other day when I stumbled upon this book from former Sports Illustrated columnist Rick Reilly. It’s entitled
Hate Mail from Cheerleaders and Other Adventures from the Life of Reilly. It’s a collection of some of Reilly’s Sports Illustrated columns.

I’ve never really liked Rick Reilly. He always struck me as being kind of a douche.

For instance, he got some attention a few years ago when he called out Sammy Sosa in the Cub’s locker room to go with him to a lab and take a urine test for steroids. Sosa freaked out and Reilly wrote a column about it.

Though he often attacked Sosa (and Barry Bonds) for using steroids, he continuously defended Lance Armstrong against allegations of blood doping and using other performance enhancers. Granted, there has never been any proof that Armstrong cheated. Then again, nobody has ever proven that Sosa or Bonds cheated either.

Speaking of Lance Armstrong, he even wrote the forward to this book.

I flipped the book over to see how much they were actually charging for this piece of drivel. Not that I wanted to buy it. What I saw on the back cover surprised me. It’s a photograph showing Reilly sitting in a chair with the same three cheerleaders from the cover. Instead of looking at him like they were pissed off — like they did on the front cover — it shows them kissing him. One of the girls was actually sitting on his lap.

Don’t they have laws against this? Even if they were supposed to be college cheerleaders and not high school cheerleaders, he’s old enough to be their father. I guess the idea of the photo is to show that though the cheerleaders were quite perturbed at Rick Reilly over something he wrote, they since softened their opinion of him to the extent that they now only want to shower him with their teenage kisses.

Something like that.

I just find it more then a little creepy. In my opinion, men Reilly’s age should be kept away from cheerleaders.

by Rick on June 19, 2008
filed in Sports
tagged , , , , , , ,

Leave Councilwoman Kelly Cromer alone

From the Herald-Mail:

A Hagerstown resident told the City Council on Tuesday that she intends to file an ethics complaint against Councilwoman Kelly S. Cromer over a traffic stop in which Cromer was given a warning for allegedly speeding last month near City Park.

During a council meeting, Cathy Ridenour said a “can of worms” had been opened after Cromer was given a warning rather that a ticket on May 26 for allegedly driving 43 mph in a 25-mph zone — an infraction that carries a $90 fine.

“I, as a tax-paying citizen of Hagerstown, am asking that the (Washington County Ethics Commission) investigate in full the incident that occurred in regards to Councilwoman Cromer being stopped …,” Ridenour said. “My belief … is that no one is above the law and using one’s position of authority is inexcusable, unprofessional and wrong.”

Now this is just getting silly. Unless Cathy Ridenour knows something that the rest of us don’t, she has no basis to accuse Cromer of anything. She certainly has no basis of going to the Washington County Ethics Commission.

Even if Cromer somehow used her position on the City Council to get out of a ticket — and there currently is no evidence showing that she did — it’s the police officer that made the decision to NOT give her a ticket.

I think I’m going to do my best John Kerry impersonation now and flip-flop on this. At first I was ready to criticize Cromer for trying to get out of ticket, but now I’m not so sure if she has anything to be criticized about. She claims she didn’t say “Don’t you know who I am“. She claims that since the officer obviously knew who she was, she asked him if she needed to look through her luggage for her license.

The more I think about it, the more I believe she didn’t ask the officer if he knew who she was. She obviously knew the shit-storm that was created when her fellow City Council member Alesia Parson-McBean said that when she was stopped by the police.

Of the two versions of the story — Cromer’s and the officer’s — it’s Cromer’s that makes the most sense.

1 Comment by Rick on June 18, 2008
filed in General
tagged , , , , , , , ,

Tim Brazeal removes the FedconUSA message forum

FedconUSA convention promoter Tim Brazeal has begun the impossible task of purging all incriminating evidence against him and his company by deleting the entire message board at FedconUSA.

Click on the image to see a full sized version.

Not that I am surprised he is doing this. He pulled the plug on the show after it had already begun. I’m only surprised he waited this long to take the message board down. Most of the people posting to the FedconUSA forum were highly pissed off over what had been done to them.

I only wish the people who attended FedconUSA had picked somewhere other then the FedconUSA website to be ground zero for their angst. A website Tim Brazeal couldn’t remove. Hopefully one of them will quickly register a site and create a quick I.P. Board forum to replace the one Tim Brazeal removed.

These people have every right to be angry.

2 Comments by Rick on June 17, 2008
filed in Science Fiction
tagged ,

I get the feeling Councilwoman Cromer does not like Mayor Bruchey

Hagerstown city councilwoman Kelly Cromer on the the Herald-Mail online forum:

The Mayor doesn’t care one bit if we look bad, as a matter of fact he tries very hard and goes out of his way to try to make some of us look bad. He only cares about himself. He is a liar and a phony. His day is coming, I have an ace up my sleeve that will be life shattering for him.

Cromer is referring to Hagerstown’s mayor the honorable Robert E. Bruchey. Either they are playing a lot of poker or she doesn’t like him.

Not that there is anything particularly wrong with a city councilwoman not liking a mayor, especially if one is a Democrat and the other is a Republican. Sometimes I think government works better if everyone involved hates each other’s guts.

It’s not like this is unprecedented. In 2006, Hagerstown Mayor Richard Trump resigned after only nine months in office. It was reported that he quit because of his inability to get along with the city council. Bruchey — who already had one term as mayor under his belt — stepped in to fill Trump’s position of mayor.

I have no idea if Cromer’s criticism of Bruchey has any validity to it or not, but I do appreciate her candor. She is an elected official that says exactly what she thinks. And considering the fact that she is a criminal defense lawyer, I think she knows a thing or two about the legality nuances of libel and slander. If she says that Bruchey is a phony and a liar, I have to believe she has some kind of credible evidence to back it up.

We all know that people don’t say stuff on Internet message boards unless it’s true.

1 Comment by Rick on June 17, 2008
filed in General
tagged , , , , ,

Nazi war criminal spotted at the Euro 2008

It turns out I’m not the only one getting into the Euro 2008 football (soccer) championships. An internationally wanted Nazi war criminal has been spotted supporting his national team at the Euro 2008 football championships in Austria.

Milivoj Asner is wanted by Interpol for alleged genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during his service as a police chief in Croatia during the Second World War, when the country was ruled by a Nazi puppet regime.

But Mr Asner, 95, who now lives a quiet and undisturbed life in Klagenfurt, Austria, has been seen taking leisurely walks, sipping wine with his wife Edeltrat and mingling with Croatian football fans prior to the matches of his country’s national team.

He is the number four on the most wanted list of the Nazi-hunters and Croatia has demanded his extradition.

You’d think being #4 on the Nazi-hunter most wanted list would make a person stay at home and watch the games on ESPN. Do they have ESPN in Austria?

They are the worldwide leader in sports.

Link

by Rick on June 17, 2008
filed in General
tagged , , , , , ,

Science fiction covention canceled the day after it began

FedconUSA organizer Tim Brazeal canceled the convention almost 24 hours after it began, leaving celebrity guests and fans — some dressed as Klingons — stranded in Dallas with nowhere to go. Personally, I don’t know what I would hate more – being dressed as a Klingon or being stuck in Dallas.

Tim Brazeal posted a message on his website concerning the cancellation:

For a first time convention, getting financial support in today’s economy is next to impossible. There are so many upfront costs – flights, hotel rooms, convention space, food, guest fees, etc – that need to be paid before the convention even gets under way. From day one, FedConUSA has been operating in the red, with hopes of recouping our funds and making enough to continue on and make this an ongoing and fantastic convention experience for all of America.

Obviously, that just didn’t work out. We had expected much more walk-in attendance than we received, and hoped that we would have been able to pull things together enough that the show could go on. As you know, that didn’t happen. We are truly sorry to everyone for what has happened and disappointed that we couldn’t have put on a better show.

Expected more walk-in attendance? That’s a lot like expecting to win the lottery even though you don’t buy any lottery tickets.

If Brazeal wanted to cancel, he should have done it before the event was to take place. He shouldn’t have done it during the convention.

Over on the FedConUSA message board, there is a argument taking place between FedconUSA organizer Tim Brazeal and Aaron Douglas, “Chief Tyrol” from Battlestar Galactica. I don’t expect the message board will be around much longer.

6 Comments by Rick on June 16, 2008
filed in Science Fiction
tagged , , , , ,

I thought I knew what choking was, but then I watched Turkey beat the Czech Republic

The Czech Republic was up 2-0 with 15 minutes left in regulation.  They had arguably one of the best goal keepers in the world with Petr Cech in front of the net. Turkey didn’t stand a chance, right?

Wrong.

This has got to be one of the most exciting soccer games I’ve ever seen. Unbelievable.

It even included Volkan Demirel, the Turkish goal keeper receiving a Red Card in the final seconds requiring him to remove his distinctive goal keeper jersey and leave the field. A Turkish defender then had to put on his sweaty jersey and Hamburger Helper gloves and take on the goal keeping chores.

Exciting!

Czech Republic 2-3 Turkey: Nihat seals a thriller [ESPN]

1 Comment by Rick on June 15, 2008
filed in General
tagged , , , , ,

One more reason not to watch the Olympics

Becky HammonEvidently there is a WNBA point guard named Becky Hammon that plays for the San Antonia Stars. She’s raised quit the stink in some circles because she will be going to the 2008 summer Olympics to play basketball. Why is the causing people to complain? Because even though she is American, she will be playing for Russia.

Some are calling her a traitor.

Though I wouldn’t go so far as to say that someone playing for another county’s Olympic teams rises to the level of being a traitor, it does demonstrate just how jive the Olympics has become.

It used to be about representing your country. It used to be about standing on the podium as your national anthem was played. I’m old enough to remember when the U.S. Hockey team beat the Russians at the 1980 winter Olympics at Lake Placid. It actually meant something.

Becky Hammon isn’t the first athlete to represent a country other then her own and I doubt she wont be the last. It just goes to show what happens when people put their own desires above that of everyone else. She obviously wants an Olympic gold medal and she doesn’t care how she has to get it.

The Olympics used to be exciting because the players were representing their country. The Olympic athletes with the USA logo on their uniform were representing all of us. Now that is simply not the case. The players who now go to the Olympics are in it only for themselves. Players like Becky Hammon.

Is she a traitor? No, she’s just selfish.

3 Comments by Rick on June 15, 2008
filed in Olympics
tagged , , , ,

3 convicted in Ohio of plotting to kill U.S. servicemen

3 convicted in Ohio of plotting to kill U.S. servicemenA federal jury convicted three Ohio men of plotting to attack U.S. troops overseas. Mohammad Amawi, Marwan El-Hindi, and Wassim Mazloum were convicted of conspiring to kill or injure people outside the United States and face sentences of life in prison.

Not that I want to tell a wannabe terrorist how to take care of his business, but I think they would have had an easier time carrying out their terrorist plans if they didn’t make themselves look like terrorist extras from a really bad Chuck Norris movie.

Not that there is such a thing as a really good Chuck Norris movie.

What were these guys thinking? The fella on the right looks like he has West Virgina roadkill hanging from his chin.

If they really wanted to stick it to American service members, they should have just opened a pawn shop or a payday loan store outside a military base. That’s what everyone else that wants to screw over military people do.

1 Comment by Rick on June 15, 2008
filed in News
tagged , , , , ,

Danica Patrick’s big boobs might keep her out of Formula 1

IndyCar Series driver and wannabe Girls Gone Wild participant Danica Patrick will get a chance to try out of the Formula 1 Honda team. Honda team boss Nick Fry says that she will get some time on the track either at Jerez or Barcelona in November.

If she times well, she could race at the start of next season. If she makes it, she would be the first woman to race in Formula 1 since 1974.

Would she be accepted by the other drivers? Current Honda driver Jenson Button says Danica might have some problems making it to Formula 1. He has said:

“A girl with big boobs would never be comfortable in the car, and the mechanics wouldn’t concentrate. Can you imagine strapping her in?”

I’m not sure, but this very well could be the first time Danica Patrick has been accused of having large breasts. She most be proud. First she won the Japan 300, now her mammary glands are being described as being so large that skilled auto mechanics will lose the ability to turn a wrench.

Her parents must be so … proud.

Race car beauty wins shot at being first woman Formula 1 driver for 30 years [UK Daily Mail]

1 Comment by Rick on June 14, 2008
filed in Auto Racing
tagged , , , , , , , ,

R. Kelly found not guilty of having sex with the 13-year old girl

R&B superstar R. Kelly was found to be not guilty of of child pornography charges. From the Los Angeles Times:

The 41-year-old singer, whose real name is Robert Kelly, long denied charges that he videotaped himself engaging in a variety of sex acts with his then-underage goddaughter.

Authorities said the female in the video could have been as young as 13 at the time. The jury of nine men and three women deliberated for 7 ½ hours before finding Kelly not guilty on all 14 counts.

Included in the evidence against Kelly was a video tape where he can be seen urinating on the face of his 13-year old goddaughter.

His defense lawyer argued in closing arguments that if the jury found his client guilty, they would be calling the then 13-year old girl “a whore”:

Speaking after prosecutors had showed the jury the notorious sex tape at the center of the case one last time, defense attorney Sam Adam Jr said that the girl on the tape had accepted cash before performing a series of sex acts.

Showing the jury a studio photograph of the alleged victim on a large screen, he then told them that if they were going to find Kelly guilty of 14 counts of child pornography, “you are going to have to call (the alleged victim) 14 times individually and collectively a whore.”

Barely audible, he whispered, “My momma told me when we were kids, ‘if you ain’t got something nice to say about someone, don’t say it about her.”

A 13-year old child cannot consent to sexual relations with an adult. She would not be “a whore”. She would be a rape victim.

2 Comments by Rick on June 13, 2008
filed in News
tagged , , ,

Tim Russert, 1950 – 2008

NBC’s Meet The Press host and Washington bureau chief Tim Russert is dead. He died today in his Washington office. They are innitally saying that it was a heart attack. He was 58.

I’ve spend many a Sunday morning watching Meet The Press. I’ve also done my fair share of yelling at the TV at some of the stuff Russert asked. Sometimes it was about the stuff he didn’t ask.

Not only would I watch Meet The Press almost every Sunday morning, I also subscribe to the audio podcast of Meet The Press. I would sometimes listen to an episode if it was an important interview. I think I listened to the Ron Paul interview twice.

I sometimes found his habit of always pointing out his blue collar roots to be annoying. The “Go Bills” at the end of Meet The Press during football season could get really old.

To say that he was the best at what he did is giving too much credit to the others in his profession. When it came to interviewing politicians or government officials, he stood alone. He will be missed.

by Rick on June 13, 2008
filed in General
tagged , ,

F-16 versus an SUV

From Strategy Page:

Last April 9th, at Dugway Proving Ground in Utah, two soldiers were driving a rented SUV about five kilometers from the part of the range used for live firing. It was at night, and an F-16 that thought it was firing at something in the live fire area, lit up the SUV instead. Only 70 20mm rounds were fired. Fortunately, the two people in the SUV were only injured (both from flying glass, the passenger got a dislocated shoulder as he rapidly exited the vehicle when it quickly turned off the road and stopped.) The investigation of how this happen has not been completed.

I guess it’s a good thing that the 20mm rounds were obviously training rounds and not the standard incendiary rounds used on actual missions.

I wonder if whoever rented the SUV got rental insurance on it?

by Rick on June 13, 2008
filed in Aviation
tagged , , , ,

Where do you go if even the Orioles do not want you?

Former Baltimore Orioles outfielder and human growth hormone (HGH) junkie Jay Gibbons has finally found a place in professional baseball. Too bad for Gibbons it’s with a team in the independent Atlantic League.

Evidently he sent a letter to 29 Major League Baseball teams asking for chance to play. No team was interested.

It’s not like he needs the money. Even though the O’s released him last year after he admitted to using HGH, they are still paying him. He is being paid a guaranteed $11.9 million by the Orioles until the end of the 2009 MLB season.

Far be it from me to ever criticize anything the Oriole front office do, but I wouldn’t have released him. I would have kept him around. They have to pay him no matter what. I would have made him sell beer or cotton candy at Camden Yards. I’m sure the MLBPA would have had something to say about it, but I would have at least tried.

I would never fire someone I had to still pay.

Gibbons to join Atlantic League [Baltimore Sun]

by Rick on June 12, 2008
filed in Sports
tagged , , , , , , ,

Just say no to comic book sketches

From this week’s Internet comic book gossip column Rich Johnson’s Lying in the Gutters:

I’m getting more reports of people who’ve commissioned pieces from Michael Golden complaining about the length of time the pieces take, the lack of communication, and the practice of taking on more commissions when there are years worth uncompleted.I don’t think anyone commissioning such a piece right now can be under any illusion of the amount of time Mike takes.

While most creators take less time to fulfil a commission, some take more – Brian Bolland and Simon Bisley are two examples.

As for communication, there’s very little more to say than, “It’ll be ready when it’s ready.”

I blogged last year about someone paying Michael Golden for a commissioned piece of artwork, only to get the runaround for months and months from both Michael Golden and his art agent, Renee Witterstaetter. When the fan finally got his artwork, it contained an insult from Golden. He included the phrase “Patience is a viru [sic]” in the piece.

Both classy and professional.

I understand some artists take longer to do their artwork. What I don’t understand is how someone can take someone’s money for a commissioned piece of art and then not get around to doing it. What’s even worse is when they take time to then attend comic book conventions where they take on even more commissions for artwork. I think that if you already have a backlog of commissions, you shouldn’t be going out and taking more commissions. You should concentrate on fulfilling the commissions you already have.

Personally, I would never pay a comic book artist for commissioned artwork. If I had $500 to blow on something comic book related, I would buy comic books. I’d pick up some more D.C. Comics Absolute Editions or maybe more Marvel Omnibus Editions or Marvel Masterworks.

If I wanted artwork that was comic book related, I would buy something licensed and authorized.

I wouldn’t buy a sketch. Ever. Not only are they usually way overpriced, technically they aren’t even legal. Unless the artist in question owns the rights to the character being sketched, they are unauthorized to use the characters for commercial gain. Just because comic book publishers choose to turn a blind eye to the practice of artists charging fans hundreds of dollars to create art depicting their intellectual property doesn’t mean they always will. Eventually publishers will realize that when a fan pays hundreds of bucks for a sketch of Wolverine smoking a cigar, that fan could be spending that money on licensed merchandise.

1 Comment by Rick on June 12, 2008
filed in Books & Comics
tagged , , , , ,

Yes, by all means read The Bent Corner

Yes, by all means read The Bent CornerToday I noticed there is a comic book related column over at Pop Syndicate called Bent Corner. It’s written by an individual named Isaac Magaña. There is even a The Bent Corner forum dedicated to the column.

How original.

I had this blog a lot longer then the Pop Syndicate column has been in existence. The first column under the name “Bent Corner” was posted in February 2007. I first registered this domain back in 2005. I had a blog with the same name over at BlogSpot long before that. I also blog quite a bit about comic books.

Didn’t anyone over at Pop Syndicate do a quick Google search of the name before using it? I’m guessing not.

Fellow blogger Jesse Jace of Chorus, Isolate, Confirm recently had a similar experience. Jesse regularly writes a feature entitled Portrait of a Badass where he points to someone from the world of fiction who he believes is truly a bad ass. He’s been writing these features for years.  The blog We Are Not Journalists then came up with their own “Portrait of a Badass” feature. Jesse called them on it and I think they changed the title.

What struck me odd about the Portrait of a Badass controversy was that nobody over at We Are Not Journalists bothered to Google the term before attempting to make it their own. I couldn’t imagine creating a name for something without first checking to see if anyone else already created that name.

Like the name Bent Corner.

by Rick on June 11, 2008
filed in Books & Comics
tagged , , ,

Cool homemade air conditioner

I think I first saw this over on Make. It’s a homemade air conditioner. The bucket is filled with ice water and the small electric fan moves air through an aluminum channel running through the bucket, sealed with silicone.

Make sure to check out Franco’s blog Assorted Tips for more photos along with step by step instructions so you can make your own.

I don’t like being hot. In fact, I hate it. Sunday night when the temperature outside was 95 degrees with a humidity level to match, I could have used one of these homemade air conditioners. Our central air just wasn’t getting it done.

I want to make one of these and have it ready to go if needed.

2 Comments by Rick on June 11, 2008
filed in Technology
tagged , ,

Stay away from the Holiday Inn Burbank-Media Center

Stay away from the Holiday Inn Burbank-Media CenterOn our final night on vacation, we stayed in a hotel close to the Burbank airport. Our flight back to the Dulles airport was at 8am. That meant we had to be at at airport no later then 6am. We figured it would be a lot easier to simply stay in a hotel near the airport, preferably one with a shuttle service to the airport.

We thought we had one when we reserved a room at the Holiday Inn Burbank-Media Center. We were wrong.

We checked in at around 4pm. We decided to go up to our room and drop off our luggage and then go return the rental car. When we went back downstairs to the parking lot, we found out that we had to pay $5 when leaving the “free” parking lot. Even though it states on the website for the Holiday Inn Burbank-Media Center is free, it’s not.

We dropped off the rental car and then took the car rental shuttle to the airport. From there we rode the Holiday Inn shuttle back to the hotel. When we got back to the room, I started to notice how dumpy the room was.

Take a look at the art that was screwed down to the wall over the bed. That’s not just some kind of fancy artwork. It’s mold.

Stay away from the Holiday Inn Burbank-Media Center

What a dump.

Even though the hotel is advertised as having a free shuttle to the airport, it doesn’t make it’s first run until 6:30am. Since we had to be at the airport no latter then 6am, we had to take a cab. Parked in front of the hotel were a few taxis. When I told the driver of the first taxi where we wanted to go, he told me he would take us if we agreed to pay a flat-fee of $20. The Burbank airport is only a three mile ride from the hotel. It’s not like I had much of a choice. Since the Holiday Inn chooses not to start the shuttle service until 6:30am, the taxi operators know that they have people over a barrel. I guess I should be glad he didn’t demand $50.

You think that when you go online and look for a hotel near the Burbank airport and the first result you get is a Holiday Inn that claims it has free parking and a free shuttle service to the airport, it will in fact have those things.

Do yourself a favor and avoid the Holiday Inn Burbank-Media Center.

by Rick on June 10, 2008
filed in Personal
tagged , , , , , , ,

No, you may not have any tomatoes

I should have known something was going on when I couldn’t get tomatoes on my wholewheat turkey sub this morning at Sheetz. It looks like someone has been defecating — taking a poo — in the tomato fields again. Once again there is a problem with salmonella bacteria in tomatoes. Here is the blurb the AP included with the above photo:

Mark Roh, U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s acting regional director holds a bag of tomatoes being tested for salmonella bacteria at FDA’s southwest regional research lab, in Irvine, Calif., Monday June 9, 2008, where microbiologists are working to trace the source of the outbreak. McDonald’s, Wal-Mart and other U.S. chains have halted sales of some raw tomatoes as federal health officials work to trace the source of a multistate salmonella food poisoning outbreak.

What are they storing these tomatoes in? Looking at this photo, I never want to eat tomatoes again.

This is such a staged photo. The Abe Vigoda looking guy is U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s acting regional director Mark Roh. That spiffy white lab coat he is wearing says “B. Fox” over the left breast. I’m guessing Roh stole the lab coat from one of the real microbiologists trying to solve this nasty salmonella problem just so he could pose for the photo.

What a douche.

(AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian)

by Rick on June 10, 2008
filed in General
tagged , , , , , ,

Escape Pod 161: Alien Promises

This week’s episode of everyone’s favorite science fiction short story podcast Escape Pod is the young adult story Alien Promises by Janni Lee Simner. It’s read by Anna Eley, wife of Escape Pod Editor-In-Chief Steve Eley.

Even though the story is labeled as a being for young adults and I am very much an old adult, I enjoyed the story immensely. It’s about a young girl who dreams that one day aliens will come and take her away. Not the kind of aliens who stand in front of Home Depot looking for work and who speak only Spanish, but the kind who travel in silver space ships and communicate through telepathy.

It was a good story.

Anna Eley does a fine job reading the story. Her voice has a quality to it that meshes nicely with the story’s main character and it brings life to the first-person narrative. My only criticism is that I think she pronounced reader as leader. It’s at about the 2:40 mark of the story. I listened to it a couple of times and it sounds like leader even though reader is the only word that makes sense.

It is stories like this that makes me appreciate the Escape Pod podcast for everything it brings.

by Rick on June 9, 2008
filed in Science Fiction
tagged , , , , ,

Albinos in Africa being killed for their magical body parts

If you ever thought living in Africa as an albino sounds like a lot of fun, think again. It turns out they are being targeted by unscrupulous witchdoctors who value albino skin, hair, and bones because they believe they possess magical powers. From the New York Times:

Discrimination against albinos is a serious problem throughout sub-Saharan Africa, but recently in Tanzania it has taken a wicked twist: at least 19 albinos, including children, have been killed and mutilated in the past year, victims of what Tanzanian officials say is a growing criminal trade in albino body parts.

Many people in Tanzania — and across Africa, for that matter — believe albinos have magical powers. potions that are promised to make people rich.

Didn’t these witchdoctors learn about what causes albinism while they were in witchdoctor school? It’s not magic, it’s a hereditary genetic genetic. It’s clear the witchdoctor community needs to educate itself. The thigh bone from a albino person is no more magical then the thigh bone of a normal pigmented person.

Africa is a weird place.

by Rick on June 8, 2008
filed in News
tagged , , , ,

Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition

Wizards of the Coast released the fourth version of Dungeons & Dragons today. The fantasy roll playing game consists of three books:

Each book is sold separately and retails for $34.95. If you are Canadian, you have to pay $39.95. Does Wizards of the Coast know that the Canadian dollar is worth more then the U.S. dollar?

I flipped through the Player’s Handbook today in Waldenbooks. I wasn’t impressed. I thought the art looked hacky. You would think that since D&D was being published by Wizards of the Coast instead of TSR, they would bring a higher quality of artwork to the game system. From the look of the book, you wouldn’t know that it was published by the same company that produces Magic The Gathering.

1 Comment by Rick on June 7, 2008
filed in Games
tagged , , , , ,

Video of B-2 bomber crash on Guam

Back in February a B-2 bomber crashed on take off from Andersen Air Force Base on Guam. Both crew members were able to eject safely.

In case you are wondering, a B-2 Stealth Bomber costs $1.2 billion.

I was stationed on Guam from the late 80’s to the early 90’s. The B-2 was built back home in Palmdale, California. Some of my relatives worked at Northrop and helped manufacture the B-2.

by Rick on June 7, 2008
filed in Aviation
tagged , , , , , ,

There is a reason they call soccer ‘The Beautiful Game’

Poland faces Germany in the first round action of the 2008 European Championship. This photo ran in a major Polish newspaper. It shows the Polish manager holding the severed heads of German footballers Michael Ballack and Joachim Loew.

If I didn’t know any better, I’d say somebody in Poland has a score to settle with Germany.

The games will be shown live on ESPN. The schedule can be found here.

(Photo: The Spoiler)

by Rick on June 6, 2008
filed in General
tagged , , , , , , ,

It turns out that it was GoDaddy the sucked with the intensity of 1,000 suns

I was having problems with my blog, Bent Corner. I originally blamed the problems on WordPress. I’ve since come to the conclusion that the problem(s) didn’t have anything to do with WordPress, but with my hosting site, GoDaddy.

Forget every bad thing I’ve ever said about WordPress.

My blog went down shortly before leaving for a week long vacation to the land of my people, California. To be honest, I took it as a sign. I made the conscious decision to not fool with it while back home. Read the full article »

11 Comments by Rick on June 5, 2008
filed in WordPress
tagged , , , ,