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| | Guitar Hero: Now Available in Christian! | | | Friday, August 29, 2008 (5:50 PM)
(I'm feeling amused) | | Holy shit!
Quite literally, as it turns out.
Is this thing for real?
CLICKY!
Can God-botherers now rock out to Third Day?
Jam along with Stryper?
Get down and boogie with Crade of Filth?
Praise the Lord! YES!!!!!!!
Well, perhaps not the third one.
Anyway, sounds fucking horrible (much like Christian Rock as a genre then.) | | | 137 Views | 0  Thumbs Up | 0 Comments |  |
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| | Dear Mister Obama... | | | Friday, August 29, 2008 (2:42 AM)
(I'm feeling bitchy) | |
I've got a great idea.
But it only works if America does what I hope to gods it doesn't and actually elects John McCain in November.
Barack Hussain Obama ('cos we mustn't forget his middle name, the man's clearly a Muslim and, rumor has it, he may actually be black too.) ups sticks and moves to the UK.
Think about it, Barack (I know you're reading this). The British love you, we could do without your twee homespun philosophising and motivational speaker demeanor but, hey, that's all behind you now. These days you talk about foreign policy and universal healthcare (Note for Republicans: 'Universal healthcare' is what the civilised world called socialiZed medicine, 'kay?) and other things that actually matter.
We love you because we know you're a smart man who made his way though Columbia University and Harvard through sheer hard work and not because you were born with a silver spoon in your mouth. We know you're mum was a bit of a chav and your dad was a hellbound atheist with Zay Tonday spectacles. Those things make us love you even more.
We admire the fact you don't have a background in the oil industry or the military industral complex. In fact, most of us stupid Brits can't tell those two things apart anymore.
Like you, we can't figure out why people think it's so important that your wear a little metal pin of your country's flag or put your hand on your heart when the national anthem is played, especially when there's real stuff to fucking worry about. Hell, a quarter of us English don't even know what our flag looks like and if we put our hand on our heart when someone played 'God Save The Queen' we'd probably get the shit kicked out of us. And rightfully so.
Incidentally Barack, we know you know this but I bet most of your American colleagues don't even know what the English flag looks like. They probably think it looks like this, right?
But you and I know that the English flag looks like this...
Maybe, before you leave America for our shores you could clear that up for us? K'thanx.
So, we really liked the way you spoke tonight. We thought it was great that you told your current nation that, while you respect your opponent's war record, his policies are exactly the same as the current administration. That here is a man who has openly said he admires and supports the work of the most shameful, digusting and corrupt president the United States has ever 'elected'. Well, you didn't use those words. I did, and I'm speaking to you on behalf of all British people tonight. I wasn't elected but Jeb Bush said don't worry, he'd fix things so it'd be okay.
Hey Barack, that reminds me. I've got a joke for you:
What the difference between a cow and John McCain's war record?
John McCain doesn't know how to milk a cow.
But I digress.
So anyway, you really stuck it to them good and proper tonight but you know an I know it's not going to make any difference. When they get to the polls come November there's going to be a lot of people thinking "Hmm....I like Obama. Damn funny name, but he's okay I guess. But I've never voted for a ni... guy that young before. Maybe I'll just vote for the rich old white dude, whatisname, instead. Ya' know where you are with rich old white dudes. Plus, I'm pretty sure rich old white dude whatisisname isn't Hussein."
I don't want it to happen, you don't want it to happen, fuck I bet even Hilary Clinton doesn't want it to happen. But it'll probably happen.
Speaking of the Clintons, here's another thing. We don't care if you fuck an intern with a cigar. You can even use your penis if you like. This is Europe, we recognise that your ability to run the country and your ability to keep your cock in your trousers aren't inextricably linked. The Italians voted a female porn star into parliment. Hey, the French premier dumped his wife just after he was elected and is now banging some model half his age. That's the French though, we can't fucking stand the French. The point is, we don't care. I will say, however, that Michelle is a bit of a honey and if you cheat on her there's something wrong with you. I mean, Hilary? Fair enough!
Look Barack, we love you. Plus our version of the Democrats (they're called the Labor party, but you already knew that) are up shit creek without a paddle. We hate our prime minister. Which reminds me, I bet a lot of your American friends think our prime minister is this guy...
But you and I know it is, in fact, this fella...
...perhaps you could clear that up to, before you come over?
Anyway, we don't like him much and the Labot party needs some new blood. We're looking for a new PM, basically, and it'll be awfully embarrassing if his own party have to kick him out. That happened once before and the old bitch still isn't dead.
So think this stuff over Mr. Obama. We have all kinds of things you don't have in the US. Like black pudding, irony and TV stations with no commercial breaks. Sure, the economy is fucked and everyone's losing their homes but that's cool - it'll be like you've never left the United States.
Look, think it over mate and get back to us. Don't wait to long though, we've sent a similar letter to Al Gore and, failing that, we're considering Ron Paul.
Oh, and if you do decide to emigrate can you get an extra ticket for me?
Thanks for listening, and cheers.
Obama '09 UK!!!!
Miles Piranha,
"Voice of Britain." | | | | 100 Views | 0 Thumbs Up | 0 Comments | |
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| | Alex Jones is a big, fat conspiracy theory loving cock. | | | Wednesday, August 13, 2008 (7:44 PM)
(I'm feeling amused) | | Arguing on the internet is like running in the Bejing Olympics - even if you win, the fireworks are still computer generated...
Apollo is an obvious hoax. I emailed my university (ashamed to admit it i was suckered 15 years ago into a 4 yr program) and asked the department heads if the apollo moon landings are taught as historical fact still, neither one would return my emails. The cool part about investigating these hoaxes is it reveals who is an agent of Zionists and who is for real. This fellow here has revealed himself as a whore for the self chosen.
Me:
Gromidog = either EPIC TROLL or, y'know, complete moron.
9/11 was an inside job ignorant fuck
Me:
Much as I'd love to believe the Bush Administration was behind 9/11 there is no evidence for that whatsoever. ShootA(sic)AppleOffMyHead, enjoy your Loose Change fantasy world. I guess we never went to the moon and there's alien tech being kept in New Mexico hangers too, eh?
oh ignorant one
have you ever seen the evidence for 9/11 being an inside job!!! and i never saw loose change i already know 911 was dont by the govt via research! alex jones said 2 months before 911 that the gov;t was planning to crash planes into the WTC and blame it on bin laden you can youtube "Alex jones predicts 9/11" but the truth is you are the one in a fantasy world the truth will be know to all one day!
Me:
So you're an Alex Jones acolyte, what a fucking surprise! Believe me, I know all about Jones' hypothesis regarding 9/11. Look, as I said, I'd love it to be the case that this was true but the facts just don't add up. If you actually did real research, not just read what 'experts' (cough!) like Jones claim to be truth then you'd see straight through this nonsense charade.
Did the government suspect a terrorist attack on the US was imminent? Well, maybe. That's not the same, though, as claiming they were responsible. Given the incompetence with which this administration has handled everything else over the last 6-7 years, do you really think they could pull something like that off and keep it quiet?
But, y'know, go on believing your cute conspiracy theories if it makes you happy. Go on considering Alex Jones and his ilk reliable sources of reportage (and yeah, I know American mainstream media is crap....since arriving in this country I've been shocked at the low-to-non-existent quality of journalism on TV here, but that doesn't make paranoid nutjobs like Jones any more reliable, it just means you have to see through the bullshit from all sides.) It's a crying shame kids aren't taught critical thinking in this country, then maybe they'd be able to reason a bit more clearly and not rely on 'gut instinct' and loonies like Jones. Sorry, I saw his film on 9/11 (Truth Rising) last month and the man's a hack, and worse than that he's a hack with a clear political agenda.
He was funny in Waking Life though.
Best wishes,
miles.
....discuss. | | | | 100 Views | 0 Thumbs Up | 0 Comments | |
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| | Bad Medicine | | | Sunday, July 20, 2008 (2:59 AM)
(I'm feeling angry) | | I've noticed over the last couple of years that whacko conspiracy theories are on
the rise. I'm not sure if this has been happening even longer that I've been
aware, or we really are entering a new era of pseudo science and sloppy thinking.
An incident that happened this evening might have pushed me over the edge and I
feel the desire, no scratch that, I felt the need to vent.
I work in Hollywood, and I live about an hour away via subway and bus. Quite often
I meet the same people at the bus terminal in North Hollywood and I'm fairly
chatty with a few of them. Even in a city like Los Angeles, where people seem to
wear their self-absorption as a badge of honor, having a 'funny accent' is a major
advantage if you want to start up a conversation with a total stranger.
So, there's this girl who I chat with probably more often that not. She's a smart
person with what sounds like a good job. She seems well informed (especially, I
have to say, for an American) about world affairs and, like me, detests labels
like 'liberal' even though we both probably fall into that category politically.
This girl, let's call her 'Angela' - not her real name, lives with her
boyfriend. I'm not sure how old she is, I'd guess she's in her late twenties. I
know her guy is around my age from previous conversations. They've been together
almost two years.
The first conversation we ever had, largely concerning a trip she took to Europe
in her late teens, her boyfriend came up in conversation. It felt like she'd
awkwardly shoehorned him, to be honest. I suspect now, as I did then, that she was
doing so as a kind of "Just so you know, I'm spoken for" shorthand. That's okay, I
've never hit on a complete stranger on a bus before (well okay, maybe once...)
and I have no intention of starting now I'm a decrepit, curmudgeonly old fucker.
What was clear, however, was how much affection she has for her guy. She seems
totally, completely smitten with him. Which, y'know, is a wonderful thing.
So, today we were talking about health insurance and how messed up the US system
is. She's well aware of the ridiculous 'black pr' that >ahem!< 'Socialised
medicine' gets in this country and that's where the conversation seemed to be
going. Then, however, she said something along the lines of this:
"It's terrible that he (her bf) can't get proper medical insurance because he's
HIV Positive".
And, I'm slightly ashamed to say, I truly didn't know what to say to that. Sure,
I've known HIV+ people but this just came out of nowhere. Good for her, though,
that she clearly doesn't feel a stigma attached to this illness. Having said that,
it took me a moment to reply with something along the lines of "Well, it's not a
death sentence any more with all these antiviral medications and stuff." That's
when the conversation took a turn for the alarming.
You see, her guy is a self-proclaimed AIDS Dissident. Not only that, he'd
convinced Angela - by presenting her with the 'evidence' - to be the same thing.
I've heard of this crackpot, dangerous movement before but today was the first
time I'd spoken with someone who'd blindfolded them self to the overwhelming fact
that HIV is the cause of AIDS.
I'm not going to get into the details of the AIDS denial movement here. Like all of the subject I'm going to touch on in this rant, there are plenty of reputable journals, books and websites that'll give you the full, sorry story. Enough to say that the scientific consensus that HIV causes AIDS is backed by overwhelming evidence and no amount of wishful thinking and outdated research is going to change that.
The leading journal of AIDS denialists used to be the magazine
Continuum....until all of it's editors died of AIDS related illness'. Thabo
Mbeki, the South African president, is also a supporter of these fruitcakes and
his outspoken, misinformed opinions have done more to help spread the disease
across the African continent than anyone's save the Pope.
So, being the intrepid skeptic I am, I asked Angela why she and her boyfriend
think the way they do. She, somewhat sheepishly, told me that they've been having
sex for eighteen months and she's not contracted HIV (she gets regular checkups,
however, so I guess her faith in AIDS dissent isn't that strong.) I really,
really wanted to ask her at what point her bf told her he's HIV+, but even I have
limits to how impertinent I'll allow myself to come across.
I also wanted to tell her to read some good, scientific literature on the subject.
She's a smart woman so I know she's capable of comprehending the truth. >Skeptical Inquirer magazine and Dr. Steven
Novella's
p=27">Neurologica blog have both had excellent, informed articles in recent
months on the subject aimed at the layperson.
But you know what? People like Angela don't want to know the truth.
Intelligent, educated people sometimes want easy answers and reassuring half-
truths rather than harsh, cold, scientific facts. I get that, I really do, but at
the expense of your health or, possibly, your life?
There's as much of a gulf between the creationist who believes in the literal
truth of ancient scribblings and the mother of a down syndrome baby who thinks a
measles vaccine was responsible as there are similarities in their reasoning. It's
far easier to sit back and say 'God did it, Science knows nothing',in the first
instance, as "Science did it, I can't blame God for this." in the latter. But
believing in the garden of Eden probably isn't going to result in anyone's death.
Having douchbags like Jenny McCarthy and Jim Carey on daytime moronfests like
The View (Which hardly has a track record for hard scientific fact.... what
shape is the Earth again?) spouting uninformed nonsense about the harmful effects
of childhood vaccines can have a knock-on effect. Enough people start believing
that crap and the next flu outbreak could become an epidemic and the next epidemic
could become a pandemic. This isn't science fiction, but the supposed correlation
between autism and vaccines certainly is.
Then there's the horrible misnomer of 'Alternative medicine'. 'Alternative to
medicine' is a more accurate description. Frankly, if you still believe
acupuncture works or chiropractic can cure illness you just haven't been keeping
up. Placebo effects aside, the only thing you're going to get from these 'natural
remedies' is financially poorer. And that goes triple for homeopathy - possibly
the most absurd one of the lot.
And yet, and yet, and yet.... so many people would rather believe that taking a
watered down version of what ails them will be more effective than a proven,
tested medication. That sticking needles in 'chi points' will cure their cancer
when chemotherapy has failed because...well, a centuries old remedy from Asia must
have something to it, mustn't it? On top of that, we all know 'Big Pharma'
is involved in a vast conspiracy to keep the real cures away from us until
it's milked all the profits from selling sugar pills, and harmful ones at that.
The sad irony is that 'alternative medicine' (sic) itself has become the big
industry run by the cynical and foisted upon the naive. Snake oil shysters like
the abominable Kevin Trudeau come at the desperate from one direction with their
useless, but expensive, curealls. In the other direction, just as determined to
part the foolish or the hopeless from their cash, is Rhonda Byrne and her, frankly
just plain fucking stupid, philosophy of attraction The Secret.
Assorted mediums, pychics, conspiracy theorists and other whackos are there too,
all determined to get a piece of that lucrative pie. I'm not suggesting all of
these people are motivated by filthy lucre, of course. Some people are simply
misinformed themselves, some I'm sure have their hearts in the right places. That,
however, doesn't stop the damage they do. Damage to individuals and damage to
their society in general.
Imagine a time when that vast inter-corporate cabal 'Big Pharma' stops funding
research into cancer cures because, hey, it's an expensive enterprise and they can
make much more money just selling 'natural remedies'. Those remedies don't
actually do anything, but they're flying off the shelves and that makes the Eli
Lilly shareholders very happy. Already some of the major pharmaceutical companies
are producing lines of 'alternative cures' - not because they're effective, but
exactly due to their popularity. One would like to think the profits from these
endevors were being ploughed back into real scientific research, but if you
believe that maybe I can interest you in these magic crystals I have here?
You can call it 'alternative', you can call it 'complimentary' but it's the
furthest thing to medicine, and there's plenty of evidence to support this.
Another personal anecdote. Back in the bad old days I spent some time,
willingly, in a psychiatric ward in a Houston hospital (I'd slashed my wrists, and
taken an unhealthy dose of lithium for added dramatic effect). Attending various
'group therapy' sessions was mandatory and, although it was never anything more
taxing than beadwork or karaoke, it broke up the monotony of watching Court TV and
flirting with other mental patients.
During one therapy sesh. we had a (presumably qualified) staff member come discuss
our medications with us. When it came to my turn I simply pointed out that I
didn't feel my particular medication (Fluoxatine AKA Prozac at that time) was
particularly effective for me. Rather than proposing I speak with my doctor about
trying alternative meds she suggested that maybe I needed my 'Chakras aligning'. I
was quite taken aback, but only for a moment. When I realised she wasn't being a
smart arse holding back was no longer an option. I layed into her with such a
barrage of vitriol and disdain that she actually looked like she was going to
burst into tears. And I've never regretted that. This was a, supposed,
professional in a scientific institute - and a teaching hospital at that -
suggesting that a patient with a psychological illness look to,
effectively, witchdoctory for assistance. Telling her, in simple if harsh words so
that hopefully something got through, that she was unprofessional and should
really reconsider her career decision felt more like a duty than a choice. Sad to
say, the next session she was at it again, citing notorious bullshit festival
What The Bleep Do We Know? as a source of reliable information on hidden
human ability.
Okay, so it's quite a good anecdote (IMHO) but nothing more. Except, how often is
this stuff happening in hospitals across the country. How many doctors tell
patients with serious cases of pneumonia to 'pray to god' to help them get better
(I know of at least one example, yeah - me again!). Alternatives to proven
healthcare are already making huge leaps in popularity in both North America and
Western Europe, how long before they begin to surpass it?
This lazy, non-rational thinking is like a hydra. We cut off the head of 9/11
conspiracy theory, hopefully for good, and AIDS denial grows in its place. We take
our vorpal blade and snicker-snack the hollow skull of creationism and here comes
the ugly mug of Intelligent Design.
But we shouldn't give up the fight. We can't. We have to hope that our 'candle in
the dark' will eventually be bright enough to send that hydra scurrying back into
it's dark pit of ignorance. Because the lives of people like Angela might depend
on it. | | | | 108 Views | 0 Thumbs Up | 0 Comments | |
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| | Moore Watchmen. | | | Saturday, July 19, 2008 (4:57 PM)
(I'm feeling amused) | | Bruce Wayne auf weidersehn,
Dirty Harry, "Make my day,"
Terminator, hit the north,
Alan Moore knows the score,
Riffs? Yeah! Can U dig it?
- Pop Will Eat Itself, 'Can U Dig it?'
As a little update to my post on the Watchmen film, there's a fascinating interview with creator Alan Moore on the Entertainment Weekly website today. Moore, famously, has probably been fucked over by Hollywood more than anyone else in the comics industry. Not screwed financially (he rejects royalties from adaptations of his work) but there's yet to be a movie based on one of his comics that captures his elegant, intertextual and just plain smart prose. Incidentally, I met him once back in Oxford. This was over twenty years ago when he'd just finished doing Marvelman and V for Vendetta for the awesome british anthology magazine Warrior. I'd only just started getting into US comics (if you were a teen in England at the time, comics pretty much started and ended with 2000AD and maybe Warrior, but only if you were a real geek) and Moore wasn't yet the superstar he became. I recall there weren't really many people who came to the signing, at my friend Alison's comic shop Rainbow's End ("Don't look for it, it's not there anymore!") so I got to have quite a chat with the man. It was one of the most thrilling afternoons of my formative, teenage years!
In the interview he talks about his disinterest in the Watchmen film, his feelings on Hollywood comic book movies and his love of The Wire and South Park - there's even a mention of Anonymous:
I thought the way that South Park handled that bit with the Scientologists was wonderful. I was also quite heartened the other day when watching the news to see that there were demonstrations outside the Scientology headquarters over here, and that they suddenly flashed to a clip showing all these demonstrators wearing V for Vendetta [Guy Fawkes] masks. That pleased me. That gave me a warm little glow.
Interview is here.
And, something that's sure to rankle and alientate Moore just a little bit more (so to speak) - Watchmen animated! Chapter One can be found, for free - providing you have iTunes - right here! | | | | 141 Views | 0 Thumbs Up | 0 Comments | |
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| | Stop the press... | | | Wednesday, July 16, 2008 (2:22 AM)
(I'm feeling impressed) | | The soon-to-hit-newsstands August edition of Maxim magazine will carry a feature article on Anonymous vs. Scientology. It's a major 4-page (5 if you count the nice illustration which I've not included below) piece which is generally well written and accurate. I'd have liked to have seen a bit more input from CoS but I guess they didn't want to give Anonymous even more publicity. As it is, they've just rolled out the usual 'Anonymous are cyber terrorists/Nazis' line again. Yawn! It's a fair piece too - some Anons would like to totally dissasociate the protests from 4Chan and /b/ but the article does give a brief description of how and where Project Chanology began. There's even a mini-glossary for newcomers (Lolcatz, Chocolate Rain anyone?) The article features considerable input from Ath and other LA Anons, including the CoS namefagging incident.
Maxim has a worldwide circulation in the millions so this is major WIN for us. Hopefully they'll run it not just in the US version but the international editions too - nobody seems sure right now. Unbelievably (or perhaps not, given this is Maxim) there was talk of doing a 'Girls of Anonymous' photo-spread too. Anyone who has visited the ThunderDome will know that there's quite a few willing participants if the possibility arises once more.
Anyway, I've uploaded scans of the article here. The magazine will be available from next week.
(Right click and 'save as' to download and read in full resolution)
My report and pics from latest raid (Sci vs. Spy: July 12th) can be found here
Posted by miles | | | | 99 Views | 2 Thumbs Up | 1 Comment | |
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| | Kafka, tits | | | Wednesday, July 9, 2008 (12:15 AM)
(I'm feeling tired) | | Two small things of note. One: Call me a geek but crikey this is great news. I'm a huge Kafka fan (no surprise there, I'm sure) and Metamorphosis is my all time favorite short story - even if it's actually a novella. So much so, I'm even planning on going to see Cronenberg's The Fly opera when it moves from Paris to LA later in the year.
I wonder, however, why Israel is taking charge of these papers? Sorry, but wasn't Kafka a Czech, writing in German? Sure, he was a Jew but he wasn't orthodox - I believe he showed a vague interest in his youth but he seemed to have a rather ambiguous feeling towards religion in his writings. I don't think the state of Israel has any rights to this, possibly wondrous, collection whatsoever - they should be taken to Prague where they, and Mr. Kafka, belong. Yes, this stuff really does matter to me - I'm that sad.
In other news: Spy vs. Sci this Saturday, worldwide. Info on your local event here and I'm providing a pre-game image to get you in the mood.
I edited it to conform with the Myspace draconian rules on boobage. | | | | 98 Views | 0 Thumbs Up | 0 Comments | |
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| | Here Be Dragons... | | | Monday, June 30, 2008 (3:53 PM)
(I'm feeling thoughtful) | | Brian Dunning, creator of the excellent Skeptoid podcast just spent his two-week vacation making a fascinating introductory film to critical thinking entitled Here Be Dragons. It's just forty minutes long and should really be screened in every school in the country. It's not really designed for the already scientifically skeptical (although you'll still enjoy it if you are) but rather as a sort of guide to how to think rationally and critically about non-scientific claims. Best of all, it's free and can be downloaded for your iPod, video to watch on your PC or, for the technically savvy, as a torrent or ISO file to make your own DVD - widescreen and fullscreen version available too.
I can't urge people enough to download this. If you've got kids this is perfect material to aid them in making their own, informed, decisions without resorting to woo or unscientific dogmas.
Here's the link: Clicky!
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| | California 'more Godless' than other states. | | | Monday, June 23, 2008 (5:57 PM)
(I'm feeling amused) | |
The numbers are still pretty depressing, but the LA Times has an interesting article on supernatural belief in an omnipotent deity in America and how California compares with the rest of the country. CLICKY! | | | | 112 Views | 0 Thumbs Up | 0 Comments | |
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| | Saw this sign.... | | | Thursday, June 12, 2008 (4:33 PM)
(I'm feeling excited) | | ....on the 101 in the Valley heading into Hollywood this morning.
You can just make out the Anon-faced skull and crossbones. The website at the bottom of the sign was www.socalanon.com | | | | 148 Views | 0 Thumbs Up | 0 Comments | |
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