Danielmedley.com

Thursday, October 15, 2009

ACORN Helps Pimps And Their Bitches

Saturday, October 10, 2009

David Mamet

Is no longer a brain-dead liberal.

I began reading not only the economics of Thomas Sowell (our greatest contemporary philosopher) but Milton Friedman, Paul Johnson, and Shelby Steele, and a host of conservative writers, and found that I agreed with them: a free-market understanding of the world meshes more perfectly with my experience than that idealistic vision I called liberalism.

Yeah, yeah, I know this is old. But it is interesting.

Apocalyptic Fiction Round-Up Review

Peter Ingham assesses a clutch of apocalyptic science fiction novels, including The Sign by Raymond Khoury, in which a sphere of light appears over the Antarctic, and Tide of Souls by Simon Bestwick, which contains flesh-eating zombies with green-glowing eyes.

Friday, October 09, 2009

Krav Maga

A little over two years ago I discovered Krav Maga. I’ve since become a full blown addict. For those of you who don’t know what Krav Maga is, it is the official system of self defense employed by the Israeli Defense Forces, Israeli Anti-terrorist Units, and various branches of the Israeli Security Forces. I do my training at Paul Evans Martial Arts. Right now I’m a level 3 practitioner.

The reason I like it so much is that it’s so damn brutal. I know that sounds odd, but it is the only way I can describe it. After each class you really feel a sense of accomplishment. Imagine what it feels like after surviving a four and a half hour level 1 test. If you pass, you walk away feeling pretty damned good about yourself. The level 2 test was even more difficult and the sense of accomplishment was even greater.

Over the last couple of years I’ve had cracked/bruised ribs, numerous bloody noses, various injuries and what not, but I’ve also learned to take a beating and to dish out a pretty damned good beating as well. Plus I’m in better shape at 47 than I was at 30. My 30 year old self would have his ass completely handed to him by my 47 year old self.

A couple of months ago my wife started getting in to it too. It’s great. Last night she was throwing down with the best of them; 5’11” of Ukrainian fury.

If you’re in an area that has a martial arts studio that teaches Krav Maga, I definitely recommend giving it a try. I guarantee after the first half hour you will be asking yourself, “What in God’s name have I gotten myself in to?” But when it’s over you’ll be going, “Holy crap, this is fun.”

Another thing you can be sure of is that, the next day, you’ll be in pain. Don’t worry, it never really goes away, you just get used to it. 

Behind Every Great Writer Is An Editor

Or so I’ve heard.

if Lish edited Carver so heavily, then is what we think of as “Carver-esque” really Lish?

Everyone Loves A Good Metaphor

Communicating without metaphors would be like eating without taste buds. I know, I just used a simile to describe a metaphor ... My head hurts.

Perhaps this will help.

Philosophers have long wondered about the connection between metaphor and thought, in ways that occasionally presaged current-day research. Friedrich Nietzsche scornfully described human understanding as nothing more than a web of expedient metaphors, stitched together from our shallow impressions of the world. In their ignorance, he charged, people mistake these familiar metaphors, deadened from overuse, for truths. “We believe that we know something about the things themselves when we speak of trees, colors, snow, and flowers,” he wrote, “and yet we possess nothing but metaphors for things--metaphors which correspond in no way to the original entities.”

Tuesday, October 06, 2009

Under The Weather

Man, I’ve been under the weather something fierce. Last week I got some kind of weird intestinal thing; no fever, lots of body aches. After about three days of that I got better. Then Friday morning my son woke up with a fever and sore throat. We took him to the doc and after a quick glance down the kid’s gullet he proclaimed, “Yeah, strep throat”.

OK, got that taken care of. Saturday morning I came down with ANOTHER case of gamboo. I’ve been wallowing like a wimp for the last few days. Tonight I’m feeling better, though.

Will be back to work tomorrow come hell or high water.

Bitch session over.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Audacity Of Hos

Sunday, September 06, 2009

Your Screenplay Sucks!

I’m currently reading Your Screenplay Sucks!: 100 Ways To Make It Great

I’ve heard enough good things about this book that I broke down and bought it.

To be honest I’m not too high on reading a bunch of screenplay books. I’ve learned the most by simply reading screenplays. That being said, I have read Story: Substance, Structure, Style and The Principles of Screenwriting and it has been hugely informative. In fact, I’d almost go so far as to say that this amazing book could rank as a life changer.

Anyway, I’ll be diving into Why Your Screenplay Sucks tonight. I’m hoping for ideas regarding my current third draft. 

God Damn The Shaky Cam

Oh, how I agree.

You’re not using the Almighty’s name in vain when you mean it. So everybody all together now: God Damn the Shaky-Cam.

Seriously, can’t an action film be produced anymore that doesn’t involve spastic camera work throughout the whole damn flick?

Just saying. 

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Loglines From The Headlines

Reading this:

Dr Venter, who has been chasing his goal for a decade, is already working on projects to use synthetic biology to create bacteria that transform coal into cleaner natural gas, and algae that soak up carbon dioxide and turn it into hydrocarbon fuels.

made me go, hmmmm.

I can see it now: The global ecosystem overrun by artificially created carbon dioxide consuming algae, humans must now produce massive amounts of Co2 to save earth.

I posted it on a screenwriting BB. Have at it!

Friday, August 21, 2009

Hollywood’s Self Imposed Bleed Out

One of my favorite web sites points to some articles concerning some of the problems concerning Hollywood. Part 1 is here, and part 2 is here.

Most telling is;

Exacerbating this issue (and with apologies to friends in the industry) is that most development staff historically possesses neither writing nor storytelling experience. What they have, and what they are mandated to exercise, is an ability to anticipate what their superiors desire. The Hollywood hierarchy is thus reactionary, and not driven to just tell a good story.

Mathematics Of Zombies

Proves that we’re all screwed.

A ZOMBIE attack would need to be countered hard and early to give civilisation any hope of surviving, according to a mathematical study.

A Canadian team - which includes an Australian researcher - has done the maths on what would happen should zombies really appear on the streets.

The first thing that comes to my mind is, I hope they didn’t get grant money for this?

Monday, August 17, 2009

Finally!

President Obama does something I can agree with.

President Obama made clear Monday that he favors the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act, and intends to ask Congress to repeal the 13-year-old law that denies benefits to domestic partners of federal employees and allows states to reject same-sex marriages performed in other states.

Friday, August 14, 2009

1.6 Trillion Reasons …

...why the health care reforms currently being shilled are doomed to failure.

In the 48 hours of June 15-16, President Obama lost the health-care debate. First, a letter from the Congressional Budget Office to Sen. Edward Kennedy reported that his health committee’s reform bill would add $1 trillion in debt over the next decade. Then the CBO reported that the other Senate bill, being written by the Finance Committee, would add $1.6 trillion. The central contradiction of Obamacare was fatally exposed: From his first address to Congress, Obama insisted on the dire need for restructuring the health-care system because out-of-control costs were bankrupting the Treasury and wrecking the U.S. economy—yet the Democrats’ plans would make the problem worse.

Then, linking to the above op-ed, is this.

In more than seven months of ObamaCare salesmanship, we’ve seen a boatload of mischaracterizations and outright lies. The public option won’t chase out private insurers. Wrong. We can bend the cost curve without affecting care. Wrong. We can pay for this without massive tax hikes. Wrong again.

One thing that concerns me is that the Obama Administration, apparently, has failed to think this through in even a rudimentary fashion. It’s as if their approach is, throw enough shit against the wall and some of it’s bound to stick. I think that most people agree that there needs to be some sort of health care reform. Even those who are flooding to the Town Halls to voice their disdain for what’s being proposed now. But Obama doesn’t seem to care as much about doing it right. Instead, it appears as though he just wants to do something, anything so that he can claim to have done something. Most likely for the sake of future political capital.

It’s stupid and it’s an egregious waste of an opportunity.

Also, I’ve noticed how the left has tried to usurp the term “health care reform”. If you’re against this socialized, horrific monstrosity being put forth, you are against “reform”.

Of coarse we can’t forget the ever entertaining Nancy Pelosi who last week called those who disrupt town hall meetings un-American yet seemed to have a different tone when it suited her. Nancy Pelosi is the worst of the worst.