Wednesday, July 29, 2015

The Ultimate Reality TV: Sanders and Trump – The Sorcerer and the Apprentice

First appeared on Blogcritics.

real 3 I don’t know about you, but I am pretty much a guy who doesn’t get involved in a presidential campaign this early. I mean, since I’m not walking into a booth and pulling a lever for my choice for president until 16 months from now, I’m not really too keen on getting involved listening to a bunch of possible (and many implausible) candidates; however, two candidates are getting my attention by making headlines and pretty much leaving the others in the dust – Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump.


real 4On the Democrat side of things, I only hear about Hilary Clinton and it's in regard to two issues – Benghazi and her lost emails. These are at least the soundbites that I can recall, and I am being honest here because as I said before I am really not into the campaign right now, but on the periphery this is what I hear.

Other than Hilary, I have no idea who is running for the Democratic nomination except good old Bernie. Bernie has been getting lots of press, and much of it is very good. I hear about Bernie getting huge crowds in Louisiana, whereas the poor governor of that state Bobby Jindal gets a turnout worse than a Knicks game last season. That Bernie must be doing something right.

On the Republican side of town, all I know is that there are guys like Jindal, Ted Cruz, and a lot of other assorted Cratchits who are chomping at the bit for the nomination, but I really know nothing much about them except that they keep attacking Trump. You see, these guys can’t even get themselves arrested unless they scream and yell about The Donald, which in essence gives Trump more publicity.

real 2Now Donald seems to be everywhere. Unlike Bernie, his omnipresence on news channels is both compelling and troublesome. After watching a few seasons of his show The Apprentice, I stopped because it just took him too long to get to the words I wanted to hear him say – “You’re fired!” They just dragged it out too much. Now, I watch and listen to him on news channels, but he never gets around to saying those words. How disappointing!



In the end I must confess that I am interested in both Bernie and Donald. Bernie is the ultimate sorcerer, conjuring notions of a better society and better world. Every time I hear him speak he just makes sense. I like how he handles himself, how he responds to questions, and his answers do not seem scripted. Bernie has a grasp on what he wants to say and he understands that the general public hasn’t heard a candidate not speak like a politician in at least 150 years (I’m estimating when old Honest Abe last spoke publicly).

f you check out his website, the campaign slogan is “Stand with Bernie.” This is the sorcerer at his best, stirring up a potion to make us think that if we are with him then we are against the rest of the lying, thieving, we-don’t-need-no-stinking-badges politicians who only want our vote and will do anything from kissing a baby to waxing our cars to get it.

Then there is dear old Donald Trump, “the apprentice” turned jack of all trades who now fancies himself a politician and champion of truth, justice, and the American way. Check his website and you will see his slogan – “Make America Great Again.” Ah, this is where he, the self –professed “very rich” tycoon, wants to take all Americans on his ride to get the country back to some glorious past.

real 1Bernie and Donald have salient things in common – they have wacky hair, point with their index fingers often, and seem to send a message people want to hear. As you watch both men articulate their positions, their common denominator is being unscripted and unaffiliated with the puppet masters of their respective parties. Love them or hate them, you have to realize that they are telling us not what some party honcho wants us to hear but rather what each man wants to convey to the public without having to first get it approved.

This is the earliest in a presidential campaign that I have ever been interested in hearing what a candidate had to say. At this rate, if the others don’t pick up the pace, they are going to be left in the wake of these two political speedboats with about as much chance of getting their party’s nominations as former reality TV star Paris Hilton or rapper Waka Flocka Flame.

I am not ready to vote for any candidate yet, but as of now I know more about Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump than any other candidate from any party. I venture to guess that this could be the case for a majority of the American public. Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump – is this the ultimate reality TV or what?

  Photo credits: biography.com, fantasiescometrue.com, washingtonpost.com, polistick.com 

Friday, July 17, 2015

Movie Review: Minions – You Had Me at Bello

First appeared on Blogcritics.

min 3 Okay, if you are of a certain age, you do not need a five-star review to motivate you to go see Minions; they got you when Stuart first said “Bello” (I must admit they got me too). If you are a parent, you know Minions is about important to your kids as your credit score is to you, so you are going to go and sit through 91 minutes of animation and grin and bear it.


Having just taken my kids to see the film, and judging from the laughter emanating from them, myself, and other movie viewers, parents should go in with nothing to worry about. Minions is entertaining and in 3-D (how we viewed it) it’s a visual wonder that dazzles and delights.


The story is pretty much a prequel to Despicable Me and is an origin tale. We learn that Minions start as single-cell organisms in the ocean, and almost immediately gravitate to “serving” an evil master (from one big fish to even bigger fish). Eventually, they crawl onto land, find themselves in the age of dinosaurs, and begin serving T-Rex. You can see where this is going as they continue to live to serve “evil” masters until they reach the 20th century. 

There we find them languishing in isolation in Antarctica where they establish a community, but there is sadness because they long to serve another evil master. This is when our yellow Moe, Larry, and Curly (leader Kevin, reluctant Stuart, and gung-ho Bob) decide to set off to find a new boss. 

Their journey takes them to 1968 New York (parents will appreciate all the little cultural reference here and throughout the film) where they most importantly find their signature blue overalls and learn about Villain-Con (an assemblage of the world’s greatest evil doers in Orlando, Florida).

min 4The trio hitches a ride with an evil villain family led by dad Walter (hilarious Michael Keaton) and mom Madge (Allison Janney), who rob banks and evade police cars like a married Bonnie and Clyde with annoying children. Of course, through it all it is the actions of the Minions (and their reactions) that cause the kids in the audience to squeal and scream in joy.

In Orlando they get to meet the villainess of their dreams, Scarlett Overkill (played deliciously and over the top by Sandra Bullock), who by default gains our stalwart trio as her new gang – and they are soon jetting off to London with her and learn their mission is to steal the Queen of England’s crown.

There is no reason to spoil any more of the fun, but the ride is full of laughs the rest of the way. Each of the three main Minions each gets some character development, and as voiced by co-director Pierre Coffin, they are as funny and silly and yet somehow heroic as the kids want them to be.

I should note that Jon Hamm (taking a much needed break from the gloomy Don Draper role) plays Scarlett’s wacky inventor husband Herb with zeal, and Jennifer Saunders does an amazing job voicing Queen Elizabeth (a scene of the depressed queen in an English pub is a hoot).

min 2Of course, my son has already collected many of the associated Minions toys from McDonald’s Happy Meals, and commercials on TV are pushing other Minions products. Parents will want to put money in reserve for the 3-D tickets, the snacks, and the desired toys in advance as I have already felt the pinch and can tell you that it hurts.

Still, it is a joy to see your children having fun, and the Minions are why they have to see this film, and it becomes a sort of communal experience when every kid is trying to see who can laugh the loudest during the movie.

All the other characters are merely bit players in the end, and it’s to Coffin and co-director Kyle Blada’s credit that the movie flows as well as it does, and the screenplay by Brian Lynch answers the question – can you really have a 90 minute movie starring the Minions? The answer is a resounding “Yes!”

So take your kids to see Minions and plan on laughing yourself. Oh, and the last ten minutes offer a great twist that kids and their parents are sure to appreciate, and stick around for the credits – there are some funny moments you won’t want to miss.

  Photo credits: IMDb, forbes    

Thursday, July 16, 2015

New Horizons Probe – In a Pickle Over Pluto

First appeared on Blogcritics.

pluto 2 nasa I will never forget many things I learned in school, but one was a way to remember the names of all the planets in order – “My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pickles.” The first letter of each word in the sentence stands for a planet – Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto. I had even planned to share this with my own kids, but in 2006 the International Astronomical Union declared that Pluto should be reclassified as a “dwarf” planet.

pluto 4

Alas, how could they do this to all of us who grew up thinking Pluto was a planet named after our favorite Disney dog? How could they take the word out of that lovely sentence and make it useless in the process (moms do not just serve kids a number, right)?

Well, I am hoping that the amazing journey of the New Horizon’s probe reaching Pluto; and sending back stunning images will help change that. We are seeing for the first time what it is like in the nether reaches of our solar system, and a human-made object has captured what is the edge of our known existence – and shouldn’t Pluto be considered as the last of our sun’s planets, the final stop before heading out into the great unknown?

NASA’s accomplishment with New Horizons is nothing to take lightly, but in case you are too busy with more important news about Donald Trump’s net worth or what Kim Kardashian is wearing, you should take note of this moment for a few reasons.

Perhaps most important of all news coming from the probe is that Pluto has water – potentially lots of water. Besides mountains as big as the Rockies, flat plains, and distinct polar regions, it is also snowing on parts of the planet and there is ice.

On a very thirsty planet like earth, that’s as welcome as a rest stop after you have been driving 100 miles. Yes, of course, Pluto is not around the corner, and we are not going to be setting up a Poland Springs bottling plant any time soon; however, water is a very precious and rare commodity in our solar system. Also, the salient fact is that water is essential for life as we know it, so the implications are exciting and there is more to learn from New Horizons data regarding Pluto in the months ahead.

pluto 1 bbcBeside these things there is the accomplishment of realizing that something made here on earth went 3.6 billion miles to take these amazing photos and is now moving onward in a journey into the Kuiper Belt and, after that, beyond what is known in space, boldly going where no probe has gone before.


pluto 3 cnn  On board New Horizons (which is about the size of a grand piano) is a vile of ashes belonging to Clyde Tombaugh, the man who discovered Pluto in 1930. While this seems more than fitting, Mr. Tombaugh certainly would be less than amused by the assertion that Pluto is not a planet after all but a “dwarf” planet, as claimed by the IAU.

This gets us back to the pickles and whether or not Pluto is a planet. There are going to be many debates by those more knowledgeable about space and planets and the like, but I am reacting from emotion (and on behalf of the seven year old that still lurks somewhere inside me). In my mind Pluto is a planet and always will be and, though I learned later in life that it was not named after my favorite Disney dog, I am sticking with that story too for all seven year olds who look up into space and dare to dream about the planets just as I did.

So members of the IAU, you should reconsider Pluto’s status, and while you’re at it, please pass the pickles.

  Photo credits: bbc.com, nasa.com, cnn.com, ioffer.com


Saturday, July 11, 2015

U.S. Women’s Soccer Team – NYC Parade Affirmation for Female Athletes Everywhere

First appeared on Blogcritics.

soc 1 The sight of the U.S. Women’s Soccer team being honored with a ticker-tape parade in New York City was exciting and inspiring. The so-called Canyon of Heroes has seen many parades for championship men’s teams and returning soldiers from various conflicts; however, this is the first time that a team of female players was so honored. In doing so, the parade not only confirms their status as world champions, but also as world class athletes as accomplished as any men that have come before them.

I have two children who play soccer. My oldest has been on girl’s teams since she was nine years old, and my youngest is just learning how to play in a boys’ clinic. Both of them enjoy watching the games no matter if males or females are on the pitch; however, the importance of seeing female athletes competing at the highest level and achieving such success is crucial for both of them.

soc 2This past season my daughter played on two teams (one local and the other traveling), and the commitment she makes is extremely high as she also is involved in other extracurricular activities and must do well in school. For her to see these successful female athletes is an enormous boost to her and affirms her desire to continue to play competitively.

In a wonderful article by writer Amy Bass, she notes the importance of the victory and this celebration of it with a NYC parade.
This team didn't get a ticker tape parade because Alex Morgan is, as FIFA's website proclaimed, "easy on the eye," but rather because it won. While individual women have come before them through the Canyon of Heroes, from Amelia Earhart to Carol Heiss Jenkins to members of the 1984 Olympic team, this is different. These women earned their victory as a team wearing the red, white and blue. And they are being feted, as a team, in a way women never have been before.

soc 4The excitement of the thousands of people who came to be spectators clearly was not delineated along gender lines. This team of extremely gifted athletes – who happen to be female – has made America proud, and they are rightly being celebrated for their bringing home the World Cup. 


The issues of disparity between male and female athletes do not go away because of this. Unfortunately, as Bass notes in her article, these champion women received $2 million for their victory over Japan in Vancouver; the U.S. men’s team eliminated in last year’s World Cup in Brazil got $8 million, while the winning German team received $35 million.

So indeed there is something wrong with this picture, but it is a longstanding issue that is not going to be overcome with this great victory by the U.S. Women’s team; however, one salient fact should get the attention of sponsors and coaches and network executives – 26.7 million viewers watched these women win their championship in Vancouver – a greater audience than the 26.5 million who watched the men’s World Cup final between Argentina and Germany last year.

If everything is measured by dollar signs in sports, then surely these figures show necessary and compelling reasons to take women athletes more seriously and pay them fairly. Obviously those viewers who tuned in didn’t care that they were watching female athletes but that they were watching a great moment in sports history.

soc 3As for my daughter and young female athletes everywhere, they can take pride in this victory and encouragement to keep doing what they love to do. It also is a wonderful thing for my son and all the boys out there too – seeing women competing at a level many male players could only wish to attain. 

The U.S. Women’s Soccer team is on top of the sporting world, and deservedly received a ticker-tape parade through the Canyons of Heroes (Heroines?). Men and women everywhere should honor their historic achievement by making sure that other young athletes (male and female) can continue to pursue their dreams of sports glory without anyone thinking twice about their gender.


  Photo credits: NY Daily News, CNN 

Wednesday, July 8, 2015

Walking as Jesus Did – The Pope Brings Hope to the World’s Poor

First appeared on Blogcritics.

pope 2 reuters Pope Francis has from the very beginning always seemed very different than those men who went before him as the successor to St. Peter. Obviously, coming from Latin America and fluent in Spanish, the Pope has been able to reach out to millions who have a yearning to hear his voice and for their voices to be heard.

On the Pope’s current trip to South America, the Pontiff has presented a strong case that he is indeed not just any man elected Pope but one who is intimately in touch with the teachings of Jesus Christ.

Those who know anything about Jesus know that he his mission on this earth was for all people, but had a deep connection with the poor having himself been brought up in poverty. We remember his teaching about rich people, saying that it was easier for a camel to pass through an eye of a needle than for a rich man to get into heaven. When a rich man asks to follow Jesus, he tells the man to give away all his possessions and join him. Sadly, the man declines and goes away.

In this spirit of Jesus the Pope is doing his work. As he meets people in Ecuador and speaks, the profundity of his message is overwhelming for them and for the poor all over the world. Pope Francis cites the current inequity in the world and how it is time to make changes.
The goods of the Earth are meant for everyone, and however much someone may parade his property, it has a social mortgage. The tapping of natural resources, which are so abundant in Ecuador, must not be concerned with short-term benefits.

pope 1 cnnThe words may be specifically for Ecuador and its leaders, for as an OPEC member the copious wealth coming from its oil industry is definitely not reaching the poor in the streets of Quito or any place else in this country, but Francis is directing his message to the larger community of world leaders as well.

Some have said the Pope’s philosophy is socialist, but it is more humanist – his goal is not a redistribution of wealth but a more equitable alignment of resources to help those suffering from malnutrition, disease, and living in wretched conditions.

What he is saying is in line with the teachings of Jesus, who understood the haves are invariably not as concerned as they should be with the have nots. The Pope also used the opportunity to talk about the environment – another of his deep concerns for not just for our quality of life now but for the future of the planet.
As stewards of these riches which we have received, we have an obligation toward society as a whole and toward future generations. We cannot bequeath this heritage to them without proper care for the environment, without a sense of gratuitousness born of our contemplation of the created world.
Jesus understood how important the gift of nature was to the human race, constantly challenging his followers to look at the world around them. The Sermon on the Mount is full of these examples as he notes nature and its glories, and he also recognizes that many of them are ignorant of these natural riches, but observes children are the exception. “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children” (Matthew: 11-25).

pope 4 reutersWell known is the love Jesus had for children, and this Pope also follows him in that regard. You can see Francis’s face light up when children are in his presence, and much of what he is doing in terms of social justice and championing the environment has to do with them – they are inheriting this world, and it’s our duty to make it a better place for them in all ways.

Massive turnouts in Ecuador indicate how much the people want and need to hear the Pope’s message. As Jesus did before him, Pope Francis gives the poor encouragement and with sincerity lets them know that their needs are important to him and should be to those in power all over the world.

pope 3 reutersThe Pope will move on now to Bolivia and then to Paraguay – two countries with enormous populations living in poverty. Obviously, the Pope has chosen the locations wisely, hoping to reach out to those who suffer and fear no one notices or cares. Pope Francis does care and his inclination toward listening to others, to not judging those who are different, and his willingness to change not for the sake of change but for the betterment of humankind indicate that he is indeed walking the walk of Jesus. 

Pope Francis is giving hope to the people of the world, and his message should be resonant to all who can hear his voice. Hopefully those in power will heed the call to make changes, to make certain that hunger and disease are eradicated by sharing the wealth that is locked up in the coffers of a few all over the world.

While Pope Francis is indeed walking the way of Jesus in this world, he is also making something abundantly clear – he is the Catholic Church’s first truly modern Pontiff. What he has done thus far has been astonishing in its goal to reach all people, and he creates hope that the rest of his tenure will be even more remarkable.



Photo credits: CNN, Reuters

Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Beniffer II – They’re Gone Girl

First appeared on Blogcritics.

ben1 The news that came late yesterday sent shockwaves across the nation – no, I’m not talking about Donald Trump’s big mouth or bigger hair or NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio’s rift with Governor Andrew Cuomo – Hollywood super couple Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner were parting ways. Oh, such a travesty, this ending of Bennifer II, for anyone who believes in Cinderella tales, caviar wishes, and Bernie Sanders’ campaign dreams.

Alas, another celebrity split – the inevitable chemical reaction to the concept of marriage thrown into the toxic beaker called Hollywood. No, I haven’t been waiting to write that sentence my whole life, but it’s just a sudden thought about what did seem like a fairy tale romance in a sea of tempestuous unions and illicit affairs in La-la Land.

ben2In my house Ben is already “dead meat” in the eyes of my wife and daughter. “How could he do this to Jennifer?” They watch TMZ – sacred scripture to those who believe in the gods and goddesses of Mount Hollywood – and hear the story about how Ben’s drinking and gambling doomed the relationship. Bad Ben; bad, bad boy!

I must confess that I feel sorry for Ben here – female readers, please don’t start attacking me before you read further. Jennifer has the all –American girl factor, seems to be an earth mother, and is the nurturing sort. Despite coming on my radar as the kick-ass Sydney in the TV series Alias, since then Jennifer has grown into the loving mother-friend-wife anyone would want to have – both on screen and off.

Ben, on the other hand, has always been sort of an outlaw – in terms of the way he has been perceived ever since hoisting that Oscar with old buddy Matt Damon triumphantly in the air for the film Good Will Hunting. Since that film I must confess I have seen only two other Affleck films - The Town with him playing a bank robber who romances one of his victims and Gone Girl as a cheating husband whose wife goes to great lengths to be “gone” and then some. Neither of these films would have won Ben any fans as hubby of the year, and perception is everything.

It seems Jennifer will be able to rebound from this with aplomb. She will be offered sympathy from all those females who knew Ben was a cad since Bennifer I (when he broke poor little Jennifer Lopez’s heart). Ben comes off a bit cocky and speaks eloquently enough when appearing on TV shows, but there is something about gambling and drinking that will get the fans wondering what other impulses he cannot control. Ben could go out and surprise us all and make a film where he’s a good boy, but don’t bank on it.

ben3Of course, the real victims – and no, they are not the brokenhearted fans – are the couple’s three children. Here we have totally innocent kids who, like many celebrity children who came before them, have life as they know it totally destroyed. Whether it’s Ben’s habits or whatever else went on between the couple, the sad truth is that this is another split family in a Hollywood maelstrom where they are as commonplace as your daily cup of latte.

I am usually not inspired to write about such things – the last time I did was when Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes split. Even then I was more motivated by the fact that their daughter Siri was losing something more than her parents. After Tom had jumped around on Oprah’s couch, who wouldn’t think that TomKat was a union that would last forever?

So we bid adieu to Bennifer II. As I said to my daughter, “They’re gone, girl!” Needless to say, she was not amused.

 Photo credits: usmagazine.com, tmz.com, spot/akm-gsi