More Fireworks! aka CNN Dun Fucked Up

While Stefan gives his usual excellent overview, in this instance I think Sargon of Akkad gives just enough needed backstory. Oh, and Razorfist displays his usual vulgar eleoquence.

(Update - it's unsure at this time whther the person who created the original GIF was a minor or not. Some rumors indicate yes, but there exists reason to believe this is not the case. This in no way makes it better because we either have CNN ruining the life of a minor before he even graduates, or, since the altrnative is very possibly a middle aged guy with a family, destroying the career of an adult with a family to support.)

(Update 2 - The Didact made a nice post on this too, with a handy graphic pointing to a handful of CNN Advertisers)

Frankly, other than discovering a vast, depthless well of shadenfreude I hadn't previously been aware of, I can't add much to the conversation. I'm in awe, the degree to which they managed to score an own goal. I don't think "Leeeeeeerooooooy Jenkins!" begins to cover it.

A couple fun memes and gif's were found though, and I've added a couple myself, though I suspect mine aren't up to the same degree of quality.

Happy 4th!

No, no deep essays on the nature of freedom, or kvetching about how our country seems to be balkanizing.

Just a sincere wish that everyone who reads this is able to spend some time with friends and family, and enjoy themselves and the day.

Insanity is in the Mirror

Brad Walker has a nice compilation of reactions from Vox Day, Sargon of Akkad, and a few observations himself on the total media freakout over Trumps wrestling tweet.

For that matter, Scott Adams covered it in his periscope. TLDR: It's embarassing and juvenile, but effective, and - entirely coinceidentally, of course - exactly the right bit of persuasion to make the media shriek and look like idiots while getting a laugh from his supporters. He also describes it as Trump handing the media the rope, and the instructions on how to hang themselves, then watching them proceed to do so.

I'm going to leave aside the easy targets for "projection" though - all the calls for violence on the left that were dismissed as "just art".

Instead, Pelosi appears to be losing her mind/getting dementia. This is not the first case of her losing context in front of a crowd.

But the left, and the media, of course is harping about how Trump is insane, and unfit for office.

Yet we're still, especially in academia, seeing an utter and ongoing collapse in common sense. A Stanford professor prattles on about how calling your homework easy is microagression in yet another case of "I can't meet that standard so it's a criticism of me, it's all about meeeee".

But Trump is insane.

Perhaps it's less projection than they are so far from wisdom they think it's insanity?

On another note, Today's Dilbert cartoon is fun.

DIlbert, and "Toppers" (and Braggarts)

Peter Grant shows off a recent Dilbert Cartoon at his blog, about "toppers." I used to call them one-upsmen. Everything they had was bigger, better, etc., ad nauseum. The worst example I could think of you couldn't mention your car, your boat, your fishing rod, your computer, etc.without him going on and on about how much more awesome of one he had. Always back home, never where we could see it.

He didn't make it through a second run underway without being transferred off.

John Wick Chapter 2. Again

I know, I know, he can be slow to get around to a movie, but the Didact finally saw John Wick 2 and despite having his mind blown, enough of it survived to write about it.

There isn't a single wasted moment in it. There is not one scene that does not bristle with energy and is not stylishly shot. There is not one action sequence that is anything less than jaw-dropping.

About the only flaw that I can find in the movie is that maybe the characters are not particularly well developed or interesting- but that is because, one way or another, they are all going to get killed to death by the walking incarnation of the boogey man himself, John Wick.

Speaking of the titular character- I don't know how Keanu Reeves has managed this late-stage career change, but whatever voodoo hoodoo he do, it's bloody well working.

Long gone are the days when you could think of Keanu Reeves as the stoner chucklehead from Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure. Gone, too, are the days when you could think of him as just another good-looking square-jawed Hollywood action hero from Speed.

I'll also note I find the title - "Chapter 2" of interest. While it could simply be a stylish way to designate the sequel without using a cheesy title ("Die Harder") or just the number, there's a theory going around places like Geek Gab, and from the structure of the two films, I give it credence, that there is an overarching story here. The second certainly sets up not only a future sequel but - giving enough of a climax to close out the movie - puts the pieces in play to finish an arguably ongoing story that ties neatly into the first.

Also, as the Didcat points out, there's an excellent writeup at Return of Kings. There are few films I consider "perfect" or nearly so, where everything fits, even the twists, where the acting just works, and the characters, editing, what is show on screen is done with absolutely minimum waste of time and a maximum of information, regardless of whether it pushes the boundaries of cinema or not. One for me is the Usual Suspects. One that looks like it may plant itself there is the recent Baby Driver. the first John Wick is also one.