Ann Curry talked Chuck Todd about how the economy is effect the presidential race and Congressional races.

Todd said, “If the election were held today, the likelihood the Democrats would get their 60-seat filibuster about 50%, unbelievable. They could pick up more Senate seats than they did in 2006. More house seats than they did in 2006, which, even three weeks ago folks thought was just impossible to think about. That’s how bad things are right now for Republicans. Every day that the Dow has one of these bad days, Republicans see their tracking polls plummet, literally is almost a percentage point for percentage point in this drop in the Dow is, also, the percentage drop for Republicans.”

The Departed (2006)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0407887/

Regi: Martin Scorsese

Manus: William Monahan

Med: Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg, Martin Sheen, Ray Winstone, Vera Farmiga, Anthony Anderson og Alec Baldwin.

Spilletid: 151 min

Dette er da den andre og øverste filmen av Martin Scorsese. Som sagt i forrige innlegg er han en av favorittregissørene mine. Generelt sett er Goodfellas og Taxi Driver regnet som de to beste filmene hans (henholdsvis 15. og 38. plass på top 250), og selv om begge disse er solide 9/10-filmer etter min mening, er det altså The Departed og Raging Bull som er mine favoritter.

The Departed har litt av et stjernelag på skuespillersiden, med litt eldre storheter som Nicholson (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, The Shining), Sheen (Apocalypse Now) og Baldwin (Glengarry Glen Ross), i tillegg til de yngre som DiCaprio (Blood Diamond, The Aviator), Damon (Good Will Hunting, The Bourne Identity) og Wahlberg (Boogie Nights).

The Departed handler om to unge menn i Boston's politiopplæring. Billy Costigan (DiCaprio) kommer fra dårlige kår, og blir valgt ut til å gå inn undercover. Politiet vil få has på Frank Costello (Nicholson), lederen av den irske mafiaen. Det de ikke vet, er at Colin Sullivan (Damon) også nettopp har blitt politimann, og hans lojalitet ligger hos Costello. Når så Sullivan blir satt opp til å lede gruppen som skal fange ham selv, og Costello ber han om å finne ut hvem muldvarpen i gjengen hans er, er det duket for forvirring og dobbeltspill med livet som innsats.

Først bør det vel nevnes at filmen er en remake av en trilogi fra Hong Kong, med navnet Infernal Affairs (den første). Den har en skare av fans som er rasende over den nye, dårlige versjonen. Jeg har sett begge to, og Infernal Affairs er en god film, men rett og slett ikke i nærheten av så bra som The Departed. Sånn ser i alle fall jeg det.

Scorsese er jo en mester innen sjangeren, og dette er toppen av kransekaka. En fantastisk historie, som aldri slutter å være spennende gjennom 2,5 time, som i tillegg har en slutt som slår pusten ut av deg. Det er vel kanskje slutten som har fått en del kritikk blant de som ikke liker filmen, men for meg fungerte det så det suste, og jeg syntes det var veldig passende i forhold til resten av filmen.

Skuespillet er det absolutt ingenting å si på. Absolutt en av Wahlbergs beste roller, og Nicholson passer utrolig godt som mafiasjef. Men de aller beste prestasjonen syns jeg DiCaprio gjør. Han tar virkelig steget inn som en kvalitetsskuespiller med denne filmen her.

Masse stilige kameraføringer, og ikke bare tradisjonelt. Er blandt annet noen kjappe kjøringer under dialogscener, som egentlig ikke er vanlig, men det brukes bra her. Apropos dialog, så er jo manuset glimrende. Føles veldig naturlig, men er samtidig "krydret" med allslags utrolig morsomme replikker, ofte levert av Wahlbergs karakter.

The Departed var den beste filmen jeg så på kino i 2006, og jeg så den i tillegg to ganger. Jeg er rimelig sikker på at dette kommer til å forbli en klassiker langt fram i tid. Den vant fire Oscar; Beste film, Beste regi, Beste klipp og Beste manus basert på annet materiale. Fire av de aller beste prisene å få, med andre ord. I tillegg ble Wahlberg nominert til Beste mannlige birolle, men vant ikke. På IMDb har den en rating på 8.5/10 med 187 156 stemme, og den er dermed på 45. plass på top 250.

Se trailer:

Få sett denne filmen, den er steinbra. Nei, bedre enn stein. Har du sett den? Legg igjen din egen lille tanke om den i en kommentar!

Ilamaral cleaned his black horn-rimmed glasses and then peered through the periscope once more. His white knuckles strained as his fists tightened around the handles of the viewing device. The lustre of his short black hair diminished as nervous sweat caked strands of it to his forehead. He grunted, wishing he could hear the chatter of the three women approaching his compound. Through the viewfinder, he saw his assistant—make that former assistant, he thought—Sekkai canoodling with that blasted dryad again. Long were the days he thought about excising that woman from his library. She did nothing but fill the cat's ears with rebellious nonsense. What is worse is that now they had a third woman with them, and a rather ugly one at that. He imagined this hag was here to help usurp his rule over the Ark and stop his research at its most critical phase.

With a groan, the Professor forced the periscope away from himself furiously. Tucking his head down, he yanked at his hair and began mumbling incoherently. His white lab coat hunched up on his shoulders, contrasting the all black outfit he wore beneath it.

“Sekkai, you insolent little whelp! I made you what you are. I raised you from a mindless little tiger cub to the voluptuous creature you are today, and this is how you repay me? Betrayal?” Ilamaral ranted, though there was nobody else in the stark white room. Only a large, curved window framed by the Ark's open blast shields kept him company. “I knew that allowing you to learn on your own was a mistake! Well, believe me, when I get my hands on you again, I will make sure that you are nothing but an obedient little slave girl!”

Ilamaral fumed as he slammed his fist against the window. From that vantage point, the malcontents below were just featureless figures, carefully trekking towards the Ark. What insidious machinations were the tiny trio concocting? Despite the unknown of the third woman, that Shota was the biggest problem. Leave it to a dryad to be a tree hugging, save the planet Eco-nutjob, he thought. Of course he was going to discard the run-off that his potions created. He had never seen any evidence that his policies were just a disaster waiting to happen. Ilamaral suspected that the redheaded woman was still holding a grudge for running her tree through a paper mill. It was not as if he had killed her. She still had quite a fine home, and should have been thankful towards him for allowing her to stay in his library for so long.

His thoughts only served to build his rage to its boiling point. He was certain that his latest feminizing serum was perfect, but as of yet, did not have a test subject for it. The interference of a bunch of no-goodnicks now, was the worst thing that could happen. As much as he detested the thought of using violence to solve his problems, this was a case of do it or pay the consequences of not acting. It was time to call on the ship's security.

“Nim! Nephlite! Get in here now! I have need of your assistance!”

Foom! The automated door slid out of view like something out of Star Trek. All Ilamaral needed to do was yell for the security team and they would come running. When you are hardwired into the ship's computers to begin with, there is no need for an intercom. Upon first glance to someone not in the know, a floating orb covered in blue circuitry and a puddle of chrome slime slinking into the room might not seem like the best security, but then again, looks can be deceiving. The air flickered around the orb and the form of a young man came into view. He was of average height with long brown hair and a well-trimmed goatee. His outfit seemed to mirror the Professor's own penchant for black, consisting of a black trench coat, t-shirt, cargo pants and heavy Gothic boots. Once the man was in view, the slime lifted up off the ground, taking a comely shape. A young girl formed from the mercurous ooze, though outside of the basic shape, she had no definitive features.

“Reporting for duty, Sir!” Nim, the metallic girl, chirped in a voice that sounded like a symphony of female voices in unison.

“Oh,” The Professor sounded disappointed. “You went with that form today, Nephlite?”

“Given the gravity of the situation, I thought it inappropriate to show up as a buxom lass, though I see my partner had no problem with it.” Nephlite responded in a gravely serious tone.

“Nim is just grateful to me for giving her sentience. This is how she shows her appreciation, isn't that right, Nim?” Ilamaral stroked the girl's cheek, the liquid metal oozing over his hand to the chorus of millions of tiny giggles.

“Of course, Professor, I aim to please,” Nim said with a smile. “Now, how may we be of service?”

“My assistant has turned traitor on me and joined up with the dryad. They are on their way here with some disgustingly hairy woman. I can only assume that this woman is rich with magical abilities and has come to take me out,” the Professor began. “I wish for them to be dealt with by any means necessary. I can not allow them to delay my experiments.”

“Ahem,” Nephlite made the sound of one clearing their throat, although for him it was only mimicry. “If I may, I have been monitoring the situation and I believe that you are in error in your assessment of the incoming intruders. While two of them do appear to be Sekkai and Shota, a more detailed scan of the third would have shown you this...”

Neplite's holographic form flickered again, shifting and getting smaller, taking on a new appearance. When the image solidified again, Nephlite was the perfect replica of Jason, down to the paper-cloth dress that Shota stuck him in when he was asleep.

“As you can see, your third woman is not a woman at all. Contrary to the way this being is dressed, he is still undoubtedly male.”

In a trick of the light, Ilamaral's glasses seemed to turn white and his grin widened in a way that would make The Joker jealous. Slowly, laughter escaped from his upturned lips until it became uproariously maniacal. Nephlite changed his appearance back to that of the longhaired Gothic male and looked on with absolute curiosity.

“Did I err in telling him the gender of the mystery being?” Nephlite questioned.

“No, no, I think he's happy. Look, he's smiling. Smiling always means happy, I think.” Nim answered.

“Of course I'm happy!” The Professor shouted. “I swear the naiveté of my subjects is the only drawback to my experimentation. Change of plans! Nim, I want you to take a guard unit to the entrance and wait for our meddlers, but you must be as stealthy as a fox. I want you to capture this male specimen and bring him to my laboratory.”

“And what task did you have in mind for me?” Nephlite asked.

“Activate all the security systems, have the sentinels on high alert, release Foe if you have to. Do whatever it takes to make sure Shota and Sekkai do not come between me and my future bride!”

***

The strumming of a guitar filled the blonde girl's—who Kacie was now calling Amber, though there was little chance that was her real name—head as she nervously stared at Kacie. Her friend, from here on out known as Sienna, heard the opening chords of the familiar song as well, perking up at the metallic sound coming from the other side of the door.

“Do you hear music? I hear music.” Sienna, much like her friend nicknamed because of the color of her hair, inquired.

“It's nothing. The power is back on. Somebody down the hall probably just has their stereo on too loud. Stop worrying about it and get over here.”

Amber's hands shook as she pointed her gun at their tempestuous captive. She was not prepared for this. They were not properly armed to deal with any serious threat. They were only supposed to watch the girl until it was time to set the trap for Anibelle. Her mind raced, and she thought about shooting Kacie right then and there to neutralize any threat she possessed, but what if this was nothing and they lost their only piece of bait to take down the demon? She did not want to make the decision on her own, and she wished desperately for a little guidance. Sienna was no help. The brunette was getting distracted by a guitar line when there was something potentially worse in the girl in front of them.

“No, really, I hear a guitar. Doesn't the song seem familiar to you? Listen closely, doesn't it sound a lot like Me—”

“Exit light, enter night. Take my hand, off to never never land.” Chanting in a soothing voice interrupted Sienna.

The girls wobbled. Kacie watched with interest as her captors' eyes drooped and the pistol pointed at her skull dropped to the ground. Amber's knees buckled and she drowsily looked right into a pair of piercing blue eyes. Kacie smirked, seeing that some sort of spell had come over the girls. It was that, or it was a coincidence that they both became unbearably sleepy at the same time. Either way, the chocolate-haired girl knew the tides had just turned in her favor.

“Sucks to be you, doesn't it?” She said snidely, making sure that her gloating was the last thing that the blonde heard.

Amber momentarily looked like she wanted to belt Kacie across the face again, but gravity had different plans for her. She slumped over in a heap, and then her eyelids closed and began to twitch as if she was already peacefully dreaming. Sienna had slightly better luck as she was close to the bed.

“That's not how you sing it,” she said with a yawn, and then collapsed face first into the sheets, snoring loudly.

The doorknob turned with a click and the door swung open in a casual way that you would expect if it were done by someone who lived there. As if out of a music video, in stepped a man with long, very light blonde hair. He wore a leather vest, left open for the bound girl to see his impressive muscle tone. One arm was tattooed with a cross and a lot of Gothic lettering that Kacie could not be bothered to read. The other had Jimi Hendrix looking to the sky as he played his guitar. Speaking of guitars, the man carried a cherry red Fender Strat. He looked at Kacie with curiosity, and she stared at the piercing in his eyebrow, as well as those in his ears that seemed to gleam brighter than they should.

“You're supposed to be asleep,” He said, staring at the girl.

“Yeah, well, I'm not, Guitar Hero. How about you quit standing around looking stupid and untie me?” Kacie snapped back, though she sounded to be in considerable pain.

After one quick power chord, the ropes around the girl dropped to the floor as if they were just sitting there loose the entire time. Kacie gingerly stood up and then prodded at the icy layer covering her scar. She had learned to control the blaze she received when around a demon, but this was all new. From experience, she figured the ice would be much like her fire, extremely painful, but not tissue damaging. It was not a huge leap for her, either, to affix blame to the hair band wannabe before her.

“Do you mind explaining what in the Hell, you're supposed to be?” She asked, though she might as well have demanded it.

“Not Hell, babe, and my name is Hamel. I am pleased to make your acquaintance, Kacie Cross.”

“Great, you know my name too. What? Are you my guardian angel or some shit?”

“Not quite, but you are not far off.” Hamel responded with a smirk.

He casually dropped his vest to the floor. The sight of a shirtless man made Kacie a little uneasy, and made her wonder if he was going to ask to be repaid for saving her by asking for some kind of “special” favor. Instead, she found herself staring again as an impressive set of heavenly white wings burst forth from Hamel's back in an explosion of feathers.

***

The Amazon Queen faced the open mouth of the cave disquietly. Her two best remaining warriors stood nobly at her sides, ready to defend their Queen no matter the obstacle. Although, they knew that it would be foolish to trifle with the being inside the lair. Strong and proud, the Amazon trio passed over the precipice and into the darkness. Luce had instructed them that no torches would be needed, though they could not see how. They could not even see their Queen once engulfed by the blackness of the cave, yet they could feel her presence and knew she was only an arm's length away. Silence crept over the Queen and her guards. The gentle patter of their sandals against the rocky floor was the only thing that echoed in the artificial night, but soon even that sound subsisted.

The Queen's outstretched arms held her warriors at bay. They were at their destination. The trickle of running water was the first thing to break the silence, but signs of life were surrounding them at an alarming rate. Vibrant green grass popped up from the ground and pierced the darkness as if it had the power of the sun itself. Birds chirped and trees came to life. Where the cave's ceiling should have been, a perfect sky replaced the void. Mere minutes ago, they were in the grips of nothingness, and now it appeared as if they were in the middle of a meadow on one of the most beautiful days they had ever seen. The muscled dark-haired women held their spears at the ready, not sure which way they should look. The newly born field stretched endlessly in every direction. Even the stream at their backs appeared to have no beginning or end. Their Queen remained motionless, her eyes fixed straight ahead.

“Turn around, Daughters.” Luce spoke softly.

When the girls turned to look, a golden four-post bed with the whitest linens in all of existence was sitting amongst the grass. It was a piece of extravagance that put even their own Queen's bedding to shame, but a sheath of white cloth obscured the inner sanctum of the bed. The only clues they had to who was behind this sheet was the shadow of a figure, and a golden voice that was ancient and wise and yet youthful and naïve.

“Luce, it has been years since you last visited. I see that the years have been very kind to you, my dear. The last time I saw you, you were just a young thing like your nervous companions there. Now, you come to me dressed in a manner befitting of someone who has received my services.”

“Yes, Djinni, your gifts have served us well, but we are not here solely to show our gratitude.” Luce responded humbly.

“Alas, I am never visited without wish for a favor. It is my nature to provide for others.” The Djinni sounded disappointed. “You have already been granted the proliferation of your people and a meaningful victory over the Professor. You must be aware that this is the last time I can help your clan, Luce.”

“I am aware. I would not have come if there was any other option, but the heavens have delivered us a threat that eclipses even that of Ilamaral. Our legions were devastated at the hands of three outsiders. They bested the Stone Gazer and killed Rana. You are our only hope.”

“Then make your wish, Luce, Daughter of Athena.”

“I wish for the power to stop the other worldly invaders, to make them pay for what they've wrought.” Luce responded, taking a knee before the shadowed Djinni, motioning for her warriors to do the same.

Divine light closed in around the trio and their bodies began to shift. Their dark hair and grim faces gave way to locks of gold and cherubic faces. Muscles rippled and then subsided as their bodies shrank to a size more befitting of their handmaidens. Majestic silvery-grey wings sprouted from their backs. Lastly, platinum helmets appeared on their heads, along with matching armor and spears. The changed women stared at their new forms, seeming anything but grateful.

“I see that you do not like your lithe figures. I suppose you think I've turned you into slave girls, but believe me, in those spears and magic helmets lies the power of the gods.”

“Spears and magic helmets?” Luce inquired.

“Let me give you a sample. Do you see that tree on the horizon? It contains some of the juiciest apples you have ever tasted. Throw your spear at that tree and procure an apple for me. Do not argue, just do it.”

Luce nodded to one of her confused warriors and the girl complied. The spear flew launched like a missile from the girl's hand, and was perfectly on target. Though she was surprised by her newfound strength, the girl was ready to complete the task, but before she could take a step, her spear reappeared in her hand with a red apple clinging to the tip.

“There, you see, power of the gods. Your enemies will tremble at your might. Now, since business is complete, I bid you adieu.”

Before the Queen or her warriors could object, everything around them vanished and they were once again in the void.

***

“I get it. You're an angel. Put away the hardware, Warren Worthington.” Kacie said, rubbing her wrists.

“As I just said, my name is Hamel, and I am curious to know why you were not affected by my song. Our records indicate you having no special abilities.”

“Okay, two things: one, I heard you the first time you told me your name and B, what kind of backwards angel likes Metallica?” Kacie asked in her usual bitter tone. “Are you one of the 'special' angels? Did you have to ride the short cloud to angel school when you were a kid?”

“Do you not know, Kacie? Though our fallen brethren might wish you to think otherwise, Rock music was created in the heavens. You may not believe it, but during my time as a muse, I inspired many—” Hamel was cut off.

“I don't want to hear your life story, and that's not what I was talking about. I was referring to the fact that Metallica was instrumental, pardon the pun, in bringing the wrath of the recording industry down upon the heads of poor college students. They were one of the bands that started that bullshit. I don't see how anybody can listen to them anymore after that.”

“Let me get this straight, you are insinuating that my mental capacities are in need of repair because you can not pirate music without the threat of litigation now?”

“Yeah, that's the long and short of it. Admit it; I have a completely valid argument. Go ahead; you know I'm right. You're a huge douche bag. Don't be afraid to come out and say it.” She mocked.

“I am rather certain that you are a bit off your rocker. From the stench of demons about you, I can only assume that they have corrupted you. I see no other reason why you would mock someone after they rescued you.”

“What? Do you want a medal or something? I don't remember taking out an ad for a guardian angel. I'm sure you have your own selfish reasons for rescuing me, so do not pretend to be altruistic. Spit it out, what do you want?” Kacie asked impatiently.

“You knew the demon, Anibelle, in her human life and—”

“Well, I knew that this girl would be useful, but I didn't realize it would be like setting honey out for the flies.”

Damon Blake stood in the open doorway, flanked by agents wielding futuristic weaponry. He pushed the brim of his glasses up with a forefinger, giving both Kacie and Hamel a satisfied smirk.

“Set a trap for a demon, get an angel instead. You're as reckless as I was told, my feathered friend.” Blake postured. “Yes, we know all about you Mr. Hamel, so do not even think of playing one of your little tunes. It would be futile, but then again, so is this entire speech. You're on my list, so accept your fate and die!”

Like miniature lightning bolts, blue streaks fired from the agents' guns at the angel. Kacie quickly dived behind the bed, ducking into the position she was taught to use in a tornado drill. She was not about to get caught in the crossfire of some crazy battle. To her surprise though, neither was her savior. The first chance he got, he plucked an e-minor as he dove head first into the window. The glass shattered outward right as he was about to hit it and then he was gone.

“Miss Cross, am I correct? It appears that your benefactor has flown the coop.” Damon said in a quiet, yet serious tone.

“Yeah, well, fuck the both of you.”

***

“Time is not our friend, Jason Grey. There is great turmoil in the planet's life force, and I fear that if we do not act quickly, we may be too late to stop the bleeding. Why do you persist in delaying our operation? Come out from behind there this instant!” Shota reprimanded her traveling companion.

“Like Hell! I'm not walking in there in a dress!” Jason shouted back, hiding around the corner of the ship from Sekkai and Shota.

“Why did you let him have your knapsack, Sekkai?”

“I didn't mean to,” Sekkai whimpered, stroking and kissing the tip of her tail. “He stepped on my tail and grabbed it. It really hurt, Shota. You should give me lots of hugs and kisses.”

“You know that I would love to, my sweet Sekkai, but you know that when you get hugs and kisses, things tend to devolve into a completely different activity rather quickly. I would be a hypocrite if I allowed our sexy fun to postpone our mission.”

“You'd also make me sick,” Jason interjected, appearing in his Phoenix t-shirt and jeans once again. “Now, what's our plan? How are we going to take down Doctor Doom? You don't happen to have a Squirrel Girl around here, do you?”

“Oh, I know a squirrel! She's the nicest rodent you'll ever meet, but I don't know how—” Sekkai started to respond.

“It was a joke. You need some comic books on this planet. Seriously though, what are we going to do? I suggest burning the place to the ground.” Jason had a gleam in his eyes at the mere thought of fire.

“No, there are far too many creatures inside that deserve our handling this with the utmost care. The first step will be sneaking past the sentinels. This will be the tricky part, because they are made up of lions and tigers and—”

“Bears?” Jason asked, interrupting the redheaded woman.

“Oh my, no, but now that I think about it, bears would have made very fine soldiers. The third group is wolves.”

“Yeah, and they're a bunch of perverts too! They're always staring at my breasts and whistling when I walk past.” Sekkai chimed in.

The travelers slowed, approaching a rounded square entrance at the back of the ship. It led directly into the Ark, but the strange thing was that the expected guards were not there. The door was wide open as if inviting them to walk right in. Sekkai stopped a few body lengths from the door and sniffed the air. There was an oily metallic scent wafting towards her from the gaping doorway that was quite familiar. She grabbed Shota by the wrist and pulled her back, whispering to her.

“I don't think we should go in here. Something's not right.”

Jason, unaware of the girls' chatter, and wanting to get this over with so that he could get back to his favorite hobbies, stepped over the threshold and into the clean, white room.

“Jason Grey, stop!” Shota shouted a moment too late.

Silvery sludge dripped from the archway of the entrance and then spread quickly, closing off access to the vessel. Jason's attempt to escape was cut off before he even knew it, and Shota and Sekkai watched as he disappeared behind the shiny barrier. Sekkai punched it, and then yelped in pain, surprised that it was suddenly as impregnable as steel.

“Nim! Give Jason back!” Sekkai shouted.

“We're sorry; the human you are trying to reach is no longer available. If you would like to leave a message, I'm sure that the Professor's bride to be will gladly return it at her leisure.” Nim's voice echoed back and then slithered through a crevice in the locked door that appeared in her place.

***

Following the phantom trail proved to be exhaustive. It circled around the lobby several times before dead-ending at the theater, at which point it turned around and headed right back the way it came. Jenette had long since found her bloodhound form to be rather blasé. The slight increase in the sensitivity of her nose came with the drawback of children following her around like it was some kind of parade. She gladly would have stopped and given each of them a hug if she was not already preoccupied, but current circumstances made them nothing more than an annoyance.

As Jenette sat in the lobby, picking at one of her horns, whilst deciding which way she should follow the trail next, the power flickered back on. Lack of electricity was only a slight inconvenience to the demon, who required none of the benefits it gave, but it still brought the hint of a grin to her lips. Raucous cheers erupted around her and the oddity of a demon scratching herself on a couch no longer registered with the relieved hotel guests. There was an aura of good nature that swelled in the room as people hugged one another. For the first time in days, there seemed to be hope that everything would work out fine.

The demon felt a renewed determination to find the source of the trail and perkily stretched and readied herself. Patrons now filing into the Triumph's main restaurant and the fact that that was one of the paths available to her, made her decision for her. Wherever the action was, she wanted to be, and there was the good chance of something interesting happening even if she did not find what she was seeking.

“There's a zombie in the mall! It's Dawn of the Dead people! Run for your lives!” A panicked voice shouted.

Jenette watched curiously, as Beatrice moved across the lobby as fast as her heels could carry her. That explained the bloody prints that she was initially following, but zombies were not nearly as interesting as the unknown. Besides, she had seen plenty of zombies before. There was nothing special about them, and apparently nobody else thought so either, or they were just too glad to have power back on again to pay attention to a raving madwoman.

It was astonishing, given the commotion that Jenette's acute senses picked up the sound at all. Beyond the chatter, coming from somewhere in the back of the restaurant was the sound of a frustrated whimper. While this normally would not have interested the demon, there was a supernatural quality to the voice that begged investigation. In true shapeshifter fashion, Jenette wanted to make sure she could pinpoint the location of the sound exactly and altered her form accordingly. She shrunk tremendously in size and turned pure white. Cute little whiskers and large ears accompanied her tiny form. She was now a mouse, at least for the time being.

Quickly, she scurried between legs and under tables, receiving more than one requisite scream. Unsurprisingly, people did not like the idea of a mouse in the place they were going to eat. She moved too fast for anyone to catch her though and before she knew it, she had followed the sound to the kitchen. It resounded louder in her ears as she came upon the freezer, which was sealed to the point that she required her regular body again.

A quick tug with her reformed hand, pried the freezer door open. The unit was still cold, left sealed while the power was out and once again chugging along and trying to freeze its contents again before they spoiled. It did not take long to find the source of the weeping. Sitting in the corner of the room, hugging her knees was the transparent shape of a familiar young girl. Her color was drained from both her body and clothing, replaced with an eerie blue, but Jenette still immediately knew her.

“Hi, Haley's ghost! Why are you hiding in a freezer?”

“Huh? Jenette? You can see me? I've been trying to get someone's attention for hours. I didn't think anybody could see or hear me, so I wanted to find a place where I could just curl up and disappear.” The ghostly Haley responded.

“Well duh, of course I can see you. Why are you a ghost? Being a ghost is stupid, you can't hug anybody. You should be not a ghost, Haley!”

“Don't you think I've tried? If I knew how to stop being dead, I'd do it.”

“Hm, we should go find Ani then.” Jenette pondered aloud.

“Why? Will she know what to do?”

“I don't know, she might. I just wanted to go play with her again, but asking her what to do about being a ghost is a good idea too. Let's do that!”

Todo comienza en el show americano de Jimmy Kimmel, del tipo Buenafuente, en el que la hacen unas cuantas de bromitas bastante pesadas a Matt Damon. He aquí ese video:

Como habréis visto, Matt Damon se cabreó bastante. Y las represalias no tardaron en llegar... y además, lo hizo con la novia de Jimmy Kimmel, Sarah Silverman. He aquí la venganza de Matt Damon:

Grandísimo el vídeo, grandísima la canción, hay que reconocerlo. Pero las cosas no se quedaron así. Jimmy sólo quería gastar una broma inocente y había salido escaldado. Supongo que su hombría no podía quedarse así de destrozada... así que se vengó, destrozando lo poco que le quedaba:

Y aquí acabó esta pequeña batalla, en la que ya no sólo estaba Matt Damon, sino que se apuntaron Ben Affleck, Robin Williams, Harrison Ford, Cameron Díaz...

Espero que os haya gustado y os haya arrancado una sonrisa. ¡No os olvideis de sonreir!

Sin más.

eine Vernichtungsmaschine, die seit Menschengedenken gegen uns arbeitet

und der wir mehr dienen als wir es je für eine Gottheit getan haben.

Durch die Geschichte schleicht sich Tera vom Sterben auf dem Schlachtfeld,

zum Verbluten durch die Kugel, durch den Bombenhagel, bis zum Feuerball,

aus dem das Verlöschen regnete und tausende menschliche Schatten in die Steine schmolz.

Danach erschien der atomare Schrecken mehr als 500 Mal, der die Sonne abrupt erblassen ließ.

Und der gesamte Himmel wurde schließlich giftig.

Man entschied, unter der Erde seinem Götzen die Pflicht zu erweisen, über 1500 Mal.

Unsichtbar scheint es auf diese Art zu schweigen, Tera versus Terra.

Bis es gewandelt erneut in unser Bewusstsein kroch.

Lautlos hatte es sein titanisches Maul aufgesperrt,

nachdem es die Decke des Kernreaktors Block IV in Tschernobyl sprengte.

Der zersplitterte Krater zeichnete seine Macht auf die geschundenen Körper.

Dem Sterben wieder das Tor öffnend spukt seine Gier durch die folgenden Jahrhunderte.

Haut- und haarlos nimmt es fortwährend den Tod an die Hand,

Geisterhäuser pflastern seinen unheimlichen Weg.

Es wartet geduldig auf den Supergau, mit seinen Dienern, 10200 Atomsprengköpfe.

Die sind gefechtsbereit und liegen wie angerostete Gestalten in den Arsenalen.

Ihr Erbeben ist eine Frage des Zufalls oder unserer Ermüdung.

Tera hat sich bleibend um die Erde und in unsere Gehirne gewunden.

Seine Zeit kennt keine Dauer, es ruht nie, das Abschlachten geht immer irgendwo weiter.

Sein Bann bleibt ungebrochen, suggeriert es doch für den Augenblick Macht über das Leben

und die Liebe zum Tod durch haltlose Versprechungen auf Erlösung.

Mörder erschaffen sich unmaskiert anerkennende Bestimmung,

Bomben an Leibern erschüttern das Wort und den Sinn.

Die Gewalt radiert die vielstimmige Partitur des Lebens aus,

und der Terror ist der klare Maßstab unserer Einsichten geworden.

Genau so einfach ist das Töten, keine Berührung ist nötig,

nur die Präzision auf einem Kriegsbildschirm,

der Feind ist nur ein Tier in der Ferne.

Waffen werden überallhin verschoben,

in den Augen der Händler glüht der Reichtum,

bis alle ihre Söhne sich damit zerstören,

ihre Töchter vergewaltigt werden,

die Handlungsweisen nur noch Folter sind.

Kinder lynchen die Erwachsenen im Rausch,

Massaker sind kein Spiel mit dem Feuer,

sie geschehen an vielen Orten ungestraft.

Wir atmen die Vorboten eines Kollaps.

Niemand schützt uns von unseren frühen Gräbern.

Tera ist die Konstante, die unsichtbare Hand,

an deren Schutz wir immer noch glauben.

Es ist das Gesetz wider dem Geist

und doch beherrscht es die Gedanken,

krallt sich fest als Rache für unsere Ohnmacht

und schöpft sich aus der Sucht nach dem Mehr-Sein,

das Ich kann sich selbst nie genügen.

Hat ein flüchtiger Dämon Gottes sein Ebenbild so geschaffen,

wie Gott eigentlich selbst sein wollte, aber nicht sein konnte?

Groß ist die Trauer über die Existenz der menschlichen Freiheit.

]]> http://illtellyouonce.wordpress.com/?p=49 Fri, 26 Sep 2008 02:18:22 +0000 mfinlin http://illtellyouonce.es.wordpress.com/2008/09/26/where-is-she-letterman-says-well-i-have-an-answer-for-you/ Hey folks. It's been a while. I've been inundated with hearing this malarkey. Yeah I said it. The nonsense, the bullshit, the gusts of wind. I'm not gonna go on about this campaign you've all seen enough of it and if you haven't it's all out there. I will say that Letterman is the king of late night. I could on go on about that too, but I'll leave that for another post. In the meantime I'll answer Dave's question when on his show he asked "Where is she?" referring to Sarah Palin and why she isn't steppin in while McCain is doing whatever it is he is doing. My answer. WHO CARES. No wait. Who FUCKING cares. Let's do the world a favor and not talk about this person and get to the issues. IT's absolutely mind boggling that she is a running mate for Vice President. Lets not embarass ourselves America. We can do better. She is a joke. I'll tell you once.

That is exactly what happened to Matt Damon the other day. He tried to convince us simple folk how to vote and at the same time made an idiotic statement. He would make the other celebtards proud. During the interview he stated he knew nothing of Sarah Palin but began to list here prior work experience albeit briefly.

In typical celeb fashion he made it sound as if Gov. Palin was from little "folksy" Alaska and had no other experience but being a "hockey mom". In other words, if you aren't from L.A., NY or SF you are an ignorant cuss apparently. Oops sorry.....you are FOLKSY and where I come from "folksy" can be interpreted as "dumb ass".

Lets not fool ourselves.....Sarah Palin has had many jobs in her lifetime....teacher, executive, mayor and Governor of the largest state in the union but according to Matt she has no experience. I will not compare her to Sen. Obama's vast (cough) experience....because after all Matt didn't either.

I don't mind if celebtards have strong political beliefs. I do mind when they are so pretentious they assume everyone else in the middle of the country are ignorant hillbillies. Sen. Obama did this too when he stated that us simple folk cling to guns and the bible in rough times. Gee paw....gas is going up again we better load up the shotgun.

Oh sure...Matt came of strong and intelligent as far as celebtards go....but he came apart and lived up to all those great celebtards before him. Matt stated his most pressing concern and quit possibly a vote turner for him would be if Sarah Palin believed dinosaurs were alive 4000 years ago.

You know what...Matt is right. War in Iraq...don't care. Economy....I do not care. Crime....so what? What Josh Howard thinks of the national anthem....like a true folksy American...I do not care. The important issue should be if a T-Rex was the real cause of King Tuts demise. ]]> http://dcverion.wordpress.com/?p=40 Fri, 19 Sep 2008 23:38:01 +0000 dcverion http://dcverion.es.wordpress.com/2008/09/19/paper-wait/ I have a temporary job at the moment. And too much work to do. Why is it that people expect you to do mountains of work all the time? Do I look like an Intel Quad-core processor? I guess it’s no surprise they expect me to do so much, I do have deity-like status thanks to living in this defunct town; my IQ allowing for occasional compliments, jewellery, and child sacrifices.

‘Magic me some filed reports,’ my hilarious co-colleague ushered.
Sadly people like this still considered Peter Kay’s Live at the Top of the Tower material under-used. I was a magician as well you see; only semi-professional, but I considered myself very proficient, and able to give David Blaine a run for his money. Sadly I didn’t have enough funds in my current account to out-do Criss Angel. Extras and stooges cost money you know.
‘Sure,’ I offered, pretending never to have heard her tireless attempt at humour before.
My reports were in a particularly bad way, but thankfully I’d not put any labels on them: so they’d be a cinch to reorganise.
I could almost hear the sirens; almost.
I hadn’t meant to, but I’d murdered a snake. Well it wasn’t really a snake, it was a slow worm. And as luck would unfortunately have it, is a protected creature under the Wildlife and Cruelty Act of 1981; I prayed news of this had not reached my inhospitable surroundings of a hometown.

‘Squelch’ went the limbless reptile, as the spade came down like an elevator devoid of brakes; or rather, an elevator in Walsall. The last thing the poor Anguis fragilis (to give it its Latin name) saw before it met its maker, was the glint of the previously polished (don’t ask) blade (is this Sparta!?) of the garden implement that was hastily selected for its demise.
‘Would it really go squelch?’ you may hark.
‘Probably not, but this is fiction after all; the hasty abandonment of the truth never hurt nobody, someone once said,’ is my retort.
A few Google searches later, and I found my harmless reptile. Well I say a few, it was slightly mangled by the time I’d finished with it. You can never be too sure when dealing with potentially venomous reptiles, and the down side is always reptile identification.  I sought desperately to find out if his name was Clive or Carlos, all to no avail.  Retrieving the national reptile dental records you see, was troublesome, so I had to settle for simply identifying the species. Type, type, type.  Click, click, click.
After I satisfied my curiosity, I popped it in the bin.

With Big Brother becoming more and more a reality, I wouldn’t have been surprised if the government searched my bins and demanded some sort of fine. Sure, they’ve slowly phased in speed cameras as they look to ban smoking, but you can never have too many Millennium Domes. It was with this in mind that my heart skipped a beat when I heard the faint sound of sirens. The men in the white coats were coming for me. Plus the RSPCA would be pissed at the snake. Uh, I mean slow worm.

I moved my paper-weight from atop my awkward filing system. Loosely attached to one file was a yellow post-it with details of a party the following night. I prepared for a panic attack, but quickly remembered that I had agreed to go. Wait. Yes. I did. Damn.

Things started to prosper at Wuthering Post. Suzie got a good review and everyone likes her articles. Meanwhile for Marcus...

...life as a stay-at-home father isn't really as cracked as it use to be. He can't wait for Delia to grow into a child so that he can get back to work at the local high school.

Though Delia did grew up into a toddler so Marcus became more ecstatic.

As one bustling editor-in-chief of a town newspaper, Suzie tried to spend much time with Liam and Damon as possible such as watching their favorite TV shows...

...or give them kites to fly into the wintry gusts.

Yet Delia was more of a "daddy's little girl" girl.

Marcus and Suzie would soon hear the pitter-patter of baby feet again but suddenly tragedy had struck. Suzie sadly miscarried the baby.

The lost of their child had made Suzie feel distraught, realising that life can be precious.

She bought a womrat called Beaker for the boys and keep her mind off the miscarriage.

Sadly it didn't work.

She tried to spend more time at work than at home to keep herself busy. She met a random townie name Blair Lang. They started to get along and things became rather serious.

When she returned home she became more upset that she committed such adultery without her husband knowing.

Suzie became extra worried as mysteriously there was a bunch of roses in a vase with a small inscription on a tag:

"Roses are red. Violets are blue. I can't simply keep my eyes off of you. Love Blair."

Though she hid the flowers in secret and then made love with her husband.

In the morning, Suzie felt nauseous and ran into the closest bathroom. Could she be pregnant? If so, who is the father?

I felt that the Baker's weren't ready for another baby yet so I chose miscarry with the Inteenminator biological clock. After Suzie and Marcus Woo-Hoo'ed she ran into the bathroom and threw up. It will be next round when we follow Suzie's pregnancy and see whether Marcus or Blair is the father (I to a print screen and upload it onto the blog to show who the baby's father is).

!!!

To get a better look at the pics, just click on the slide show (or click on view all images).

A little background. Jimmy Kimmel always closes his show, as a joke, by saying he has no time for the 'next guest' - Matt Damon. Things finally caught up with him when his girlfriend (back then), Silverman decided to make a video about her fucking Matt Damon, which is pretty much the usual hilariously crude stuff she dishes out.

And here's the equally hilarious reply, and if you look carefully you see a host of celebrities - many you wouldn't expect seeing making such ridiculous videos. Here, Jimmy Kimmel 'fucks' Ben Affleck upping the gay by several notches!

   Bass said the workout wipes him out. When he gets home all he wants to do is eat and sleep. 

Bass talks about future plans of marriage with children both adopted and his own. He said he loved children.

  Partner-up with Lacy Schwimmer, Bass the former member of 'N Sync's  one of music's top boy bands,  says he was ridiculed by his bandmates for being the group's worst dancer. "The guys always told me how terrible of a dancer I am, so I kind of just wanted to prove to myself that I could learn something crazy," he say. "Also my grandmother and mother love the show, so I wanted to do something for them."

Brad and Angelina Splurge extends generousity to the birth country of their daughter

Angelina and Brad Pitts donated $2 million to a clinic in Ethiopia that help fight HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis said the Global Health Centre Committee. The money will be used to build a centre, which will be named Zahara, after the Pitts adopted daughter, in Addis Ababa where children suffering from these life altering illness will be treated.

Wyclef returns home with Friend Matt Damon to help Hurricane Victims

In spite of the ruins and the starvation by people in Haiti, they summoned enough strenth to give shouts of adultation to one of Haiti's most popular sons, Wyclef. He returned to his homeland to survey the damage left by the recent hurricane and his words were: "It's inhumane. I wish there was a word in the dictionary. No human should be living like this."

Prince Williams Loves Flying a Lot

Prince Williams is on his way to becoming a search and rescue pilot. He begins training an 18-month training in January.

The time I spent with the RAF earlier this year made me realize how much I love flying," said William, who was criticized for landing an air force helicopter on his girlfriend Kate Middleton's lawn during his training, and for using another chopper to fly to a bachelor party on the Isle of Wight.

After completing his course the Prince, 2nd in line to the throne, will fly Sea King helicopters with one of the RAF's S & R Teams.

Maiko Watson, R&B Superstar  - check her out on www.myspace.com/maikowatson.  Keep an eye out. She is soon to release her first solo CD. I can't wait!

What are you gonna do? Scariest part is that you might actually vote for Failin' Pailin' and that walking corpse of a babysitter John McCain. That is a very scary prospect for this country given the challenges it faces and the type of leadership and governance it needs to get out of this mess. But let's back up for a few...

We all know that America is the land o' plenty, the land of opportunity, the world's leading innovator, the wealthiest nation, the most powerful nation and the most democratic nation on earth. Uh... No it's not. It was and that is the problem with America. America is the flash prick that walks around the night club buying Crystal and wearing the biggest diamond crusted watch imaginable - all paid for with a Chinese-Saudi credit card. America should and could be great but right now it needs a band-aid and fuck-load of Tylenol (not the CVS brand) to be able to handle the headache that is here now and yet to come. We really need band-aid (made in the US). Whereas, the GOP are ready to go out into the world and put some more 'tiger balm on the jungle's nuts'. Just what the world needs a bunch of hornet's nest stirrers.

I must preface, I live in the US and I love my life here... I have a wonderful life but I am scared as hell... Unemployment is at 6.1%, we are suffering the worst economic downturn in 50 years. Goldman Sachs - quite literally, Lehman Brothers is about as stable as alcoholic on red bull, and nobody is buying property - some house values have dropped 50% in fact, we have spent over $10 trillion under Bush (almost $1T on Mess-o-Potamia), we do not innovate, we cannot compete globally, there is clearly a problem with democracy here, the middle class who made this country is dwindling away and the poor are getting poorer (crime rates will soar). Not to forget, crumbling infrastructure, no equality in health care and the insane cost of education (is it any wonder that ordinary folk stay poor and un-educated)... But wait! I have the perfect solution for all of this.... Vote McCain/Palin. If this country does that, it deserves what is coming next... Scary part is there is a 50:50 chance of that happening.

Or maybe the adage "you can't help someone who doesn't want to be helped" is the bitter reality of this country. I really hope not. So please, stop and think and be Americans and NOT AmeriMcCains Remember a true patriot does question and doesn't just accept the status quo. Show the world that America is a place of racial tolerance and open-mindedness and that it wants to look forward. Above all else, let's flush that huge GOP turd down the drain...

A good friend recently sent me a link to a Matt Damon video on YouTube on Palin... I urge you to watch it (see below). He was totally on the money.

Um Daten zwischen verschiedenen Rechnern zu teilen, benötigt man entweder einen USB-Stick, den man aber auch vergessen kann, oder einen eigenen WebDav-Server. Auf erstere Methode haben sich die Entwickler von Dropbox verlassen, bis sie mal einen USB-Stick irgendwie haben liegenlassen.

Nun ist endlich die finale Version von Dropbox erschienen, das bisher nur im Beta-Test mit Einladungscodes nutzbar war. Ziel ist es, dass man über den angebotenen Webservice einfach Daten zwischen verschiedenen Rechnern synchron halten und austauschen kann.

Dabei werden die Daten mittels SSL übertragen und auf dem Server selber mit AES-256 verschlüsselt gespeichert.
Lediglich Fotoalben und Daten im öffentlichen Verzeichnis können mit anderen Leuten, die nicht in Dropbox angemeldet sind, geteilt werden.
Für hochgeladene Fotos erstellt Dropbox automatisch eine Galerie!
Für geschützte Verzeichnisse kann man "Mitarbeiter", die ebenfalls einen Dropbox-Account haben, angemeldet werden, um z.B. gemeinsam an einem Projekt zu arbeiten!
Kostenfrei gibt es pro Person mal 2 GB, später soll es kostenpflichtig mehr geben.

Dropbox gibt es sowohl für Windows, MaxOSX und Linux. Dabei gibt es vorkompilierte Pakete für Fedora 9 und Ubuntu (8.04 und 7.10) zu Download. Für andere Distributionen kann man den Quellcode zum selberkompilieren runterladen.

Installation und Loslegen mit Ubuntu
Als extra für Ubuntu gibt es auch Repositories im Internet, die man in die /etcapt/sources.list eintragen kann:

deb http://www.getdropbox.com/static/ubuntu hardy main
deb-src http://www.getdropbox.com/static/ubuntu hardy main


Anschließend die Respositories neu einlesen und Dropbox installieren:

sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install nautilus-dropbox


Anschließend muss man die Nautilus neustarten, damit das Plugin wirksam ist:

killall nautilus


Ein KDE oder Komandozeilen-Interface gibt es noch nicht.

Dropbox selber besteht aus 2 Komponenten: Einmal dem dropboxd, einem pro User Dämon (closed-source) und dem open-source Nautilus-Plugin.
Der Dämon überwacht im Home-Verzeichnis den Ordner Dropbox und synchronisiert gegebenenfalls die verschiedenen verknüpften PCs und das Webverzeichnis. Dazu müssen die verknüpften PCs nicht online sein, die Daten werden auf den Server geladen und wenn ein Client online kommt automatisch synchronisiert.
Ein nettes Feature: Dropbox synchonisiert nur Veränderungen an einer Daten (ähnlich wie rsync), was Traffic spart. Außerdem Versioniert es Dateien an Hand dieser Veränderungen!

Um Dropbox einzurichten, klickt man nun rechts auf das Icon im Benachrichtigungsfeld und wählt "Preferences". Der Rest ist selbsterklärend (;

Link:
http://www.getdropbox.com/

and for more absurdity read Once Elected, Palin Hired Friends and Lashed Foes

They say write about what you know – but what if you don’t know anything? And that’s exactly what I felt, or rather thought (if you can think nothing) when I came to, atop a uniquely fragranced sofa. I’d had a drink the night before, I remembered that much. Eddie always said don’t drink too much. But as the old saying goes, if you get told not to do something too many times – you remember. Well I didn’t remember.
Let’s think, I remember a surprised deer, a faulty internet connection, and half deciding to go out and get bladdered because I feared for my future; or rather worried about it.

Then there's Matt Damon, obviously a deep thinker himself.  After pouring over actuary tables (yeah, right), he has determined that McCain would die during his first term, and he feels a President Palin would be like a bad Disney movie.  Oh, just check out that clip of him.  What a snarky, insulting whippersnapper he is -- she's just a folksy little hockey mom, according to him.  Oh, oh, and I love when he says Palin doesn't have enough experience to be on the ticket.  Yeah, that line of attack has worked really well for the oh-so-experienced Obama, hasn't it?  Keep it up, brainiac.  And the rest of the stuff he blabbers about has already been debunked by the non-partisan (this bears repeating -- non-partisan) FactCheck.org.

And let's not forget Pamela Anderson's words for Sarah Palin:  "She can suck it!"  Well, we all know Pam can suck it (wink, wink), but I am particularly struck by her skill with the spoken word.  To quote one of my favorite movies, "Poetry.  Sheer poetry!"  She's quite a mouthpiece for the liberal cause. 

Libs gone wild, coming to a town near you!

As others have been commenting around the Net, a war against Russia will certainly be beyond the capacity of this country, unless she is talking about using the nuclear option. A war against Russia will mean the re-introduction of the draft and, basically, use Europe as the battleground. Now, will our continental friends in NATO be willing to go along this kind of adventure? Most likely not. It will be a war that will certainly destroy us.

So beware of the pipe piper. Lets not be children of a messianic ideology. Can we afford such a person who is may be a heartbeat away from being a president?

[Update - See Matt Damon's take]

Matt, well, I am going to republish one of Governor Palin's speeches.

“Still”
http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/realchange_ad/  

Damon on Palin:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anxkrm9uEJk 

McCain slams Palin:"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmRkTJRfwqA  

Is McCain Dumb?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdW5IWVDMic 

“Change”
http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/realchange_ad/ 

Leben ist die Suche des Nichts nach dem Etwas. (Christian Morgenstern)

Wenn Du lange in einen Abgrund blickst, blickt der Abgrund auch in Dich hinein. (Friedrich Nietzsche)

Glück ist gut für den Körper, aber Kummer stärkt den Geist. (Marcel Proust)

Eines der traurigsten Dinge im Leben ist, dass ein Mensch viele gute Taten tun muss, um zu beweisen, dass er tüchtig ist, abe nur einen Fehler zu begehen braucht, um zu beweisen, dass er nichts taugt. (George Bernard Shaw)