THE OBENSON REPORT

Covering Cinema From All Across The African Diaspora

Sarah Palin's Greatest Hits - 'Iraq Is God's Plan'

Posted on 3:12 PM No Comments
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As I'm sure she and McCain expect, her past statements and actions will be dug up and scrutinized very closely, like this one...

This is one reason why religion and politics shouldn't mix.


Quote Of The Decade

Posted on 12:55 PM No Comments
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Reading through the voluminous pages of the current issue of Esquire Magazine, which I picked up yesterday - voluminous this time around because it's their 75th anniversary issue, a special collector's edition - I came across a feature on our current president, George W. Bush, titled What Bush Meant, which essentially laments the failures of his reign.

Right underneath the title is a quote by the man himself, made in December of 2000, soon after he stole the election away from Al Gore, which reads, "If this were a dictatorship, it'd be a heckuva lot easier. Just as long as I'm the dictator."

The article doesn't reveal the context in which the comment was made and who he made it to. Regardless, whether said in jest or with real intent, it's certainly telling of the man's state of mind as he began his presidency, and we could say a foretelling of things to come, because his conduct over the last 8 years has been a near-equivalent to that of a dictator, and our Democrat-ruled Congress and Senate did little to impede him.

I think I speak for millions of Americans when I say he won't be missed!

Bye George! See you at the movies next month!

Michael Moore Releasing Next Film Online For FREE!

Posted on 8:12 PM No Comments
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The latest documentary effort from the infamous Michael Moore will be released exclusively online beginning September 23, for FREE! That's right... FREE!

The 97-minute doc is called Slacker Uprising, about Moore's 62-city tour during the 2004 presidential election, as he attempted to encourage those young "slacker" voters to head to the poles.

Moore said that "Slacker Uprising" cost about $2 million to make and that he will end up paying about $1 million out of his pocket. Neither he nor the distributor, Brave New Films, plan to profit from the release.

It will be available for three weeks as a free download to North American residents, beginning Sept. 23, and will be high-resolution and far better than "YouTube quality."

To receive the download, interested folks should sign up at SlackerUprising.com. Obviously, it means someone will have your email address, and will likely reach out to you again in the future for one thing or another, so do what I do - set up a separate email account for these kinds of things.

A DVD will be released Oct. 7.

No theatrical obviously... I'll be watching this closely.

Here's the trailer:



SOURCE

Mugabe Makes It Rain On Olympians In Harare

Posted on 3:36 PM comments (5)
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Yeah, like this makes a lot of sense... sheesh!

Zimbabwe's president Robert Mugabe gave out $148,000 to the nation's Olympic athletes, with $100,000 alone having gone to world record-holding swimmer Kirsty Coventry... Mugabe referred to Coventry as Zimbabwe's "golden girl" before handing her $100,000 - golden for sure... she's a white Zimbabwean.

While many Zimbabweans are unable to afford food and other basics, members of the country's 13-member Olympic squad each received thousands of dollars from the president. In addition to Coventry's 100 grand, three on the team received $10,000 each while the remaining athletes pocketed $2,000.

SOURCE

Obama And McCain Comparisons On The Issues

Posted on 12:34 PM comments (3)
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I'm not a citizen of this country, so I can't even vote, but I've lived here long enough to care. Those of you who are eligible to vote, I hope you know why you're voting for the person you intend to vote for.

Below are comparisons between Obama and McCain on "the issues," specifically the most debated and polarizing, like abortion, immigration, Iraq, health care, labor, environment, same sex unions, and others:

ON ABORTION

McCain has wobbled on his stance in recent years. But its safe to say that he is anti-abortion; however, he does believe that abortions should be legal only when the pregnancy is due to incest, rape, or when the life of the woman is endangered.

Obama supports a woman's unchallenged right to have an abortion, regardless of circumstance.

ON IMMIGRATION

McCain is actually quite progressive in this area - moreso than most of his Republican counterparts. He supports amnesty/permanent legalization for illegal aliens and temporary legalization for illegal aliens as guest workers. Advocates tightening of the border by increasing patrols. He would increase the number of visas issued for agricultural workers. He supports relaxing the restrictions barring legal immigrants from using social programs such as food stamp, health care and housing.

Obama isn't that much different. He also supports amnesty / permanent legalization for illegal aliens and temporary legalization for illegal aliens as guest workers. He supports granting citizenship to illegal aliens already in the country as long as they pay the fines and back taxes, learn English, do not violate the law and go to the end of the line to become citizens. He supports efforts to build a fence along the Mexican border. He advocates tougher laws to keep illegal aliens from finding jobs and would create a program for employers to easily verify an applicant's immigration status.

ON IRAQ

McCain, in October 2002, voted to support a joint resolution to authorize the use of United States Armed Forces against Iraq and remains a very stark supporter of President Bush's policies, although he has criticized the management of the war. He's also called for troop increases in the country.

Obama on the otherhand, opposed the war resolution in 2002, and campaigned actively against it. He has been quoted as saying, "I am not opposed to all wars, I am opposed to dumb wars." He obviously opposes the present troop increase, supports a phased redeployment. He has said in the April, 2007 debate, "there's no military solution to this. We've got to have a political solution, begin a phased withdrawal, and make certain that we've got benchmarks in place so that the Iraqi people can make a determination about how they want to move forward."

ON HEALTHCARE

McCain opposes universal health care, and instead supports tax credits to eligible families. He would open health care markets by allowing providers to practice nationwide, rather tha restricting them regionally, allowing the purchase of health insurance across state lines.

Obama supports universal health care BUT, only for children (at least intially). He says he will create a national public insurance program that would allow individuals and small businesses to buy affordable health care similar to that available to federal employees. His plan would require all employers to contribute toward health coverage for their employees or toward the cost of the public plan, and will create a national health insurance exchange to reform the private insurance market.

ON SAME SEX UNIONS

McCain also surprised me a little bit on this issue, straying away a little from his Republican counterparts. He supports same sex civil unions, but not marriage, and believes that the same-sex marriage issue should be decided by individual states, instead of the federal government.

Obama, like McCain also supports civil unions, but not same-sex marriages, unlike many Liberals. He also believes that the same-sex marriage issue should be decided by individual states.

ON THE ENVIRONMENT

Both candidates recognize the consequences of global warming, and endorse policies that do the same.

ON CAPITAL PUNISHMENT

Both candidates support the death penalty, although Obama is more discriminating.

ON TAXES

McCain wants to make the Bush tax cuts of 2001 and 2003 permanent. He wants to double the deduction for dependents to $7,000 to help those raising families. He would forbid Internet and cell phone taxes.

Obama wants to allow the Bush tax cuts of 2001 and 2003 to expire as scheduled for Americans earning more than $250,000 a year, and would raise taxes on that group. He would also raise taxes on capital gains and dividends and give tax breaks for low and middle-income Americans. He proposes a $500 per person or $1,000 per family payroll tax credit for middle class taxpayers. Obama advocates the elimination of income taxes for seniors making less than $50,000. He wants to close corporate tax loopholes and end deductions for industries such as oil and gas. He plans to introduce tax penalties for US companies that keep their profits overseas.

ON LABOR

McCain would likely oppose legislation in Congress making it easier for employees to unionize.

Obama on the otherhand supports legislation that would make it easier for unions to organize, and favors giving part-time employees vacation and sick pay. He also supports a “living” wage and ensuring that the minimum wage matches inflation.

ON MEDIA (INTERNET USAGE)

McCain opposes network neutrality.

Obama supports it.

ON TOBACCO

McCain supports FDA regulation of tobacco products, but opposed the SCHIP (State Children's Health Insurance Program) bill last year that would have raised tobacco taxes by $0.61.

Obama also supports FDA regulation of tobacco products, as well as raising the tobacco tax by $0.061 to help pay for SCHIP.


Obviously this doesn't cover every single issue, but if you didn't know, or were unclear about any of the above before, now you know...

Spike Lee: ATTN Filmmakers - Get Funding From Dubai

Posted on 10:11 PM comments (3)
It's certainly not the first time that an American filmmaker has wondered outside of America's borders to raise production funds, and it certainly won't be the last.

Where there's oil, there's money; and one has to go where the money is.

From EURweb.com:

Spike Lee says there's an untapped source of movie financing in the eastern Arabian emirate Dubai that he plans to make full use of in the future.

"There is a ton of money in Dubai, so I've gotta get on a plane; I gotta start making connections. I don't want to be in a position where if I want to do a film and the Hollywood studios don't want to make it, then it doesn't get made," the filmmaker told arabianbusiness.com.

"I gotta know that no can't be a final no. I gotta go to other sources of finance."

Lee said he's planning to make his first visit to Dubai in November after being invited to the The Atlantis Hotel on the Palm, reported Emirates Business on Friday.

SOURCE

P. Diddy: Gas Prices So High, I Can't Fuel My Private Jet

Posted on 4:27 PM comments (4)
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What an ass! To act so carelessly about an issue that's affecting millions of people quite adversely - people who would love to have $200,000 in their bank accounts to fuel their private jets; some who are barely able to pay for life's most basic necessities for themselves and their families - is ignorant and unfortunate, regardless of whether he is being serious or if he's joking! I've never really been able to stand Sean Combs and his various antics, and this certainly doesn't help win me over (not that he gives a shit). He just strikes me as a rather clueless, pretentious hack!

So Much For Little Girls And Their Dolls...

Posted on 11:06 AM comments (3)
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Nothing brings a father and daughter together like the timed dismantling and reassembling of an AR-15 automatic rifle... YEAH! The NRA must love this!


Obama On Biden And Sarah Palin

Posted on 1:25 PM No Comments
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I'll be watching the rest of this tonight, I hope.

Nose Shower Gel Dispenser

Posted on 5:56 PM comments (2)
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The image speaks for itself! I gotta get me one of these babies for my bathroom... haha!

From the merchant's website: "The nose . . . blows! Just squeeze or press it and green shower gel oozes out of the right nostril. Gross and funny at the same time! Rubber nose attaches to flat surface with suction cups. Easy to fill; includes 5.3 oz. green shower gel and instructions. 9" high."

9 inches high is actually quite tall... might end up being more of an eyesore at that size. They should make a pocket size version, something that won't scream at you upon entering the shower. Still, I dig it though! You can buy yours here for $17.95 - PotPourri Gift Catalog.


SOURCE

Say Goodbye To Amsterdam's Red-Light District?

Posted on 4:38 PM comments (1)
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I've never been to Amsterdam, so its Red-Light District remains nothing but a fantasy :o) - one of those places I only know about from others who have been there, or read about in various trade mags.

And thanks to the below article, I might never experience the district as it currently exists! Boo-hoo...

Reading it, the first thing I thought of was the clean-up of Times Square here in New York City, during the early to mid-1990s - an area that was previously thought of as a cesspool, overrun with crime and home to sex shops and peep shows - essentially, New York's on Red-Light District! Now you can't walk 1 inch without hitting a freaking tourist, looking for Madame Tussauds Wax Museum or the MTV studios, amongst several other attractions.

So, might one of the more liberal democracies in the world be getting a tad more conservative? Is this the beginning of a eventual shift in policy, despite that fact the the district is one of Amsterdam's main tourist attractions?

From Time Magazine Online:


For Maurits Van Brunschot, the breaking point came nearly 21 years after he first settled amid the cobblestone alleyways of De Wallen, Amsterdam's red-light district. Van Brunschot began taking his infant daughter to day care. The neighborhood's public nursery was squeezed between two brothels, where nearly naked women in the windows beckon adult passersby. "Can you imagine this is what she sees every day?" says Van Brunschot, a food-company executive.

That question is perhaps too rarely posed by the millions of people who visit Amsterdam each year. For them, the city's liberal laws and attitudes offer a stark contrast to the heavy policing of sex and drugs elsewhere in Europe and in the U.S., and make this tiny neighborhood one of Amsterdam's most intriguing attractions. "Often people go to the museums and then to the red-light district," says the city's mayor, Job Cohen, sitting in his office with a sweeping view of the Ij River. "It is part of the image of tolerant Amsterdam."

Until now, that is. In a break with Amsterdam's "anything goes" attitude, Cohen and city officials have vowed to finally crack down on what they say are extensive criminal networks operating in the neighborhood.

The rest here: AMSTERDAM CLEANS UP

Stair Porn - Architecture Is Sexy Part 4

Posted on 4:06 PM comments (3)
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I love stumbling upon cool and simple sites like this one called StairPorn.org. As their slogan says, "stairs, and nothing but!"

That's right, it's a site in the same vein as The Satorialist, which I also subscribe to - nothing but pictures of interesting staircases from all over the world, whether in home or business environments, interior or exterior. I've already professed my interest in architecture, so featuring this site on my blog shouldn't be a surprise.

Here are a few I liked upon initially skimming through the site, and then check out the rest of their extensive library here: STAIRPORN.ORG.


Italian Institute of Culture, Stockholm, Sweden


Floating staircase in Spanish home


Hanging spiral staircase in a home in Rotterdam, The Netherlands

The Real Reason McCain Chose Palin

Posted on 3:03 PM No Comments
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Funny... ha... ha... See my post just below this one as an addendum...

Sarah Palin, The VPILF

Posted on 2:33 PM No Comments
I'm sure everyone has heard and is familiar with the acronym, MILF. No, not the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, a Muslim separatist rebel group in the Philippines, not that kind of MILF; THIS KIND.

As I expected, McCain's VP choice, Sarah Palin is now being smacked with that label - except in her case, she's not just considered a MILF, but rather a VPILF. I'm sure you can figure that one out on your own.

Someone or some people have even created a website exalting her VPILF-ness, aptly called, VPILF.com.

You've got to love the freedoms that the Internet provides us. Anyone, almost anywhere (well, maybe not in China) can buy a domain name for $15 a year, and create a website dedicated to whatever is of interest to them.

On a more serious note, clearly Palin is not being taken very seriously, from much that I've read in print, and online, as well as heard from the mouths of many of the liberal pundits on television. I think that's a big mistake! I can only associate all of that venom to fear - in essence, she's still an anomaly, and as is often the case, we tend to fear what we don't know. So, before we dismiss her and give the presidency to Obama, I suggest we wait and get to know this woman over the next 2 months, leading up to the election. I have a feeling she's going to take many people by surprise, and give McCain the kind of lift that he likely hoped adding her to his campaign would. And partly for that reason, I still think Obama should have gone with Hillary as his VP pick - the proverbial dream team! I'd feel much less anxious about our chances of winning. Too late now, I suppose.

But, for now, get your jollies here: VPILF.COM

WHITE AGAINST BLACK - The Hidden Issue In The US Presidential Campaign

Posted on 1:13 PM comments (1)
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Forget the issues, their individual stances, the parties they belong to, and all the other seemingly relevant considerations... will this election come down, once again, to the color line - black versus white? When the day comes for every eligible American to vote, will race be THE deciding factor, regardless of what party they claim allegiance to, even those white Democrats voicing their unwavering support for Obama today? Has the United States come far enough that it can accept a black family living in the White House? Is America willing to accept the leadership of a man who identifies himself as black?

A Spiegel Online article believes McCain is counting on an affirmative answer to the color line question, and is working the theory to his advantage.



Here's a snippet:

"Now, though, it's McCain against Obama, Republican against Democrat, old against young -- and, more than anything else, white against black. McCain, of course, hasn't broached the race issue directly. But indirectly, the argument goes like this: To be white means to be like John McCain -- patriotic, bedecked with medals and honors, self-sacrificing and a hero. To be black means to be like Barack Obama -- eager for the spotlight, similar to a Hollywood actor, egocentric, flippant and lacking truly American values. White America is -- subtly and adroitly -- being mobilized against black America."

And...

"Now, the issue of race is playing a role in weakening Obama and strengthening McCain and almost no one wants to talk about it. Indeed, the issue of race in the campaign has become the province of the lunatic fringe -- such as radio personality Rush Limbaugh. Obama's candidacy, he said on air, "goes back to the fact that nobody had the guts to stand up and say no to a black guy." He also referred to Obama as the "little black man child." Limbaugh may be extreme, but it's not difficult to imagine that a large percentage of Republican voters are also wary of seeing a black president. More important, though, is whether the swing voters will be willing to vote for a black man over a white man. And it also depends on the fickle Democrats, many of whom voted for Ronald Reagan in the '80s."

As we all watched Michelle Obama on stage at the DNC earlier this week, along with her 2 children, accompanied by the face of Barack (who wasn't physically present that day) projected on a large screen, we saw a family... and I remember thinking to myself, will all those white Americans watching that familial moment readily identify with the family they see on their TVs, and be willing to accept these brown faces in the white house? Are they ready to see a black man be the face of this nation? I wasn't so sure then, and I'm still not so sure now, regardless of all the excitement that's followed Obama's campaign since inception. I certainly hope he does win the seat! We'll find out in about 2 1/2 months.

Read the rest of the Spiegel Online article here: THE HIDDEN ISSUE

Boom! Bash! Dash!

Posted on 8:10 PM No Comments
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I always love a good smack-down!!!! Dara Murphy, founder of PUMA, and Will Bowers, of "Just Say No Deal," so-called "phony Democrats" and Hillary supporters, get sliced and diced by David Shuster!

Palin: "What Exactly Does The VP Do Everyday?"

Posted on 5:25 PM No Comments
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So... as expected the Sarah Palin bashing has already begun... haha.

Here's a clip of her, on air on CNBC about a month ago, July 31, 2008. In the clip, the anchor asks her about her McCain VP prospects and she answers quite emphatically actually, "... But as for that VP talk all the time, I'll tell you I still can't answer that question until somebody answers for me: 'What is it exactly that the VP does everyday?'"

Well, I'll tell you Mrs Palin, you'd better catch up on your VP homework and find answers to your own question SOON!

The laughter begins around the 1:52 mark.

John McCain Reads The Obenson Report!

Posted on 4:31 PM No Comments
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Based on today's surprising news (although I wasn't), I think John McCain must have read my blog - specifically THIS ENTRY from several days ago :o)

That sneaky John McCain... Now the fun really begins! GObama! Go!

The Dark Knight - Child's Play

Posted on 11:53 AM No Comments
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A group of kids recreated The Dark Knight movie trailer.



Here's the original for comparison - how did they do? HAHA!

"Clintons For McCain"

Posted on 1:40 PM No Comments
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All I can do is emit a deep sigh at those Hillary Clinton supporters who are still bitter that she lost the Dems nomination to Obama, that they intend to vote for McCain, despite Hillary's rousing unity speech at the convention last night. I'm truly puzzled by their amazing lack of foresight (or maybe it's just an unhealthy case of a childish kind of stubbornness and even foolishness). They consider themselves Democrats, have always voted Democrat, but, for reasons still not clearly illuminated (at least to me), this time, when it probably matters most, they are dead-set on voting for the enemy, and are even actively campaigning for him?!?! The fact that most of them appear to be female (and white) is, although quite telling, even more baffling, given that, historically, the Dems party has been most consistent in championing issues important to women voters - definitely not the Repubes.

It's time the Obama campaign stop kissing their asses in trying to convince them to consider the party's ultimate goal of winning the presidency; let them continue wallowing in their own individual gripes; let them vote for McCain. If he does end up beating Obama for the seat, and we have to endure 4 more years of Repube rule in the Whitehouse, I don't want to hear even the slightest complaint from any of them about policies McCain introduces that affect them or those they love, adversely... not a single squeak!

In the video below, MSNBC's Chris Matthews takes on "Clintons for McCain" founder Cristi Adkins at the Democratic National Convention. She makes a claim about Obama’s past, and Matthews challenges her on it:
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