Battlestar Galactica News – Caprica

Okay all you Battlestar Galactica fans I have good news.  It has just been reported by the Hollywood Reporter, that SciFi Channel has announced that they are picking up “Caprica,” the prequel to BSG.  “Caprica” will start as a two-hour pilot that will begin production this spring.  Air date is yet to be determined.  Ronald Moore and David Eick from BSG will be executive produces of this new series.

“Caprica” has been in the developmental stages for two years and looks like it finally will have a life after all.  “Caprica” takes place 50 years before BSG and will center on the Adam family and the origins of the deadly, evil Cylons.  “I’m very excited about that.  If “Battlestar Galactica’ is ‘Black Hawk Down.’ I would say that ‘Caprica’ is “American Beauty,’” said David Eick.  Eick has stated “‘Caprica’ is all about the inner lives of the people on a plant and how their personal relationships as well as their professional relationships inform what will become the creation of the Cylons.”  Moore mentioned, “It’s a political story, a family story.  It’s about the creation of the Cylons, and it’s about a company.  It’s planet-based.  It’s very character-oriented, very serialized and very much about the characters.  It’s a whole different genre, and that’s what makes it exciting.”

Let’s hope the pilot gets picked up, you can never have too many Cylons in your life…that is for fracking sure!

Ax Men on The History Channel (review)

This past Sunday night started the new reality series on History Channel called Ax Men.  This series follows the trials and tribulations of five logging companies as they pine for “green gold” on the Oregon cost – an environmentalist worst nightmare.

As an avid fan of Discovery Channel’s Deadliest Catch, I thought I would give this show a shot.  The first episode introduces us to four small timber companies – Browning Logging, Gustafson Logging, Stump Branch Logging, and Pihl Logging as they pull timber from some of the treacherous mountain tops on the Pacific Coast. Like the Deadliest catch, time and the elements are adversaries these loggers face as they try to earn a good day’s living.

Each of these companies comes with their own cast of characters, logging philosophies, challenges, and short-term goals.  Not too different from the crews of the crab boats on the Deadliest Catch except the loggers lack the personality of the fisherman – Capt Phil, Sig, Blake Painter to name a few.  I know it was just the first show, but I just was not able to connect with loggers like I can with the Deadliest Catch cast.

Similar to the Deadliest Catch, the cinematography is excellent.  The producers are able to capture the danger the loggers are facing while presenting the beauty of the environment the loggers are working in.  To my surprise, danger lurks around every corner when logging on the mountain.  I knew it was dangerous working with chainsaws and axes, but I had know idea the inclines these guys are working on, the weather conditions, and the heavy equipment they are using that can take a man’s life in a moment’s notice. 

Oh don’t forget the two-ton logs that are being pulled up the mountain by temporary sky lifts are also death traps waiting to happen.  To give you an idea, a sky lift is a wire that stretched from the top of a crane called a Yarder to the bottom of the ridge.  This wire has a unit that attaches to a fresh cut tree and pulls it up to the top of the ridge to be loaded on trucks.  This is an amazing operation and my description does not do it justice.

For the most part Ax Men was quite entertaining and helped break the stereotype that all lumberjacks wear knit caps and flannel shirts.  Ax Men is basically a poor man’s version of the Deadliest Catch.  If you had nothing else on Sunday evening at 10 PM EST to watch, then go for it, but I would not go out of my way to make this part of a weekly stable of shows to watch like I do for the Deadliest Catch.

Cobra Commander for President 2008

Well it is March and the winds of change are blowing like a gale from the North Sea.   It is about seven months before the change of command and so far this presidential election season has seen its fair share of drama – from the McCain comeback to the slug fest between Clinton and Obama. 

Even with all this drama, I have yet to find a candidate that I feel passion it about.  If I take a look at my choices, I just see slim pickings. 

Let’s run though the Presidential choices: the Republican nominee Senator John McCain…he is not for me, not conservative enough (liberal in Republican disguise).

Next up is the consumer advocate Ralph Nader…scratch him from the list, he is too much of a nut job (plus running for the fifth time).

Okay then how bout Senator Hillary Clinton…are you kidding me!  Her shady money ties to the Chinese and by the way I just can’t get past her being married to Slick Willy.

And last but not least the “The People’s Champion” Senator Obama…nada!  What is his true platform besides change, plus Hillary is correct with her Texas add, what is he going to do if he get’s call 3 am in the morning?  Obama’s lack of answer scares the HELL out of me!

So, I left still searching for a candidate I can connect with, a candidate which has enormous foreign policy experience, a candidate who is a Washington outsider, a candidate with executive experience and candidate who make me feel proud to be an American.  So who can pass the litmus test?

Believe it or not, I think I found the right candidate – Cobra Commander!  Yes, you heard right, the former ‘80s icon is back to lead the American people through the turbulent waters of our time.

So what experience does he have?  Well, he has lead for years a multi-national organization that had to deal with hostel governments — perfect qualities for a President during the War on Terror.  

Cobra Commander also kept his life private out of the media and has not compromised any his integrity.  He also has the skill of diplomacy.  Plus having a military background qualifies him as “Commander and Chief” for this country as we do battle in the far off lands of Iraq and Afghanistan. 

Cobra Commander is not shy about taking your money no matter what party or group you belong too — that is truly being bi-partisan.  Plus he does not back down when confronted with insurmountable odds. 

What other candidate running can match these qualities…none!  I give you – Cobra Commander for President!

So what is his platform?  Good question, here are a few of his ideas that will help America get back on track:

• Washington needs change – from the outside in
• An Outsider, not a career Politician
• Does not pander to the special interest groups that have plagued Washington over the years
• Cobra Commander will not run a negative campaign, unlike Clinton and Obama
• Cobra Commander will propose to Congress for two trillion dollars to build a “Weather Dominator”
• Elderly food program
• “Washington is a place where good ideas go to die.” He is ready to change that.

Cobra Commander 2008!!! 

Is Digg selling out to Google or Microsoft?

Just a few months ago MSNBC purchased Newsvine, a citizen journalist website which my wife writes for, to enhance their online image.  To my wife’s delight her articles are now showing up on MSNBC.  Without this purchase her exposure to a wider audience would have been a bit more challenging.  However did Newsvine lose their independence and the individual voice that it once had when devoured by a corporate parent like MSNBC (owned by GE and Microsoft)?  Good question.

The reason I bring this question up is because of the rumor now circling the net which CNET has picked up that another darling of the independent, arm-chair journalist Digg might the next site to be absorbed into corporate American.  Currently the rumor has both Microsoft and Google looking at adding Digg to their portfolios for around 250 million dollars.  As much as I like Google and feeling so-so about Microsoft, is Digg a good fit with either company?  I wonder…

CNET reported several weeks ago in an interview with Digg founder Kevin Rose about possibility of selling, Rose felt that selling the company to a corporate parent would cause Digg to run less efficiently.  Not selling is good news . . . for now.  But how long will Rose hold out when he is offered upwards of 300 million dollars.  At some point the dollars will start to talk and it’ll be too hard not to listen.

Is this the wave of social networks to now become arms of much larger media companies?  Will the independent, critical voice now be silenced when the views of the writers differ from the corporate owner?  That is a distinct possibility.  

I guess with Web Advertisement firms now been gobbled up by Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft, the next wave of purchases is the hot social networks like Digg, WordPress, Twitter, and etc. 

With access to million of users in these social networks, Google and Microsoft will have a forum they can use to display their in-house billboards for their now acquired web ad firms.  What an easy way for these firms to build synergy for their companies and to control advertisement costs.   When will it end?!?!   

For all of us, let’s hope Digg along with the rest of the social networks stay as independent as long as possible, the voice of the independent, arm-chair journalist will not be silent! 

New Iron Man trailer

Iron Man has now moved into the category as a must see movie of the summer movie season along with The Dark Knight and Indiana Jones.  Boy, this is going to be a hot summer at the cinema!

Check out the new trailer which is tight!  Please note AC/DC rocking in the background…what a nice touch! 

McCain’s running mate

 My Sunday paper had an interesting article that asked the question who will be Senator John McCain’s running mate for the race to the White House.  A question a lot of us on the right, middle, and the left are starting to ask.

McCain’s choice of running mate is an important one especially with the perception in the party that McCain is not truly a conservative in the mold of Reagan instead a moderate (an image that he crafted throughout much of his political career).  One way is to pick a running mate that holds many of the ideas that are at the core of the conservative movement – pro-life, limited government, low taxes, immigration reform, and for the most part a Christian.  It would also help if his running mate hails from the south.

Robert Stacey, a professor at Regent University, has put together several scenarios that he sees potentially play out before the convention starts later this summer. 

Could Huckabee be Robin to McCain’s Batman?  He is from the south, a strong pro-lifer, and a “Christian” – all qualities that McCain might be looking for.  Then again Huckabee is a real flake and when  pressed about his views, he changes them quicker than Dolly Patron changes wigs.  So Huckabee is out.

Could his running mates be the Governors Haley Barbour of Mississippi, Mark Sanford of South Carolina, or Charlie Crist of Florida?  All have a good conservative base and can pull in the southern vote.  Well, Robert Stacey doesn’t think he needs them. 

This election is about change the moderate and the independent vote.  What better way to demonstrate change and to capture the moderate/independent vote is get a running mate that compliments your own position?  Rudy Giuliani could be the one, plus he’s good friend of McCain and is “America’s Mayor.”

Better yet, how bout his old, dear friend Senator Joe Lieberman!  Lieberman can not only bring quite a few Democratic votes to the table, but the independent vote as well which tends to shift most Presidential candidates into the wining column. 

Also, Lieberman could also tip the balance in historically blue states like Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, California, and parts of New England.  Victories in these could offset the lack of a Southern on the ticket.  McCain could also run with the tag line that he is truly looking at bring bi-partisan politics back to Washington.  What a novel approach!  The major drawback to this strategy is upsetting the base of the party. 

Will hard core Republicans still vote for McCain?  A question that is too early to determine.  Stay tune…

Polution turns a river red in China

 In the eyes of the global environmental movement, the United States is the “Great Satan”, to steal a line from the Iranians.  No matter what the United States does, it is not good enough to help the environment and the United States is root cause of all the world’s environmental problems – global warming, acid rain, ocean pollution, etc.

My question to the global environmental movement is why isn’t China singled out like the United States?  Here is a good example of extreme pollution that was just a minor blip on the radar in the liberal media.

The Associated Press reported on that parts of the Han River system (branch of the Yangtze) turned red and foamy, leading the Chinese authorities to cut off water supplies to about 200,000 people.  This water crisis included issuing bottle water, providing water from fire trucks, and closing five schools. 

After a battery of tests, it was discovered that the river water contained elevated levels of nitrogen, permanganate, and ammonia.  All these identified chemicals are toxic for human and animal consumption.  Guess where these chemicals are going to end up…in the Yellow Sea and the Pacific Ocean.

This example is just one of the many rampant pollution problems plaguing the main water supply in China.  And this problem is not new.  Pollution has been on the rise and unchecked in China for the last 20 years.  Water pollution is not the only problem in China.  Don’t forget about the horrible air quality that hangs like a brown fog in most Chinese cities. 

Can you believe the Summer Olympic Games might cancel some events not because of the weather, but because the pollution is so bad the athletes can not breathe?  Yeah, unbelievable!!!

So, I ask, where is the global call of arms in the environmental movement for China to clean up their act?  From where I am sitting that call of arms is falling on deaf ears.  The environmental movement is so focused on the United States; it fails to see the big picture – China.  It is time for the spotlight to be on China and call for it to make a real change in how it handle the environment. 

Is the environmental movement really trying to save the plant for our children or is it really an anti-United States movement in disguise?  A question we need to start asking ourselves.

How to improve American Idol

After sitting on my couch for seven weeks now watching American Idol I have come to some realizations and suggestions for this show. 

The biggest of all my realizations is that someone needs to break out that multi-purpose duck tape, tear off a piece, and stick it on the mouth of Paula Abdul.  God, she is driving me nuts!!!  I have now watched American Idol for two years and I have yet to hear anything insightful from Paula on any of here judgments.  So, what does she bring to the show?  Well, you got me…So my suggestion is more Simon and much less Paula.

Enough with my Paula rant.  The thing that I have noticed from all the contestants (men and women) is that their music choices are a bit safe and well…boring.  None of the songs make me want to get off my couch and dance with my twins.  So, I have few suggestions that I think that can propel Idol to the next level.  

First, let’s move from themes that focus around decades and instead make the themes around music style.  For instance, metal night…YEAH!   All right “dawg” as Randy would say, let the contestant’s belt out some either Ozzy, Guns n’ Rose, Metallica, and Cinderella to name a few for Metal night.  Okay, if not Metal how about Punk – Sex Pistols, Ramones, The Clash, etc.  We could also do the Blues – B.B. King, Clapton, Robert Johnson, Buddy Guy, John Lee Hooker, etc or the Rat Pack.  You get the picture.  Wouldn’t that be such a better show?

The second thing I would do is pick out interesting songs if I have to use decades as themes.  Let’s take this week’s theme – The Seventies.  Most of the songs I am listening tonight are boring.  Before I get beat up with that bored statement, I will say there were one or two which were good, but the rest lack any oomph…what I mean is that none of the team got my foot tapping and my soul into the song.  So, I have come up with 10 songs that I think the contestants should sing to make the night fun, interesting, and unforgettable.

(in no particular order)

1. Stairway to Heaven – Led Zeppelin
2. War – Edwin Star
3. Kung Fu Fighting – Carl Douglas
4. My Ding A Ling – Chuck Berry
5. Dancing Queen – Abba
6. American Woman – The Guess Who
7. Iron Man – Black Sabbath
8. Margaritaville – Jimmy Buffett
9. Freebird – Lynyrd Skynyrd
10. Bat out of Hell – Meat Loaf