Getting on my soapbox: The Swine Flu Vaccine and why there’s no way in hell I’ll get it.

The Swine Flu vaccine is experimental. No ifs, ands, or butts. There’s no way in hell I’m going to get it.

Here are some facts:

1)One of the main adjuvants in this new vaccine is something called Squalene. Adjuvants cause your immune system to overreact to the introduction of the organism you’re being vaccinated against. Gulf War veterans with Gulf War Syndrome received anthrax vaccines that contained Squalene. MF59 (the Novartis squalene adjuvant) was an unapproved ingredient in experimental anthrax vaccines and has since been linked to the devastating autoimmune diseases suffered by countless Gulf War vets. However, the FDA discovered the presence of Squalene in certain lots of AVIP product. A test was developed to detect anti-Squalene antibodies in GWS patients, and a clear link was established between the contaminated product and all the GWS sufferers who had been injected with the vaccine containing Squalene.

More on Squalene here: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/08/04/Squalene-The-Swine-Flu-Vaccines-Dirty-Little-Secret-Exposed.aspx
You can “register” with a fake email address.

2)The government has already guaranteed legal immunity to the pharmaceutical companies producing theses vaccines. So if you do have a reaction, and suffer, or die, you and your family have no legal recourse against the makers of this vaccine.

3)In 1976, the US tried a similar swine flu vaccine with abbreviated trials like this one. My dentist got this vaccine in 1976. He also got GBS because of it.

Results:
•More people died from the vaccination than from swine flu.
•500 cases of a brain disorder called Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS) were detected.
•The vaccine may have increased the risk of contracting GBS by eight times.
•The vaccine was withdrawn after just ten weeks when the link with GBS became clear.
•The US Government was forced to pay out millions of dollars to those affected.

4)Concerns have already been raised that the new vaccine has not been sufficiently tested and that the effects, especially on children, are unknown.

5)Neurologists are refusing to get the vaccine because of the risk of GBS.

So far, swine flu isn't much more threatening than regular seasonal flu. During the few months of this new flu's existence, hospitalizations and deaths from it seem to be lower than the average seen for seasonal flu, and the virus hasn't dramatically mutated. That's what health officials have observed in the Southern Hemisphere where flu season is now winding down.

About 36,000 people in the U.S. die annually from seasonal influenza, and more than 200,000 are hospitalized, according to the CDC. As of August 30, 2009, concerning swine flu—WORLDWIDE—2,180 have died.

Think twice about getting this vaccine as soon as it’s ready. I’ll consider getting it when I’m sure it’s safe, but until then, hell no.

Go back to 1984 where you belong...

Patterns were on sale this weekend, and I came across these gems:


Max Headroom full-body shot


These are in the "sleepwear" section? WHA-WHA?

Even though this steaming pile of crap will make a mint....

With a 20% enjoyment rating on rottentomatoes.com, I thought I'd share some of the amusing reviews Transformers 2 has garnered so far:

Fan Reviews:

Bad storytelling is bad storytelling, no matter how many explosions, robots and hot chicks you have on screen.

One fan compared it to one of the all-time bombs, the George Lucas-produced "Howard the Duck." Another fan called it "the worst movie I've ever seen." Another praised Bay "for his excessive use of the 360 spinning crane cam" and the frequent slow motion shots of Megan Fox fleeing with jiggling boobs.

Revenge of the Fallen almost feels like it's signaling an end-game for blockbuster movies: all sensation, no content, catastrophic expense.

If you ever wondered what a movie would look like geared toward the underdeveloped brain of a gestating zygote...then Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is the insipid illustration you've been waiting for.

Bay seems to think that just showing us a bunch of brightly clashing metallic limbs (accompanied by lots of noise) is enough to make us faint in our seats with excitement.

This re-run of the previous thrills and spills displays a disappointing lack of ambition.


Critics:
Eric Childress, eFilmCritic.com: "The single worst film to be released thus far in the summer of 2009."

Peter Bradshaw, The (UK) Guardian: "Like watching paint dry while getting hit over the head with a frying pan."

Manohla Dargis, The New York Times: "Cretinous."

Steven Whitty, The Newark (New Jersey) Star-Ledger: "Can you thwart a migraine for two-and-a-half hours?"

Washington Post: What's wrong here is that there's so much swirling, relentless action, indistinct robot characterizations and over-caffeinated techies loose on the special-effects machines that the movie, in mere seconds, achieves incoherence.

Village Voice: Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is a bewildering, noisy, sloppy, cynical piece of work, a movie that sneers at the audience for 147 minutes and expects us to lap it up as entertainment -- and be grateful.

Journal & Courier: The movie is formulaic and routine, which suits (Michael) Bay's directorial style. Creativity is anathema to this by-the-numbers cinematic traffic cop.

The origin of the man-sized woman

I once met David Carradine. After nearly fainting from the smell of vodka on his breath at 10:30am, I posed with him for a commemorative photo. As my husband snapped a couple of pics, Mr. Carradine turns to me and, eyeing me like a hungry wolf looks at a steak, says to my husband, "You got yourself a man-sized woman. I always wanted me one of them."

I then ran away.

Today's Twitter contest: #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels

CONFESSIONS OF A PIT BOSS: OIL CHANGE SECRETS #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels

Extreme push made her impossible drive, she was so loose. #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels

Severe push turned the steering shaft to rubber, and then snapped it clean off. #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels

Older Rear Mounts: Facing Front #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels

He oversteered her into the wall. Gripping his shifter, he covered the pavement with burnt rubber. #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels

Aero push reduced the thrust of his aerodynamic downforce. #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels

"Really tight" means "Try something; you can't make it worse." #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels

The higher the speed, the more critical it is to have some push. #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels


"Her undercarriage was so loose I could barely stay mounted." #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels

Autotronic Chassisphyxiation #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels

#fakenascarharlequinromancenovels PIT ROW PASSION

#fakenascarharlequinromancenovels RENDEZVOUS IN THE WINNERS CIRCLE

#fakenascarharlequinromancenovels Something just bounced off my undercarriage

THAT'S NOT MILK! #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels -possibly too subtle...

PIRATE DRIVER, VIRGIN CHASSIS #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels

FORBIDDEN PIT STOP #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels

IT CONSTANTLY CURVES TO THE LEFT #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels

A LESSON IN WEIGHT JACKING #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels

POLE POSITION PASSION #fakenascarharlequinromancenovels

Who knows what is good and what is bad?

When an old farmer’s stallion wins a prize at a country show, his neighbor calls round to congratulate him, but the old farmer says, “Who knows what is good and what is bad?” The next day some thieves come and steal his valuable animal. His neighbor comes to commiserate with him, but the old man replies, “Who knows what is good and what is bad?” A few days later the spirited stallion escapes from the thieves and joins a herd of wild mares, leading them back to the farm. The neighbor calls to share the farmer’s joy, but the farmer says, “Who knows what is good and what is bad?” The following day, while trying to break in one of the wild mares, the farmer’s son is thrown and fractures his leg. The neighbor calls to share the farmer’s sorrow, but the old man’s attitude remains the same as before. The following week the army passes by, forcibly conscripting soldiers for a war, but they do not take the farmer’s son because he cannot walk. The neighbor thinks to himself, “Who knows what is good and what is bad?” and realizes that the old farmer must be a Taoist sage.

For example, a good friend of mine's husband lost his job because of a lying nutjob woman. She claimed sexual harassment because he rejected her advances. Long story short, the company fired him, even though he had witnesses to what really happened. He got hired on for more money at a better company, and the company he got fired from last year just went under last week. He'd have been out of a job with no prospects.

It was hard to understand why something so bad could have happened to him, but now, all I can say is, "God works in mysterious ways." Ways that we often can't understand without time and perspective.

I rarely blog from my my soap box...

But this issue is something I feel strongly about.

Lt. Col Victor Fehrenbach is from right here in Dayton, and he's a decorated officer. He's being discharged from the military because he's gay. According to the article below, he was outed by an acquaintance against his wishes.

http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/dayton-news/gay-local-air-force-officer-plans-to-fight-discharge-from-service-136024.html

It is OUTRAGEOUS to me that a person who has served for 18 years with a distinguished career is now being discharged solely for the fact that he's gay.

I want you to do a few things.

First, join this Facebook Group and leave him words of support:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lt-Col-Victor-Fehrenbach/177540825023?ref=nf

Two, sign this petition:
http://www.sldn.org/page/s/fehrenbach

Three, tell President Obama to keep his promise:
http://www.sldn.org/page/speakout/obamaaction

Four, tell Congress the time to repeal is NOW:
http://www.sldn.org/page/speakout/congressaction

Thanks!

Some people play fantasy football with fantasy drafting…

Geeks pick perfect actors for fantasy casting in fantasy movies. Just had a discussion with Et_Tu_Babe about casting choices for the Song of Ice & Fire HBO pilot. My choice for Catelyn Stark: Joan Allen circa 1994. Peter Dinklage as Tyrion was just a given. He's an amazing actor, but he's the ONLY amazing actor who fits the bill. Not a lot of competition there.

Some of my other choices:
Jamie - Simon Baker
Tywin - Charles Dance
Cersei - Polly Walker or Melinda Clark, not sure how she'd look as a blonde though
The Hound - Ray Stevenson (or he could play The Mountain, but I'd rather he have a bigger role.)
The Mountain - Marek Vasut
Petyr - Eddie Marsan

Ned - Kevin McKidd, though you'd have to darken him up a bit
Sansa - Claire Foy (or she could play Margaery easily)
Oberyn Martell - James Purefoy

You'll have to IMDB some of my choices, unless you watch a lot of British films/TV. The younger roles can be played by nobodies with ease.

And to the guy who suggested Corbin Bernsen as Tywin, are you smoking crack? And Tricia Helfer as Cersei? PUH-LEEEEZ. She doesn't have the acting chops for it. She would ruin it with her huffy, pensive acting.

Who are YOUR choices?

Consider a turtle as a pet...

http://champagnehercules.blogspot.com/2009/03/you-should-reconsider-turtle-as-pet.html

What? I'm lovemaking!

If you love the absolutely brilliant Matt Berry and Richard Ayoade as much as I do, the following is a must watch...

AD/BC: A Rock Opera

Part One

Part Two

Part Three

Weekend in review...

I was doing trailer checks on Underworld 3 yesterday, and I thought, "I'll just sit and watch 45 minutes of this till the next showing I have to check." Yeah, I ended up watching the whole movie and having to come back an hour later to finish the job. heh

I really enjoyed it. U1 was okay. U2 sucked. U3 is everything I wanted either of those films to be. Totally worth matinee price, even though I didn't pay it...

Also saw Taken this weekend. Who doesn't love Liam Neeson? Suckers, that's who. He KICKS ASS in that movie.
Spoilers:
There is more throat-chopping, wife-shooting, electrocuting, ass-beating goodness in this movie than you can shake an electrified baton at.

And we watched Transporter 3. Blah. I love the first one. Still. I can watch and enjoy it. The second one, not so much. We laughed ourselves to tears when he did the 360 revolution to scrape the bomb off the underside of his car. The third one is just painful.

Oh, and I saw an AWESOME trailer:

http://www.apple.com/trailers/focus_features/9/

Random tangents

I spent the last week printing my guts out. Seriously. Over 4100 cardstock copies that had to be printed on one side and then sent through again to print on the other. I wanted to scream. It only took me six days.

Now I get to play catch up with my million other projects it took me away from. It's difficult to get anything done when you can only concentrate in bursts of seven minutes. Then you have to jump out of your chair, run to the printer, and fill the stack bypass with another stack of 50 sheets for it to slooooooooooooooooooooooowly spit out.

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I'm itching to go roller skating. My ankle is finally to the point where I don't think it would be a problem. I was also planning to join Leah for martial arts goodness this January, but my wrist is still giving me problems. I don't think I could do any push-ups or blocks right now, so what's the point of starting? My doc says it'll likely hurt for a couple more months. Yay. So maybe this spring I'll give it a try. In the meantime, I'll work on getting back into shape a bit. I haven't been able to do anything since the accident in early November.


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I've recently read a number of opinions of people who bitch about other people who blog. Mainly, they don't want to read our boring shit, so we shouldn't write it. My response:

Dear stuck-up cockfaces,

Nobody cares what you think. You believe you are so much better than everyone else for NOT jumping on the blog train, but many of us use it as a means to keep up with our friends and family. If you don't like it, turn off your intertubes and go die in a fire. No one is putting a gun to your head and forcing you to read this blog, or any other blog, you arrogant ass-eating jerk. I don't want you here. Go away.

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As further proof of my randomness:
Angel Dances

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And on another note. I've been thinking a lot about the past, which I hate. Nostalgia is generally unpleasant and a waste of time, as far as I'm concerned. But one of my coworkers found out her husband has advanced, aggressive, fast-growing lung cancer. Without chemo, they give him two months, tops. On the upside, this type of cancer responds well to chemo, so he could be successfully treated. I guess we'll see. I feel for her.

It's made me think of the time HWCBN's mom told him she had tumors in her urinary tract. He was a wreck. I had no comprehension of what he was going through, and at one point he YELLED at me, "I'm about to lose my last parent, and you just don't GET IT." No, I didn't get it. How could I possibly get it?

But what HE didn't get is that she didn't have tumors at all. She told me some time later that she really had an ectopic pregnancy by her then-boyfriend. Why that crazy bitch thought telling HWCBN that she had cancer, AGAIN, was going to be less stressful to him than saying, "Ooops, I thought I was menopausal and couldn't get pregnant but was wrong," is beyond me. She put him through absolute hell, and she had no idea how deeply he suffered worrying about it…for months. And in turn, I suffered for it.

She made me swear not to tell him, and I never did…along with various other things of that nature she made me swear to never tell him. I have a load of secrets that would blow his mind, including that his crazy aunt that he hated is really his grandma. Awesome.

Why am I sharing these charming examples of excellent parenting now? Well, I'm tired of carrying it around. I feel burdened by it, even 10 years later, and I'm sick of it. I'm sick of that period of my life having any control over my life now. So here I am, vomiting it out for the rest of you. Enjoy!

Watchmen: Fox and WB settle, finally

Warners, Fox settle over 'Watchmen'
Under the agreement, Fox will not be co-distributor

By Matthew Belloni and Borys Kit

Jan 15, 2009, 08:25 PM ET

"Watchmen" Geeks can rejoice.

Warner Bros. and Fox have resolved their dispute over "Watchmen," with the studios scheduled to present a settlement to Judge Gary Feess this morning and request that the case be dismissed.

Terms of the agreement were not disclosed, but the deal is said to involve a sizable cash payment to Fox and a percentage of the film's boxoffice grosses; Fox will not be a co-distributor on the film, nor will it co-own the "Watchmen" property, but it will share in revenue derived from it. The studios released a joint statement last night.

"Warner Bros. acknowledges that Fox acted in good faith in bringing its claims, which were asserted prior to the start of principal photography," the statement read. "Fox acknowledges that Warner Bros. acted in good faith defending against those claims."

Fox sued Warners in February, claiming copyright infringement based on agreements the studio had with producer Larry Gordon. Feess ruled Dec. 24 that Gordon did not secure proper rights to "Watchmen" from Fox before shopping the project and setting it up at Warners.

Feess' decision prompted settlement talks to heat up because Warners faced the prospect of an injunction stopping its March 6 release of the $130 million comic book adaptation.

Gordon is not a party to the case, but Warners is said to be after the producer and his attorneys to reimburse the studio for costs of the settlement. During the litigation, Gordon's then-attorney admitted that he negotiated the producer's 1994 separation from Fox without knowing about a 1991 agreement on which Fox based its lawsuit.

The showdown between studios became particularly nasty during recent weeks, with Gordon and the film's other producer, Lloyd Levin, lashing out at Fox for making a claim on the film.

But with the dispute settled, the statement took a positive tone: "Warner Bros. and Fox, like all 'Watchmen' fans, look forward with great anticipation to this film's March 6 release in theaters."

Exciting Iron Man 2 news...

Rockwell Talks Iron Man 2
Choke actor on bringing down the Hammer on Tony Stark.
by Jim Vejvoda

January 15, 2009 - Actor Sam Rockwell (Choke, Charlie's Angels) has opened up about playing the villainous Justin Hammer in Iron Man 2.

Rockwell described his character to MTV as "a rival" of Tony Stark's (played once again by Robert Downey Jr.). "He takes over all the weapons stuff after Tony's left." You will recall that Stark forsaked weapons manufacturing after returning from captivity in Afghanistan, a redemptive act that sparked the wrath of his shady partner Obadiah Stane, a.k.a. Iron Monger.

Rockwell added, "I don't know if (Hammer) takes over Stark Industries. ... I'm not really sure yet. He's a money dude. That's about all I can say."

The actor also confirmed that director Jon Favreau had once discussed the possibility of him playing Stark before Downey was cast. His girlfriend, Leslie Bibb, appeared in Iron Man as the reporter that Stark beds after an interview.

Rockwell said that he expects to begin filming his scenes by mid-April, and that he's excited to act opposite Mickey Rourke, who will play the sequel's other villain.

Watchmen Settlement Looms....

Watchmen Settlement Looms


Studios say talks have been productive

by Jim Vejvoda

January9, 2009 - Warner Bros. and 20th Century Fox are reportedly making progress on talks to settle their legal feud over the rights to Watchmen.

According to both Associated Press and Variety, lawyers for the warring studios have asked U.S. District Judge Gary Allen Feess to delay a hearing that was to be held today so that they can continue settlement talks through the weekend. The judge agreed to delay the hearing until Monday, and also informed the studios that the case remains scheduled to go to trial January 20.

Today's hearing was to have yielded Judge Feess' ruling on whether he'd grant Fox's request to block Warners' March 6th release date for Watchmen.

Meanwhile, Fox has fired back at Watchmen producer Lloyd Levin, who issued an open letter yesterday slamming the studio's lawsuit. In a statement picked up by Deadline Hollywood Daily, Fox responded, "We appreciate Mr. Levin's passion for this project, but he has neglected basic facts and legal rulings. First, Fox notified Warner Bros of our rights in this project months before production on the film began -- they chose to ignore our rights on this occasion and several times after that and proceeded at their own risk; 2) only after having our rights in the film deliberately ignored by Warner Bros. did we take the action of filing litigation in order to have those rights recognized; and 3) on Judge Feess' Christmas Eve order, he specifically ruled that WB had been timely notified and that Fox, in fact, had the rights we asserted. There is no question of who is right and who is wrong. That has been decided through the litigation that we had hoped to avoid, and we refer interested parties to the court's ruling to confirm these statements."

Levin's producing partner on Watchmen, Lawrence Gordon, has been cited by Judge Feess as the instigator of all the film's legal troubles after Feess said that Gordon, who isn't a defendant in the case, failed to adequately answer questions about the film rights' chain of ownership during depositions. Now Gordon has sent a letter to the judge, details of which can be found at The Hollywood Reporter.

Well, that didn't take long...

Obama's rhetoric meets reality

(CNN) -- In style and substance, Barack Obama is looking like he could be a different president than the candidate voters got to know during the campaign.

Barack Obama has taken on a more somber tone as he prepares to take office.

His message of changing the country has been replaced by one of repairing the country as he inherits crises that demand immediate action.

"I want to be realistic here," Obama said in an interview that aired Sunday on ABC's "This Week." "Not everything that we talked about during the campaign are we going to be able to do on the pace that we had hoped."

During the campaign, Obama stressed fixing the economy as one of his top priorities, but his recent language has taken on an urgent tone.

Obama painted a dire picture of the economy last week, warning that if Congress does not take "dramatic action" on his economic aid package as soon as possible, the nation would face devastating long-term consequences.

"For every day we wait or point fingers or drag our feet, more Americans will lose their jobs. More families will lose their savings. More dreams will be deferred and denied. And our nation will sink deeper into a crisis that, at some point, we may not be able to reverse," he said.

It's a far cry from what voters heard from Obama the Democratic candidate, who inspired roaring crowds of thousands by telling them, "This is our moment. This is our time."

But with the economy in a recession and people afraid for their financial future, Obama's soaring campaign rhetoric has given way to grim reality.

And as if the economic crisis weren't enough, Obama has an international crisis awaiting him as well. The president-elect said Sunday that the suffering on both sides of Gaza's borders has led him to ramp up his commitment to working for a peace deal in the Middle East.

These urgent items on Obama's agenda are forcing his team to reconsider some campaign pledges.

Just as soon as he went from presidential hopeful to president-elect, Obama warned the nation of tough times ahead and lowered expectations that he would be the one to solve it all. VideoWatch more on the expectations for Obama »

"We know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime -- two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century," he said on the night of his election victory.

"The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even in one term. But, America, I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there," he said.

He told voters that change couldn't happen without them, "without a new spirit of service, a new spirit of sacrifice." He reiterated that same message this weekend, explaining what it's going to take to reform the government.

"Everybody is going to have to give. Everybody is going to have to have some skin in the game," Obama told ABC.

Some of the pledges Obama might have to rethink include his proposal to give some homeowners a 10 percent tax credit, an idea that has little support in Congress.

During the campaign, Obama also told voters, "I don't believe in running up debt for the next generation."

But just last week, he acknowledged that the cost of the economic recovery plan he is pushing would be "considerable" and would "certainly add to the budget deficit in the short term."

Obama has not put a price tag on his stimulus package, but observers have estimated it would cost in the neighborhood of $800 billion.

Obama also has proposed repealing the Bush tax cuts on the wealthy, but now it's more likely that the president-elect will delay any tax increases on the wealthy until 2011, when the tax cuts expire.

Some of the maneuvering is aimed at attracting Republican support for the incoming president's recovery plan, but that could set up an early battle in the now heavily Democratic Congress.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, for example, is adamant about seeing those tax cuts repealed.

Obama says everyone will have to sacrifice, and that includes Congress, too.

Some political observers say the economic crisis that Obama is inheriting is raising the stakes to get a move on his recovery plan -- even if Congress isn't 100 percent behind it.

"This strengthens Barack Obama's hand with the Congress and with the public. It's so urgent, that it's going to be very, very hard, I think, for people who don't like parts of this package to vote against it," said David Gergen, CNN's senior political analyst.

And while the public is well aware of the economic battle ahead, Republican strategist and CNN contributor Ed Rollins said Obama has little time to wait.

"You've got to have results," Rollins said, "He doesn't have four years to get it done. He has two years. If there's not improvements dramatically in two years, you have a midterm election, and certainly by the second part of this first term, this economy better be moving."

Super cool...

Robotic suit helps paralyzed walk again

Complete with a video

A new Doctor? Say it ain't so! --sob sob--

Meet the new Doctor

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I joined Twitter today because it sounds like stupid mindless fun.

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