Inglourious Basterds

Take The Dirty Dozen, with a greater cinematic emphasis on the violence, add a few more plot twists and turns, and you've basically summed up Inglourious Basterds.
It's The Dirty Dozen, taken to the next level, and the one after that.

Another master from Tarantino. I'm not one of those who possesses a Tarantino fetish, but I am a fan of much of his works on an individual basis. (For the record: I've never seen Kill Bill, and have no desire to.)

One of the small, cinematic details I appreciate in this film was the depiction of Adolph Hitler, who is never named as such, but you know it's him. Instead of the Hitler we've come to see in most movies, in this one he is presented as not just crazy-mad, but physically unattractive, accentuating the ugliness of his personhood.
We are presented not with a 'Hitler' character, but instead caricature of what we really think about the Fuhrer, and who he was, as opposed to a historical portrayal.
A brilliant detail, in my always humble opinion.

I was a little disappointed in the lack of bloodletting violence, but by the time I realized what I was missing, I was too engrossed in the drama that was unfolding to notice that I wasn't getting precisely what I came for. That's a good thing,really.
Don't get me wrong. The violence and gore are plenty, just a lot less than what I was expecting.

If you haven't seen it (and judgeing by the box office reports, you likely already have), I suggest you do. But leave the kids at home.

For a drunken, elitist, socialistic ideologue who was only popular in newsrooms and Massachusetts, I'd say the coverage is just a little bit over the top already.

And you can't call it "English", because it implies that another ethnicity might fuck it up.

The Bank Strikes Back

Tonight, I ventured out to Mexico Chiquito for a chili relleno fix. I hadn't been there yet, and was anxious to give them a try.
Alas, I was too late.
I got there to find it burned damn near to the ground.
I suspect they won't be rising from the ashes anytime soon, if at all.
Arson is a great way to get out of a non-profitable restaurant. I'm not saying this is what happened, but hey... statistics are what they are.

Too bad. It looked like such a nice place.


With my previous adventure to The Bank Of Mexican Food still fresh in my memory, along with my offer to the owner that, maybe, I might give it another chance, I decided "What the hell".
Now was as good a time as any.

This experience started off differently: I walked in, was seated within seconds, and had menu, flatware and drink order in no time. Spot on, great service. Friendly,too.
And I only had to wave off the chips and salsa once.

Taking a cue from the past, I skipped the chili relleno and ordered three enchiladas, a la carte. (Still can't handle rice and beans. Maybe someday...)

Absolutely a different food this time.
The enchiladas, I could tell, were freshly made. They were not the perfected, every-one-just-like-the-other, cookie cutter type enchiladas you would find at a larger, well-ordered commercial restaurant chain.
Nope. These were more of what you would find in somebody's kitchen, in their home.
They were good, and fresh, with a slight baked-type crunch around the edges.

Loosely folded (personally, I prefer a more tightly folded enchilada), and filled with not just cheese, but also laced with onions and black olives, adding a little more taste and texture to the meal. A nice touch, and one that I like very much. You wouldn't usually find this personal addition at a chain location.
And the cheese was stringy/stretchy, lacking the pasty plasticity that doomed the rellenos last time out.

A traditional style, slightly spicy, not too tangy, tomato-based sauce complimented the enchiladas without burying them.
After the enchiladas were finished, I actually scooped up as much of the sauce as I could, til it was gone. It was yum.

Nothing bland about my plate this time. It wasn't heavily spicy, either. So, if you're a native Mexican food eater, this may be a little mild for your buds.
But, as a mainstream, made for American tastes, Mexican food, this should make you happy.

Almost There

From what I'd seen today, the Bears are looking better than last year. But, so are the Packers. I think the division belongs to one of these two, hopefully the former.
The season opener will be an exciting one. Go Bears!

As for the Vikings: the whole story just reeks of bad karma on so many levels.
And The Gods don't like bad karma. I wouldn't be surprised if the Vikings finished behind the Lions.

($25 million for two years? What were they thinking?)

Obama Preaches The Gospel Of Life

Well, not really. It's from an Episcopalian site, but we'll cite it anyway because, like the Rev. Wright, almost anyone can be called a Christian nowdays.

Obama, religious leaders urge people of faith to participate in health care reform


Here's the money shot:

"fabrications that have been put out there to stop people from meeting a core moral and ethical obligation that we look out for one another … that I am my brother's keeper, my sister's keeper, and in the wealthiest nation on earth we are neglecting to live up to that call."

This from a guy who would deny life saving treatment to children.

Officially Untitled Post

Would you be willing to buy a comprehensive Auto Care Insurance policy?
It would cover the obvious things we buy insurance for, like an accident, flood, falling trees...or any other form of catastrophic occurrence.

It would also bundle oil changes,transmission service, diagnostic check ups, tire repair/replacement, brakes, washing and waxing... for however often the owner of the policy deemed these things necessary.
Of course, those with pre-existing damage, bad rings, grinding brakes, blown gaskets or bald tires cannot be discriminated against; while premiums would be the same for the 20yr old, three-times DUI male driving a street rod as they would be for the granny who only drives three miles to Mass on Sunday...
...While anybody who doesn't have coverage has the privilege of driving their vehicle into any auto care center with full expectation of service... even if the vehicle is not properly registered, has foreign plates, and suspicious VIN numbers are used for identification.

How much do you pay for auto coverage now? How much do you think it will cost with the new policy?

Much of the problem with the way we approach health care can be seen in what you would predict to be the issues facing us if we were to take the same approach regarding auto insurance as we do in our attempts to make sense out of what we call the health care system.

Which is not really a system at all, but a case of severe governmental meddling in the affairs of a large industrial segment of our economy, a population with an entitlement mentality in regards to the fruits of that industry, and lawyers who know a teet when they see one.