OK, we’re going to try to start moving on. But first, a couple worthwhile links:
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There has been much talk throughout the blogosphere — not to mention the real world, but obviously nobody pays attention to that — about moving to Canada. Some of it is meant as a joke. Some of it is probably at least a little bit serious. To address this topic seriously for a moment, please go read this post at Daily Kos. You may want to sit down.
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And over at MyDD.com, there are a few statistically related notes which are well worth reading, such as this one which notes that in addition to Bush receiving more votes than anyone else who has ever run for president, “This is the largest number of people who have ever voted AGAINST a president.” MyDD.com also highlights this post from Another Liberal Blog which mentions that if Iowa and New Mexico do go his way, the three states that won the election (IA, NM and Ohio) would have been won by a combined total of 161,989 votes. Of course, all of this supports the point I was making while discussing his press conference: That while the President absolutely won a majority fair and square, that’s not the same thing as winning a mandate. If he doesn’t recognize that, he will never be able to “earn” the “trust” of those who voted for his opponent.
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If Arafat is really dead or on his way, it changes the entire dynamic of the Middle East peace process. This administration has done nothing to help advance the notions of peace in the area. They have disengaged themselves more than any administration in the last 30 years, and doing so has only helped the situation get worse by the day. Their primary excuse has been that they won’t talk to Arafat. If Arafat dies, they will have no further excuses to not get in the middle of the issue and restart some form of peace process. Can anything be done at this point since tensions are now probably even greater than before the progress made during the Clinton years? Hopefully, yes, if only because the Palestinians who have been fighting for change feel like without Arafat acting as a held-hostage figurehead, they can finally make their voices louder. But the Bush Administration absolutely must engage in this process and help force the two sides to get together. Without the US, nothing positive will ever happen there.
And now for some things far more trivial, and therefore, much more important:
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The most important news of the week — after this item mentioned yesterday, of course — is the return of The O.C. to our weekly habit. With Wednesdays becoming more competitive than ever, Joey still not exceeding mediocrity and Survivor proving to be more boring than ever, The O.C. should actually be able to dominate the 8 PM hour, and it becomes a pleasant diversion from the rest of the crap. Of course, this is assuming that it doesn’t come back and suck royally. -
Because Hannibal was so damn … just OK, another Hannibal Lecter film is on its way. Author Thomas Harris’s publishers announced last week that the author was working on a new Hannibal novel called “Behind the Mask” that would depict how a young Lecter became the fava bean eating, wine drinking serial killer we all know and love. Of course movie rights were snapped up by Hannibal and Red Dragon producer Dino De Laurentiis, and yesterday it was announced that Peter Webber will direct for a summer 2006 release. Considering that Webber’s last film was the beautiful to watch but relatively boring Girl With a Pearl Earring, I don’t have too much confidence that such a film will be even as good as Hannibal, which wasn’t that great to begin with.
I wonder if when Harris first wrote “Black Sunday” (which doesn’t involve Lecter at all) and “Red Dragon” (in which Lecter is really a secondary character at best), he ever imagined that his career would be completely defined by this one serial killer. Even in “Silence of the Lambs”, while Lecter’s presence becomes far more central to the overall plot, Buffalo Bill is the active serial killer on the loose. The very existence of “Hannibal” and this forthcoming book really seem to be solely due to the success of the Oscar winning movie and the potential for new filmed adaptations. In a way, that’s a shame, and chances are nothing will be as good as those three original novels and Jonathan Demme’s film. Unfortunately, if commercialism is driving Harris over his imagination, we all lose out.
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Just when ABC seemed to be getting its development slate in order creating some of the best new shows on television, shows that are unique and creative and interesting, they sign Elton John is getting his own sitcom which will, shock-of-shockers, be about the life of an aging rock-star and those around him. I don’t mean to be cynical, and the ABC execs sure are putting an overenthusiastic spin on this — “I think it will be one of the funniest things on TV in a while” — but to me it simply reeks of high-concept star casting that will in all likelihood crash and burn spectacularly. Go ahead, Elton — prove me wrong.
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Shocking news flying across the AP wire this afternoon: “Lip-Synching Has Always Been the Standard.” Shocking, I say. Who knew? Blast you, you demon that is Ashlee Simpson. Now see what thou hast wrought?
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The West Wing is really torturing me. The season’s first episode gave me hope for better things to come. The second made me want to forget the show ever existed. Last night’s episode was a step back toward respectability, and the decision on a new Chief of Staff definitely took me by surprise. Is it realistic? Doesn’t look that way, but what do I know. For the sake of the show, I think it’s a great and fascinating choice filled with possibilities. I’ll talk about this more whenever I get to my Season-so-far-in-review post (which will hopefully be happening soon), but the damn thing is keeping me on the fence. It needs to retain an upwards trajectory though. This ebb and flow of quality won’t keep it on my DiVo’s regular-to-record list.
Out of Focus 