Phillies Win!!!

Living 1/2 hour away from Philadelphia, my family has always been Philly sports fans.

The last time the Phillies won the World Series, I was only 2 years old. I grew up playing baseball and following Mike Schmidt & Pete Rose. When I was a kid, it didn't seem that long ago. Now it's like "Damn, it's been 25+ years?!?!"

Well, Philly fans are nuts & the team definitely deserves the championship.

The whole family rootin for the Phillies at my parent's house

My brothers & Jen have incurable Phillies Madness

Grand-Dude (Big Paul) & his Lil' Dude (Baby Greg).

The Obama 1/2 Hour

Obama is Ballin'!

I have to say Obama & his campaign impress me by at least thinking progressively & outside the box. Watching his half-hour infomercial/ad/documentary/biography that took up the major networks was planned pre-World Series game viewing for me. In addition to my love of general knowledge & trivia, I've considered political affairs much more intensely, thanks to the shocking malfeasance of Bush/Cheney's reign of error.

I'm sure plenty of people thought "The Obama 1/2 Hour" was an annoyance or just propaganda... but even my cynical eye was still impressed with the production, message, & boldness of it. I thought the ad was actually very engaging.

As someone who appreciates the intellectual heritage of humanity's great thinkers Heraclitus, the Dalia Lama, Isaac Newton, Howard Stern, and others, I don't say lightly that Obama is a brilliant person.

He doesn't even spend one minute attacking McPain in the entire 30 minute segment...

Classy and smart.
Hopefully America has learned & we get competent, intelligent leadership...

McPain '08

I've always thought that John McCain was a man who deserves some respect. The guy's been through hell & I hate to have an ill opinion of him.

Unfortunately, he is clearly not the better leader of the two Presidential candidates. If Sen. McCain can barely keep his own party & staff of loyalists together through this campaign, how do people expect him to MANAGE THE ENTIRE COUNTRY?!?!?!

At first, I thought Sarah Palin seemed at least interesting...
Then, she started yakking & attacking and, by golly, she hasn't even stopped once to think (literally).

Personally, I'm stickin' with the Socialist Muslim Black Panther Antichrist Terrorist Sympathizer, the Long-legged Freak himself.

I won't claim that Obama is a perfect candidate or that all his policy approaches are the best. His tremendous ability to communicate, organize, & inspire are fairly self-evident, though.

With Halloween this Friday & the election in less than a week, the scariest thing to me in the immediate future is the idea of more regressive Republican rule in the White House. This is especially true in the face of such a strong possibility for a new approach to governing.

I find the McCain campaign's approach to pretty much everything to be distasteful. To properly express how I feel about their low-brow style of politics, I made a little mash-up of the dysfunctional "McPain" team, using my superior Photoshop skills.

Click the image below for a larger, even more disturbing size.

Warning:
If you stare at it for too long you will definitely lose your mind.

SNL - Bush/McCain/Palin

The 2 best political impersonations ever - Tina Fey as Sarah Palin, and Will Ferrell as George W. Bush - are united in one brilliant SNL skit.

I'm in the supposedly 'progressive' state of New Jersey, but I am seeing more McCain/Palin signs around than I would like. Why you would want to announce that you are supporting these hopelessly incompetent clowns is beyond me.

Ridicule & mockery are good ways to highlight the problems that more clueless Republican governance would produce. Unfortunately, there will be nothing funny about this country's future should Satan rear his horned, evil head and cause McSame & The Diva to take office.

Palin as President

Super-fun crap like this is the reason the internet was invented!

The interactive page PalinAsPresident.com lets you click around the prospective Oval Office of Miss "Pro-America" herself. You can click certain things multiple times, & there's plenty of funny stuff hidden in there.

I would suggest quickly pressing the center of her desk multiple times - so she echoes "Oh! Here are the Nuclear Codes!" - and then press the red phone for a sufficient preview of the possibilities a Palin Presidency would bring...

Gosh Darnit, it's nuclear armageddon!

Monkey on a Segway Scooter

Came across this awesome video on i-am-bored.com. Dubya might not be able to figure one out, but this chimp scoots along pretty good by the end.

I needed a good chuckle, and simians doing human activities always amuse me.

Bat Boy Backs Obama!!!

When the paragon of professional journalism, The Weekly World News, revealed the existence of 'Bat Boy' back in the 90's, I was still in high school.

This was a major event for me & my friends, who loved to discuss The WWN's outrageous stories during Study Hall.

I have been following Bat Boy's career ever since, and I saw that Barack Obama has secured perhaps the most significant endorsement in the entire world:

Bat Boy Backs Obama!!!

Penguin vs. Batman Debate

I saw a link to this video on my favorite politically-correct website Bartcop.com.

With the final Presidential debate coming up tomorrow, seeing this classic clip from the 60's Batman movie blew me away. This is so ridiculously relevant that it is just crazy & hilarious.

John McCain is obviously running his campaign as The Penguin- aka 'Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot'.
(I actually still remember that name from the Super Powers toy packages I collected when I was a kid.)

McCain is the Penguin, Obama is Batman, & Dennis Kucinich gets my vote as Robin!




I also saw this painting on Ffffound.com & I have to assume that the artist saw that part of the old Batman movie. If not, it's a very funny coincidence.

BATMOBAMA AND ROBIDEN

Into the Fractal Core

"4-D Gem" available at
The Monkey Buddha Bazaar

I came across a couple interesting things online regarding on of my favorite topics: Fractals.

This article is a deep look into the fractal nature of reality.

"Into The Fractal Core:
Get Ready For The Shift"

Is it just a bunch of meaningless mystical mumbo-jumbo?...
or the ultimate key to understanding our experience in the universe?

The answer: Both!!!
(:D

Visually, fractal forms are endlessly fascinating and reflect the dynamic chaos of nature.

It's amazing that people have figured out how to manipulate numbers & math to approximate 'messy' phenomena that are as irregular as coastlines and plant life.

"17 Captivating Fractals
Found in Nature"

"Monkey Man" by The Rolling Stones

I always liked The Beatles more than the Stones, but there are a few of their songs that I really like.

I hadn't heard "Monkey Man", though, until I got Sirius Radio within the past few years. Now it's obviously my favorite Rolling Stones song. If Monkey Buddhism had a hymn book, this would definitely be in it.

This is a video to the classic tune- showing monkeys & apes in nature, and their less-refined relative in the White House.

The Voting Mob

As he election gets closer, things are getting more interesting. I would have to say McCain has the angry redneck vote locked up.



Everybody, including me, has their opinions about who is better & why. The problem is that many people believe their personal perceptions are hard facts. This is often true for people of all political leanings.

The McCain campaign, though, has gotten bad press recently over the dangerous perceptions they have been provoking and encouraging in their 'less insightful' supporters. To equate Barack Obama with being a terrorist sympathizer is simply inflammatory. People are mostly disgusted by McCain & Palin's obnoxious attempts at character assassination.

On the other hand, Obama doesn't have to slander McCain with vindictive insinuations - such as being a reckless pilot, a Manchurian candidate, or a Vietnamese baby killer - because Obama has a positive message of hope that is actually resonating with people.

The reason McCain & his campaign are so irresponsible is because many of the voting masses are unfortunately not bright enough to discern the falseness of the inciteful rhetoric. Sen. McCain seems to have been trying to tone things down a bit, but even he can't control the cancerous hatred felt by the psychos in his base. The videos of Republican rallies and voters expressing venomous ignorance is really disturbing.



To be fair, voters on the Democratic side can be just as shallow in their convictions. (They just aren't stark-raving mad racists.)

Sean Hannity is an absolutely tremendous knuckle-headed jackass, but this clip shows the lack of information concerning basic policies & political philosophy that can exist among Obama supporters, too:

Redneck Bookmobile

We had a whole crew helping my sister & her new family to their new house. There were about a dozen people helping & 4 pickup trucks we were filling with furniture, clothes, & stuff.

Since there were no cardboard boxes left for packing, we piled all of their books in the back of one of the pickup trucks. At first I was calling it the "ghetto bookmobile", but considering it's a pickup truck... "redneck bookmobile" is probably more appropriate.

I spotted my brother-in-law's copy of "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" so I borrowed that. There are alot of books that I'm going to have to check out of their personal library once the bookshelves are up...

Redneck Bookmobile

Kung Fu Election

I saw this crazy game & had to try it. The graphics are cool, the character interpretations are funny & it is an awesome concept. The only downside is it's hard as hell.

I started out playing as Katana Obama, but Sarah Palin kept beating my ass every time w/ her hockey stick & shotgun. So, I clicked on 'more characters' and used nunchucks-wielding John Edwards. After finally beating the Mad Max version of Palin, I lost to Cindy McCain in her Kill Bill gear.

BTW, I truly think this is how The President should actually be chosen...

click to play

The Age of Water

Although I take creative interpretations of reality like astrology with a grain of salt, I can say that unlike other signs, mine actually describes me really accurately.

I'm a Pisces, which is a water sign & I completely feel like it's my element. I pretty much love drinking just tons of water & green tea. If I had a hot tub I would never get out of it. Water is a substance that I have always found fascinating in itself, despite how much it can be taken for granted. Looking at the most ordinary things like you've never seen them before is one way to keep life interesting.

This article from Daniel Pinchbeck's website, Reality Sandwich, has an esoteric look into the life-giving water element:

"The Age of Water"

Obama vs. McCain II

Yes- as all the opinion polls show, Obama crushed McCain in both style & substance.

The long-legged freak is simply more intelligent, more articulate, & more empathetic to the real needs of this country.

It is funny how some of the "liberal" media pundits were originally trying to say McCain was aggressive & that the debate was essentially a tie as a result...

...that was until the polls started coming in & it was obvious the public had an overwhelming negative reaction to Sen. McCain's strained performance.

The only parts where I didn't think Obama came through all that great:
• when he slipped up & rightfully condemned the credit card industry of Delaware... oops,... championed by Joe Biden! I could tell in Obama's face that he realized he shouldn't have brought that up. If McCain had any wits about him, he would have jumped on Biden's connection to that industry.
• I can't stand Obama's rhetoric about Pakistan & Bin Ladin. "I wil hunt Bin Ladin down & kill him." No Barack... no you won't. Stop propogating the myth that Osama bin Ladin is America's own perpetual boogeyman. The idea of striking within Pakistan without the government's help is no different than invading Iraq illegally.

Otherwise, Obama came across as Presidential, & McCain looked like the out-of-touch retiree that he truly is.

I saw this graphic on The Great Orange Satan, Daily Kos & thought it was tremendously funny, as well as spot-on:

George W. Bush = Destruction

Most people watching tonight's debate between McSame & The Long Legged Mack-Daddy will be focusing on the vision for the future each man brings.

The reason people are so eager for a message of hope & change is that we've been stuck in a seemingly bottomless pit of collective despair for the last 8 years. There is one main source, a single point, around which the dreams of an entire nation have been sucked down and drained.

After 8 years, the vast majority of the country has finally recognized this singular source of so much failure, misery, and ignorance.

Surprise!!!! The author of this Boston Globe article has figured out that it is George W. Bush, the dry-drunk imbecile who was awarded his position of Leadership of the Free World by the geniuses on the Supreme Court:

"The Destructive Policies of President Bush"

Really?!?!? *GASP!!*
Dubya has been a force of destruction ALL this time???
Who would have guessed?
Answer: Everyone with at least the insight of a turtle.

I knew the failure of a businessman & a human being was going to be a disaster for this country before he even entered office in 2001. In the same way, it's obvious now that the GOP's broken old pawn & his belligerent, winking harpy of a running mate would continue the descent into ruin at a breakneck pace.

Tina Fey's punching bag (Sarah Palin) criticized Obama for stating the truth, that our airstrikes have killed civilians. Are there Americans out there stupid enough to believe that we have weapons that only target 'terrorists' & that we are too honorable to cause innocent death?

That's what America has been doing in every single war of aggression - having indescriminately murdering millions of babies, children, women, the elderly aka "collateral damage"... all because they live somewhere else with resources that we covet.

Do I personally think that America is deplorable or 'The Great Satan' because of it? No, but I'm sure as hell am not proud of it either. It's a matter of pulling the bloody flag from off your face & looking at things like human being.

To be fair, though, the knuckle-draggers attending right-wing Republican rallies have an evolutionary status that is questionable.

It is obvious by the way they are running their campaign at this point that McCain/Palin have zero ideas & are resorting to the infantile accusations of Obama being a closet terrorist. Unfortunately, McCain has not gained any more intelligence or sense of honor since he graduated at the bottom of his class, back in ancient times.

John McCain was old before I was born & that was three decades ago! His wisdom is non-existant, his views are outdated, and his running mate is a female clone of George W. Bush- with even less class!

It is absurd that the neo-cons & their failed ideology have any legitamacy left at all. I can only hope that Obama wipes the floor with "The Make-Believe Maverick" and shows America a clear difference of vision for the country. As usual, things never turn out to be quite that cool, so I'm not holding my breath. After all, if you hold your breath for too long, you die.

Also, there is that little issue of getting to the point where the Bush & Cheney cabal actually volunteer to leave their positions of power... the day of reckoning is creeping closer.

Star Wars: Clone Wars

Speaking of aliens, I happened to flip on The Clone Wars, the new Cartoon Network Series. (hint: you can click & drag Yoda on the main page)

Star Wars: A New Hope came out right before I was born & the Star Wars universe has always been my favorite fictional creation.

When I saw the trailers for the animated The Clone Wars movie, I thought the animation looked kind of cheesy, so I didn't see it in the theater. Thanks to such idiotic, unholy edits as replacing Anakin Skywalker's ghost with Hayden Christensen's younger likeness, I cannot automatically defer to George Lucas's judgement.

I liked the idea of an animated TV series, but the idea of using the same cartoonish character style as the movie really turned me off. I'd prefer almost like a realistic video game cutscene.

Anyway, I watched a couple episodes they were playing back-to-back last night. Not only did the animation not bother me, I thought it was really friggin' cool overall. Judging from the already high ratings, that show is definitely going to be a hit simply because it's fun to watch for all ages. Cartoon Network already has grown-up viewers for Adult Swim, & the audience seems to reflect that.

The entire reality that Lucas has conjured out of his head is pretty remarkable. He can take the timeline as far back into the past or as far into the future as he wants. Now all he has to do is start fleshing out the post-Empire universe, ie. Dark Empire.

Alien Communication

Deep Sea Basket Star

People are so excited at the prospect of being able to communicate with 'alien' beings.

I think it's silly to assume that we will be able to exchange information with other-worldy or other-dimensional life any better than we already do with bizarre Earth creatures such as jellyfish or lizards.

There is a chance that the reports of humanoid lifeforms, like the virtually cliché Greys or Reptilians, exist. There is an even better chance that other dynamic forms that we may interpret as "life" will be strange to the point of near incomprehensibility.

I saw this video linked in Posthuman Blues and thought that this could represent some mode of unfamiliar communication or other function which our minds cannot even associate with.

There's another Related Video of abstract eye candy that is pure computer-generated craziness. I wonder, "what if these weird visual forms were actually some kind of completely alien, unimagined intelligence trying to engage me?" I'd like to know how SETI or NASA or any agency on Earth would propose to interact with such beings...

The Evolution of Form



Biogenesis

The Vice-Presidential Debate

RE: Biden vs. Palin:

"Say it ain't so, Joe!!! Gosh darnit, I think hockey moms & Joe six-packs, bless their hearts, are going to go just 'nucular' over that maverick, Sarah Palin- a true mavericky maverick! Yer darn right!!! *wink, wink*"


Sarah Palin was really pouring on the fake charm last night & I'm sure there are plenty of gullible people out there who saw Gov. Palin as gutsy & "folksy"- which is another way of saying that she talks like a goofy redneck.

Her rambling, evasive answers and her clear lack of national policy substance shows she's a talking-points parrot, just like George W. Bush, but with a prettier facade & a much more annoying accent.

Does America want a backwater 'hockey mom' (who's actually a very typical cyncial & self-serving politician) with an overly-antagonistic attitude in charge of nuclear bombs?

It's a miracle the world isn't already entirely in flames with The War Monkey at the helm. We'd just be pushing our luck with another pair of war-mongering, clueless so-called "conservatives".

Thankfully, the American people agree (see below), & may be waking from their 8 year slumber. The horrific reality of the Republican party's inability to govern is preventing people from falling for more of this bullshit.

Of course, I'm not holding my breath that the combo of voting hijinks & the subservient attitude of the American voters will not allow 4 more years of GOP failure...

•CNN
Biden - 51%
Palin - 36%

• CBS
Biden - 46%
Palin - 21%

• Fox
Biden - 61%
Palin - 39%

• AOL
Biden - 48%
Palin - 45%

• Forbes.com
Biden - 73%
Palin - 23%

• MSNBC
Biden - 78.6%
Palin - 18.9%

*The best Joe Biden moment was, by far, this response to Palin wanting even more VP power than Dick Cheney:

“Vice President Cheney has been the most dangerous
vice president we’ve had probably in American history.”

Religulous

I think Bill Maher is a great, ballsy social commentator. Although I find alot of what he says humorous & spot-on, he can come off like a pompous jerk. Like other ideologues, his certainty in his atheism sometimes spawns arrogance. However, satire is a superior method for showing the inevitable absurdities in things like politics & religious dogma.

Maher's commentary on religion is especially pointed. As a practitioner of Monkey Buddhism, I can completely understand how his antagonistic approach to religious belief would offend some people. It's probably similar to the way I feel about Bill Donahue, the unbearably obnoxious head of some group called the Catholic League - which is apparently a league of Catholics.

The trailer for the movie "Religulous" is interesting, but I found the movie poster above, showing the "3 Major Monkey Religions", to be completely brilliant.

Jews For (& Against) Obama

The Daily Show had a hilarious segment last night. Wyatt Cenac went to Florida to see how old Jewish voters reacted to the Presidential Debate. Jon Stewart's own reaction at the end is priceless.

Like all groups that we, 'human beings', categorize ourselves into, Jewish people are never a monolithic entity. Groups of 'Jews', like 'Christians', 'Eastern', 'black', 'white', 'old', 'young', 'rich', 'middle class', etc, etc are all going to include many, many people who have differing political views, religions, moral outlooks, artistic tastes, sense of humor & personalities in general.

One of the many annoying things about the corporate-driven 'mainstream' media is the natural human tendency to treat segments (ie. Jewish voters in Florida, women, African-Americans, middle-class) of the population as some kind of hive mind. This is especially true during elections, when stereotypes of all kinds are amplified & reinforced.

As this small group of older Jewish people suggests, even the strongest of social bonds can't prevent strong differences of opinion.



Alot of the people in the Daily Show clip weren't really fond of Obama, but the raunchy & very funny Sarah Silverman is a comedienne of Jewish heritage who definitely supports a President Obama. This video I saw on BoingBoing immediately made me think of the Daily Show clip above. It's like Sarah watched the same clip of those wacky old folks watching the debate.


The Great Schlep from The Great Schlep on Vimeo.