Hate Crimes legislation approved by Congress

It now goes to President Obama, who has promised to sign it.

According to HRC, the largest GLBT organization in the US, this was the "first major piece of civil rights legislation for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people."

From CNN:

The Senate passed groundbreaking legislation Thursday that would make it a federal crime to assault an individual because of his or her sexual orientation or gender identity.

The bill is named for Matthew Shepard, a gay teenager who was beaten to death in 1998.

The expanded federal hate crimes law now goes to President Obama's desk. Obama has pledged to sign the measure, which was added to a $680 billion defense authorization bill.

President George W. Bush had threatened to veto a similar measure.

The bill is named for Matthew Shepard, a gay Wyoming teenager who died after being kidnapped and severely beaten in October 1998, and James Byrd Jr., an African-American man dragged to death in Texas the same year.

"Knowing that the president will sign it, unlike his predecessor, has made all the hard work this year to pass it worthwhile," said Judy Shepard, board president of the Matthew Shepard Foundation named for her son. "Hate crimes continue to affect far too many Americans who are simply trying to live their lives honestly, and they need to know that their government will protect them from violence, and provide appropriate justice for victims and their families."

Finally some progress on our behalf at the federal level.

The Choice, by Nicholas Sparks

Ray bought me this book because he knows I really liked the other two books by Sparks I read (The Wedding and At First Sight).

This one is good, but not excellent. It's a nice love story and the characters are very cute and relatable, but the vast majority of the book takes place in just over one weekend, and I felt like what happened (and it's a lot) was a bit rushed and a little too far-fetched.

At any rate, it is a good read and if you like Sparks you won't be disappointed.

The core question of the book, How far should you go in the name of love, is certainly something that stays with you.

Grade: 7

National Equality March on Washington

The whole family attended the National Equality March on Washington last October 11^th and it was a great experience.

Here's a beautiful video montage of the several speeches that were given:

Anastasia

I knew the story of the Russian princess Anastasia from the 1956 live action version with Ingrid Bergman and Yul Brinner, but this animated adaptation works well for a young audience.

After Rasputin successfully incites a revolt against the Russian Czar, the entire royal family is murdered, except for the Queen Mother, who escapes to Paris, France, and Anastasia, who is separated from her grandmother and remains in Russia.

The movie tells the story of how Anastasia, who has lost all memory of that fateful night along with her past, will finally reunite with her grandmother and find love in the process.

A good movie for the whole family.

Grade: 7

Two Little Girls in Blue, by Mary Higgins Clark

The first book I ever read by Higgins Clark, Two Little Girls in Blue has a good premise and great execution. It's a thriller that will keep you hooked to the story of these two little girls from beginning to end.

The characters are all well developed and a special mention goes to the reader, Jan Maxwell, who does a great job of giving each character its own voice and personality, helping you to easily keep track of who is doing what and when.

A very good read.

Grade: 8

Lakeview Terrace

An interesting take on the racism experienced by an interracial couple at the hands of a black man rather than the usual white bigot.

The movie doesn't really break any ground and is not particularly memorable, but it does make you wonder what one could do to defend himself against an obnoxious, violent, mentally unstable neighbor, especially when the guy happens to be a cop, which means that he's presumed to be the good guy.

Samuel L. Jackson is great as usual as the bad guy, and the gorgeously handsome Patrick Wilson holds his own against him. Kerry Washington as Wilson's wife is good as well, but somehow ends up playing more of a supporting role in spite of being on screen almost as much as Wilson himself.

Overall a decent movie that will keep you on edge for a couple hours.

Grade: 7

Dude, Where's My Country?, by Michael Moore

This book refers to the dreadful period following the fateful terrorist attacks of 9/11 in the US, so it's a little old, but it's still totally relevant, given that Bush was in office just 10 months ago.

Moore talks about the damage Bush was able to do to the country he loves in the name of national security, all the while helping his rich friends and even our alleged enemies in the Middle East.

This book is guaranteed to make your blood boil with its revelations and considerations, but I believe to be aware is better than to be ignorant.

Don't miss it.

Grade: 8

Balto

I've always been curious about the story of Balto. I know there's a statue of him in New York City's Central Park, which always made me wonder, Why would a cartoon character receive such an honor? Perhaps there is more to this than an animated character. And apparently there is, since the movie is based on a real story.

Being an older movie, the animation is in the classic 2D format, but like I said in the past, the amount of polish doesn't matter if the story itself is good and well told, and this one is.

Balto, a dog/wolf mix, doesn't feel at home with either dogs or wolves and is shunned by everyone except for a small group of friends. The day will come, however, when Balto will rise to the occasion, face his nemesis, and gain the respect he long deserved.

The movie is good and it's perfect for family viewing.

Grade: 7

Reservation Road

Given the cast, I expected better from this movie, but right from the initial "shocker" (actually, not much of a shocker if you see it coming from a mile), I could tell that I'd be disappointed. And I was right.

The actors try their hardest, and both Joaquin Phoenix and Mark Ruffalo are pretty good. Jennifer Connelly instead is just average, as usual -- I still think it's a travesty that she has won an Oscar ...

Therefore, once again, it's the screenplay that fails to deliver. It feels like reheated, week-old leftovers and its attempt to add new angles falls flat. By the time the closing credits start rolling you feel drained by the obvious drama, but upset by a lack of originality and the inability of the writers to give us more substance.

Nothing that happens is a surprise, and we're asked to suspend our disbelief more than we should be willing to oblige.

You can safely skip this lame attempt at dramatic filmmaking.

Grade: 4

The Time Traveler's Wife

Vittorio and I picked this movie as the only available "double" feature, otherwise it probably wouldn't be in this list, in spite of the super-handsome Eric Bana (whose role requires him to completely undress several times).

The story doesn't amount to much really. There is this guy who, occasionally, time travels to the future or the past for a little while before returning to his correct time. Whenever he travels, he sheds all his clothing, which represents perhaps 80% of the motivation for watching this lukewarm product.

At some point he meets a girl and a somewhat interesting mystery mixes up with their romantic involvement. I won't say more, but obviously it has to do with the time travel ability and their meeting each other.

The acting isn't bad, but the script is too weak to sustain any real interest and a few glaring holes dampen its effectiveness.

Grade: 5

The recreation of a fake

A scientist was apparently able to create a new version of the famous Shroud of Turin by using methods available in the Middle Ages, the time in which the Shroud was created according to carbon dating performed independently by three laboratories. That would be over 1,200 years after the death of the man whose body the Shroud supposedly was wrapped around.

From Yahoo! News:

An Italian scientist says he has reproduced the Shroud of Turin, a feat that he says proves definitively that the linen some Christians revere as Jesus Christ's burial cloth is a medieval fake.

The shroud, measuring 14 feet, 4 inches by 3 feet, 7 inches bears the image, eerily reversed like a photographic negative, of a crucified man some believers say is Christ.

"We have shown that is possible to reproduce something which has the same characteristics as the Shroud," Luigi Garlaschelli, who is due to illustrate the results at a conference on the para-normal this weekend in northern Italy, said on Monday.
[...]
The Shroud of Turin shows the back and front of a bearded man with long hair, his arms crossed on his chest, while the entire cloth is marked by what appears to be rivulets of blood from wounds in the wrists, feet and side.

Carbon dating tests by laboratories in Oxford, Zurich and Tucson, Arizona in 1988 caused a sensation by dating it from between 1260 and 1390. Sceptics said it was a hoax, possibly made to attract the profitable medieval pilgrimage business.

But scientists have thus far been at a loss to explain how the image was left on the cloth.

Garlaschelli reproduced the full-sized shroud using materials and techniques that were available in the middle ages.

No doubt the critics will be loud and the faithful won't give up believing this was the cloth in which Jesus was wrapped after his death on the cross, but I still feel pretty good about the evidence presented here.