A Solar Eclipse

Seeing a total solar eclipse the way these people experienced it must be one of the most exhilarating experiences ever and something I hope I’ll be able to see during my lifetime:

A Quote By

Englishman Ben Cohen, rugby star, gay icon, and self-assured straight man, gracing the cover of the latest issue of gay magazine Compete:

“I embrace diversity more than just a gay fanbase. I think that everyone should be able to say, think and feel the way they want to as long as no one else is hurt. I don’t think we have the right to judge what is right and wrong. I am happy and content in my life and feel that everyone should have the opportunity of feeling that way and being true to themselves.”

Toy Story 3

Needless to say, Pixar has done it again.  They have created possibly the best and quite likely the most “credible” and “grown up” animated movie ever.  Toy Story 3 made me laugh and cry and care for the characters on the screen as if they were real, even though its whole premise is that they are just toys.

Additionally, with the dump scene, Pixar dared to go where few studios that make animation dare to: bringing their entire cast on the brink of utter destruction, only to be miraculously saved at the eleventh hour by the most unlikely heroes.  That scene, with the very real possibility of losing one or more of you favorite characters, must have looked terrifying to countless kids (and adults), and scaring your core audience at a family oriented movie is something unheard of.  Nowadays, Hollywood plays it very safe, preferring to make movies that satisfy as many “quadrants” as possible (men, women, young, and old), rather than risk alienating any part of an audience.

Toy Story 3 finds our favorite cast of toys worried about their future now that their beloved owner, Andy, is about to leave for college.  What will happen to them?  Will they end up forgotten in a box in the attic or – gasp!! – on the curb as trash?!  The adventures our friends are subsequently thrust into have nothing to envy of the often stale high-octane spectacles of the summer box office.

This movie is headed straight for a Best Animated Feature Oscar next year, and hopefully it will follow into Pixar’s Up’s footsteps and garner a Best Picture nomination as well.  Heck, I’d love to see it win the latter!!

Toy Story 3 is a must see for every fan of the series as well as for those who never saw any Toy Story movie, although I’d suggest they rent the first 2 either before or after seeing this one, as they are top notch as well.

No praise would do justice to the technical perfection of the animation or the deft use of the 3D gimmick, which is so seamless it never gets in the way of the story and is so “real” it doesn’t feel forced or abused.

Don’t miss it!!

Grade: 10

The joy that comes with equality

The reaction of the crowd waiting to find out how the Argentine Senate would vote on the issue of gay marriage:

VIVA ARGENTINA!!

Argentina’s Senate today narrowly passed a same-sex marriage bill that had already passed the lower House and is supported by the President:

Argentina legalized same-sex marriage Thursday, becoming the first country in Latin America to declare that gays and lesbians have all the legal rights, responsibilities and protections that marriage brings to heterosexual couples.

After a marathon debate in Argentina's senate, 33 lawmakers voted in favor, 27 against and 3 abstained in a vote that ended after 4 a.m. Since the lower house already approved it and President Cristina Fernandez is a strong supporter, it becomes law as soon as it is published in the official bulletin, which should happen within days.

[…]

The approval came despite a concerted campaign by the Roman Catholic Church and evangelical groups, which drew 60,000 people to march on Congress and urged parents in churches and schools to work against passage. Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio led the campaign, saying "children need to have the right to be raised and educated by a father and a mother."

[…]

Same-sex civil unions have been legalized in Uruguay and some states in Mexico and Brazil. Colombia's Constitutional Court granted same-sex couples inheritance rights and allowed them to add their partners to health insurance plans. Mexico City went further, legalizing gay marriage and launching tourism campaigns to encourage foreigners to come and wed.

Argentina now becomes the first country in Latin America to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide, granting gays and lesbians all the same rights and responsibilities that heterosexuals have. These include many more rights than civil unions, including adopting children and inheriting wealth.

[…]

Gay activists in neighboring Chile hope Argentina's milestone will improve chances for a gay marriage law currently in committee in their own Congress.

"Argentina's political class has provided a lesson to the rest of Latin America," said Rolando Jimenez in Santiago. "We hope our own countries and political parties will learn that the human rights of sexual minorities are undeniable."

Activists in Paraguay plan to propose a similar law to the senate in October, said Martin Viveros of the group Somosgay. And in Uruguay, gays unsatisfied with the partial rights that come through civil unions are preparing legislation that would replace references to "man and woman" with "spouse" throughout the civil code.

[…]

The president, who helped the law's chances by bringing two senators opposed to gay marriage with her on a state visit to China, spoke out from there against the Catholic Church's campaign and the tone she said some religious groups have taken.

"It's very worrisome to hear words like 'God's war' or 'the devil's project,' things that recall the times of the Inquisition," she said.

That’s fantastic news, and apparently wouldn’t have happened without the firm leadership and support on the part of the President.

If only Obama put his full weight behind our civil rights, imagine where we would be today…

Contained!?

BBC’s Breaking News:

BP says it has stopped oil flowing into the Gulf of Mexico for the first time since a well ruptured in April, causing a massive leak.

Seems like BP was finally able to contain the oil pouring out of their Gulf of Mexico thanks to a new cap they placed on top of it:

BP says a new cap has stopped oil from leaking into the Gulf of Mexico for the first time since April.
BP has been slowly dialing down the flow as part of a test on a new cap. Engineers are now monitoring the pressure to see if the broken well holds.
Engineers got to work after replacing a leaky pipe. Kent Wells, a BP PLC vice president, said at a news briefing in Houston that the leak was found on the side of the towering, 75-ton capping stack and it was fixed by replacing the assembly, called a "choke line."
The work sent the oil giant back to restarting preparations for testing whether the cap can stop the oil without blowing a new leak in the well. If it works, the cap will be a temporary fix until BP can drill into the gusher to plug it for good from underground, where the seal will hold better.
[…]
Retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, the Obama administration's point man on the disaster, said at a briefing it's not clear yet whether the cap, which was mounted on the well Monday, will ultimately be used to shut in the oil or to channel it through pipes to collection ships overhead.
"I have a high degree of confidence we can substantially decrease the oil coming into the environment," Allen said.
The cap remains a temporary fix, he said, until one of two relief wells BP is drilling can reach the gusher underground and plug it permanently with heavy drilling mud and cement.
"Make no mistake, the number one goal is to kill the well ... to stop it at the source," he said.
The test will involve closing off all three openings in the cap to the Gulf, in theory stopping the oil leaking into the Gulf. BP will be monitoring pressure under the cap. High pressure is good, because it shows there's only a single leak. Low pressure, below 6,000 pounds per square inch or so, could mean more leaks farther down in the well.
BP expects to keep the oil trapped in the cap for 48 hours before it decides if the approach is working.
The government estimates 1.5 million to 2.5 million gallons are leaking every day.
As of Thursday, the 86th day of the disaster, between 93.5 million and 184.3 million gallons of oil had spewed into the Gulf since the Deepwater Horizon rig leased by BP exploded April 20, killing 11 workers.

Fingers crossed.

Senior mishaps

This video is too funny!!

20 productive months

Like many other gays and lesbians, I am oftentimes upset by the lack of concrete movement on the gay rights legislation we so hoped would be pushed through Congress thanks to solid Democratic majorities in both houses and a “fierce advocate” in the White House.

That has not happened and we don’t know at this point if it will, given that the Democrats could possibly lose the House in the upcoming November elections, and will surely see their large majority in the Senate shrink considerably.

However, this video makes it clear that Obama has not been idle in spite of the constant and total stonewalling tactics on the part of the GOP:

A Quote By

Lord Hope of the UK Supreme Court in the judgment suspending the deportation of two gay men to their home countries of Iran and Cameroon.  The ruling was unanimous:

"To compel a homosexual person to pretend that his sexuality does not exist or suppress the behaviour by which to manifest itself is to deny his fundamental right to be who he is. Homosexuals are as much entitled to freedom of association with others who are of the same sexual orientation as people who are straight."

Space Chimps

A barely entertaining animated movie that Danny picked for Family Night, Space Chimps focuses on the grandchild of the first monkey sent into space, who now works in a circus, entertaining the audience with his wild and dangerous antics, until the day he’s sent on a quest in space as well.

While the animation is technically good and the script inspires a few chuckles here and there, Space Chimps is far from the standard we’re now accustomed to when it comes to feature animation.  After any of the cinematic marvels produced by Pixar and the genial work done by DreamWorks Animation with Shrek, a movie like Space Chimps feels weak, regurgitated, and stale.

It can be rented for a family viewing, but it will be soon forgotten.

Grade: 4