Britney Spears Is Popular… Well So I hear

You probably already know that Britney is the most searched celebrity on the internet. You might have come across the info while looking for the latest news about her. Interesting isn’t it? We sure do love a train wreck. Britney has made headlines for so many reasons, and I doubt there is a person alive who hasn’t heard all the stories. Now comes the news that she has earned a spot in the 2009 edition of the Guinness World Records.

 

I don’t know what to make of all this really. There have been times I have felt a great deal of sympathy for her. And other times when I’ve been pretty disgusted with her behavior, especially as a parent. But what does it says about us, when the more the news chronicles her deterioration, the more interested we seem to be in her?

 

There have been allegations of substance abuse, and claims that she is an unfit parent. And through it all I’ve never gotten a sense that she really takes any of this very seriously. Now all the talk seems to be about her new album Circus, and whether she can get her career back on track.

 

Here’s hoping she can have a great relationship with her sons, and that the career will take a backseat to being there for them. Father of The Year Kevin Federline (that’s not a joke folks) will no doubt want her to be as involved as possible.

 

I don’t care about her comeback really. I was never into her music. But I do hope she gets her life on track, and that she will be given some space, not for herself, but for the sake of her kids.

The Palin Saga: Beware the open mike

Since John McCain picked Sarah Palin to be his running mate, the story has taken on a life of its own. First there were blogs suggesting that her youngest child is actually her grandson. Then came revelations that Palin was under investigation for the firing of Public Safety Commisioner Walter Monegan. This was allegedly in response to his refusal to fire her former brother in law, an Alaska State Trooper. Dubbed Troopergate by the media, this issue has led to Palin hiring a lawyer as investigations get underway into allegations she abused her power.

 

Recently Peggy Noonan and Mike Murphy were caught on tape making disparaging remarks about Sarah Palin being picked to run for Vice President. Not realizing their mikes were on, Murphy and Noonan were heard making comments like: “It’s Over,” “Political Bullshit,” “Gimmicky” Of course after the story broke, Noonan issued an apology, well, sort of.

 

Anyway the story got me thinking about other embarrassing open mike incidents. The first one that comes to mind is Jesse Jackson. Unaware that his mike was on before a television interview, Jackson said “See Barack Obama been, um, talking down to black people… want to cut his nuts off ”.

 

George Bush and Blair were caught discussing the Middle East Crisis at the G8 Summit in St. Petersburg. Bush was heard commenting that he wanted Hizbullah to “stop doing this s**t” (PG 13 here folks).

 

Former President Ronal Reagan has two incidents on the list. During a voice level test Reagan joked, “My fellow Americans, ‘I’m pleased to tell you today that I’ve signed legislation that will outlaw Russia for ever. We begin bombing in five minutes”. On the second occasion he described Polish leaders as “a bunch of no good, lousy bums”, and said the American economy was in “a hell of a mess”.

 

Other notables include: Prince Charles (A great ball of charm, that man). Former British Prime Minister, John Major. Britney Spears (What! you shout, no way!), and former French President Jacques Chirac (yes even the cultured French have their moments too)

I guess my only question is: when will these people learn?

Am I the only one who wants a Ghostbusters 3?

A new online poll has named Ghostbusters the funniest film of the past 25 years. Can’t say I disagree with that one. Apart form being one of the funniest movies I’ve ever seen, at the time the concept was pretty original. Three unemployed parapsychology professors start a ghost removal business. Along the way they battle a number of ghosts, the city, and eventually face the main baddie Gozer, saving New York in the process.

 

I read an interview that Dan Aykroyd gave, in which he said that Ghostbusters 3 definitely won’t be happening. I’d pretty much put it out of my mind until I came across the news item on imdb. According to Aykroyd, Bill Murray was the one who wasn’t interested in doing another sequel. Funny, he didn’t seem to have a problem squeezing out the stinkers Osmosis Jones and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. Thanks Bill.

 

I don’t think I’m the only one who would like to see Peter, Ray and Egon suit up one more time. Would it be harsh to call this guy selfish? Of course they’ve pretty much aged out of the roles now, so that would make this rant pretty pointless. Well I’ll finish up with the rest of the top ten from the list:

2. National Lampoon’s Vacation

3. Beverly Hills Cop

4. This Is Spinal Tap

5. Office Space

6. South Park: Bigger, Longer + Uncut

7. There’s Something About Mary

8. The Big Lebowski

 

9. A Fish Called Wanda

 

10. Dazed + Confused

 

Office Space and A Fish Called Wanda are two of my personal favorites. Be sure to check out EW.com for the rest of the poll.

Is McCain fit for the presidency?

According to a report on Huffingtonpost.com, a new book by Cliff Schecter, “The Real McCain” offers a look at McCain’s legendary anger streak. Perhaps the most interesting episode was a confrontation between McCain and Arizona Congressman Rick Renzi. According to a reporter who witnessed the incident, during a strategy meeting, McCain repeatedly referred congressmen Trent Franks and Rick Renzi as ‘boy’. Eventually, Renzi rose from his chair and said “You call me that one more time and I’ll kick your old ass” at which point McCain lunged at him. The two had to be separated after throwing punches.

 

Believe it or not, McCain actually called Renzi in his office later and demanded an apology. I suspect Renzi responded with a polite ‘screw you’ (you can replace ‘screw’ with any expletive that has a nicer ring) but at any rate, the two became fast friends, so I guess it’s all good. Keep in mind though that the incident was never reported and the witnesses have remained nameless.

Still, it does seem to fit a pattern of similar behavior. It was reported in Washingtonian magazine that McCain once “scuffled” with Strom Thurmond, (wow, can you picture that cage match?) and dropped the F-Bomb on at least three fellow republicans. Add to that an offensive joke he made about Chelsea Clinton written about in an opinion piece by Sidney Blumenthal. “Do you know why Chelsea Clinton is so ugly?” he asked. “Because Janet Reno is her father.” Well being so disrespectful of someone’s child doesn’t score too many points in my book, and I’m sure Bill would have handled it if he wasn’t so *ahem* busy.

What’s my point? Well does this affect how you feel about voting for this guy? I’m sure nobody has forgotten the infamous “Dean Scream” which pretty much derailed Howard Dean’s presidential bid. If this “red faced rant” (his words, just ask David Letterman) toppled a frontrunner in the primaries, could revelations in this book have a similar effect on McCain’s run for The White House? Time will tell.

I’ll leave you with a part of McCain’s response to the recent reports. “If I lose my capacity for anger, then I shouldn’t be president of the United States…” Nice one John.

Good sources of antioxidants

Antioxidants, now there’s a word we hear being tossed around everyday. Lot of products being advertised highlight their antioxidant content, and it’s not unusual to pick up certain products in the supermarket and see “high in antioxidants” printed on the label. But still many people fail to realize the positive health benefits of adding these substances to their diets. 

 

When your body breaks down food, it produces molecules called ‘free radicals’ which can damage cells, and lead to an increased risk of heart disease and cancer among other things. Environmental factors like smoke can also play a role in free radical buildup in the body. Antioxidants protect your cells against the effect of free radicals.

 

Fruits such as blueberries, strawberries, cranberries and blackberries are good sources of antioxidants. The Acai berry, found primarily in the Brazilian rainforest, is described by many as an exceptional antioxidant. There are products on the market now which contain Acai berries, like Tropicana Pure Raspberry Acai juice.

 

Small red beans, Pinto beans and dried black beans also provide healthy servings of antioxidants. Other good sources are red meat, fish, shellfish, chicken and garlic. Most of us are not big fans of meticulously watching what we eat, but these foods can be had just about anywhere. So there is no need to go looking for that health food store that just opened around the corner.

 

Still a trip to a Health food store might not be a bad idea. You never know what information you might pick up. Remember too that antioxidant substances include Beta-carotene, Lutein and Vitamins A, C and E to name a few. And I’m sure I may have left out some other good sources of antioxidants, so feel free to shout out a few.

Fox Sues over Watchmen movie

If you’re a fan of graphic novels, chances are you’ve read Watchmen by Alan Moore. Moore is without doubt one of the most influential figures in comics, and Watchmen is one of the most critically acclaimed graphic novels ever produced. Of course some would argue that Watchmen was actually a limited series which was then republished as a paperback, but we’re not going to quibble about that now, are we?

Fans of the graphic novel have been clamoring for years for it to be brought to the big screen. After being mired in development hell it was finally announced that the film was in the works, with Zack Snyder hired to helm. If you haven’t seen the trailer yet, check apple.com. The last time a trailer got me this excited was the one for 300, also directed by Snyder.

Recently news broke that Twentieth Century Fox had filed a suit seeking to block the release of the movie, due in theaters March 2009. A Fox spokesman says they will be “asking the court to enforce our copyright interests”. They will be asking the court to halt the release of the movie and “any related Watchmen media that violate our copyright interests in that property”

I can’t help but wonder about the timing of all this. On just about every forum I’ve come across discussing this issue, people are accusing Fox of just trying to get more money. I can’t see any other reason for waiting till now to file a suit. After the original announcement, casting and now that the film is in post production, Fox suddenly realizes that their copyright has been infringed? Nice work guys.

I wish I could say that the judge should just throw out the case, but I don’t know all the specifics. Honestly though I don’t see much chance of the film’s release being put off. I’m willing to bet that something will be worked out within the coming months. And for the sake of the fans who have been waiting years for this movie, let’s hope so.

Want to smell like a celebrity?

 

At last count, I think there were more than one hundred celebrity fragrances on the market. David and Victoria Beckham, Jennifer Lopez, Jessica Simpson, and Antonio Banderas, are just a few celebs with top selling fragrances. Believe me, I’m not one to tell anyone how to spend their hard earned money. I certainly don’t have enough of it myself. But really, how many of these celebs are even aware of the work that goes into making a best selling fragrance? Is there a single one who is capable of actually creating a fragrance? Hey Britney, quick, who’s responsible for the theory of relativity? Now I’m not saying that any of these celebs are dumb. On the contrary, you have to be pretty shrewd to take advantage of opportunities like this.

 

It seems however that the joke is on us. Yes folks, shelling out fifty bucks to buy the latest Vera Wang fragrance while she laughs all the way to the bank. What the hell are we thinking? Do celeb fragrances really smell any better than anything else you can get on the shelf? No, really I’m asking. I’ve never taken a whiff of one myself.

 

I wonder what the celeb fragrance creation process is like though. I imagine it goes something like this:

 

Lab Tech. 1: Here, try this sample

Celeb (sniffs): No, that’s not me

Lab Tech. 1: Ok try this one

Celeb: Oh yeah, that’s definitely me, we’ll go with that one (leaves room)

Lab Tech. 1: (snickers) she doesn’t even realize they’re both the same, talk about dumb blondes

Lab Tech. 2: Blonde? I thought she was a brunette

 

Me, I think I’ll stick with Old Spice. Yeah I hear some of you snickering, but a bottle of Old Spice was a fixture on my Dad’s dresser for all the years I lived with him. What can I say, I love the guy, I love the way the cologne smells. I like when I’m putting it on and my four year old says “Me too, Daddy”. Hopefully he won’t grow up to be one of the zombies who think something is superior just because a celeb’s name is attached to it.

 

And just in case you think of Old Spice as your Grandpa’s cologne, well these days they have lots of products for the hip urban male. Yes, I put myself in that group. I’m not advertising for them by any means, but just in case: hey Old Spice guys (hand to face with thumb and pinkie out) call me.

Do you see what they’re doing with Hummers these days?

 

Recently Robbie Knievel successfully jumped 21 Hummers at the Texas Motor Speedway. An impressive feat, surely, but I found myself thinking about not the daredevil, but the Hummers. It’s no secret that General Motors is considering selling the Hummer brand (discontinue according to some sources) while they plan to close four truck plants in response to the declining demand for large SUVs as a result of higher oil prices.

 

I can remember reading an article a few years ago at the height of the popularity of Ford’s line of trucks, in particular the F150. It might have been Newsweek or BusinessWeek, like I said, it was quite a while back. Anyway the writer was pretty much berating some auto makers for the trend of bigger and bigger vehicles and accusing them of acting like the bottom would not fall out sooner or later. Great article, and I read it because the Ford F150 was the “in thing” in my country (Jamaica) at the time.

 

 

Looking back at it now, I wonder if CEOs or industry analysts ever read these magazines. I said to my wife recently that if I was running one of the auto companies, as soon as George Bush decided to go to war with Iraq, I would have started to cut back production. Now that position may seem a little naïve to some, and I freely admit I’m no expert on the vagaries of the automobile industry, but no matter how educated you are, everyone knows the pitfalls of Middle East instability. And let’s face it; it doesn’t get more unstable than full scale war.

 

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not getting into whether or not the Iraq war was justified, but I think to some extent the large auto makers were caught napping. Higher oil prices, and the fact that Going Green campaigns (I’ll discuss my disgust on that issue in another blog) are everywhere, are causing car buyers to overlook SUVs, and SUV owners who want to sell in favor of more fuel efficient cars are finding it difficult to do so.

 

What does this have to do with Robbie Knievel? Nothing really. But the first thought that crossed my mind when I saw it on the news was: so that’s what they’re doing with Hummers these days. Believe me, I’ve got no problem with Hummers or their owners. Hey, whatever makes you happy. If you can afford it that is. But the mighty Hummer being lined up for a bike stunt can be compared I think to a once great, but washed up actor being reduced to taking any role he can get. And it all comes down to the price of gas.

 

So don’t sell that Hummer just yet. You probably couldn’t anyway, 40 miles to the gallon seems to be the rage these days. Auto makers are pushing hybrids and more compact vehicles with mostly environmental themes and the once coveted SUV is now being treated like a third cousin. But hey, at least the Hummer will still be good for something.