Back from STAR TREK

And I'm already working on a full review. But that's not what this blog post is about...

The premiere of the movie tonight turned out to be a fitting occasion for me to take my first steps into the larger world of mobile telecommunications. So this evening, before and after the movie, I was doing my first real Twitter-ing from "out in the field", along with status updates to my Facebook page. Including some photos that I took with the built-in camera on my new phone. I'll admit that I have been a bit intimidated by all the procedure that I had thought was needed to do stuff like this... but it turned out to be as easy as anything! I'll likely be doing lots more of this remote Twittering/blogging in the future.

Anyhoo, while I work on the review, click on my Twitter feed for a taste of the craziness that happened during tonight's premiere of Star Trek!

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Government STEALING private land for United 93 memorial

This blog commented about the issue a little over four months ago: how some of the families of passengers aboard United Airlines Flight 93 were petitioning the federal government (and then-President George W. Bush in particular) to seize private property by eminent domain so as to have a memorial to those who died in the 9/11 attack.

Well, those families are getting what they wanted: the federal government is about to CONDEMN land from seven owners so as to build a 2,200 acre "memorial site", and it's planning to rush the proceedings through so that the thing can be ready in time for the tenth anniversary of the hijackings.

I'll probably draw some flack for asking this aloud, but: what the HELL did those innocent people who died on United 93 actually DIE for, if the American government is now STEALING private property?

This is an act of brutal socialism: using force of government to take from those who own a thing, so as to benefit what will number a relatively few.

And I'll go ahead and say this too: this is exactly the kind of thing that the very same Islamic extremists who launched the 9/11 attacks have been doing for centuries to the shrines of other religions: declaring them to be "Islamic holy sites" and denying access to them by those of other faiths. If you own land, all the United States government now has to do is declare it a "historic place" and it can now take it from you.

I said a few months ago: the appropriate use of the land is to let the owners do with it as they see fit. That if "they" seriously "hate us for our freedoms" then let's insult them and show our resolve by displaying 2,200 acres of capitalism at work.

(And as I also said before, isn't 2,200 acres way too much for a memorial anyway?)

There is a right way to honor the lives of those who died on United 93. This is not the way to do that. In fact, what the government is doing in their name is shameful and disgusting. And I hope and pray to God that the rightful owners of the land fight this all the way.

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Duke Nukem... Never! 3D Realms no more

Duke Nukem Forever is now officially deader than Elvis. 3D Realms has shut down for good and Take-Two - which had the publishing rights to the game - has announced it will not be funding any more development of the project.

So after more than twelve years of work on this one video game, it now looks as though there will be absolutely nothing to show for the effort or the money. And what's more, Duke Nukem Forever is now poised to become an even more legendary fiasco than Daikatana ever was (and that's sayin' something). Expect an onslaught of vaporware jokes about this in the coming days.

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Classic STAR TREK episodes on YouTube

Tonight at 7 p.m. will herald the wide release of J.J. Abrams' wildly-anticipated Star Trek movie. But while we're ticking down the hours, how 'bout revisiting the show that started it all: YouTube is hosting most of the episodes of the original Star Trek series.

Among the classic episodes: "Amok Time" (Spock must return to Vulcan to satisfy his sexual urges or die trying), "Mirror, Mirror" (a transporter mishap sends Kirk and company to a twisted parallel world), "A Piece of the Action" (welcome to Sigma Iotia II: a planet inspired by Chicago gangsters!), "Space Seed" (Kirk's first encounter with a certain 20th century warlord named Khan Noonien Singh), the always-hilarious "The Naked Time" (one of my personal favorites), "The Trouble with Tribbles" (MUST-viewing even if you're not a Star Trek fan) and "The City on the Edge of Forever", considered by many to be the finest single Star Trek story ever.

Too bad YouTube doesn't currently have "Balance of Terror", 'cuz that would have been the perfect thing to watch going into the Star Trek movie, what with it being our introduction to the Romulans. But anyhoo, open comm channels, set phasers to "fun" and take in some vintage Star Trek!

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Les Misérables: Customers angry after some KFCs can't honor Oprah coupons

I first heard about this on the Twitter feeds earlier this evening and wondered then what this was about. Now we know...

Oprah Winfrey's website ran a promotion with KFC, offering coupons for 24 hours. The coupons were worth two pieces of grilled chicken, two individual side items and a biscuit.

Except several KFCs were reportedly unable to honor the coupons. Some locations said they had run out of chicken and others, for one reason or another, flat-out refused to take the coupons altogether.

Word has reached this blogger of "rioting" (whatever that means: I've seen riots of various degrees in my time) in at least two KFCs, and one restaurant where angry patrons staged a "sit-in" and demanded their chicken.

Parse all of this as you will...

(Hey, I've been wanting to use that Oprah-zilla graphic for a loooong time. Can you blame a guy for jumping on the occasion? :-)

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Reaction to tonight's LOST: "Follow the Leader"

Last year's penultimate episode jaw-dropping final line of dialogue: "He wants us to move the Island."

This year's penultimate episode jaw-dropping final line of dialogue: "So I can kill him."

(As if what happened in the 59 minutes preceding it weren't awesome enough.)

If you haven't gotten into Lost yet, you've still got 8 months to buy the DVDs or watch 'em streaming online or do whatever the heck you can to catch up.

Because folks: television like this, I have to believe, will be a LONG time before it comes again... if it comes at all.

The rumor the past few weeks was that "Follow the Leader" would be a Richard-centric episode. Instead we got one marginally focused on Locke, now a man solidly with purpose. Along with a lot of action shifting wildly between 1977 and 2008.

And between Jack's trying to detonate the Jughead and Locke's modern-day machinations, past and present are headed toward a massive collision... that will rock the future?

High points of tonight's episode: Dr. Chang confronting Hurley and friends about the future. Sawyer and Juliet being interrogated in the security station (Phil is so dead after what he did to Jules). A few intriguing morsels about Richard (was the ship in a bottle he's building meant to be a clue?). Miles' continuing acceptance of his father now that he's getting to see firsthand what really went down. Sawyer's half-serious plot to win financially once he makes his way to the outside world of 1977. And of course, Locke deciding to call Jacob's bluff.

Next week: the two-hour Season 5 finale, "The Incident". One way or another, in one year or another, the Island is gonna go straight to hell.

(Will it end with a mushroom cloud? Find out in seven days!)

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Massive GEARS OF WAR 2 DLC retail pack coming in July (including new single-player content!)

Arriving in retail stores on July 28th is the Gears of War 2 All Fronts Collection: a compilation of all the multiplayer maps that have been released so far along with a new set called "Dark Corners". It'll sell for $20.

What's really got me stoked about this however is that the All Fronts Collection will include "Road to Ruin", a new campaign chapter that can be played solo or co-op.

Hey, Epic Games and Microsoft: a lot of us out here are very excited to hear this, and few things would make us happier than to have some more one-player friendly content for Gears of War 2 headed our way. Not dissin' the multiplayer aspect at all, but the Gears of War universe is a very rich one and we would love to explore more of it at our own pace, instead of having to "duck and cover and fire" all the time :-)

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