Good Old Neon

I think the real story here is who wasn't visited by aliens in 1968 - cause if you weren't, you were doing it wrong, man.

Depressing just isn’t a strong enough word to describe the shit we’re in, and how ineffectual and powerless we are in the face of such staggering malfeasance.

I ordered IJ from the library as it gets a lot of references here - can anyone shed some light as to what I'm in for?

Late fees, definitely some late fees.

 

I see patterns but haven't a clue as to where it is all going.

Same here. Though a good deal of the fun derived from watching Lost lies in trying to guess where it’s going and/or concocting myriad theories regarding all aspects of the characters, island, etc – most if not all of which end up being inaccurate or just flat out wrong, at least where my thoughts on the show are concerned, I’ve decided to (more or less) just stop theorizing and just like, enjoy the remainder of the ride.

I’ve read some of the spoilers on Dark UFO (and elsewhere), and what I do know based on what I’ve read, assuming it’s accurate, and to date it has been, everyone’s compass is really just way off – especially my own.

x-dizajn.net really has a ring to it – it’s one of those rare web addresses you’ll never forget even if you don't have a pen and paper to write it down. Like, hey, the other day, I was on this really great website. Other person: Really, which one? Me: Oh, you know, http://x-dizajn.net.

But Desmond didn't try to kill Hurley. He didn't make him have a near-dead experience. My take is that Locke will be the spoiler in the ALT. He'll try to stop the Losties from going back to the original timeline. His life is the only on that's better in the ALT, except for the fact he can't walk. Maybe Desmond was trying to course correct the universe. I have a feeling we're going to see Libby, Locke and Charlie die in the ALT soon. They're not supposed to be alive, like Charlie said in LA X.

I’m guessing that the circumstances by which each individual is sort of coerced into “waking up” varies – partly based on prior on island history, and maybe also having to do with the “unenlightened” persons, like, temperament or something. As insideoutoflove mentioned, right before the scene changed or we went to commercial (I don't recall), it appeared as though post-run-over-by-Desmond-Locke had an epiphany of sorts, one, for reasons having to do with the shows pacing, we haven’t been made privy to, yet.

I think it might have been Einstein who said something along the lines of “I don’t know how WW 3 will be fought, but WW 4 will be fought with sticks and stones” - which, obviously was wrong, cause if what you appear to be saying is true, and it sounds and looks like it is, more likely than not, it will be waged with plastic knives, forks, spoons, chopsticks and over-priced boutique blends.

Wow! That is a really interesting theory.

 

To add to the suspicion... when I lived in Beijing, as a Berkeley(!)-trained Taiwanese(!)-American(!) journalist(!) married to a Western diplomat(!), I may have raised a few alarm bells for the authorities. Even though I did not file any stories for the 3 years I was there, I often felt watched or listened to. My email accounts would be inaccessible for days on end. I had (Western) journalist friends there who felt the same way. We'd joke about it -- have conversations with our light fixtures, follow our goodbye on the phone with: "Long live the Communist Party," etc.

 

Princeton's Perry Link presented an interesting paper years ago about censorship in China called "The Anaconda in the Chandelier." One of the points he makes that I think is relevant here is that, sometimes a vague sense of paranoia, of being watched, serves the purpose. (Journalists become self-censoring.) So, maybe this sort of paranoia about Chinese restaurants also serves a purpose, of making Americans feel weakened and vulnerable. (Note that similar sentiments about Japanese Americans during WWII resulted in the Internment Camps. But no one said anything about the German-Americans.)

 

It MAY very well be true. But so? Let's just make sure that there are equally many McDonald's and Starbucks infiltrating all regions of China. If it makes anyone feel better, there are already several McDs and Starbuckses strategically in place, all around Tienanmen Square, and across the best parts of Beijing, Shanghai and other major Chinese urban areas.

 

And how about that some of my favorite Chinese eateries in California have Mexican chefs and sous chefs who equally do not seem to speak much English. Maybe Mexico is watching the watchers?

So are you suggesting that cold-war proxy wars once fought in client states are now being waged via fast food joints, coffee shops and Chinese restaurants – and that the world’s restaurateurs serve as our first line of offense/defense?

Cause if this is true, I think you’ve just opened a whole new can of Dinty Moore Italian-style Vegetable Stew with Meatballs.

Oklahoma tea parties and lawmakers envision militia

 

I wonder what she thinks about this deal.

All this energy spent fretting over imaginary concerns – it really is its own brand of insanity.

Stayed up until midnight to download it on my Kindle, read until about two-ish - damn I miss him terribly.

Yet another example of the porousness of certain borders:

Don Blankenship Called Safety Regulators ‘As Silly As Global Warming’

http://wonkroom.thinkprogress.org/2010/04/12/blankenship-silly-safety/

 

 

 

 

* People who pass a "Left Turn Yield to Cyclists" sign, and do not yield to me twenty feet later;

 

 

I’m really fond of people who disregard yield signs altogether, like, don’t even glance back in the direction of traffic, which ends in them cutting you off, and then they have the nerve to act all surprised when you pull up next to them and/or follow them home whilst brandishing a firearm, a fake one no less.

Panther did quit, but then came back months later, still spewing the same garbage.

I'm still not convinced that Panther is the original PANTHER – the craziness just seems a bit more forced this time.

I think this Panther is an imposter.

The elderly

People who wear watches – especially the people who wear watches and then get all huffy and act put upon when you ask the time, every few minutes

Overly precious baby animals who know they’re precious and then try to manipulate you using that preciousness – usually against your will

The guy at work who has to “let me just double check with regards to that” everything – and I mean everything

People who don’t say “thank you” when I hold the door for them, and then act all surprised and offended when I instruct them to go fuck their mothers and/or themselves

The way my toaster never seems to know how to correctly prepare a Pop Tart – leaving it either too cold or burnt, but never just right

after watching last nights episode I think we can safely break the Island Universe and Alt Universe down in a simple way. The Island Universe each of the Character's have experienced true love.

 

Desmond - Penny

Sawyer - Juliet

Jack - Kate

Daniel - Charlotte

Hurley - Libby

Charlie - Claire

Jin - Sun

Ben - Alex (who said love has to be a sexual love)?

 

The only one who has not found true love is Locke who is now MIB. Though is his true love the Island?

 

And in the Alt-Universe none of the characters seem to have any true love.

 

One could argue about Jin and Sun, though are we sure it is not just a roll in the hay for one or both? Sure Sun said she was pregnant, but is it Jin's, or could it possibly be that bald headed dude?

 

So it all comes down to love eh? True Love? Or to blave, if you are Miracle Max.

I’m not quite sure I would describe the attraction shared between Kate & Jack, and, say, Hurley & Libby as examples of what most of us would define as true love. Maybe I need to go back and watch the earlier episodes, but if I recall correctly, Hurley was just beginning to get to know Libby before she was killed off. And though Jack and Kate share a connection, I think true love is maybe too strong a statement to employ when describing their relationship.

Of all the relationships, the love shared between off-island Locke and that woman who used to be on Married with Children seems just as deep and mature as the affection shown between any of the other characters currently involved in a relationship, with, perhaps, the exception of on-island Desmond and Penny.

Such an impossibly shitty situation for all involved.

The Real Anti-Americans

I can sort of maybe understand unrest in relation to say, civil rights or a war, but what I cannot understand, is how the right has got itself so worked up in response to a neutered health care bill and some total fabrications regarding Obama’s status as a citizen, his ties to terrorists and/or terrorism, his plot to destroy America, take away our freedoms, and turn the US into a socialist state. And therein, for me, lies the capital D, difference, the right is getting itself all worked up in response to things that, and here is the hook, are not fucking real – and that, I think, matters.

With respect to Pat’s concerns regarding North America’s darkening complexion, perhaps it would be wise for him to reflect upon this land masses’ history, the one in which dark skinned people inhabited the land. Assholes like Buchanan appear to believe that history began with the appearance of white men.

Perhaps because most of the Tea Baggers lean right? You can lean right and not identify as a Republican and still vote Republican, therefore it makes sense that the GOP would court you. There's nothing inherently wrong with that.

True, but many truthers lean left. I don’t know, I wouldn’t go out of my way to seek the support of a group of people who conduct themselves the way the tea baggers (or truthers) have – some things are more important than votes. Unless, of course, you’re Michelle Bachman and you actually believe this shit – shit like, the current census is a precursor to internment camps and any other crazy shit you can think up and then convince yourself is real in an effort to appeal to your base, even if your base is nearly clinically insane.

You know that it's a lot more complex than that - getting branded as a loony lefty, that is. A lot of us VCers didn't believe Bush was telling the truth all the time, and I can count on one hand the number among us who were branded by others as loonies. Don't ruin this by oversimplifying everything.

I was referring to the climate outside this board. Right wing radio, and their brothers in arms, the Republican Party, spent eight years belittling anyone who dared question or criticize Bush’s motives and/or honesty. But you're right, real life is complex, but you might not know that if you're a fan of Rush Limbaugh, etc.

For starters (if you'll pardon me), a lot of Tea Baggers identify as independents. Simply because they do not support Obama, why should the GOP make any sort of statement against them? Many of the RNC protestors also identified as independents, which is the same reason why I don't recall a blanket dismissal of them on the part of the Democrats.

The tea baggers have a few things in common with 9/11 Truthers, among them, a profound inability to sort fact from fiction, but, and please correct me if I’m wrong, I don’t recall prominent democrats taking to the air to justify the insane claims and demands of the 9/11 crowd. You’re correct, many tea partiers identify themselves as independents, however, unlike the GOP, I haven’t seen the Democratic Party go out of its way to gain their support or seek their favor – I think at this point, they’d be happy if they could get them to simply re-embrace reality.

Suggesting Bush wasn’t always telling the truth, when in fact, he wasn’t, would get you branded as a loony lefty – you might even find yourself diagnosed with Bush Derangement Syndrome by the same group of republicans who have encouraged, either openly or through their silence, the idea that Obama, with the help of his fellow democrats, is trying to destroy this country – which, unlike the charges levied against Bush (torture, falsifying evidence, etc), is a work of fiction on par with the Easter Bunny.

This whole equivalency thing, that both sides are equally at fault, that all arguments have two equal sides drives me a bit batty. I’m not a democrat, and a I disagree with them and the president on many issues, but honest to christ, the republicans almost look as though they’re auditioning for the role of the mustache twirling villain.

Is the use of arms more reprehensible than violent mass vandalism, molotov cocktails and pipe bombs?

No, but my point is that some republicans are sort of defending or at least explaining away threats of that type of behavior by turning it around, and blaming democrats for forcing this bill down the throat of Americans. It’s not so much what the tea baggers are saying or doing, they’re just ignorant assholes, it’s the fact that the Republican Party cannot just come out and state that threatening a politicians life is simply wrong, regardless of the circumstances.

Of course, this is the same group of people who, above all else, ramble on and on about personal responsibility, and how we’re all responsible for our own actions and behavior, but then, turn around and claim that the democrats, and not just the assholes making the threats, are also to blame for someone else’s behavior.

When individuals other than conservative psychos react violently or inappropriately to something they don’t like republicans call it acting irresponsibly, however, when conservative psychos react violently or inappropriately to something they don’t like, republicans call it justified – especially when the anger is directed at democrats and/or liberals, as you’re about to learn in the following Daily Show clip.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/30/jon-stewart-returns-and-r_n_518216.html