- Don’t
mind the haters, U.S. State Department Bureau of Consular Affairs. You keep on
speaking the truth and in this overly sensitive, be-tolerant-of-all world of
ours, don’t worry about offending people by bringing them crashing back down to
reality. The agency was looking to warn travelers heading abroad during the
spring break season and sent out a tweet that may not have been diplomatic, but
was sure as hell accurate. Someone in the agency’s communications department
uncorked a series of tweets marked by the hashtag "#springbreakingbadly," during which
the @TravelGov account sent: "Not a '10' in the US? Then not a 10
overseas. Beware of being lured into buying expensive drinks or worse—being
robbed. #springbreakingbadly." It’s a true statement clarifying that
someone doesn’t suddenly become a hottie simply by boarding a flight in the
international terminal, but of course a bunch of overreactive Twitter users
immediately snapped back with claims that the tweet was sexist. In a brilliant
response, @TravelGov wrote, "We made no mention of gender. This can happen
to anyone unfortunately." Boom. #Straightfire. Stop assuming you’re the
only ones who can be rated on a scale from 1 to 10, ladies. One hater suggested
the agency was trying to “neg” its own citizens, but @TravelGov shot back, "We're
not trying to neg anyone -- just trying to warn folks about overseas scam
artists." Ultimately, some overly apologetic soul at the agency issued an
apology, but there was simply no need because speaking the truth makes the
world a better place no matter what the reaction is……….
- Because….Sharknado.
At this point, sheer and unmitigated absurdity is the one and only rule for
Syfy’s over-the-top sci-fi franchise in which sharks rain from the skies and
kill/maim C-list actors in spectacularly ridiculous fashion. That means the
fourth - yes, fourth - installment of the franchise need only be as insipid and
unbelievable as possible to succeed and as such, a thinly veiled knock-off of a
Star Wars movie name fits perfectly with what the Sharknado brand is all about.
Yes, “The 4th Awakens”
is both the name of the next Sharknado TV movie as well as a tip of the cap to “Star
Wars: The Force Awakens.” The new
shark-based non-epic is set five years after the last film, with the
oft-terrorized world having enjoyed five years blissfully devoid of the
shark-tornado hybrids. Sadly, the moronically named Fin (Ian Ziering) and his
family because the most bizarre weather phenomenon imaginable has returned and
now, the sharks are falling from the sky in the most unexpected places. Believe
it or not, leading lady Tara Reid is set to return as April, meaning that in
the span between the first thee films and this one, her career didn’t miraculously
revive itself and propel her to A-list status in Oscar-worthy roles. What is
interesting about her return is that there is currently an online fan vote
running to decide whether she lives or dies in the new movie. Here’s hoping she
lives because God knows that if they kill her off, there is no conceivable way
that the producers and studio can find someone who has both her talent level
and total lack of demand on her time, mixed with a low level of professional
dignity needed to play such a taxing role……….
- Neo-Nazis….yup,
still a thing. Even as northern Europe is still wrestling with the fallout and
ongoing investigation into last week’s terrorist bombing in Brussels,
neighboring France is dealing with a group that has been around longer than the
Islamic State and isn't nearly as scary - more outdated, lame and full of ugly
racism as opposed to being on a bloody quest for force their religion on the
rest of the world. Neo-Nazis persist for no good reason, refusing to accept
that the Nazi movement itself was a bigoted, evil and misguided cause that made
the world a worse place in every conceivable way and plodding onward with a
bastardized, mutated version of Adolf Hitler’s doctrine of hate. One of the
places they’re persisting right now is France, where police around the country arrested
11 members of a hate group and seized 11 rifles,
two guns, 28 knives, some bullet-proof vests and helmets and several Nazi flags
during raids in eight regions of the country. France's Interior minister confirmed
that the 11-member group had been arrested in an investigation of
"criminal association" and "participation to a combatant group.
Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said in a written statement that the
neo-Nazis were spreading racist messages, which technically is part of the
neo-Nazi job description but is nonetheless reprehensible. The three "most
active members" of the group were brought before a judge Friday to be
charged, according to authorities, but with these sorts of hatemongers, ripping
out one dandelion of evil merely means dozens of others will spring up in its
place……..
- We’re
still light years ahead of the Washington Redskins. That should be the official
motto of the Cleveland Indians as they roll out the official demotion of their
Chief Wahoo logo to secondary status. The Indians have been phasing back their
use of the Chief Wahoo logo for years and the logo itself has evolved from a
wholly ridiculous, terrible caricature decades ago to a slightly less offensive
version these days, with press from various Native American groups pushing it
in that direction. The team removed it from their road hats in 2011 and from
its home batting helmet in 2013, but the logo remains festooned on the sleeve
of the Indians' jerseys. Owner Paul Dolan explained the chief’s place in the
team’s motif going forward. "We
have gone to the Block C as our primary mark," Dolan said. "Clearly,
we are using it more heavily than we are the Chief Wahoo logo." That will
partially appease the different Native American groups who want the logo gone
entirely, but according to Dolan, that’s not happening. "(We have) no
plans to get rid of Chief Wahoo," Dolan said. "It is part of our
history and legacy. "We do have empathy for those who take issue with it.
We have minimized the use of it and we'll continue to do what we think is
appropriate." In other words, the home cap with the Chief Wahoo logo was
the team's best seller last season, so the amount of money it brings it means
that it’s hanging around even if the Indians don’t want it front and center.
Oh, and it’s infinitely better than the staunch defense of a racist image that
the Redskins continue to mount in the nation’s capital, so there’s always
that……..
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