To The Metal

When you’re driving, and come up on a traffic stop – do you speed up and try to go around the officer while he’s walking to or from his car? If you come up on a DWI checkpoint, do you speed up and try to go around the officers? If you come up on an inspection/registration checkpoint, do you speed up and try to go around the officer?

Probably not, if you want to keep going.

I’ve gotten some negative feedback, heavily bent against the police (big surprise). I still hold my position, if for ANY reason a police officer walks out in front of you AS OBVIOUSLY AS THE OFFICER IN THE VIDEO DID… You STOP. Could he have put his hand out? Sure. Would it have made a difference? I doubt it. Then again, a video of a cyclist coming to a complete stop and THEN getting thrown by a police officer would be a much more convincing police brutality claim IMHO.

The cyclist made a decision in the 3 seconds between when the officer saw him and began moving to intercept – to either stop or evade. He tried to evade. He tried to lean at the cop and bump the cop out of the way while accelerating. Then at the moment when it was either the cop taking the hit from the cyclist – or defending himself – the cop forced the cyclist to the ground.

I wouldn’t do that in my car let alone on a 15lb bicycle, the video is not as clear cut as its being made out against the police in the media – there IS much room for interpretation here, but as is the case with just about every incident involving a police officer – the cop is the bad guy, guilty until proven innocent.

This morning I was watching the WB11 morning news at 8am when the male anchor appended the PBA’s comments on the incident with a loud and childish “WHATEVER.” Everyone hates the cops until they’re needed. Not to say there aren’t some douchebag cops out there – but in a case like this when there are obvious factors in that video that everyone seems to be purposely ignoring – I’ll gladly give the uniform the benefit of the doubt.

Last night I caught the YouTube video (on Fox 5 news) showing a bicyclist ramming into a NYPD officer and subsequently getting tossed like a rag doll.  At least that is how I saw it.  Generally, if I’m on my bike I’m looking straight ahead.  if I see a Police officer (or any other pedestrian at that) walking into my immediate path I IMMEDIATELY SLOW AND IF NECESSARY – STOP.

How stupid is this guy?  How this is seen as the cop walking up to and subsequently (without reason) throwing this guy simply illustrates a complete lack of understanding as to the scene!

Two cops in the middle of the road, perhaps there to direct traffic.  Now for whatever reason – the cop on the left looks DIRECTLY AT A SINGLE ONCOMING CYCLIST and begins to walk into his path at 22 seconds.  The cyclist, instead of slowing or stopping, PEDALS FASTER to try and get around the cop at 24 seconds, going as far as leaning his torso at the cop to try and hit him.  At 25 seconds, the cop checks the guy to the ground.

My friend, you’re a moron, and a disgrace to the cycling community.

Not to mention if you do a search on YouTube – it would appear that either there is a nationwide pandemic of police brutality on cyclists – or simply that this “Critical Mass” event attracts all riders, including anti-authority jackasses who obviously have no respect for law enforcement.

I hope this cop is fully reinstated as soon as possible, and this cyclist is buried by this video which obviously shows that the RIDER is at fault.  (Anyone forget the law that pedestrians ALWAYS have right of way?).

What A Dick.

Only mistake the Officer made IMHO is not putting his hand out in a ‘STOP’ motion. Still, I wouldn’t have done what the kid did, must be how I was raised. Not to mention – the way the camera panned just in time, makes me think the entire thing was staged. The kid tried a bump and run on the cop and lost.

You know, for all the talk these fuckhead politicians spout about not knowing what WILL lower the price of oil and gasoline – they seem to be pretty damned smart when it comes to knowing what WONT.

Simple fact is that the President SAID he was lifting the ban on offshore drilling, and the price of oil dropped over $20 and the cost at the pump is back below $4 on average.  If simply TALKING about increasing domestic production knocks $.50 off a gallon of gas, then I’d have to wager actually taking that sweet sweet oil out of the ground will probably DROP IT FURTHER.

Throw in a few new nuclear plants to offset all the coal/oil plants…

A few new refineries to turn American oil into American gasoline…

Nah…  That’ll never work.

Fuckheads.  They say “no, its the fact that Americans are driving less which is affecting the price of fuel.”  SO what, all of a sudden those evil oil companies are following the laws of supply and demand?  Can’t have it both ways folks.  Could it contribute?  Absolutely.  MOst importantly though, foreign sources of oil, speculators, they’re all watching to see if America will finally shut up, put up, and support themselves.

Watch the price continue to drop as the tide changes in our favor despite the gridlock and bullshit caused by our friendly neighborhood limousine riding, private jet flying democrats.  At this point I don’t care who does it, but isn’t it about time we stop arguing over what WONT cut the price and actually DO something about it?

Just saw the first preview for W.

I guess W means Weak?

Seriously, I mean I know the Lefty kooks can’t stand the guy – and Oliver Stone is a whiz when it comes to historical revision, but seriously…  Is he just afraid that 35 years from now someone might actually release a movie about W that isn’t well…  dumb?

A scrapper, a drunk, and a fuckup – and eventually, President.  That’s the preview in its entirety and most likely (with the addition of plotlines which prove every conspiracy theory you’ve heard correct) the entire movie.

The only thing Stone’s W preview missed was Leslie Nielsen playing Dick Cheney.

Seriously – move on!

Was listening to my Sirius radio today when a new Sevendust track titled “The Past” came up.  I’m kinda paying attention to it, then I hear what sounds like Chris Daughtry… but it’s Sevendust.

So I send a message to my friend, and she gets a good laugh – then confirms that it is Daughtry.

Finally I do a quick search online, and catch a news report via YouTube.

Pretty good song, it’s on the Album “Chapter VII: Hope and Sorrow” which has been out since April.  Time to pay a visit to iTunes!

I think if I hear one more person – refer to Obama’s Iraq visit as a ‘Tour of Duty’ I believe I am going to lose my lunch.

Brave men and women fight and DIE during a “tour of duty.”  They don’t ride around in air conditioned vehicles, miles away from danger, then get to return to their cushy home AT WILL.

As usual, Fox News isn’t sensationalizing the story.  Damned right wing media.  When will they fall in line?

Got the intake manifold bolted down just in time to realize I forgot the gasket for the distributor.

So tomorrow I’ll buy a new gasket kit, clean it all up, and do it again.

HOORAH.

I love my XBox 360.  I’ve had it since maybe… a year or two afte rit launched.

I’ve had a couple of friends get the RROD – was hoping it’d miss me, that i’d luck out.  It had been acting up for a while, but the only way to actually get Microsoft to fix it FOR FREE is to have the RROD.

Maybe one day – Microsoft will build something that doesn’t fail neatly into a 4 letter acronym.

Was pretty cool to see Keith Szarabajka playing one of the cops.  He was one of the antiheroes from the Angel TV series (I’ve seen him in other shows as well) but its always good to see one of the actors from a Joss Whedon show on the big screen.

It’s been some time since my jaw dropped at the theater – last night, watching “The Dark Knight.”  I don’t think my jaw un-dropped the other time.  It’s one thing to have a ton of hype for a big movie, it’s another thing for it to exceed the hype – this film absolutely did.

For starters – the obvious question, how did Heath Ledger do?  Best performance of his career.  Where Nicholson was predictably crazy, Ledger was absolutely unpredictably INSANE.  Not discounting the roles of the two actors – but since it has been such a topic of contention I believe they both have their place in the franchise – and that they both were a perfect fit for the Batman they faced.  In just about each scene, it was more difficult to accept that it was Ledger on the screen.  He’d get the Oscar whether or not he died, it was groundbreaking.

Bale?  I’m not quite sure there’s any nice way to say it – but I’ve seen his Batman.  There wasn’t much more added to his character’s depth IMHO.  His reactions were predictable, and the foreshadowing throughout the film really didn’t leave much to the imagination.  I can appreciate the sacrifices the character made in the propagation of the plot – but that raspy voice made me cough more than once and became more of a distraction with each scene.  Still a solid performance, and perhaps there really doesn’t need to be any improvement on what he has accomplished – but in a film where the new characters/actors provided such stellar performances, Bale’s Batman kind of hung out in the background.

Maggie Gyllenhall – an actress I genuinely can’t stand, provided gobs of depth to the character of Rachael Daws.  I didn’t like Katie Holmes either, but one thing became abundantly clear between the two films – Gyllenhall made the role her own and really fit into it convincingly.  Holmes?  She’s just a Scientologist pumping mid-life crisis machine…  I’m glad she didn’t come back.

The descent of Harvey Dent into Two Face was slow, dramatic, and tragic.  Aaron Eckhart, like the other roles cast – was completely convincing as both the ruthless DA and the walking nervous breakdown that was Two Face.

Caine, Oldman, Freeman, all provided stellar support to the storyline and did their roles absolute justice.  I’d have to say that all things considered – on acting alone this was the perfect Batman film, sorry Mr.Burton.

CG was well hidden, special effects had the feeling of old-school Hollywood (thankfully no rolling logs were visible during the many car flips), over-all the feel of the film has a grit to it that it supports the masterpiece that is The Dark Knight without being tacky.

The “Bat Pod” was an interesting twist which makes the Dodge Tomahawk look reasonable.  I wish they could have done something to keep the machine guns on the front from shaking so violently during the high-speed scenes – but if you can overlook that – it does justice to the Tumbler.

Probably going to see this again once the crowds die down sometime next year.

Previews of note – Death Race, Terminator 4.