Junket:AIG Junket
Junket:AIG Junket - AIG Junket is creating a controversy.Obama mentioned the fact that AIG executives spend $400k on a junket.Here is what happened after the federal government gave the $85 billion bailout to insurance giant,AIG. …
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Submitted by: sheikh82 Added: 3 weeks ago.
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Junket, Meg Whitman
Related News : aig junket, meg whitman, aig vacation, aig 400 000, what is a junket AIG Junket And Firestarter Blame NPR- Oct 07, 2008 Obama talked about AIG executives on a junket which was apparently true, but they were from the clean …
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Junket
Web results Junket Desserts Shopping Cart Junket Dessert Products - Junket Rennet Custard, Junket Danish Dessert, Junket Ice Cream Mix, Junket Rennet Tablets. How to make cheese using Junket Rennet … www.junketdesserts.com …
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AIG Execs On Junket
The news about AIG execs junket just after the company accepted bailout package has become the buzzword. Obama also mentioned this in debate. And how much did this cost. $440000 !!! Although company claims that those execs belong to …
World News Latest Trends And Buzz - http://newstrendsbuzz.wordpress.com/ - References

AIG Junket
Who cares, it’s trickle down economics. We give 700 billion of taxpayer money for a rescue plan, then a company like AIG gives it out to their already well off employees (in the insurance division) who spend it on a resort in California …
“Human see, human do.” - http://ronniedigital.wordpress.com

Did AIG just spend $400k on a junket?
Obama just said they did.
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junket
Our visitor John Adams says: ‘High TechFigure guys. Do you know any source where I can read about junket?’ Hi John. Since we are not experienced on the subject, we suggest seeing the following link:. junket.
The tech blog - http://www.techfigure.com/

The “junket king”
Known as the travel junket king in the Coast Community College District, Ruiz has booked a $600/night hotel room on Times Square in order to attend the Association of Community College Trustees conference, costing taxpayers $3000. …
Dissent the Blog - http://dissenttheblog.blogspot.com/

Can John McCain pull this one off?
22 hours ago by media@politico.com (Roger Simon)
The polls are ugly, the Electoral College map is grim and the economy is getting worse. See also: Pre-game.
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[ More results from Politico.com: Roger Simon ]

“That One”
I wasn’t quite sure what to make of this when it happened. It sounded demeaning, but it happened as I was writing one of my posts. So I didn’t get a chance to listen closely enough on the first round. But you be the judge …
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Arabeyes: Here Comes the One-Eye Veil
From a veil which covers the face but allows women to show their two eyes, an Islamic scholar from Saudi Arabia is now calling for a veil which shows one eye only. Bloggers from the Arab world react. Writing in Mideast Youth, …
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Obama “The One”? McCain camp spoofs rival with trinket cufflinks
On the back, carefully engraved, were the words “The One.” Subtle? Not so much. The Arizona senator’s aides often poke fun at the messianic quality they feel Obama assumes and his supporters accept. Both sides have grown increasingly …
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Your Thoughts On That One.
That one, as in, the second debate. What did you think I meant?
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One in Four Mammals May Soon Be Extinct
This may sound familiar, but scientists sent a resounding message today when they announced in a comprehensive five-year global wildlife review that these human-based causes and more are threatening one in four of the world’s 5487 known …
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One-handed grub for gamers
Gamer Grub promises enhanced visual input, cognitive processing, signal transmission, and muscle reflexes–without keyboard crumbs or greasy fingers. (Credit: Gamer Grub). This just goes hand in hand with the Internet Urinal, …
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One clip worth a thousand words
Andrew Sullivan and others have already mentioned this clip by TPMtv, but here is why I think it is important: It does a lot to explain why many people who felt they “knew” John McCain in his earlier DC life have been slow to face and …
James Fallows - http://jamesfallows.theatlantic.com/ - References

The One-Way Debate?
Just like last week’s vice-presidential debate was all about Sarah Palin, tonight’s presidential debate is all about John McCain — right? That’s the media’s judgment, and the very real sense in Nashville. McCain — by dint of being …
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»» walk softly and carry a big stick. what mccain said in …
John Mccain in presidential debate told that speak softly and carry a big stick which may also mean walk softly and carry a big stick. McCain said the United States should talk softly, but carry a big stick and slammed his rival Obama …
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Walk Softly And Carry A Big Stick:Teddy Roosevelt Quotes
Walk Softly And Carry A Big Stick:Teddy Roosevelt Quotes - Walk softly and carry a big stick,Teddy Roosevelt’s famous quote found its way to the headlines,through the second presidential debate,that took place,earlier tonight. …
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WALK SOFTLY & CARRY A BIG STICK
Meg O’Malley’s - Walk Softly And Carry A Big Stick Home Stories Of Ireland Walk Softly And Carry A Big Stick. Irish Toasts & Blessings … told her shillelaghs, or walking sticks, were used as weapons and did … Related: …
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Walk Softly But Carry A Big Stick!!! - Reader comments at …
Walk Softly But Carry A Big Stick!!! - Reader comments at DanielPipes.org Then appeasement for the criminals, and blaming Bush are their only … Mark my comment as a response to Walk Softly But Carry A Big Stick!!! by reader RPaine … …
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Walk softly and carry a big stick
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Walk softly and carry a big stick VIDEO!
Watch the video of McCain’s Talk Softly and Carry a Big Stick during second presidential debate. “Walk” Softly? No. During the second debate, McCain says “Talk Softly and Carry a Big Stick”. So it is Talk or Walk? …
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walk softly and carry a big stick - photos
Teddy Roosevelt used to say walk softly, talk softly, but carry a big stick. Senator Obama likes to talk loudly,” Mr. McCain said. … read more Non-answers, but still revealing Another very telling exchange, to me, was the one about …
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Walk Softly and Carry a Big Stick
The phrase “walk softly and carry a big stick” was a speech or quotes from West Africa. President Theodore Roosevelt have said it before when he became the president of the United States, he said “I have always been fond of the West …
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Walk Softly And Carry A Big Stick
I tried to keep this blog as politics free as possible unfortunately I just cant help myself! I Just finished watching the second presidential debates. Not what I was expecting alot of it was the candidates rehashing their political …
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In life I rarely, if ever, cry. But the movies are a whole other story. Perhaps I possess the ability to keep my emotions so well-checked in real life because I don’t have any sort of filter for them in the movies. This displacement gives me a healthy outlet which allows me to remain stoic in the real world. I’m Jack Paar in the movie theater so I can be Clint Eastwood in my interpersonal relationships.

Yeah. That’s the ticket.

Anyway, without further preamble, here’s my list of the ten movies that have reduced me to a tearful, quivering shell of a man:

ET: The Extraterrestrial

I was twelve years old when I saw this film in 1982. It’s the first movie that I can recall causing streams of tears to pour down my cheeks. So in a way, we could say that my tearful relationship with the movies started right here.

Shadowlands

If you’re ever on a date with a girl that you don’t know very well, do not watch this movie with her if you don’t want her to think you’re an emotional basket case. I made that mistake. It was a third date, the one where you feel comfortable having her at the house, eating in, and throwing a movie on the VCR (yes, this was during the VCR days). Not only did I not get lucky that night, she never returned my calls. Damn you, Anthony Hopkins. Damn you.

Saving Private Ryan

“Earn this.” The tears for this, the best World War II movie ever made (in my opinion) are well-earned. Plus, since it’s a war movie, it’s totally fine to tear up and stay manly.

Moulin Rouge

I saw this at the behest of my girlfriend. In the end it was me that was blubbering and my girlfriend laughing at me. She’s a cruel, cruel woman.

Titanic

Cameron’s long roller-coaster ride into the icy waters of the arctic hit all the right notes for me (despite that awful song). It was, however, a purely theatrical experience, as I’ve never connected with it on the small screen like I did that first time when it was twenty feet high. I recognized that would be the case as I walked out of the theater, and I said to my friend, “This is going to be a maligned movie in the future, but we should always remember that as a first time viewing experience it was pretty damned awesome.” Today it seems it’s more hip to diss Cameron’s admittedly bloated extended melodrama, but it’s initial effect cannot be denied.

Batman Begins

When Gordon says, “I never did thank you,” and Batman replies, “And you’ll never have to,” I prayed the house lights in the theater would never come up. How do I explain to my girlfriend that I was just reduced to tears by a Batman movie? “Yes, honey, I’m even more of a geek than you would have ever suspected.”

The Iron Giant

I was totally unprepared for the emotional assault this film would launch against me in its climactic final moments. When the giant launches himself in the air to intercept the nuclear missile that threatens to destroy Hogarth’s town, he hears Hogarth’s voice in his head: “You are what you choose to be…”

The giant closes his eyes and says, “Superman.” Getting teary just writing it.

Babe

The talking pig movie did a number on me. I’m not too shamed by it, because Quentin Tarantino also admitted that he did a bit of blubbering at this film. (And as we all know, QT is the auteur responsible for some of the most manly films yet fashioned by human hands.) The moment that gets me is, of course, the farmer’s totally unemotional final delivery of the line, “That’ll do, pig.” A lesser director would have had the actor infuse that last reading with all sorts of pathos, and the effect would have been nullified. It works here because Cromwell’s delivery at the end of the film doesn’t differ at all from any of the other myriad times he said it before, giving us in the audience the opportunity to discover the emotion of the moment, rather than having it thrust on upon us.

The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring

No one expects hobbits to be anything but humble farmers who enjoy their pipeweed a little too much and suffer a touch of agoraphobia whenever they wander too far from their Shire village. So I teared up several times over the course of this film as Frodo and his friends overcame seemingly impossible odds. But the most memorable has to be when Frodo steps up at the council meeting and volunteers to carry the One Ring to the fires of Mordor - a task arguably beyond the most capable hero in the land. It is as perfect a moment as you can get in a movie - where sight, sound, and story all come together to create a pure, non-pandering emotional response.

Good Night, and Good Luck

I saw the movie on DVD a while after the 2004 election, which was a rather emotional time for me. I’m a political junkie and a history buff, and this George Clooney-directed film did an excellent job, I believe, of capturing the toxic atmosphere wrought over this country by the McCarthy hearings. It started when he said, “We must not confuse dissent from disloyalty. We must remember always, that accusation is not proof, and that conviction depends upon evidence and due process of law. We will not walk in fear, one of another, we will not be driven by fear into an age of unreason.” By the end of that famous speech, I was reduced to literal sobs. Edward R. Murrow was just a newsman, and no one would have expected that his words could destroy the most powerful man in America. But he exceeded those expectations.

So there it is. My confession to being a big fat movie crybaby, with apologies for the shameless political punditry.

What are the movies that have made you cry the hardest? Yes, it’s okay to admit it.

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The last time we checked in on Marvel’s production of Thor, which is set to hit theaters on June 4, 2010, it was on the slate for director Matthew Vaughn, who has since gone on to start production on Kick-Ass. As well, there were rumors that Eagle Eye and Disturbia director D.J. Caruso was interested, but nothing ever happened there.

Tonight though, the folks at Variety are reporting that Kenneth Branagh, who has directed such films as Henry V and Hamlet, is in talks to take on the hammer-wielding Norse God. While he has starred in plenty of films including the upcoming Tom Cruise Nazi drama Valkyrie, Branagh’s last directorial effort was 2007’s Sleuth, a remake that starred Michael Caine and Jude Law.

This would certainly be an odd choice for Marvel Studios Pres. Kevin Feige, but no more odd than the choice of Jon Favreau for Iron Man. Alright, that’s a lie — this is way more odd than Favreau taking on Iron Man. I’ve enjoyed, and not enjoyed, Branagh’s work in the past. Henry V was a big, bloody affair that worked, but Sleuth was a messy rehashing that never found a focused perspective. Yet, no matter how you feel about him as a director, I think we can all agree that Branagh’s most impressive work was his role as the ridiculous Dr. Arliss Loveless in Wild Wild West… or not.

Ultimately I am interested to see where this whole thing goes — should Branagh sign on for Thor, that would certainly put fans in an awkward state of trepidation — who knows where it could go from there. Though, as it stands, a Thor feature film is an ambitious project either way. How do you bring to life a God? We’ll see, I suppose.

What do you think about Kenneth Branagh being in negotiations to direct Thor?

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Tomorrow night Heroes rolls on with its third episode of season 3, and despite the fact that our own Adam Sweeney gave the first two episodes relatively high marks, I am not feeling the direction of this season. They opened with too many complicated story-lines and too many forced twists. Then again, they are making up for a relatively lackluster second season in the eyes of fans.

But lets put all of that aside for a moment, as this is about showing you some new promo photos for tomorrow night’s episode, entitled “One of Us, One of Them.” And despite the almost criminal lack of Kristen Bell in these photos, it appears as if the direction of the “Villains” chapter may come into focus a little bit better in episode 3. Look for a bigger presence from Brea Grant as Daphne, the speedy nemesis of Hiro (Masi Oka) and Ando (James Kyson Lee). As well, it will be interesting to see what happens when Sylar is teamed up with HRG, a situation that could produce this series’ odd couple. Another interesting observation — we see the return of Micah (Noah Grey-Cabey), who was not seen in the first two episodes. Could this also mean the “official” return of Niki Sanders (Ali Larter)?

Have a look at the photos for yourself below. Click to enlarge.

What do you think of Heroes season 3 thus far?

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Californication, Showtime, Airs Sundays 10pm E/P

Episode: “Slip of the Tongue” (Season Two, Episode One)

Synopsis: Picking up a few months after the events of last season’s finale, the Moody family is together, (mostly) happy, and planning to move back to New York City. Hank (David Duchovny) and Karen (Natascha McElhone) are both excited about the move and the future, but their daughter Rebecca (Madeleine Martin) is scared that their rekindled love won’t survive. Rebecca’a fears begin to come true when her parents attend a Hollywood party where Hank’s tongue accidentally ends up in a stranger’s vagina. Although that seems to be a valid reward for the vasectomy he suffers through earlier in the episode…

Review: Following on the absolutely terrible and horribly ill-conceived ending to last season’s finale, this episode scares me as much as it scared Rebecca. A quick recap of last season… Hank and Karen are split. He has women dangling from his schlong constantly, but the only woman he truthfully wants is Karen, and she’s engaged to a piece of plywood named Bill. The season follows his quest to earn back her love while dealing with his own drink, drug, and bajango addictions. Karen still loves Hank, but she knows the relationship will never work until he gets control of his own life. Wedding day comes, Karen marries Bill, and then in the worst final ten seconds of any finale ever, she comes running out, jumps into the car with Hank and Rebecca, and the threesome drives off laughing and happy and full of shit. Before that final ten seconds, Californication was a show filled with sex, laughs, raunchiness, brilliant dialogue, and honest observations on loss, desire, and life. After those final ten seconds I had to wonder if the show could continue on any of those levels. Hank got what he wanted so where’s the conflict? If he does fuck up again with another woman wouldn’t that put them back into the same situation they just left behind? But this time he’d no longer be deserving of happiness with Karen.

Which brings us to this episode… and the realization of all my fears. Hank and Karen are together and happy and the only mention of Bill is as a punchline before sex. The conflict of unrequited love is replaced by an impending move to New York City, a move that we know can’t happen because NewYorkification is a ridiculous title. They head off to a Hollywood party with the most disgusting couple on TV, Charlie the agent and Marcy the anal waxer, and the first test of Hank and Karen’s rekindled love occurs. In a ridiculous and predictable scenario straight out of the Jack Tripper School of Sitcom Worthy Mix-ups and Mistaken Identities, Hank leaves Karen undressing in a dark room only to return to a different dark room occupied by another woman naked and ready for sex. He dives right in, mouth first, only to realize several seconds later that it’s not Karen. He didn’t recognize the woman’s breasts were smaller than Karen’s? Or that she had a distinctly different moan? Or even a different pube layout? (Especially since this girl seemed to be wearing a small mammal-sized merkin.) Add to this some horribly forced dialogue throughout the episode, most notably between Hank and the surfer girl at the store, between Hank and Karen on the drive home from the party, and with the cop who pulls them over for the broken headlight… and you have a pretty poor start to the new season. It had the raunchy sex, but it was missing any worthwhile dialogue or honesty. I’m not giving up all hope (partly because I’ve seen the second episode and it’s a huge improvement) but I’m still leery about where the show can go this season.

Up Next Week: Hank meets and befriends a legendary record producer while serving time in jail and entertains the notion of writing the man’s biography; Charlie is fired when his duplicitous former assistant bad-mouths him to the president of the agency.

For more coverage of your favorite shows, check out the Control Freaks Archive.

Did you catch the season premiere of Californication? If so, please feel free to discuss is below.

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The folks over at HorrorBid.com have posted a few pictures from the set of Platinum Dunes’ upcoming remake of Friday the 13th, many of which feature an unmasked Jason Voorhees. The character, played in this film by Derek Mears, a noted big-man and stunt performer in Hollywood, was played originally in 1980 by Ari Lehman.

This incarnation is directed by Marcus Nispel, who is the man responsible for bringing back The Texas Chainsaw Massacre for producer Michael Bay in 2003. And personally, I was impressed by that remake in that it was an intense experience, but it otherwise did not really live up to the original in the eyes of many fans. The Friday the 13th remake, on the other hand, appears to be getting a lot of great buzz from the horror community, including our own resident horror expert and rageaholic Robert Fure, who reported in with cast interviews at Comic-Con. For more on that, check out our Friday the 13th Comic-Con Report.

To see more of the unmasked Jason Voorhees photos, head over to HorrorBid.com by clicking the image above.

What do you think of the look of Jason Voorhees in the remake?

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The top two spots at the box office played out exactly as expected: the surprises came in the rest of the Top Ten this weekend! As expected Eagle Eye won the box office this weekend with .2 million. In second was that Richard Gere-Diane Lane flick Nights in Rodanthe, with .4 million. Those two performed exactly as most people expected.

Lakeview Terrace was in third place, but the big surprise was in fourth place when Fireproof took in .5 million from 839 screens. Now, I didn’t see this coming at all and neither did anyone else, for that matter. This was a flick aimed at a mainly Christian audience that starred Kirk Cameron. Yes, that Kirk Cameron. It was about a firefighter who turns to God to save his marriage.

Doesn’t sound like the kind of movie that would do rip-roaring business, right? I would have thought this movie would do maybe million or even million, absolute tops. Yet it made .5 million!!

That showing has left all of us box office prognosticators with egg on our faces, because NO ONE saw that coming at all. Are there really that many Kirk Cameron fans in the United States of America?! I guess so, eh?!

Also out of the blue was a generally dismal showing for Spike Lee at the box office. I know that Miracle at St. Anna did not get particularly great reviews, but still, ninth place? At .5 million? That is dismal, folks. Keep in mind this flick was on the festival circuit and got a lot of press from a lot of people. Yet this “Spike Lee joint” makes only .5 million, while Fireproof gets .5 million!

Think about it, friends. Spike Lee lost to that guy from “Growing Pains”. Now, that is sad.

Of the other new movies that rolled out this weekend: Choke made .3 million while The Lucky Ones made 8,000. Overall, the box office looked like this:

So much for another embarrassing weekend for yours truly in predicting the order of finish. Why the heck do I bother after a weekend like this one? It’s fair to say the appeal of Kirk Cameron movies is totally lost on me.

I’ll be back for more punishment later this week when I make more predictions here at the Reject Report!

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Dexter, Showtime, Airs Sundays at 9 PM ET/PT

Episode: “Our Father” (Season 3, Episode 1)

Synopsis: For Dexter (Michael C. Hall), life seems to be going well. His relationship with Rita (Julie Benz) and her kids is back on track. He’s no longer under scrutiny at his day job as a blood spatter analyst for Miami Metro Homicide. And his night job as a serial killer is operating on all cylinders. So when he sets his sights on Freebo, a dope dealer and killer, it looks to be just another night of Dexter’s dark justice. But things don’t go as planned and Dexter must find a way to extract himself from a pair of problems that he created, both in his home and night life. Dexter also finds himself inexorably drawn to Miguel Prado (Jimmy Smits), an Assistant District Attorney, who has a very personal reason to bring Freebo to justice. Meanwhile, Debra (Jennifer Carpenter) is put in a difficult situation when someone from Internal Affairs wants her to inform on her new partner, Quinn (Desmond Harrington).

Review: In our Fall TV Preview, I had very little opportunity to use my editorial control to influence the way our staff wrote about the shows of this season. But when choosing the Ten Must-Watch Shows of the Fall, I made absolutely certain that Dexter, the show I believe to be the single best scripted hour on television, was at the top of the list. Sometimes it’s good to be the guy in charge.

The reason Dexter has gotten to me, and many others, is the escalating unpredictability of the first two seasons — you just never know where Dexter’s twisted hobby will take him, or which of those close to him it will affect the most. At the end of the season 2, Dexter narrowly escaped being discovered as the real Bay Harbor Butcher, thanks to his crazy Brit-babe stalker and the nosy nature of the late Sgt. Doakes. And now, at the beginning of season 3, Dexter can relax a bit, knowing that his sister Deb as well as his newfound love Rita won’t be finding out about his dark side anytime soon. That is, until something unexpected happens.

And with that jolt, an unplanned kill that brings Dexter dangerously close to the new Assistant District Attorney, season 3 appears to be off and running. It was hard to predict where the writers would find a device to create the tension to which fans have become accustomed. Sure, we know that Dexter is still fighting off the memory of Harry and trying to deal with his own rising level of humanity, but the entrance of Jimmy Smits as Miguel Prado should give Dexter a worthy adversary throughout at least the first part of the season. And just like last year, both Dexter and his budding Detective sister appear to be on track to be dangerously close this adversary.

If there is one theme that comes out of the first episode, it is the rising unpredictability of Dexter’s world. It appears that not even Dexter is prepared for how he, and the world around him, will evolve in season 3. This is a theme that has stuck with the series throughout — that both Dexter the monster and Dexter the human being are eventually going to have to deal with each other. As well, the season premiere also turned up the sexual heat a little bit — and you don’t need me to tell you that Julie Benz in any state of undress is a good thing. All in all, “Our Father” may start off seeming like a safe play for the Dexter writers, but it quickly explodes with intrigue, reminding us why this is television’s best show.

Oh — and I almost forgot — there is a huge twist at the end of this episode, one that I feel is absolutely perfect for the way Dexter’s future is going to be — complicated.

Up Next Week: Miami cops are tasked with finding the alleged killer of the Assistant D.A.’s younger brother; Dexter and Rita move closer to making a decision about their family.

For more coverage of your favorite shows, check out the Control Freaks Archive.

Did you catch the season premiere of Dexter? If so, please feel free to discuss is below.

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