Some Passion reveiws from "Real People"

Internet movie site Ain't It Cool News is posting reviews for The Passion of the Christ from ordinary folks that have seen it in sneak previews. Pretty powerful stuff and much more interesting than the negative clacking from the NY Times.

The version I saw was not the final cut. It had a shot with the timecode still on it and there was a lot of music used from Last Temptation of Christ (no comment). The story is all too familiar, I’ve read and studied the Gospels hundreds of times and I was blown away at how new this all was to me. -- Douglas Tennapel

This will easily be the most important film released in 2004. It is the most graphic and accurate Jesus film ever made, and every person ought to see this movie when it's released. It doesn't matter if you consider yourself a follower of Jesus or not -- you owe it to yourself to witness this amazing piece of art. Mel Gibson has given us a masterpiece that must be seen to be believed. Really, no joke. I LOVE the Lord of the Rings movies, Spider-Man, the Last Samurai, and all the other great films in recent memory, but "The Passion" is on a whole different level altogether in terms of importance, achievement and raw artistic, cultural and spiritual value. -- Music Prof.

The visual look to this film was one part silent movie, one part mystic awakening and one part nightmare. It places you where you need to be, immediately uncomfortable yet familiar enough to go on. Visually this movie stimulates emotionally like nothing out there right now. It creeps…it doesn’t flash in your eyes, it engulfs. The camera doesn’t just film Caviezel, its star. It embraces and caresses him. Even in his darkest hour he expresses such a sense of knowing. Not the typical righteous stoicism we see in the usual film portrayals of Jesus, but a deep sense of spiritual knowing. So that even if you don’t believe in “the Jesus Story,” you can believe that Jesus was someone who possessed an inner quality of peace and forgiveness. -- Saffy

The Passion of the Christ

I don't know anything about this movie reviewer, but he seems to do a remarkable job in cutting through the storm of puffed-up criticism levelled at Mel Gibson to focus on the movie itself:

"There have been some that have refused to see the forest for the trees, and some will probably never stop viewing it through a fearful paradigm. That stance is as unfortunate as it is baffling. Take, for example, The Mona Lisa. While having a chin in the painting, it is not a painting about a chin. Neither is The Passion Of The Christ about Jews calling for Christ’s death. While those moments are present, the classic Passion story (and this film) is about the willful decision of The Son Of God to die sacrificially. It’s a story of choice, not victimization or murder. There is a guilty party, however, but it is humanity itself.

As the Scriptures made clear and THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST explicitly re-enacts, no man—Jew or otherwise—had the power to kill Christ. But even to the extent of some peoples’ involvement, Christ’s response to his persecutors remains not only one of the story’s most powerful themes, it is also the clearest moral response to assuage any concerns of violent anti-Semitic uprisings. For anyone who uses THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST as vindication for hatred and bigotry (anti-Semitic or otherwise) is as inexplicably—or willfully—obtuse to the film’s message as its critics seem to be.

A Christian who spews hate as a result of this film is an illegitimate, and stupid, one. Salvation is impossible without Christ’s death and resurrection, of which Christians are thankful for, not angry about. Most importantly, Christ’s response to those who enacted the crucifixion is not only contrary to bigotry and violence, it specifically forbids it.

THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST is no more anti-Jewish than World War II films are anti-German. Just as corrupt Nazis didn’t represent every German, neither do corrupt Jewish leaders represent an entire Jewish race. Rather than a “Jews vs. Jesus” framework, director Mel Gibson frames his story in the reality of the day, that Jesus—rather than being hated by all Jews—was a polarizing figure within the Jewish world. Some feared Him, even hated Him, but many others loved Him.

Gibson responsibly depicts this reality as we see Jews defending Christ before the Pharisees themselves, as well as other expressions of love for Christ by many other Jews. One of the film’s (and Gospels’) more fascinating perspectives is that corrupt Jewish leaders aren’t the only ones who deny Christ but some of His disciples do as well. There’s plenty of guilt to go around. A corrupt Jewish leadership may have called for an innocent Man’s death, but the Christian perspective is that they were simply doing our dirty work. And ultimately, it was Christ’s decision—not theirs, and not ours—that put Him there. It was His choice, but our guilt."

Okay, That's It!

Hey, I don't mind having my intelligence questioned by the vultures of Madison Avenue each hour of my waking day. But when they put some corn oil slop in a SPRAY BOTTLE and STILL call it "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter", well, then they've gone too far. Oh, yeah? You can't believe its not butter, eh? Have you ever SEEN real butter it's a stick, dammit... A stick!...

Kerry Campaign Headquarters

I Hate Stupid People in Positions of Power

Has any NFL or CBS executive ever even watched MTV? Every video on MTV features a girl who is a slut and a boy who is a gangster/rapist. Now the executives "in charge" claim ignorance that an "MTV produced halftime extravaganza" delivers on its specialty of whores and scum? Whoever approved MTV's participation in the halftime show should be fired for gross incompetence.

NH Independents for Bush...For Dean

If I were a New Hampshire independent who supported George Bush, I would take a Democrat primary ballot and vote for Howard Dean.

Iowa Causcuses Winners and Losers

Winners:

- Democrat party: avoids certain defeat with Dean
- Kerry: Instant frontrunner
- Edwards: From VP candidate to candidate for President
- Des Moines Register: Endorsed Edwards

Losers:

- Internet: So much for Internet candidates
- Republicans: Bush sure winner vs. Dean
- Wes Clark: Could have beat Dean in NH, won't beat Kerry
- Gore, Harkin, Bradley, Mosley-Braun etc.: Picked the wrong horse
- Bush-haters: Hate is not a family value
- Dean: Ouch
- Gephardt: Double ouch and goodbye...
- Unions: See Dean and Gephardt

Dean - Now Totally Unelectable

The Boston Herald joins other news outlets in covering the revelation that Howard Dean suffered panic attacks in the past and suffered one when faced with the prospect of becoming Governor of Vermont.

I ask any Democrat to lay out for me a scenario in which a man with such a psychological background wins a national election at a time of crisis when possession of a steely nerve is demanded by the electorarte as an absolute requirement.

...and as Dr. Dean's receptionist might say, "Next!"

Kennedy Screws Kerry:

It is less than a week to the Iowa caucuses and Senator John Kerry is running for his life. So, what does his good friend Senator Ted Kennedy do? He blasts President Bush on the Iraq War in a major speech - a war voted for by John Kerry.

How can Kerry hope to maintain momentum in Iowa when the Senior Senator from the Commonwealth keeps putting one of "the worst blunders in more than two centuries of American foreign policy" on the front page?

Hey, what are friends for? Ouch.

Lies Ted Turner Told Me:

My fingers weary at that thought of writing about CNN's liberal slant, but again it must be done. Located in their political ads archive CNN links to an advertisment described thusly:

"George Bush used this well-known ad to depict Dukakis as soft on crime. Bush asserted that when Dukakis was governor of Massachussetts, convicted criminal Willie Horton was paroled and went on to commit more crimes. Do we want the same for the entire country?"

This must be the famed "Revolving Prisoner Door" ad, no? Of course not.

Instead, CNN shows the racially provocative "Willie Horton" spot that was NOT one of George Bush's advertisements.

Let's be honest, would anyone at CNN ever say that the NAACP ad against George W. was "an Al Gore" advertisment? So, then, why is it okay for CNN to say a third party ad is George H.W. Bush's?

CNN...lies, lies, lies.....

James Lileks

You MUST read Lileks today.

He takes on smarmy character over in Baghdad and rips him a new one. Scroll down to where it says FINALLY and enjoy James taking out the trash.

Infotel Phone Book Scam

from xlrq.com

"The time to act is now. Let us all, as bloggers, unite to ensure that Infotel does not profit from its bully tactics. Don't make anything up, stretch the truth, or do anything else that could be construed as stooping to their level. Just say what needs to be said to ensure that everyone who reads your blog knows what unmitigated bastards these guys are. That way, Infotel will come to regret their sleazy tactics. This will send the message to other shady businesses loud and clear: fuck with the blogosphere, and the blogosphere will turn right back around and fuck with you. "

Bush Meetup

If you are a Bush supporter, sign up at Bush Meetup to find out what like-minded supporters are doing in your area. Even if you aren't interested in meeting anyone else, sign up anyway just to show support.

The New Face of Conservative America - Bobby Jindal

I bet if this candidate was a member of a minority community "acceptable" to liberals, you'd be seeing alot more of him on the network news shows. (by the way, Gov. Arnold, give this guy a visit and do a fundraiser for him...):

"Jindal’s governmental ethics manifesto is part of his conservative platform, “Bold New Vision for Louisiana,” and centers around three main themes – making state and local government more open and accountable to the public, aggressively addressing potential conflicts of interest, and responsibly managing spending of hard-earned taxpayer dollars. Highlights of his plan include requiring public officials to disclose their sources of income, barring regulated industries from contributing to officials who regulate them, and preserving an independent legislative auditor’s office.

The New Orleans Times-Picayune endorsed Jindal for governor citing the need for honesty in government. The editorial said, “Given the history of corruption in this state, Louisiana needs a governor who takes care to abide by ethics rules, rather than looking for shortcuts around them. His election would be an unmistakable, powerful message to the world, and also to ourselves: That we have the power to break free of our past. That nothing can stop us from fulfilling our potential.”
...
Jindal, born to Asian-Indian immigrants in Baton Rouge, is a Brown University graduate and Oxford University graduate (where he was named a Rhodes Scholar). He has developed an impressive resume of public service: He became Louisiana’s health secretary at 24 where he turned around the Medicaid program from $400 million deficit to $220 surplus by cracking down on fraud and abuse; he became director of a national commission on Medicare at 26; he became president of the University of Louisiana system at 27 where he increased retention, donations, and endowments; he became health-policy adviser to the Bush administration at 29. He has also been a consultant for McKinsey & Company, advising CEOs/Senior Management of fortune 50 companies. He and his wife of five years, Supriya Jolly, are parents of a one-year-old daughter Selia Elizabeth. Jindal, born Piyush, converted to Christianity at 18, and took the name Bobby. He is a Member of St. Jude Catholic Church in Baton Rouge."

Howard Dean Talks Gays and God

From RealClearPolitics:

"As you've probably seen by now, Howard Dean touched down in Tallahassee on Tuesday to tell Southern Democrats they need to "stop having our elections in the South based on race, guns, God and gays and start having them on jobs and health insurance and foreign policy.''

Also included in Dean's speech were diatribes against Florida Governor Jeb Bush for signing a bill preserving Terri Schiavo's right to live and for reaffirming the state's ban on gay adoption. Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't those issues concerning God and gays?"

NYTimes Wants Joblessness, Despair

In what might be its boldest anti-Bush headline of the year, the left-leaning news pages of the New York Times asks, "Are Happy Days Back for the Economy? Bush Hopes So".

Bush hopes so? Doesn't the NYTimes "hopes so" too? Doesn't every other good American also wish for the economy to rebound so that fathers and mothers can return to their jobs to provide for their families? Oh right, now I remember, NYTimes editors want continued despair so a Democrat can get elected - how else to explain the headline?

One further note about how far the editors will go to screw the President - the article isn't even about George Bush! He isn't even mentioned until the 12th paragraph of the 14 paragraph story.

Two Huge Boston Sports Stories:

Vin Baker scores fifteen points in his "come back" game at the Fleet Center in Boston last night. Baker, who spent months in alcohol abuse rehab, looked like a new man. Most everyone in Boston is wishing Vinny the best as he struggles to remake his life and his career.

Manny Ramirez was put on waivers last night. That means any team that wants him can take him (and the remaining $100 million left on his contract). I am praying, PRAYING, that another team chooses to pick Manny off waivers so that we can reorganize the Sox' structure, but then again, I prayed during the 8th inning of game 7 against the Yankees and we know how THAT turned out.

France, Wonderful France

From the International Herald Tribune:

"The phenomenon of gang rape in France has become banal. It occurs - how often is unknown - in the concrete wastelands built as cheap housing for immigrants on the outskirts of France's big cities. Here, according to sociologists and prosecutors, teenage boys, many of them loosely organized into gangs, prey on neighborhood girls.

Many of the boys are raised in closed, traditional families and are hopelessly confused or ignorant about sex; others are simply street toughs. In this world, women enjoy little respect; often girls who appear weak, or who wear tight-fitting clothing or go out unaccompanied by their fathers or brothers are considered fair game.

To avoid trouble, many girls of the projects have taken to wearing loose-fitting jogging clothes and hidden themselves behind domineering fathers or brothers; others have organized themselves into their own gangs. Many of the Muslim girls have donned head scarves - more for protection than out of religious conviction. "

(hat tip to andrew sullivan)

Radio Should Say 'No' To Government Intimidation:

In response to some comments with possible racist overtones by on-air hosts, the Massachusetts Attorney General's office is seeking a meeting with the owners and management of Boston sports station WEEI. Supposedly, the government is seeking assurances that "similar conduct won't happen again".

The AG is NOT the FCC. WEEI should tell the AG to "butt out" and demand that the Massachusetts goverment stop its bullying of radio station ownership in an attempt to manipulate what is said on the airwaves. Should the FCC wish to ask some questions, by all means WEEI must be responsive, but when state officials start to dictate on-air content, then watch out.

Eisner No Longer Jewish, Justice Thomas No Longer Black

Okay bloggers, new rules!

Since the media elite has declared that bloggers shall no longer believe that a media titan's religion should inform his business judgments, I have a new rule for the media elite. Henceforth, no reporter shall mention Justice Clarence Thomas' race when discussing his work on the Supreme Court.

If it is unfair to cite one's religious background in trying to hold that person to a higher standard, then certainly it should also be unfair to cite one's race.