Other Wars and The Nanny State

This article is on the war on drugs and it is a solid overview on how the war on drugs is a lost crusade. In my opinion it is now just a drain on our economical resources. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2003468705_peirce11.html

This article is about the Nanny State and how the country is slowly starting to tell everyone how to live their lives.
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2006/12/10/oh_brother/

When I read these articles it reinforces certain core beliefs that I have about the US. One is that we are an arrogant group as a whole. The idea that we were going to have a war on drugs and actually win was preposterous from the onset. Now it is an entrenched part of our economy and we want to continue to fund it so many people will continue to have jobs. The whole Homeland Security and War on Terror is the same crap. It is where we give our rights away willing to our government that our polls show we have no faith in. The President has a huge disapproval rating and Congress has a worse rating, yet we want the government to control our lives. No drugs, no smoking, no trans fats, wear a seat belt, red light cameras, cameras in our city streets, amber alerts, restricting where people live - it has become way too much.

The second is that we have a belief that pills and or technology can cure anything. How else can you explain the fact that anti-depressants and other psychotropic drugs are being given to our children in record numbers. On the technology front, don't read to your kids have them play V-Smile or some other crap that is marketed as a learning tool to relieve a parent of the guilt of not spending the time with the children they had.

I know that this will lead to us deciding the only way to fully protect all of our children will be to implant a microchip in them that will have various type of information. It may even be sophisticated enough to have a GPS signal activated when needed to find them. It will be considered a great way to make sure each and every child is safe and can be found if needed. It will also be a way that the government will be able to track every individual born in this country after a few generations.

We give up control so easily in this country and have become such victims that it is insane. The time to pay the price for our ignorance and ability to just ignore a host of social and fiscal problems is coming to an end within the next 10 to 20 years and it will not be a pretty site to see. Will the US become Balkanized? Will we become bankrupt? We will become a nation or working poor?

What is the vision for the future of our nation?

What I'm Getting This Wednesday

At least I stopped smoking many years ago and lost that obsession. It was funny when I read that almost all comic fans have some form of OCD, but it is true. I prefer to think of it as devotion to an art form.

52 - I will be starting my 52nd year soon and DC is publishing 52! I know it is a cosmic alignment. This has been a very good series, the next weekly will be hard pressed to be this good. One of my top five series for 2006.

Batman - Great fill in issues by Ostrander and Mandrake. I'd be happy with them on almost any book. They did the best Spectre run ever.

DCU Infinite Christmas Issue or something - Should be fun.

Firestorm - Seems like it has been awhile since this book came out. I like this series, but it flies very low on the radar.

Gen13 - Last issue was really good. This series may be a real winner.

Green Arrow - Has been very solid since the one year later jump.

Green Lantern Corps- Dave Gibbons has really made each issue better then the last one.

JLA Classified - Since be the end of Chaykin's arc. It has been okay, but nothing special.

JLA - When is Metzler off this book.

Martian Manhunter - Yes I the one person buying this book, but I really like Martian Manhunter and want an Archive or at least a Showcase of his early stuff. Bring back Zook!

OMAC - I'm curious to see what is the end of this series. Does the kid became a hero, a tool of the machine or does he die?

Robin - Another great series since the one year later jump.

Sandman Mystery Theatre - A return of an old series. The original Sandman, set in the late 30's early 40's again I presume. I have high hopes for this book.

Spirit - Darwyn Cooke artist and writer. Can't wait. Hope my expectations are not too high.

Stormwatch PHD - Great first issue, let's see what issue #2 brings, but Gage is a good writer.

Tales of the Unexpected - The backup with Dr. 13 has stolen the spotlight off the Spectre who has the front spot. Good stuff.

Trials of Shazam - The five week month in November makes some books seem like it has been awhile, still I have enjoyed this series so far.

Amazing Spider-Girl - Needs a tighter art style, but still good solid comic book story telling.

Bullet Points - Nice Marvel Elseworld's story.

FF The End - Another Elseworlds / What If story. Alan Davis on story and art is doing a nice job on this one.

Marvel Masterworks Avengers : Late Silver Age Avengers material.

Supreme Power Volume 2 - The next 12 issues collected in a hard cover. This book is better read as 12 issue arcs.

X-Factor - One of my top five series for 2006.

Fear Agent - This book is so much fun and the crazy cliff hangers are worth the price of admission.

Damned - An okay ONI book, but if it was more then 5 issues I probably would have dropped it.

Fallen Angel - Peter David's independent work. An interesting story of a fallen angel. Really a good read and interesting.

Now to mail out some Christmas Cards.

Ravens 10-3

A great game. After having a rough Thursday night game the Ravens come back into form and really play an amazing game against the Chiefs. The fourth quarter drive was another fantastic fourth quarter drive by this team. Taking over nine minutes off the clock and going almost the length of the field and scoring a touchdown. This drive ended the game for the Chiefs, but the defense never let them in the game.

The Ravens and Chargers look like the best two teams in the league right now.

Quick Hits on What I Have Read So Far This Week

52 Week #31 - Yes
Atom # 6 - Yes
Batman Confidential #1 - Yes
Detective Comics #826 - Yes
Jonah Hex #14 - Yes
Justice Society of America #1 - Yes
Nightwing #127 - Yes
Other Side #2 - Okay
Supergirl #12 - No
Superman Confidential #2 - Yes
Doctor Strange The Oath #3 - Yes
Hulk #101 - No
New Universal #1 - Yes
Spider-Man Reign #1 - Yes
Uncanny X-Men #481 - No
White Tiger #2- Okay
Invincible #37- Yes
Meltdown #1- Yes

So far a really good week. As you can see in the short form I have three ratings. Yes, No and Okay. My next rating system is only five at A,B,C, D and F, but that would require more time and more of an explanation and I'm doing a quick post today as I have "real world job" stuff that I need to do and the Ravens game is later.

Me Am Tired of Living in Bizzaro World

I'm totally stealing this post from Airelle -http://theantenna.blogspot.com/, she linked to the following article http://www.kxxv.com/Global/story.asp?S=5785699 which basically describes how a four year old student was being charged with sexual harassment because of the way he placed his head when he hugged a school aide. The school, per the report, has downgraded the offensive to inappropriate physical contact after protest by his father.

WHAT THE F*&$?

This world has gone totally upside down. Someone invades your home or destroys your property and then you defend it and you can be sued by the criminal. I heard of one such case down along the Mexican border and I believe the people who sued and won were illegal immigrants destroying a rancher's property.

When the hell did black become white and up become down. A great book called "The Death of Common Sense" by Philip K. Howard outlines how the legal system has slowly destroyed this country. This is just an example of how much further wrong it has gone.

If your child is acting out outside in a store and you smack his ass, then someone will have the authorities over your house. People with degrees to tell you how to raise a child properly, although they never had a child.

We need degrees for everything today, pills to medicate a problem away and our pre-schoolers are developing lifetime records for being deviants in some states. Stand up for what is right and be shouted down by everyone. Dare say the wrong thing and be declared a racist.

I'm against illegal immigration and have been called a nativist for it, an underhanded way of calling me a racist. What utter crap, it is okay to have differing opinions, but if I disagree with you I don't call you names, but that is the way have the media argues against opinions they don't want to hear.

I heard someone on the radio talking about a common sense thing that a child is better off coming from a two parent home statistically speaking. A single mother called in and said that is was wrong to say that because her child turned out just fine. The radio show host said that he agrees that many children can succeed in a one person household, but that your chances improve if you have a two person household. She said it was wrong to say that as you maybe discouraging some people. Speak the truth and they tell you not to say it.

What will it take to cause enough of an uproar to actually invoke political change and a return to common sense. I fear it won't happen in my lifetime.

End of Rant - Me now no go back to not ranting.

Things that Made my Day

I took today off from my real world job and did some Christmas shopping. In the course of today a few things really made my day.

First buying gifts for family and friends.

Next, I saw Casino Royale, the new James Bond movie at a matinee and after they lost the perfect James Bond I thought the franchise would flounder. I was happily proven wrong. Great movie. It was an origin of James Bond and Daniel Craig did a good job with the script, but it was the story that really made the movie. This was Bond without a gillizion special effects. The last Bond movie was great in the first half, then the second half was all quips and special effects. This would have been a perfect movie if they had done this as the first Pierce Bronsan James Bond movie. Still I really enjoyed it.

Also, we had switched to using our cable for our phone service via the Internet. We only had one phone for all four floors (basement, first floor, second floor and finished attic). This was because the relatively simple wiring to attach all phones was a pain to actually do in my house, so for a long time we have had only one house phone. Today I picked up a multiple handset cordless phone and we now have two phones and the capability to add extra lines.

My birthday is next week and my daughter Gwen sent me a birthday gift that I received today. Now trying to find something comic related that I don't own or haven't ordered that I will like is close to impossible and yet she did it. This gift made me very happy and I love it. It is the Batman Handbook - The Ultimate Training Manual. It is a step by step guide to help you become Batman. It covers fighting skills, detective skills and much more. In addition it teaches you how to build a Batcave, train a sidekick, maintain you alter ego and many more useful skills as I start training for my new career as Batman. I'll try to occasionally update via my blog how my new career is going.

Then I picked up a new CD as the song by the Fray "How to Save a Life" won't get out of my head. A few tracks on this CD are really good. But How to Save a Life has a quality to the way is sounds that just invokes feelings in me that are hard to put into words. But great music that touches me makes me happy even if the song itself has a sad quality to it.

The Rocky Balboa trailer. I can't believe I want to see this movie, but the trailer makes it seem like it might be a good movie. It is playing right into an aging boomer's feelings that we can still do what we did when we were younger. It may not be as pretty as it was when we were younger, but we still have the guts, determination and passion to maybe beat or at least hold our own against the next generation.

On a totally different note, I will be 51 next week and that means I'm in my 52nd year while the comic series 52 is ongoing. Coincidence or a cosmic alignment of DCU with my life. I think it is a cosmic alignment. 52! 52! 52!

Justice Society of America #1 - A Review

Justice Society of America #1 - Geoff Johns - Writer, Dale Eaglesham, Art Thibert - Inker, Cover by Alex Ross, Jeromy Cox - Colors

Premise - The Justice Society is reforming. It is a little unclear to me why they supposedly broke up, but still they are reforming and putting together a new team. This team will apparently have Flash, Green Lantern and Wildcat as the mentors for the group. We start with getting a team together and introducing some new members and adding two mysteries. One is a danger to the heroes as an obscure super hero drops onto their meeting table apparently dead and Wildcat has a son.

What I Liked:

1) The characters and their personalities. In one issue we are reintroduced to Hourman II and his wife (?) Liberty Belle, Damage, the new Red Tornado (?) and a different Starman. We also see the entire team getting together in the first issue. Each one of the new characters are already given indications of their personalities. This is the way to launch a group book as opposed to JLA.

2) The art. the artwork really jumps off the page and is done so well the panels feel bigger then other comics. Eaglesham and Thibert did a great job. Colors are great also and with all these characters coloring this book must be a real chore.

3) The story itself. I'm a little lost as I'm not sure what time frame this book falls into, but in one issue we reform the JSA, start a mystery with who killed Mr. America and why that is a danger to the JSA and the mysterious son of Wildcat. They keep trying to build a Wildcat legacy, hopefully it will work better then the female Wildcat.

What I Didn't Like:

1) Making this a new #1. I get tired of that and there was no real reason in my mind (other then the obvious) to start this book over, especially since Johns is still the writer and has been the main writer on this book forever.

Grade A