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Monday's Quick Picks
The Matrix Reloaded: As Agent Smith says through clenched teeth just before he chases Neo down for the shootout at the OK Corral (ok, in a subway station, actually) near the end of "The Matrix": "They're not out yet," but the sequels are coming soon, so it's not too early to start getting obsessively prepared. Try "The Matrix—It's Harry Potter with guns" for one quick take on why the original film has been so popular. (IMO, the article is right that "The Matrix" is not ultimately about man vs. machine, but Neo's not an "early-adopter," either. You see:
The Matrix is a system, Neo. That system is our enemy.
Pick a "system," any system, that's what "The Matrix" is about. That's at least part of why it's so popular—you can plug in your favorite bogeymen. Try: Capitalism and/or Globalization. I'll say more about that another time.)
For more (and better) "Matrix" preparation, try something from this list, or, if you're feeling abstract and adventurous, this list. And if you want to be my best friend, please buy me this. ;-)
William Gibson on Blogging: Sticking w/the sci-fi/cyberpunk theme, this interview w/Gibson discusses his experience blogging and why he's giving it up.
Politicans with blogs: Gary Hart has a weblog. I wonder if he'll get any comments from Donna Rice. It seems he doesn't care; he appears nearly ready to run for President again in 2004. ???
The Complete Bushisms: Sorry, I couldn't resist. These always make me laugh but sometimes the laughter verges on tears when I realize: a) our President cannot form sentences, and b) he also either refuses to correct himself or doesn't recognize when he needs to. My favorite at the moment:
Yubbledew's World is Mean: In "A mean-spirited America" Jill Nelson argues it's mean to spend millions making sure we squeeze every dime from the poorest taxpayers. She's right, but who cares? What's important is that we eliminate all taxes on stock dividends! Let's help the people who need it most!
Speaking of hypocrisy: We were, weren't we? Why does the party that used to preach the virtues of balanced budgets now seem to think record deficits are no problem? [Link via Cooped Up.]
Looting Ws of MD? While the U.S. has been battling to keep the U.N. out of Iraq (gee, I thought that was Saddam Hussein's job), no one's been doing anything to secure known sources of possible nuclear, biological and chemical materials in Iraq. Um, doesn't this look kind of bad? It's enough to make you think some people aren't bothered by all this looting and the possibility that terrorists get bad stuff. I mean, as long as the threat is credible, we can wage all the wars we want, right? And man, what could be better for a re-election campaign than being at war!? Think of all the aircraft carrier photo ops!
What if the Democrats Held A Debate: and no one cared? It's hard to care when you can't see it because your local ABC affiliate decided not to show it!
A Better Windoze Browser? Since I don't view the web through Windoze (except on public terminals at school and in libraries, where IE is the only option), I don't know how Mozilla works w/Windoze boxes. Has anyone tried it? How about "Firebird"? (Firebird is apparently a variant of Mozilla, like Camino is for Mac.) Just curious. What I can say is this: If you haven't tried tabbed browsing, you really should. Popup blocking is also a wonderful thing. YMMV.
Posted May 5, 2003 08:44 AM | ai movies general politics
