Check out this article from the Chinese on-line news source Caixin. It is amazingly consistent with my post about what will happen if enough people have committed emotional Hari Kari and elect Mittens:

http://english.caixin.com/2012-08-20/100426182.html

Today is movie recommendation day. Anyone find “Seconds” to watch last week? I sure didn’t, not on Cable, not on Netflix – must be really obscure. You have to buy it from Amazon, and I have a pathological aversion to buying what I can rent at a fraction of the cost.

So this week I’m actually recommending a BBC TV series that you can stream with Netflix. It’s called Survivors, and actually Sister Sharyn recommended it. It was a two year run for this program, based on the notion that an outbreak of a deadly flu virus wipes out 90% of the world’s population. What happens next is sometimes depressing, sometimes predictable, but the bottom line is: disaster brings out the best and the worst in people. It’s a good series – 12 total episodes, and worth watching if you have 12 hours to devote. And since I am now RETIRED, I could devote that time to it. Check it out~

This week our trivia question comes from American history.

Most economic historians attribute the start of the Great Depression to what particular event in 1929, tho’ some saw it as a symptom?

It Ain’t What They Call You – It’s What You Answer To

I commented on a piece written by a guy out in Colorado yesterday. He’s a statistician/economist blogger, and has been writing his stuff for the past five years. In a random review thru his multi-year postings, I noted that he has never had one comment on anything he’s written in five years. That is amazing. He had the confidence and discipline to write hundreds of blog items about the economy, both at home and foreign, without anyone ever even acknowledging his work. Oh – by the way? He has no ads, so this isn’t something he apparently does for money. So his latest entry was musing about how much longer interest rates would remain this low. I could find nothing in his statement with which to disagree, so I just asked him a question. The question, in essence, was whether the expectation of a continuation makes it continue? In fact, I referred to it as continuation expectation. I think maybe I’ve invented a new phrase! I’ll have to google it and see if I invented it or stole it, albeit subconsciously. But my point was in the 60’s thru the early 80’s, there was an expectation that inflation would continue. As such, people saved little and bought stuff, because it was bound to be more expensive later. Now we have deflation, with an expectation that these low interest rates will be around for a long time to come. So with no rush, don’t buy today – it might be cheaper tomorrow. Japan is a perfect example of that – for over two decades!

My hat is off to this fellow, who calls his blog “Common Sense Forecaster”. Here’s a link if you’re interested.

http://commonsenseforecaster.blogspot.com/2012_08_01_archive.html

OK, here’s another new thing-writing a post while watching the second Part of “The Newsroom”. Ostensibly it’ll be more spontaneous than writing on the computer keyboard. Let’s see! Got the idea from Michael Scherer in Time magazine writing about and during the Republican debates. what he wrote was fresh & spontaneous, and clearly read by the SNL staff for their sendups of the candidates. OK, enuf back stuff-here we go!

PartII: mock debate

POWER OUTAGE AND NO CONTINGENCY for it. Mac says “guys” just like Emily does when her Xbox 360 buds are killing her on Minecraft.

Characters are yelling at each other. Aw, gee – power came back on, but not before an intrepid speech by English Mac. Back to Casey coverage…

Neil (the guy from Slumdog Millionaire) wants to be a troll on some website, so he can write about posting fraudulent, incendiary posts that are pre-cleared by the object of his virtual abuse. Which side of the mirror are we on? as time goes on, I find it harder to keep track.

More relationship blah blah ..

Debate prep with the show characters ..

Have you noticed how Mac’s blouses are just like Diane Sawyer’s? So is there a uniform for ladies in front of and behind the camera?

Now the junior girl is brow beating Casey Anthony’s high school acquaintence? She’s holding out, pleading ignorance. Then a guilt trip! Cajoling .. Finally she acquiesces. Jim the junior producer says he isn’t crazy, but his dialogue is bizarre.

More relationship blah blah-Jeez!

The scene switches to the big Kahoona character Will talking to his shrink…more funky dialogue and relationship moia moia (that is that Charlie Brown teacher sound).

More troll stuff-the most interesting part of this plot. Which is slowly thickening..

Whoa-the character said what all us mothers thought about the hypocrisy of prolifers, as it pertains to CA. We decry abortion, while we pillory a woman who had no business ever being a mother. But in the show, this Whoa statement is shoehorned into this multilayered plot. Loses a lot in the traffic.

Then it’s pillory the Republican candidates time in the mock debate. Show their rep to be a sniveling worm with no scruples. Why can’t we all just get along?

Fifteen minutes left and they “lost” the debate they never coulda pulled off anyway. Golly, if I was Jane Fonda I’d fire this gang too for being schizophrenic. Always relationship blah blah interwoven with tiny slivers of powerful plot. And it’s all so fast, nobody could possibly keep up.

And I cannot understand the smart economist gal when she talks-which confuses the whole troll part.

More dangling relationship between the two juniors … o

Sixteen more plot pieces with an obnoxious version of Carole King’s Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow? Horns too loud. Will Will get bumped off? Literally or career-wise, that is the question. But the real question is: do we care anymore?

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Today I started a new feature (yes, Virginia, ANOTHER new feature, in addition to movie reviews and trivia questions: anything to get some foot traffic here!)

On Saturdays I will be handicapping the presidential race, down to the last electoral vote! Let’s see how accurate I can be as we head into the final 10 weeks of the campaign!

So, gentle readers, go to the Politics tab and send me a comment~

Today is Friday, you know what that means? It’s MOVIE RECOMMENDATION day!

At my advanced age, I have little use for new stuff. Apparently this is shared by movie rating entities like the one that just demoted Citizen Kane in favor of …
Vertigo! Nah…I’m not that big a fan of Citizen Kane, other than its novel camera angles. According to the movie about making the movie of CK, Welles cut a hole in the floor for the cameraman to film the shot from the feet’s-eye-view – unheard of in its day. Well, enuf of that..

What is the recommendation for today’s movie? A little thing from 1966 called “Seconds”. For its time, this John Frankenheimer production was terrifying. I don’t think I saw it until it ran on TV (which, in those days, took years rather than days) so I was maybe 19 or 20 by the time I saw it. It shook me up, nearly as much as seeing “Carrie” on the lawn at UF or “The Omega Man” with Charleton Heston at the drive-in.

The plot line is as new today as then – reinventing oneself to lead the life you think everyone else is leading that’s better than yours. I just watched Episode 3 of “Enlightenment” with Laura Dern on HBO two nights ago – same theme! So dear readers – all 1 or so of you – check it out and let me know what you think. By the way – it stars Rock Hudson, who actually does a pretty good job in a very serious role. No Doris Day or Elizabeth Taylor – just Rock trying to be somebody else. Imagine!~

Later…