tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58550292012-04-15T20:23:16.254-05:00<b>Dr. Kaufman:</b> A strange neurosis, evidently contagious, an epidemic mass hysteria. In two weeks, it spread all over town.<br> <br> <b>Miles:</b> What causes it?<br> <br> <b>Dr. Kaufman:</b> Worry –– about what&#39;s going on in the world, probably.<br> <br> <b>Miles:</b> I'd hate to wake up some morning and find out that you weren't you.<br> <br> <i><small>From: "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" (1956)</small></i>Nemohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17497262195318493814noreply@blogger.comBlogger1288125http://www.feedburner.com/fb/images/pub/fb_pwrd.gifThis is an XML content feed. It is intended to be viewed in a newsreader or syndicated to another site.tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-53782058844769878852010-11-16T19:23:00.004-06:002010-11-16T20:15:55.637-06:00

The Republican's latest Lucy-Pulling-Away-The-Football moment, courtesy of the New York Times:President Obama’s hopes of ratifying a new arms control treaty with Russia this year appeared to unravel on Tuesday as a Senate Republican leader moved to block a vote in what could be a devastating blow to the president’s most tangible foreign policy achievement.Mr. Obama had declared ratification of

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/11/blood-sport.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-86367191832673285982010-11-15T21:22:00.004-06:002010-11-16T12:28:19.484-06:00

If a TSA employee put hands on my daughter the way they put hands on the little girl in this video, I would put a stop to it and dare the bastards to arrest me:var myvidster_embed="myvidster_embed_600891";Making me take my shoes off in the security line is one thing. But we are a nation of sheep if we put up with this sort of thing. Laughably, TSA reps say that Americans can ride the bus if they

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/11/three-year-old-terrorist.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-8069295788984439072010-08-11T20:12:00.001-05:002010-08-11T23:07:09.950-05:00

I'm a fan of the AMC's Mad Men, and thought last week's episode, "The Good News", ranks among the series' best so far. Don Draper and Lane Price end up bonding on New Year's Eve, as each of the divorced men find they have nowhere to go.They down a few drinks (at the office, of course) and decide to go see a movie. After rejecting Zorba the Greek, The Guns of August and The Umbrellas of

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/08/here-comes-jackpot-question-in-advance.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-46960393518143581952010-08-09T19:03:00.000-05:002010-08-09T19:11:22.742-05:00

My previous post on Blockbuster Video didn't mention (or perhaps just glossed over) the fact that Blockbuster really did try to change its business model as it was getting squeezed by advancing technology.The videocassette rental giant began offering on-demand viewing on home computers in its waning days. Too little, too late, the Blockbuster critics hooted. But at least Blockbuster tried to

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/08/philistine-meets-wolf-man-continued.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-38978982015454207042010-08-02T20:46:00.002-05:002010-08-02T22:59:27.550-05:00

Back in 1987 I got a job at a video rental store. It was a mom-and-pop operation on Saint Paul's Grand Avenue, and it offered each of its titles in two videocassette formats -- Betamax, which was still cherished by many, and VHS, which was quickly becoming the industry standard.The video rental market had gotten started in such little shops, and in the beginning, business was good. On a Friday

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/07/philistine-meets-wolf-man.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-17879453752879544102010-07-21T20:41:00.001-05:002010-07-21T21:16:59.386-05:00

I've always felt some affection for the old Popular Science feature Wordless Workshop, a cartoon that would teach you how to spend twelve hours building an impractical solution to a ten-second annoyance.I hadn't seen a copy of PopSci (as it now irritatingly markets itself) for many years, but I picked one up at the doctor's office the other day. In what I guess is a modern-day version of WW, we

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/07/unpopular-science.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-42857441344414453262010-07-21T18:35:00.001-05:002010-07-21T18:50:43.363-05:00

Economic Lysenkoist J.D. Foster has a beef with President Obama's criticism of the latest bit of Republican obstructionism: With a vote on a $33.9 billion extension of jobless benefits pending in the Senate, Obama’s attack is to charge Republicans with opposing the extension. Why would he do that, given that congressional Republicans have stated repeatedly that they support the extension?Um,

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/07/yep-its-head-scratcher-all-right.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-69614416655805916882010-07-10T09:10:00.004-05:002010-07-10T11:10:39.768-05:00

I usually ignore whatever idiocies Rush Limbaugh is spewing, but I think this is too troubling a symptom of our current political mess to ignore.I think we face something we've never faced before in the country -- and that is, we're now governed by people who do not like the country, who do not have the same reverence for it that we do. Our greatest threat (and this is saying something) is

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/07/i-usually-ignore-whatever-idiocies-rush.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-28143741426522707252010-07-09T20:53:00.002-05:002010-07-09T21:33:46.225-05:00

Never let it be said that National Review Online isn't on the cutting edge of scientific inquiry. Today Rich Lowry recycled an old Jonah Goldberg piece which proclaimed that Galileo wasn't persecuted by the Church, but by other scientists (you know how they are). The Church, according to Jonah, didn't agree with the persecution and felt really bad about it; that's why they commuted his sentence

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/07/mister-we-could-use-man-like-urban-viii.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-8069845782801122732010-07-08T00:51:00.000-05:002010-07-08T12:01:21.291-05:00

The National Review Online places scare quotes around the word science.Cause you know, that's the garbage libtards believe in.

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/07/sign-of-times.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-60874957966851156592010-07-04T09:37:00.002-05:002010-07-04T10:26:47.238-05:00

America, you're one resilient country. You survived a bloody fight for independence, a devastating civil insurrection, the moral wounds of African slavery and native genocide, two world wars, a cold war, two depressions, Jim Crow laws, stagflation, Three's Company and two terms of the Bush Administration.And think of all the things you've contributed to the world: baseball, Duke Ellington, the

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/07/happy-independence-day.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-48773150351152136962010-07-02T01:22:00.003-05:002010-07-03T13:48:02.330-05:00

The news that Mel Gibson's girlfriend recorded him in the midst of an abusive, racist and foul-mouthed rant won't do much for his street cred among the family-values crowd. They don't talk as loudly about the guy as they used to. But they continued to carry water for him long after they should have known better.Back in 2000, Mel Gibson was the cat's pajamas in conservative circles. When Mel's

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/07/that-wonderful-conservative-champion.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-34709312536057983372010-06-28T01:19:00.001-05:002010-06-28T11:27:43.578-05:00

Last week Sarah Palin delivered a weird, rambling speech at California State University - Stanislaus. Operating sans Teleprompter put her extemporaneous speaking skills on full display, and it wasn't pretty. But it was interesting.It's a commonly held belief that Palin is dumb. It's an easy thing to say, but it isn't true. Rather, she seems to be a reasonably intelligent person who possesses a

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/06/sarahs-dogs-breakfast.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-60866600570698303502010-06-26T11:52:00.002-05:002010-06-26T11:56:48.256-05:00

The drummer from OK Go recklessly enters a staring contest with the drummer from Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem Orchestra. Place yer bets.

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/06/man-vs-animal.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-59655881133569545072010-06-07T20:55:00.004-05:002010-06-07T21:05:24.877-05:00

So here is the cover the geniuses at Vermont Catholic chose for their June issue -- the same issue reporting a record $18 million settlement with 22 victims of sexual abuse by priests in the diocese: Yep, the same sort of common sense that got the Vermont Catholics where they are today.Too bad doctor-assisted suicide is out of the question. Because the whole damned Church ought to be

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/06/youve-got-to-be-kidding.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-83933704486933762322010-05-30T09:33:00.006-05:002010-05-30T09:50:34.806-05:00

This week marks the launch of a new blog called The Horror Incorporated Project.It's all movie commentary, built around an old creature-feature show that ran in the Twin Cities in the 1970s.Funny thing, I have essentially been the sole proprietor of The Lost City for six years now, yet still think of myself as temporary help while Nemo is on hiatus. I live in hope for his return to these pages,

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/05/program-note.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-69014159920329475192010-05-29T21:11:00.002-05:002010-05-29T21:21:50.657-05:00

He was a pretty good actor who seemed doomed to play psychos and losers; and a very good director who might have been great if he'd been able to keep it together. Still, what a fascinating life he led. Hopper was his own man and I've always admired him for it.Seems to me the best work he did toward the end of his life was on the album Demon Days, by Gorillaz.Check it out.

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/05/rip-dennis-hopper.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-63738751117933638162010-05-29T16:32:00.004-05:002010-05-29T21:03:05.282-05:00

NPR's chief congressional reporter David Welna filed a story the other day that made me wonder about him. Is he 21? Did he just start his career as a reporter? Does he have an editor?I wondered these things because of the curious way he started his report on the "Don't Ask Don't Tell" repeal the other day. First, here is the intro that All Things Considered host Robert Segal read:A 1993 law

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/05/david-welna-man-lost-in-mists-of-time.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-79473493303987734042010-05-22T22:53:00.004-05:002010-05-23T08:33:02.453-05:00

Josh Green is convinced that Rand Paul's senate campaign in Kentucky is "flailing" because once he got the nomination, he stopped talking about bread-and-butter issues and began pulling out the more crankish items in the libertarian bag of tricks:What Paul spoke about on the stump was mostly the size of the deficit, his desire for a balanced budget and term limits, and his belief that a lot of

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/05/in-kentucky-you-cant-be-too-rich-or-too.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-81411733179300687722010-05-17T21:02:00.006-05:002010-05-17T21:29:39.373-05:00

Meet Dale Peterson, an emissary from this "real America" we've all been hearing about. He is running for Alabama's Commissioner of Agriculture. Dale has a horse, a gun, a cowboy hat, and a pair of mom jeans, and he shouts unhinged statements at the camera with a lack of self-conciousness usually found only in small children and mental patients. "Responsible for five billion dollars -- I bet

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/05/and-stay-outta-woolworths.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-46178198985742741902010-05-09T17:43:00.008-05:002010-05-09T22:33:05.195-05:00

I found it interesting that in 1999, when journalists were busy compiling lists of the biggest technological advances of the 20th century and / or 2nd millenium, the birth control pill was rarely mentioned. Neither were things like automated looms, or electrolytic capacitors (or soap, for that matter) -- because these are all things we take for granted.But the still-capitalized Pill is getting

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/05/hey-hey-keep-it-in-your-pants-willya.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-90579024826116960872010-05-03T21:09:00.004-05:002010-05-03T21:49:48.961-05:00

Like Evel Knievel attempting to jump sixteen buses because last week he successfully jumped 15, manic film blogger Arbogast guns the throttle, releases the clutch, thunders up the ramp, arcs across the sky, and explodes in a shower of charred logic and twisted verbal wreckage: In his misguided altruism, in his presumption that God cannot or will not provide sufficient sustenance for his flock,

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/05/death-by-deconstruction.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-81470453634663585952010-04-08T16:14:00.003-05:002010-04-08T21:48:47.166-05:00

Saw the following bumper sticker on a PT Cruiser driving in front of me on 10th street today:The quote sounded fishy to me: too contemporary in cadence to be Jefferson, and addressing concepts ("big" vs. "small" government) that were quite alien to the 18th century.Looking it up today, I found that the quote actually came from Gerald Ford, speaking to a joint session of Congress in August 1974.

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/04/tree-of-liberty-must-be-refreshed-from.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-26944735557327444712010-04-01T02:52:00.000-05:002010-04-01T15:08:37.608-05:00

This photo gallery of Tea Party signage didn't convince me that health care reform is a bad idea, but it certainly made me worry about the health of our public school system.

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/04/this-photo-gallery-of-tea-party-signage.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5855029.post-43353339637263829592010-03-31T21:13:00.008-05:002010-03-31T23:21:56.685-05:00

When I first saw a picture of the over-hyped and idiotically named new Apple iPad, I laughed.I'd read a few breathless reports from people who'd seen prototypes. They had described the mysterious gizmo as a giant iPhone. Come on, I thought, no way is Apple going to market a giant iPhone. I imagined it would be slim and light, kind of like a Kindle, but sexier and with a color touchscreen.But

Uncle Mikenoreply@blogger.com0http://www.thelostcity.org/2010/03/i-didnt-get-where-i-am-today-by-making.html