BARACK THE HOUSE

hurray!

take me to your leader.

The Vatican has approved belief in Aliens. Yes, the Catholic Church has said that it is okay for its followers to believe in little green dudes. The best part? They're part of God's creation and plan too! Thank...god?



So let's recap. Things Catholics not allowed to believe in:

- Pre-marital sex
- Women's rights
- Gay marriage
- Evolution
- Condom usage

Things Catholics CAN believe in:

- Aliens

Modernization complete.

Source:

Vatican says little green men are part of Creation

awesome speech, your holiness

Our President thinks the pope is awesome, dude.

The Gays

Yeah, this dude may be our governor, but at least gays can get married here.

Where you at, New York?

California Supreme Court Overturns Gay Marriage Ban

fuck yeah i like anything with the word sex in it

because people like us have lives, or in this case drama to e-tend too, i'm going into my stash of hometown favorites and picking out this gem!

sexo pudor y lagrimas (aptly titled sex, modesty and tears) is basically about two couples who live accross from each other, both having trouble in their relationships. when both couples invite ex lovers to stay at their houses. friction and comedy ensues, 3 men and 3 women. there's a lot of GREAT profanity in it if you want to sound classy in spanish, and a kick ass soundtrack. written and directed by antonio serrano, he's mostly known for writing good episodes of your mom's favorite novelas and tv mini series type movies... but if you're into all that cliche "amores perros" bullshit kind of stuff, then this movie probably isn't for you. but you should see it anyway, because it's not like most romantic comedys. none of your washed up snl comedian and cute button "i used to snort coke" actress... (I'M TALKING TO YOU FANS OF FEVER PITCH!!!!) this movie is definitely for the bilingual to find it hilarious, and funny for avid subtitle reader.


recommended and given a solid 4 out of 5 thumbs up.

how rad would it be if we had like 5 thumbs.

read more

since health is totally awesome

Was Sicko too liberal and biased for you? Were you too scared to go watch it because you thought that all of your conservative friends would make fun of you for actually thinking Michael Moore had something good to say? Are you just like everyone else (including myself) and feel that Michael Moore has just overstayed his welcome?

Well, that's okay because Frontline has an eye-opening short documentary posted on their website, which analyzes the pros and cons (we see that the pros usually outweigh the cons by a long-shot) of five universal healthcare systems in CAPITALIST and DEMOCRATIC countries.

You can watch it here: Sick Around the World

If you're still suffering from the Red Scare in your mind, you might want to move on. Oh no! Everyone gets health care! And I have to pay! SOCIALISM! What ever will we do?!

the doctors of punk

Punk tends to get a bad rap when it comes to...well...pretty much everything. This an understandable sentiment when most people identify punk with dudes that look like this:



(that was seriously the THIRD result in google images with the search "punk")

Believe me, I get it. I used to dread going to the Glasshouse in Pomona because I had to hear it from the gutter punks that hung out outside the venue during EVERY show.

Punks: You call that punk, man?! That's poser shit!
Me: Whatever.
Punks: Got any change?

But what most people don't realize (myself included for quite some time) is that deep within the punk movement is an intelligence that comes along with the need to rebel and make a voice for oneself. Sure, there are plenty of people in the movement that are like my mohawked friend above, worried about fashion, making a "statement" with their clothes, doing their best to overcompensate for the attention they lacked at home. Yet, in this pile of failure, there is often a gem.



This is Greg Graffin, lead singer of legendary punk band Bad Religion. With songs like "Fuck Armageddon...This is Hell" and "Suffer," it was probably easy for people to write off Graffin's lyrics as nothing but a rebellious teen looking for answers through loud music. It would've been even easier to write him off due to the band's very prominent Anti-Cross emblem. But those who wouldn't give him the time of day would be surprised to know that while singing full-time for the band, he was able to receive two degrees from UCLA (geology and anthropology) followed by a Master's in Geology from UCLA and a Ph.D in evolutionary biology from Cornell University. Between Bad Religion tours, he teaches Life Science courses at UCLA.



I think one of the big stereotypes when it comes to punk is that all of its listeners are no-good slackers. That's probably true for many, and part of that image may even be reflected in Milo Aukerman's (The Descendents) lyrics, but it's definitely not reflected in the life that he leads. After recording their legendary debut, Milo Goes to College, Milo did just that: went to college. He received his Bachelor's in Biochemistry from UC, San Diego and a Ph.D in Biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. The Descendents now take long breaks between albums and tours to allow Milo to do his research involving genetics and biochemistry. Oh yeah, he also has a couple kids and a wife.



Finally, we have my personal favorite: Dr. Dan Yemin. Dr. Dan has been the brain for three of hardcore's most influential bands (Lifetime, Kid Dynamite, Paint It Black). Each band contains distinct characteristics involving fast drums, fast guitars, and yelling at the top of one's lungs. With hardcore (especially the 80s hardcore that Yemin is so influenced by), it's even harder to get people in the "real world" to take you seriously. Yet, between running these three bands, Yemin was able to receive a Psy.D in Clinical Psychology from Widener University. He currently has a private practice in Pennsylvania where he practices Child Psychology.

I think what bums me out most about this idea is that even with all the work that guys like this have put into their studies, if people (most likely older, more conservative types) knew of their punk rock backgrounds, they would think less of them. They would refrain from allowing Dr. Dan be their child's therapist. They would cringe at the thought of paying UCLA tuition to have a "punk" teach their kid science. They would question the science behind Milo's studies. All because these guys wanted to be young, they wanted to do something different. They wanted to scream out loud at a world that didn't want to listen, and sometimes, still fails to.

Other notable punk scholars:

Keith Buckley - Every Time I Die (Virgina Tech)
Rivers Cuomo - Weezer (Harvard University)

on the 1st amendment, elected officials, and human dignity

Two days ago, State Rep. Douglas Bruce stated:

"I would like to have the opportunity to state at the microphone why I don't think we need 5,000 more illiterate peasants in Colorado"

Fortunately, those moderating the debate did not allow him to continue, and his remark has been met with general outrage. In his defense, he "looked up 'illiterate' in the dictionary and it means somebody who is lacking in formal education or is unable to read and write...I don't think these people who are planning to come over here and pick potatoes or peaches are likely to have much of a formal education. I looked up the word 'peasant.' The word 'peasant' means a person who works in agricultural fields."

Yes, the 1st amendment guarantees freedom of speech. I believe that this should be a universal human right, but this is by no means the case. So it makes sense that we as Americans cherish, exercise, and constantly defend this right. So when analyzing Bruce's remark through a more legalistic, Constitutional paradigm even I will begrudgingly agree that he technically DOES have a right to say that.

But to focus exclusively on the First Amendment would be to miss the issue entirely. The problem here is not necessarily whether or not he has a right to express a certain opinion, but how he chose to do so. With an issue as sensitive as immigration, one would expect that elected officials would be equally as sensitive in their commentary. We (well, those who voted for him anyway.. which doesn't include me) elected him because we trusted his ability to lead, his ability to exemplify American morals and ideals, and ultimately, his ability to recognize that politics is not just a system to maneuver, but a way to fundamentally help society progress.

Immigration is an issue that transcends political processes and geographic boundaries.

To excuse his comment on the two technicalities that a) his statement is protected by the 1st amendment and b) the words he used had correct denotations would be a failure to acknowledge the complexities that layer the issue. His remark was an insult to human dignity, and the polar opposite of what we should expect from the individuals that are running this country.

DENIMDAY LA

Peace Over Violence is proud to present the 10th Annual Denim Day in LA 2008, a campaign to raise awareness and educate the public about rape and sexual assault. It takes place on Wednesday April 23, 2008.

In 1998, an Italian Supreme Court decision overturned a rape conviction because the victim wore jeans. People all over the world were outraged. Wearing jeans became an international symbol of protest against erroneous and destructive attitudes about sexual assault.

Last year, on Denim Day an unprecedented 300,000 people signed up to wear jeans in support of raising awareness about the need to end sexual violence. This year we aim to at least double that amount.

This day in the schools, offices and streets of Los Angeles County we unite against rape of girls, women, boys and men. We stand in support of survivors. We break the silence to end sexual violence.

On Denim Day in LA wear your jeans as a visible sign of protest against the myths that still surround sexual assault!

www.denimdayinla.org

please visit and support the cause.

yeah yeah yeah. earth day.

I think it's a little bit ironic that the google search engine has a picture of a little nature-esque google logo, instead of doing what Blackle did.


Blackle.com is the energy efficient version of the Google search engine. Blackle is powered by Google Custom Search. It saves engery because of the screen being black.

"Image displayed is primarily a function of the user's color settings and desktop graphics, as well as the color and size of open application windows; a given monitor requires more power to display a white (or light) screen than a black (or dark) screen." Roberson et al, 2002

In January 2007 a blog post titled Black Google Would Save 750 Megawatt-hours a Year proposed the theory that a black version of the Google search engine would save a fair bit of energy due to the popularity of the search engine. Since then there has been skepticism about the significance of the energy savings that can be achieved and the cost in terms of readability of black web pages.

Do your part internet geeks!


www.blackle.com

Earth Day

So, it's Earth Day.

I won't flood your ears/minds/eyes with a bunch of redundant suggestions and hyperbolic pleas. We know it's important. If you don't, move on with your life already.

I only have one suggestion. Shopping bags. Buy them. No more plastic.

My personal choice are Envirosax (pictured above).

They look cool. They're durable. They're super convenient.

Check them out here: http://usa.envirosax.com/

my buddy bill

Rick Cleveland is a former writer for The West Wing, one of THE best and smartest television shows to ever grace a screen (oh, how I wish President Bartlett were real). He's also a good friend of former President Bill Clinton, and in the included videos, you can catch a preview of his one-man show describing his relationship with the President. It's hilarious in a deadpan completely serious sort of way.

If you're able to see the entire thing, it paints a ridiculously candid portrait of the President. It's impossible to say how much of it is true, if any at all, but it's hard not to listen to some of this stuff and think, "yeah I can see that." What's best about it is you get to hear an occasional story about current Presidential Candidate, Hillary Clinton. It makes you wonder who was really behind the first Clinton Presidency (especially the last included video). Hillary seems to come off as nothing more than the naggy wife type from a Judd Apatow movie. But then again, maybe I'm just being a dude.

Anyway, this is hilarious stuff, whether true or not. You should check it out if you can.

You can download the entire show for $2 on iTunes or try to catch it late at night on Comedy Central.

Other Stuff:

Rick's Election Blog @ Indecision 2008

red sox fans > yankees fans

Apparently a brawny Bostonian construction worker who happened to be working on the brand new Yankee Stadium "accidentally" dropped a Boston Red Sox jersey into the wet concrete of the foundation of the stadium. That has to be the best prank to ever be pulled in human history.

It doesn't stop there, though.

In fear of taking over the infamous Red Sox curse (which doesn't really even exist anymore thanks, in part, to the movie in my previous post, some say), the Yankees paid $50,000 to dig up the concrete and get the jersey out.

In order to save face and NOT look like sun-god-praising neanderthals, the Yankees have put the jersey on eBay and are donating the proceeds to Jimmy Fund.

I wish I wrote well enough to make stuff like this up.

Sources:

Red Sox Excavation

Red Sox Jersey Posted on eBay

Jersey eBay Listing

The Jimmy Fund

shhh...don't tell anyone: fever pitch

Shhh...don't tell anyone, but I LOVE Fever Pitch.

No, it's not the best movie in the world. It's not even the best romantic comedy (Annie Hall). It's ripe with clichés and tired jokes. But you know what? I don't care one bit. I can't help what entertains me.

I'm not sure what it is. It may be the fact that Jimmy Fallon plays a teacher in the movie. This is the only thing I've ever watched with him in it that doesn't leave me terribly annoyed or feeling like someone was trying to shove a Discount Store version of Adam Sandler down my throat. It may be the fact that one of my dreams is to get Dodgers season tickets, so I can go to every game during the summers when I'm not teaching. It may be the fact that Annie Hall AND Road House get name dropped. It may even be because it's based (very loosely, mind you) on a great Nick Hornby book.

I'm not exactly sure. All I know is that it's baseball season, and every baseball season, I (We now) curl up on the couch and pop in my copy of Fever Pitch. It never ceases to entertain. And I'm no longer afraid to admit that.

the rise of mediocrity

Paul Shirley is a pro basketball player.

Kind of. He plays IN the pros, which I guess, by definition makes him a pro basketball player (but that's also like saying that I played football in high school. I was ON the team, but saying I played would be an overstatement). He's not Kobe Bryant or Shaq, and he's definitely not Michael Jordan. He's actually an anomaly, a player that's good enough to be pro but not good enough to really outshine anyone. Imagine that. So saying he's mediocre isn't really accurate. No, he's not mediocre at all because his career proves that wrong. He's just mediocre in a relative sense of the word.

Anyway, his supposed mediocrity in pro basketball inspired him to start a not-so-mediocre career in writing (he started by blogging during his brief stint with the Suns). Eventually, an ESPN blog and a ridiculously hilarious and eye-opening book came from it (pictured above).

I've always been a fan of comedic non-fiction (essays? memoirs?). David Sedaris. Sarah Vowell. Chuck Klosterman. If any of these people's names have a place on your bookshelf, you should probably check this out.

So you should read this if:

1. you like basketball.
2. you don't like basketball.
3. you like laughing.
4. you like voyeur looks into the world of pro sports.

Go here:

Paul Shirley Blog Archive @ ESPN

Check out the book @ Amazon

WEAR SHADES!

David Batchelor’s art is about colour. With lightboxes and everyday plastics, eccentric chandeliers and projections, he brings pure, direct colour into galleries and public spaces. His works are immediately delightful, but they are also concerned with what colour means in today’s world and with how we experience it.

David Batchelor’s art is also about the city. His colours are the bright, sharp hues of neon and artificial materials, not the soft tones of the natural world.

Everyone who knows me, knows that I'm a fan of neon colors. My friends always said I was weird for liking such bold and bright colors. This guy's work is amazing. I'm not so big on conceptual art, ask Tim. I'm probably the most un-fun person to go to a museum with. I don't talk, and I walk around like I'm insanely bored. I'm a huge fan of anything neon. I love the Bauhaus movement and I'm stoked about Van Gogh and Graff work. I hate Pop Art, I hate Andy Warhol, but I love Claes Oldenburg and Roy Lichtenstein. Very important and witty persons in art history. Anyway, this guy.. he's rad. Check him out, if you like fruity neon shit. Check him out if you think you're cool and want to name drop some cool contemporary 21st century artist.

Pansies!

kate beckinsale is the only good looking british person, sorry.

click for the video

Just appreciate a video with fly looking honeys like this! The song isn’t terrible either. It has that cool overdone Kanye West swagger to it. I feel it because, well, I’m one of the few who think Kanye is a pretentious, undeserving genius. I can only wonder what goes on in that dudes brain sometimes, seriously.

NOT THE PANTYHOSE

It's been round for a couple of years now, but it's just starting to get a little bigger: Nylon magazine.

Being the elitist that i am, i've been hesitant to share my secret (but thanks for sharing with me amberoonie!).. but i'd rather you hear it from me than from someone who just picked up an issue this month. 

Nylon is amazing.

For fans of indie music, accessible fashion, even some lit....

Possible downside?  advertisements galore (<- for fans of capitalism and. . .scrapbooking?) 

The best part of it? The 'drink of the month', a tiny 3x3 section in the magazine that will definitely be worth the search. ... GUARANTEED!*

over and out.

[ i am not sure who is pictured above, but it's definitely not me.]

*Must consume at least 3 said drinks.

the dear john letter

Dear Alkaline Trio,

I'm sorry, but I think we need to break up, despite what your song "We Can Never Break Up" may suggest.

It's just that, I don't know, I just don't feel how I used to about you, about us, about me and my feelings for you. Sure, it all started well enough, but the truth is, we were young. We didn't know much about true love. I was a sixteen year old kid with wide eyes and a narrow view of the world. I was angst-ridden, always looking for something to rebel against, and a younger you coincided with my youth well.

When I first heard "Radio," I thought about my bitterness towards the girls who had jilted me, and I related with you. When "Bleeder" first clicked for me, I heard your broken-hearted screams, and I came to the rescue. It seemed as though we were meant for each other. You were up beat and jolly on the surface but dark and broken underneath. I could relate to that. We wore the same facade.

But somewhere down the line, maybe between Good Mourning and Crimson, we started to grow apart. Maybe we just matured differently. Maybe we just ran out of things to say to each other. That can't be it, though, because I feel as though true love does not always require words. When all the conversation is stripped away, true love can sit in silence. I could not do that with you. So maybe that perceived relation was never there to begin with. Who knows?

I mean, every once in a while, I'm still reminded of why I fell in love ("Every Thug Needs a Lady," "Fatally Yours," "Burn"), but mostly, I can't help but feel that you try too hard to be what you used to be ("Mercy Me," "The Poison," "Blue in the Face"), and when you're not doing that, you're desperately trying too hard to be something new ("Prevent this Tragedy," "Smoke").

But who am I to judge? I've made the same mistakes myself. I just think I need something new in my life. I think we do. It's not like we don't have the past to remind us of the good times. I'll always have Goddammit. I'll always have "Clavicle" and "97." I'll never look at those times with regret, they were integral to my growth as a person.

But having heard what you've been planning on ("In Vein"), I just can't go on hurting us both. This really is going nowhere.

I apologize for any pain I've caused, but it just has to be this way.

I'll call you, don't call me.

Love always,
Tim Gomez

ruff ruff

I'm sure this is obvious, but next time you get a chance, listen to Pet Sounds by The Beach Boys again. It's ridiculous how beautiful the music on this album is. I'm not a musical genius or scholar or anything like that. I don't necessarily know all the technicalities of music, but I do know catches my ear's attention, and this album has a lot of it. Listen to the melody in "I'm Waiting for the Day." Listen to how the flute (?) follows it somewhere in the middle of the song. Listen to how powerful the vocals are in "You Still Believe in Me." Listen to how well the lyrics of "Wouldn't it Be Nice" hold up.

Up until a couple years ago, my only knowledge of The Beach Boys came from listening to them on K-Earth 101 (the oldies station) with my mom in the car. I liked their songs, obviously, but all I knew was what they played on the station. Hearing Pet Sounds in full is an experience, and I highly recommend it.

Side note: Apparently, it's well known that The Beatles and The Beach Boys have a friendly feud going on in the 60s until Brian Wilson went crazy. Rubber Soul inspired Pet Sounds. Pet Sounds inspired Sgt. Pepper. Sgt. Pepper inspired the unreleased SMiLE. The Beatles obviously get far more recognition and credit for their influence, but had Brian Wilson kept his sanity, I always wonder if we'd be mentioning their names simultaneously whenever "Most Influential Rock Band" conversations came up.

they stop serving alcohol near the 7th inning? WTF.

I’m stoked to report the following piece of information: 1-0 Padres. Sorry Dodger fans, it’s not pro-team to be such sore losers. Padres kicked your ass fair and square. My boys in brown handle in Los Angeles.

Let’s give it up for free tickets, good company, dodger dogs and miller light.

I’m the old school soul. I’m the pop locker, the 90’s era starbucks consumer. I’m the picture of what your parents want a dream girl to be, with the dirty mouth of a sailor. I’m the girl that can tie a cherry stem in her mouth, and yet commits to being non-committed. A.K.A I’m the shit, I’m Tim’s best friend, and I’m a contributing writer. Welcome to The Oak Set.

walllllleeeee

This will likely be not only the best Pixar movie to date (which is saying a lot because I adore Ratatouille), but also, by far, the most adorable.

I mean, have you seen the full length trailer? (http://www.apple.com/trailers/disney/walle/)

My face nearly exploded from all the cute.

wild thing

Where The Wild Things Are is by far my favorite children's book. I feel I must admit that I did not discover this until recently, though (prior, it had been the Sideways Stories series by Louis Sachar). I took a Children's Literature class a couple of semesters ago, and the first thing we did was rip apart Where the Wild Things Are. It was a cool experience, seeing how a children's book could be ripe with so much meaning below its surface. Did Maurice Sendak intend it? Who knows? But it's still pretty cool.

So, you can imagine my excitement (or perhaps, fear considering the current state of Hollywood sequels, prequels, and shit movies) when I heard that it was being adapted into a movie.

Not only that, but it was being written by Dave Eggers (one of my favorite writers) and directed by Spike Jonze (one of my favorite directors). With these two guys behind the camera and script, it was sure to be experimental and odd but also deeply touching.

Well, scrap that.

Apparently, the studio that is behind the project has decided that the movie is far too dark and that it's not sure it wants to release it the way it is (as if kids don't see worse things these days).

So, who knows if we'll ever get to see the intended vision of the two geniuses mentioned above. If not, we can always pretend. And we can still look forward to Dave Eggers' new book, The Wild Things, a book inspired by the story, coming in 2009.

The suits win again.

the kills

I must admit that when I saw this, I took it a bit too literally.

Part of me got a little excited.

Not because I want anyone to inflict pain on another human being (if I were taking a lie detector test, this may be the part that would look like a minor earthquake), but because I thought that maybe this was the beginning of a large backlash against supposedly non-scripted sub-par reality television.

I should've known it was just about getting her dude stolen.

dude, latterman?

I have awful timing.

Some of the best bands I've ever discovered (lifetime, american football, refused) broke up JUST before I got into them. That's like meeting the girl of your dreams, and then finding out that her wedding day is on Friday.

Add Latterman to that list.

If you're into generally into uncool pop punk bands like Fall Out Boy and New Found Glory, but you still want to feel cool when you drop a band name, then you can do so by listening to Latterman. They're pop punk without the all the shine that comes along with the genre these days. The recording isn't that great, the vocals aren't always on key, the guitars are played sloppily, but it all just kind of makes sense.

Unfortunately, they broke up last October.

Give them a posthumous listen by going to these places:

http://www.lattermanband.com/

http://www.myspace.com/latterman

http://www.last.fm/music/Latterman

WTF, Why?

The Oak Set:
A Pseudo Mission Statement

I was thinking one day about opinions and how most of the people that give them (the experts?) are people that are nothing like me. Most critics of art, whether it be music, movies, or books, anything really, read thousands of books a year, watch thousands of movies, and listen to thousands of bands. I don't know about you, but that's not me. If i'm lucky, with school and such, I can probably get through about 20 books a year. I listen to a lot of music, but I hardly get the time to take in every nuance of every album I hear each year; most just get lost and forgotten in my iTunes library. I watch a good amount of movies every year but hardly the amount of Roger Ebert.

I don't fully understand the technical aspect of movies. I understand that some movies are considered good and some are bad, but hey, sometimes I like the bad ones too. While I do play a little guitar, I don't completely understand the significance of a guitar lick here or a vocal pitch there. While I am an Englsh major (and will have a degree in said subject in a month), I could never tell you why one book is more important or credible than another. I like politics, but I understand that nothing I say can change a person's mind, and I don't plan to.

Basically, I just know what I like, and usually, I can't entirely explain it.

So what I'm trying to do here is gather some of my best friends, people whose opinions matter to me, people who don't write for Ain't It Cool News or Salon or Pitchfork or anything like that. We all love music and art and politics and literature, but we don't get the same exposure to it as say Michiko Kakutani (NY Times book critic). We might not always agree with each other. And if you're reading this, you may not (and i hope not) always agree with us. That doesn't matter. Our opinions are not set in stone, they're not the end all be all of criticism, they're not commandments to be blindly followed. We just know what we like, and we want to tell you about it.

There are no strings attached. We are not getting (obviously, I hope) promotional albums to review or pre-release copies of books to read. If we find something cool, we'll tell you. Maybe you've heard/read/saw it already, but I hope that every once in a while, you read a post and find something cool.

Opinions are just that. Opinions.