Susan Boyle... the sensation, the money-maker

If you have spent any time online in the last month or two, you have probably heard of Susan Boyle. She became an overnight sensation after appearing on Britain's Got Talent with her stirring rendition of I Dream the Dream from Les Miserables. I, like almost everyone else who saw and/or heard her, instantly was moved by how well she could sing, despite looking like she would be a total failure. She is almost 50, overweight, and certainly is not a pretty sight to behold, yet instantly she became an international star when her voice shocked the world.

I know that while this was happening, the execs for Britain's Got Talent, after getting over the initial shock, were surely grinning their faces off at their good fortune. Susan Boyle has gotten their show much more publicity than it could have gotten elsewhere, and the ratings have done extremely well as a result.

This is why I have a problem with Susan Boyle. She is a good singer, but were she 25 and skinny and had she a perfect face, no one outside of the normal viewing audience would have a clue who she is. The only reason anyone knows is because the show is taking advantage of her middle age and less-than-average looks and capitalizing on the stark difference between her looks and her voice. Susan Boyle has a great voice, and I am very happy for her for finding this opportunity, but because of the shameless way the show is using her, I find myself rooting for her competition. I know, she probably has little or nothing to do with how she is being used, and I know they are just seizing a great capitalist venture, but all the same, the rebel in me is moving me on principle alone to go against the flow on this one.

The News Anchor got bored again...

With all the efforts of our disaster-happy media to make us all die young with stress, I though I should set a few things straight about recent events.

FACT: North Korea has tested another nuke underground.

FICTION: They might ever actually consider using it on South Korea.

I have really lost any faith in today's media... I mean, really? What moron would nuke an area only 20 miles away, when the fallout is over 100 miles? The North Koreans want South Korea, not the radioactive remains of it.


FACT: North Korea has just renounced the Armistice Treaty

FICTION: That actually means anything.

Again, I present a case of the media being so hungry for a story that they make one from almost nothing. North Korea is ALWAYS making stupid threats to try to get our attention. Just think of them as a toddler starved for attention. They will keep trying to do little things that aren't serious but still get them in trouble anyways. I challenge the media to go find family members of the infamous Axe Murder incident and ask them if they think North Korea has abided by the treaty all these years. The simple truth of the matter is they don't abide by the treaty-- rather they don't attack anyone because they know they would be blown off the face of the earth if they tried because no one (even China and Russia) likes them anymore.


FACT: The U.S. and South Korean militaries have raised the alert status.

FICTION: The troops are at a heightened state of alert.

I was reading the news, and apparently I am at a big state of alert, watching North Korea intently. Also, apparently the dozens of ROK soldiers I saw last night downtown are also really alert. Hogwash. A classic example of the media twisting the truth to sound ominous. Yes, the militaries are watching more closely, but it is not like we are on a lockdown or anything.


Bottom line is unless there is an actual land invasion, any time the media starts talking about Korea, always take the level of seriousness down a couple levels at least. This goes for anything... recently when a former Korean President committed suicide, many Koreans found out from the news that they were apparently in a huge state of shock and mourning.... because if the news finds 10 people doing something, they will assume the 100 people around them are also doing it as well.

Blackhawk

Following my ride in a Chinook Helicopter a year and a half ago, there have been numerous times during which I was supposed to finally get to ride in a Blackhawk, but each time weather or other circumstances kept me from my ride. Finally, on Wednesday, the chance arrived.

Filling in for a Horn player on leave, I have been an acting member of the Brass Quintet for a couple of weeks. The week prior we were told the rumor by the Operations NCO that aerial transport was in the works for a mission at Camp Humphreys, which would turn a 2.5 hour bus ride into a 45 minute ride in a Blackhawk, and a few days after we heard the rumor, it was confirmed.

To really get a feel for the excitement I had, you have to understand the difference between a Chinook and a Blackhawk. Riding in the Chinook was like riding in a flying school bus with some pretty serious horsepower. It was cool to fly, but apart from the view, it was very non-lavish. While the Chinook was a school bus, the Blackhawk was a Porsche. In the noisy Chinook we were reduced to hand signals, and we had a view only because the crew chief lowered the back door during the flight. In the Blackhawk, we had windows next to our seats, headsets with microphones, and since we had some interaction with the pilots and the crew chief before take-off, it almost even felt like our own private limousine service.

In the morning, we did have the disappointment of a bus-ride due to a haze in the air keeping the bird out of the air because of visibility, but the ride home was cleared as the early-morning haze cleared. On the way home we passed over a couple of Army camps, and the view over Seoul was amazing. I also noticed Korean burial mounds all over the place.

With my fun afternoon on Wednesday, I can now add "flew over Seoul in a Blackhawk Helicopter" to my "cool" list alongside "threw a live grenade" and "performed live music to a crowd of over 10,000." I would say my time in the Army has had some really fun moments...

More pictures can be found in the "Army Stuff" folder in my Photobucket account (link located to the right on this blog).

To Boldly Go....

WARNING: The entry below contains spoilers. If you have not yet seen Star Trek, read no further than the first paragraph.

This evening I went to see Star Trek with Deanna and Sue. Have already seen some of the previews, my hopes were high. I had read from one friend that it was THE Star Trek movie to see, and seeing as how it was directed by Lost's Executive Producer J.J. Abrams, what could go wrong? Not much, apparently. The movie was fantastic, though in my opinion, not perfect. The best way I can describe it is an almost flawless masterpiece. The acting, directing, casting, camera work, special effects, etc were all excellent... I could go on and on. Even the plot and the script was pretty good, especially the rich dialogue. It was interesting enough to engage the non-"trekkie" audience, while full of references that caused the hard-core trekkies, and even the casual fans on occasion, to laugh out loud, or at least let a very non-vulcan grin sneak into our faces.

SPOILERS AHEAD... Do not read unless you have seen the movie or don't intend to!!!




The only beef I have with the movie was with the plot and concerned my own expectations. Halfway through the movie we discover that the current timeline is actually an alternate dimension-- time as he know it has been altered to reflect a universe where Kirk's father is dead and Kirk entered the Academy as a much more rebellious cadet than before, as if that was even possible. (I should admit that I should have caught on to the changed timeline at the beginning when Kirk's future references to his father's influence no longer making sense as his father died before our eyes...) While this is not a bad thing in its own, I was eagerly anticipating the meeting of James T. Kirk with Mr. Spock and seeing how the two became the friends that they were. I wanted to see the beginnings of Star Trek. Because it was an alternate timeline, I was dissappointed in this one aspect of the plot, but, as I stated earlier, the extremely well-made movie made up for the setback. Everything from the casting to the cameras was done in perfect taste and was a fitting tribute to the franchise.

One last knee update

I know I've held you all on the seat of your chairs (ok, so there aren't that many of you, and you probably did not stay on the same chair for several weeks) but I finally have an update regarding my recent knee questions. Actually I've had the update for a week, but a combination of business, laziness, and forgetfulness kept me from posting.

There is some good news, and there is some bad news. The good news is that I do not have to get any further surgeries. None of the removed tissue has grown back, and there is nothing out of the ordinary except for more scar tissue than usual-- which I could have told you anyways since they cut to the point where bending the knee pretty much tried to open the wound for a few weeks. The bad news is that I need to do some more physical therapy (completely on my own with no follow-up) and that the nerve damage likely will never entirely heal. It has improved a lot in the last few months, but not entirely. I am still tender when I am on all fours, but it is bearable now.