Adoption

So, Thomas and Erin are trying to adopt. They have gone through all the paperwork etc., and are now just in the waiting stage through LDS social services. Apparently at this point, there is a lot to do with who the birth mother wants to choose, so PR is a big deal. Thus I am posting a link to their adoption bio via lds social services, if you happen to know anyone, link to here, or send them here.

Wall E

So, I know I am way behind, but we just saw Wall E this last weekend. So, here's the review.

Wall E *****

I loved this movie. It was funny, touching, and completely entertaining. It was amazing how much emotion Pixar conveyed with the robots who spoke only a couple of words. Wall E may be the most loveable animated character I have ever seen. Completely wonderful movie. Most likely the best movie of 2008 (I loved Dark Knight, don't get me wrong, but I think I'll have to say that it was merely a very close second place in '08)

Anyone who hasn't seen it (which I don't know if there is anyone left, it may have just been me and Alisa), you need to see this as soon as you can, it was great.

Movie Reviews

The Forbidden Kingdom ***
I remember when this one came out in theaters, I thought it looked intriguing. It stars Jet Li and Jackie Chan, as well as the kid who played Jack's son on Will and Grace. It is about a kid who finds a staff that takes him back to ancient China. I know what you are thinking, you've seen/heard/watched a movie like this before. And you are right, it isn't very original. But what it is, is made well. And it has some surprisingly good actors doing it. I like both Jackie Chan and Jet Li, and they can definitely make an exciting fight scene. It has a lot of top notch people working on the movie as well, and was mostly filmed in China, some very, very pretty backdrops. Anyway, I found it funny, interesting, and an enjoyable watch. Nothing objectionable, Alisa and I were both struggling to figure out why the PG-13, even the 'reasons' given on IMDB are stretching it big time. All around good movie.

Horton Hears a Who ***

I don't think I liked this as much as the kids did, but it was because of their enjoyment that I give it 3 stars. Its a cute little movie based on the Dr. Seuss book. Jim Carrey, Steve Carrell, and several other names you would know, including my favorite one in the film, Carol Burnett as the evil Kangaroo. It was cute and fun and like I said, the kids loved it.

Pirates of the Caribbean 3 ** 1/2
I found this to be the weakest of the trilogy. It still has some good action, and I liked Chow Yun Fat in it. I continue to find Davy Jones the most interesting of the characters, and found myself by the end hoping that he and Calypso would end up together, kind of winning. But, alas, no one kills Keira Knightly, who is at her most annoying in this movie. And I think of Orlando Bloom like I always do, unless you are an elf, you need to stay out of movies altogether. Depp was good, and I enjoyed the fact that Keith Richards showed up. So, it was a pleasant enough diversionary movie, but I thought it really was a disappointment after 2, which was my favorite of the 3.

FINALLY.

So, finally a judge has ruled (at least on a temporary basis), that you cannot flout the law, and get away with it. Go here to read the full story.

The Bill Barret Corporation, with the aid of the BLM has been busy destroying resources left and right to get to some natural gas in the most invasive and harmful way possible. And now, a temporary restraining order has gone into place stopping the further development (or sale) of new leases in Nine Mile, and other possibly sensative sites.

To be clear, and to have full disclosure. I have no problem with domestic drilling. I do think that it is a short term solution, that isn't as important as many others think, but I do not think there is any real reason to block domestic drilling. I do, however, have a problem with going after natural resources in an irresponsible manner. I do not believe that the government should rubber stamp the path of least resistance for a company to get to the resources. I don't think we should give the okay to the most irresponsible way of extracting those resources so that the company can save a few bucks. And I especially do not believe that the required safeties, and hoops that are supposed to be jumped through should be ignored, or side stepped to green light a project.

Also, I, and my family, have enjoyed Nine Mile Canyon for decades. It is, in my opinion, one of the top 2 or 3 greatest most amazing sites in Utah. My uncle has been the BLM archaeologist there for decades, and my aunt is the head of the Nine Mile Canyon coalition and quoted in the above article.

The BLM has been underhanded, deceitful, and duplicitous throughout this entire process. And to say that I believe that there are corrupt individuals on the local level in this organization would be an understatement.

There are only a few corporations that I feel are truly evil (I'm not one of those big evil corporation people, I like corporations, they create jobs, and make stuff, etc..), but my top four in no particular order would be C&H (yes, the sugar people), Uncle Ben's, Dole, and the Bill Barret Company.

I'm sure there are worse ones, but this is my list, go make your own.

It will continue.

So, apparently on Friday Tom Hanks opined on how un-American Mormons are. Or at least those who voted for Proposition 8. I won't bother to quote him, for those interested in the story, you can go here.

I will forego the discussion of whether its ever unamerican to vote, but will point to a different point I want to make.

I first heard about this while we were discussing the Joseph Smith lesson. And the first thing that came to my mind was a quote from the Prophet.

The Standard of Truth has been erected; no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done.

This isn't a list of hypotheticals, nor is it symbolic. I truly believe these things have, are, and will continue to happen. Calumny has been, and will continue to be used to defame the Church. The point that I made in Elder's Quorum today was that we have a choice. We can either choose to follow as the work of God goes forth boldly, nobly, and independent, or we can choose to be ashamed of our testimonies of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Unfortunately more and more people in positions where their words will be heard will choose to badmouth the Church. I say this not as a position of victimhood. I say it as a statement of how I see reality. I am disappointed that Hanks chose to take this stance, I have been a big fan of his work, but more importantly been a fan of his dedication to remembering the veterans of WWII. Being an actor doesn't give one common sense, or intelligence, nor does fame, but, I have enjoyed his work for WWII monuments, etc..

I am glad that in a world of constantly shifting values, I know exactly where I stand.

The end of his era.

So, as I drove home last night, I heard a good portion of Pres. Bush's farewell speech. I have to admit I liked it. There has been so much acrimony, so much divisive anger over the last eight years, I have become fairly dismissive and cynical about politics as a whole. Much of the animosity directed at Pres. Bush is in reaction to some policies and practices that caused anger. I think that the best that can really be said about this administration is that they did a mediocre job at an incredibly difficult time. But, as I have mentioned before, I think the reaction from the left has been unreasonable and overreaching.

As I listened to him speak, admit mistakes, and talk about his reasons for doing what he did, I came to a conclusion. I truly believe that he based his decisions on what he felt was best for the country. Was he always right, no. Did he surround himself with people whose interests were contrary to those of the country, absolutely. I think that he had many people telling him things that were calculated, and meant to steer him down a path that was not best.

Does this excuse the mistakes, and the problems of this administration, no. But as I listened to Pres. Bush speak, I once again felt sorry for this country. People revel in their hatred of him. They excuse it, and their reactions to him, blaming him for how they act and speak.

Anyway, just my thoughts of Bush as he exits.

Movie Reviews: Get Smart, Indiana Jones.

So, I caught up on two other movies I didn't get in theaters.

Get Smart: ***1/2

I really enjoyed this movie. I thought Steve Carrell was very funny, and likeable. The Rock was great, Anne Hathaway was really good (and I have hated her in movies before *cough* The Princess Diaries *cough*) It was just what it intended to be, funny. I could definitely hope for a sequel here, it was a fun watch, recommended.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull: *** 1/2

I went into this having heard mixed reviews. I will start out by stating that I think that this movie fell victim to the same thing as the first three episodes of Star Wars, too much anticipation. Expectations were raised, flaws in earlier movies are downplayed as the epic nature of those movies are cemented in the mind. This Indiana Jones movie was good. It wasn't the best of the four, but I don't think it was necessarily the worst either (bear in mind, being the worst I.J. movie wouldn't necessarily be bad). I have heard criticism about too much blue screen vs. old school doing actual stuntwork (reasonable critique). And complaints about the alien nature of the story (a complaint that I don't agree with, Indy is always about supernatural, I didn't find this too far off the beaten path for him). In this one he is up against Soviets instead of Nazis, but it still works. Good performances by Cate Blanchett, and Shia Lebouf, and the chick from the first Indy is still unattractive, but thats okay too. You should see this if you haven't.

Luxury. Yeah, I can get behind that.

So, on Monday the Jazz played the Indiana Pacers. Nothing unusual about that you say, but you would be wrong. My Dad had been gifted by his company with a couple tickets to their luxury box. Being the only sibling that really follows non-soccer sports, I got the nod.

Wow.

So, we got their and hung our coats up in the private luxury box closet, next to the private luxury box bathroom (that, creepily enough, had a mirror that covered the entire wall you faced while standing up to pee, so, yeah, that was a little wierd).

We then proceeded to feast on appetizers (I came straight from work, so was a bit hungry by this point, 7pm), they had chips and guac, shrimp cocktail, fried shrimp, some sort of asian salad, and hand munchies, like party mix and nuts, and m&ms. Got myself a drink out of the fully stocked fridge, and started watching the starting lineup, etc.. The game started, and our personal chef came in (you read that right). You could then go up to him and direct him in making a personal serving of stirfry, which was quite tasty. I took my plate and went to sit on my well padded luxury box seat to watch the game. Okur played awesome, which is good because he is on my fantasy basketball team, and the first half was great, food in hand that was free, comfortable padded seat, etc.. Then came halftime.

A nice young woman came in and announced that the dessert cart was here, if we would like to come out and select something. There was tiramisu (which I personally find repellent), tarts, pastries, cheesecake with fresh blueberries, chocolate mousse cake, key lime pie, and the biggest slices of carrot cake ever. I love carrot cake, so I went that route. A couple more bottles of ice cold water from the fridge as I sat in the second half eating my carrot cake on my well padded seat completed the evening as the Jazz went on to win the game.

On top of all of this, Will had given me a hint on the greatest parking spot ever which got us out of the game and home in like 35 minutes.

Thanks Dad, you're awesome.

I'll never be able to satisfactorily watch a Jazz game again.

I am going to hate the next 8 years (at least in part).

Lets face it, I'm pretty convinced that the next 8 years will all be Obama presidency years. That being said, I'm going to loath them. Hold up, not for the reason you may think. I'm not going to hate them because Obama will be president, no. I am going to hate this continuation of what the Dems have been doing for the last 8 years.

For the last eight years, Democrats as a whole, and definitely as an entity, have rejoiced at every stumble, have cheered every misstep, and have basked in the perceived glory of anything that has happened to degrade, denounce, or attack the current president. It is a level of classlessness that is completely unparralleled in my experience.

I found it sickening. Did I like W? No, I think he is at the best, a mediocre president, that performed less than stellar during a very difficult 8 years. But it doesn't bring me joy to say that I think he failed in many ways. I don't say it with an 'I told you so' grin on my face. I refuse to join that mob as it forms beginning January 20th, as I can promise you it will. Except now it will be made up of Republicans, waiting with baited breath at any problem that comes up, almost hoping for problems, so they can point and snicker at Obama.

Now, to be clear, I didn't want him to be President. There are basic principles that we disagree about. I didn't vote for him, and wouldn't. That having been said, I hope and pray for his success. Its my country he will be leading, his failures will be our failures, and his success' ours. I want him to lead this country out of economic turmoil, I want him to make those policy decisions that will successfully fight world wide terror, and protect this country. Even when he does things I disagree with, I will hope that he does better.

I do not hate Barack Obama. I will not vilify anything he proposes, because he proposes it. I will not oppose him on some twisted principle. This is how I feel the Democrats have worked for the last 8 years. It has been one of the most disgusting displays I have ever seen, and I fear it has set a new standard, that the Republicans will be more than happy to live down to.

As he embarks on his first term, I will hope that it is successful, because I will gain nothing if he should fail.

Great article

I found this over on ESPN today. Its a great one. It points out many of the problems with the BCS. I always liked Reilly when he wrote for SI, he seems to be doing just as good over with ESPN.

Follow up on the last post.

So back in Oct., I beleive right after BYU lost to TCU I got the following email.

Danny boy,

My condolences. Last night your misguided notions and ill-founded fantasy world about byu football completely collapsed. Like your anemic rhetorical skills, the cougars were woefully inadequate. In short, byu SUCKS!!! Go UTES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It came from someone named Jill Taylor, her(I assume) email is greenapple3@live.com.

I sat and puzzled it out, and couldn't for the life of me figure who she? is. So I sent the following email.

I have tried, and for the life of me can't figure out who you are. Where do we know each other from?

Dan

I thought that was pretty nice, after all, I have lots of friends who razz me if BYU loses, and I'm fine with it. Imagine my surprise when I get the following response.

A more enlightened source than you on several topics, including college athletics. That's who I am. Also one that has laughed at your insufferable blather in matters where you have paltry understanding. Don't bother yourself to know more; after all, facts are often contrary to your nature. Just know that humble pie down your gullet has been and continues to be highly entertaining. Thanks

Are you picking up the animosity? I sure did, and still have no idea what its source is. Apparently this person has disagreed with me before, I don't know if its from things I have posted on this blog, or others. I don't know if I even personally know this individual. So, I responded thusly.

Okay, whatever. Just for your own info, I really don't care about peoples opinions when I don't know them, or respect them. And since I have no idea if either would be the case with you, I won't have to worry about it.

Dan

I never heard back....until this morning. When I got this.

Any more room down your gullet for extra crow and humble pie? You and your laughable byu bias. Go UTES!!!!!!!!!!!

Now, I will tell you the same thing I told her(?). I sat in front of the TV and cheered Utah every play of that game, and loved seeing them beat up on a big SEC powerhouse. This proves to me that this individual has no idea how I stand on anything. I love seeing MWC teams do well, I have no raving Utah animosity. I only talk smack about Utah in relation to BYU. Do I have BYU bias? I hope so, I am a huge fan. Any fan that doesn't have at least some bias for their team isn't much of a fan.

So, I guess I will continue to wonder who this mystery emailer of anger filled barbs is, but I will sleep fine knowing that they clearly don't know me, as anyone who has even had a short conversation with me about college football, or read my posts, or replies on other people's blogs, knows where I stand with Utah football, or any MWC team.

Congrats Utes, your win was huge, it was great for the MWC, it was great for BYU, it was great for spitting in the BCS' eye. All wonderful goals.

The U. Wow, well done.

Unlike most U fans I run into, I actually want 'the enemy' to win. I didn't think the U would win, but that kind of wild optimism is for fans. But man, I watched the game, they kicked can. Frankly, unless Florida or Oklahoma blows the other out of the water, I think Utah should be number 1.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button **-****

Not sure how I feel about this movie, thats why the somewhere between 2 and 4 stars. It was incredibly well acted, and was an intriguing story, to say the least. I'll have to mull over it to decide how I feel though. Just saw it tonight.

If this is Ice Cream, what have I been eating all my life?

Holy cow. I just had cold stone creamery ice cream for the first time tonight. It was amazing. Best ice cream ever.