Blood Diamond

At the turn of the century, Sierra Leone, a small, coastal country in northwestern Africa, was stripped apart by civil war. The conflict was started by rebel forces who wanted to overthrow the government. Though there were many reasons for their attempt to overthrow, a big reason was the profitable diamond mines. Caught in the middle of the strife were the local people of Sierra Leone. Also, the country has the lowest life expectancy in the world at 30 years old.

The rebels and the government purged villages and towns of innocent people in their attempts to get at one another and to possess diamond mines. Most of the diamonds were never seen by the people of Sierra Leone. The government wanted them to have enough money to move into exile and the rebels wanted the diamonds to fuel their overthrow.

Solomon Vandy (Djimon Hounsou) is a fishermen caught by the rebel R.U.F. group. Throughout the movie, Solomon has a sense of innocence. He wants to be with his family and he wants his son to get a good education. He finds it difficult to lie even to save his own life. He also doesn't like the ease with which some kill people. He perfectly represents the locals.

While in the possession of the R.U.F., Solomon finds one of the biggest diamonds they've ever seen in the diamond mines. He buries it as the government attacks and arrests the rebels and their captives.

Insert Danny Archer (Leonardo DiCaprio). The ex-South African military/mercenary hired by South African hit men to find and sell conflict diamonds on the black market. He trades arms for conflict diamonds with the rebels and the government alike. He funds the war. Archer convinces Vandy that he can save his family and that the diamond is his ticket out of the country. Archer has his own selfish desires for getting the diamond.

With help from American journalist Maddy Bowen (Jennifer Connelly), the two find a way back to the diamond mine to find that massive diamond Solomon found. They run into Solomon's son who has been trained (aka brainwashed) by the R.U.F. to kill. They are armed with an AK-47 and told to kill the resistance. The R.U.F. uses drugs and alcohol to brainwash the kids. Eventually, they become completely different people. Solomon's son would have killed his father if he had the chance. He refuses to recognize his father.

They find the diamond and escape. Solomon carries Archer to safety, which reinforces the "carry" metaphor. Whether Archer had a change of heart or just couldn't make it, he did not steal the diamond from Solomon. Solomon escaped the country determined to bring down the fictional Van de Kaap jewelers who purchase the conflict diamonds regularly. Solomon is the hope to save his country and let the world know of the atrocities that happen in the small country.

"Blood Diamond" is a compelling story loaded with action and meaning. This is one of the best stories to come from Hollywood in the past five years. Director Edward Zwick (The Last Samurai, Legends of the Fall) presents us with a startling truth about the displeasing state of Sierra Leone.

The treatment of the locals is quite sad and discomforting. Connelley is there to document exactly what is happening. DiCaprio is the negative outsider who hates the continent but remains to steal and sell diamonds. "I used to wonder, 'Will God ever forgive us for what we've done to each other. But then I realized that God left this place a long time ago."

DiCaprio is the cynical mercenary who sees the strife and atrocities in the country but chooses to do his own work instead of helping. He believes there is no way to help the people. In the end, he helps Hounsou and Connelley expose the truth about conflict diamonds.

This movie was nominated for 5 Oscars but won none. Djimon Hounsou was ripped off for supporting actor. He was terrific and well-deserving. Probably the biggest snub of all time.

Anytime anything of value is found in Africa the locals are killed. It happened with ivory, rubber, gold and oil. And now it is happening with diamonds.

-The United States accounts for 2/3 of diamond purchases.
-Conflict diamonds represent 15% of all diamonds.
-Rather than an export for the country, the diamonds are smuggled out and traded for arms to fund the civil war.
-Neighboring country Liberia has $2 billion in diamond exports but no diamonds to speak of in the country.
-The earth is red from the spilt blood.
-As a result from this story, the Kimberley Process began which is a more in depth effort to eliminate conflict diamonds.
-Up to the consumer to ensure the diamond they buy is not a conflict diamond.
-Now, Sierra Leone is at peace.
-There are 200,000 child soldiers in Africa.

To affirm the state of Africa, Archer lives the credo "TIA." Expect everything because Africa's state is poor and anything can and will happen. What happens there is just part of the country.

This Is Africa

4.5 of 5 stars

STOP

Something is happening. There has been a revolution of messages expressed by way of stop signs. I have noticed this in the past couple of years and it has apparently become the thing to do.

The first one I saw confused me because I had no idea what it meant. I pulled up to a stop sign and saw that someone had spray painted "BUSH" on the sign beneath the word "STOP."

It took me a minute to figure out what was meant by this. But of course, it is a message that says, "Stop Bush." Regardless of whether I agreed with the message, I thought it was a pretty good idea (apart from the whole vandalizing public property thing).

Since then, I have been on the lookout for more messages on signs. I hear it has become a recreational activity to go out for a night on the town with a group of friends spray painting different things on stop signs.

This one I found in Stillwater and is one of my favorites. "Stop buying so much." Could it be more true? This is great social commentary from some faceless vandal. We do buy too much. It seems people feel that fulfillment comes with the more possessions they acquire.

Anyway, the stop sign revolution is going to change the world. Be sure to follow only the best advice from signs. I wonder who started this or where the idea came from.

If I ever spray painted a stop sign, it would say "Stop Lying."

Favorites:

"Stop cheating"
"Stop eating"
"Stop running away"
"Stop chasing dreams" - haha don't follow this one
"Stop thinking about yourself"
"Stop stealing oil"
"Stop doing what you're told" - kind of ironic, right
"Stop following the rules"
"Don't Stop"
"Stop vandalizing" - haha I hope to see this one some day

Doesn't have to be a stop sign
"One way to heaven"
"Yield your life"

Hope to see more or think of some better ones.

NFL Draft 2008

So, I realize the draft was more than a week ago, but I have been busy with finals and moving that I have not been able to blog about the draft.

I thought the Steelers cleaned house. I had not heard of their first round pick before (Mendenhall RB from Illinois), but I was very impressed with his tapes. On NFL.com, Sterling Sharpe said he would likely win rookie of the year. That would be incredible.

I'm glad they picked up another runner because Parker won't last long with 40 carries a game and his injury last season was devastating to the team's success. Mendenhall is a big, between the tackles runner and that is just what the Steelers need to complement Willie Parker's outside speed.

The best pick of the draft was the second round selection of Limas Sweed. I love this guy. He was a four year starter at Texas and Vince Young's favorite target. I can't tell you how many times he caught the jump ball in the end zone over some lame Oklahoma State cornerback.

Sweed is a playmaker and at 6'4" exactly what the Steelers need to fill the receiver vacancy. Ya, the Steelers dropped my boy Cedrick Wilson for some reason. So, prior to the draft, they had the aging Hines Ward and the ever-improving Nate Washington.

The Steelers' need for a big receiver is great. Ben has never had much to work with but has still found ways to get it done. I think if the Steelers still had ol' Plaxico, they would have won multiple Super Bowls.

I was hoping the Steelers would go after Sweed, OU's Malcolm Kelly, or OSU's Adarius Bowman. So, I was pumped they got Sweed, the best of the group.

The Steelers also picked up a couple linebackers, an offensive tackle and a safety in the draft. In the fifth round, they took Oregon's versatile quarterback Dennis Dixon.

I love this move. Of course, he won't be a quarterback in Pittsburgh. Many have compared Dixon to a new "Slash" as Kordell Stewart was back in the day. I love having Dixon. He is a replacement for Randle El. Dixon is fast and elusive. He is heady on the field and he knows how to avoid pressure.

He will make a great little receiver to execute those special plays. I see it now. Dixon to Sweed to win the Super Bowl. It is going to be awesome. I couldn't be more excited.

Now, to the disappointment. No one from Oklahoma State was drafted. How depressing is that. That is the first time I can remember that no one was drafted. I have now officially self-boycotted the media of this state. Everyone said Bowman was a for sure second or third round pick. Savage would go no later than the fifth round.

Ha, the Sports Animal lies yet again. Not only was Bowman not drafted, but he was not even picked up as a free agent. Sure, his stock went throug the toilet when he was arrested for marijuana, but come on, they are all screw-ups. I thought he was for sure. He is a very talented receiver and holds many Oklahoma State records in his two short years.

The only two Cowboys picked up were FB Julius Crosslin who went to the Dallas Cowboys and my boy Donovan Woods to the Steelers, baby!

I always liked Woods. I thought he could make a great player with a little coaching help. He always had a great eye for the field. I think he could make the team because he does have skill and the Steelers are thin at linebacker. As a linebacker, is there a better team to play for?

The Steelers are legendary for producing excellent linebackers. Let's hope for the same for D Woods.

Sorority Boys

According to IMDB.com, Sorority Boys lies in the bottom percentile with an average user rating of 4.9. Haha, that is pretty pathetic.

I, however, beg to differ. Sorority Boys is one of those movies that goes unnoticed and quickly shoved under the couch. People could argue that this movie is entirely profane (it is) and unworthy of watching. All this is true (it is a nasty movie), but it pales in comparison to today's Apatow comedies (which suck).

This is quality comedy at its best. OK, maybe crappy comedy at its worst. Same thing, right. Here is what I love about this movie: Harland Williams. He is hilarious and no one knows who he is.

Williams was the biker cop with "killer boots" in Dumb and Dumber. And he was also Rocketman, which stands as one of the funniest slapsticks of the modern era (and you can quote me on that).

He character, Doofer, is a bumbling, drunk fool who provides raucous laughter throughout.

The second best part of the movie is the violent attack between the two frat brothers as they engage in a romantic relationship (one is a guy dressed as a girl).

O yeah, plot outline. Three guys get kicked out of their frat for stealing the frat's money (they didn't). With the tempting offer of free room and board at the laughed at, ugly sorority, the boys decide to cross dress until they can prove their innocence.

The movie runs into a major problem about halfway through, it tries to be a real movie. Instead of maintaining goofy comedy, it turns dramatic and tries way to hard to teach valuable life lessons.

Let's just say this part failed. I did not learn anything from watching this movie and in fact, I am probably dumber from having watched it.

O well, it was worth a watch for those fleeting moments of hilarity and ridiculousness. Doofer might be my favorite frat character ever however few and far between his glory shines.

By the way, I'm pretty sure this movie ruined the careers of every actor involved.

I do not recommend this one to the weak as it is profoundly disgusting, but if you would like to be dumbed down for awhile watch it. But turn it off after the first half hour or so because nothing happens for the rest of the movie. The end is actually pretty boring and unfulfilling.

5.2 of 10 (for doofer)

3's and 8's

Why is the world run by such morons? Well, maybe the gas station attendants don't run the world, but you know what I mean. Why is everyone such a fool?

I have begun to realize why the people that work at gas stations do, in fact, work at gas stations. I'm speaking on pure generalizations and yes, I am stereotyping the worker at such establishments.

But come on, how dumb must you be to put the 3's and the 8's upside down.

Rereading that sentence makes me sound like a fool. Who notices a three or eight upside down? If they were backwards, that would be an obvious problem. But I didn't even notice a difference between the top circle and the bottom circle.

You may not have noticed, but I did and that's the only thing that matters. It is just a simple little thing that can easily be fixed by flipping the number the right side up on the gas sign.

It has become an increasing problem in today's world as gas prices have soared into the three dollar range. Half the stations in town have this problem. The put the three's and eight's upside down just to make me angry.

I almost yelled at a worker who was changing the sign when I drove by the other day. Use your brain and flip the sign so that the fatter circle of half circle is at the bottom.

What does it take to fix this problem? I suggest an IQ test with questions about symmetry of numbers. Either that or burn down those gas stations.

Yes, that's all.

*Note the first two three's compared to the third.

Burn It Down

My latest pet peeve lies with the bless-ed computer labs on campus here at Oklahoma State in Stillwater. This past week has been a struggle that has led me to burn down one of the buildings on campus.

These things are so ridiculous, I can hardly see straight. I tried the Kerr-Drummond Lab (the closest computer lab to my room) and was met with disappointment. More than half of the computers do not work. They are stuck on the loading screen and apparently the university cares too little to try to fix them.

Eight of the 40 computers were taken, so I had to go elsewhere to complete my assignment that requires a special program (yeah, I'm getting screwed twice). The university screws me over by giving me assignments that can only be completed on their systems and then their computers are more ghetto than the projects (I'm not even going to get into the massive problem of "entire-campus-wireless-internet" OSU claims).

So, I had to find another lab where I could do my stupid Astronomy lab project. I went to the lab in the Math Science building. It is a catastrophe before I even get into the lab. The lab has four doors, but get this, only one of them works. What is that? How does a door not work? And why the freak haven't they fixed it? It is a simple swinging door that should require little maintenance, but OSU couldn't care less.

I manage to get into the godforsaken place to search for a working computer. I find one and decide, "Hey, why not time how long it takes to log on to this stupid thing."

Here we go:
Type in my name and password to log on - 3 minutes later the computer has finally booted and logged me on.
Now, give it another minute to load the shotty anti-virus program.
Double click Internet Explorer - 3o seconds later the browser pops up
Give it another 30 seconds to load and now I'm ready.

We're talking about five minutes just to get on to the Internet. These things are such pieces of crap. They are Dell computers from 1998 that barely load XP without frying.

Also, the inconvenience of typing my name and password for everything I have to print is greatly annoying.

The problem isn't just with a couple labs, it is the majority of the campus. I have found one lab I can handle and that is the lab I'm in right now. The Mac Lab in the JB building is cooperative and quick and I much prefer it over anywhere else on campus.

Thank you for being so "convenient" OSU with your little computer labs to "benefit" the students. "We have strategically placed computer labs throughout the campus for students to use with convenient printers all available free of charge."

Haha, that is ridiculous.

You would think with as much as I pay for this crap, it would be decent. They can't even manage to make a door open and close. I even pay a "Technology Fee." What is that for? Where does that go? To the little guy in the orange vest who sits there and does his homework. What a piece of junk.

Get it together, people.

Minority Report

2002's "Minority Report" is one of Steven Spielberg's darker action flicks. The film was "bleech-bypassed" during post production to give it a dark feel that made the movie look almost black and white. It is considered very unique and paints a bleak view of the future.

The colors in the movie are very desaturated which gives it a dark bluish tint that resonates throughout the movie. The futuristic world created by Spielberg is an example of a mix of utopia and dystopia.

The year is 2054 and Tom Cruise is Pre-Crime agent John Anderton, who arrests people of murders before they are committed thanks to the three "pre-cogs" (kids of drug abusers, who are "blessed" with visions of murder in the future).

The world created in 2054 is high-tech, but not too preposterous. People still live as they do only with more technology. They do not drastically change their lifestyles as we see a lot in sci-fi movies.

The Pre-Crime division has eliminated murder in Washington D.C. in it's six years of service. The division is on the brink of going national and is therefore scrutinized by Department of Justice agent Danny Witwer (Colin Farrell).

Anderton is soon accused of murder three days into the future. He must go on the run and figure out how to clear his name. He does not even know the man he is supposed to kill.

The movie raises interesting questions about predetermination and destiny. If he had not been accused of murder, would he have actually committed it? The likelihood is that he wouldn't considering he did not know the guy.

The question is that of free will. Do we have a choice to change our "destiny?" Simply accusing Anderton leads him into a situation where he is forced to choice whether to murder this man (a very emotional choice at that).

All those that Anderton arrested did not actually do anything, yet they have been arrested. Could the pre-cogs be wrong or tampered with?

This movie ponders many questions and leaves you wondering in the end about free will and how we can alter the future by decisions we make. I love futuristic movies that ponder questions of reality, so this is right down my ally.

As for the content of the movie, it is loaded with action and futuristic violence involving jet packs and a freakin' awesome shock wave gun (coolest part of the movie). The technology is stunning and believable for what is nearly 50 years away.

I did not like the score created for this movie. It felt like a lot of the music did not apply or fit too well. It was done by the legend John Williams, but it simply did not add much to the film. The music was too opera-ish. It should have been the music of a classic film set in 1700's England. I was not pleased with this and felt like the movie would have been that much better with an average action movie score.

Another problem I have with this movie was the 30 minute lull at the end. This seems to be a common thing with Spielberg's latest movies (cough, cough "Munich" - that thing lasted forever). I thought the movie could have ended about five minutes after Anderton's confrontation with the guy he was to murder. Speilberg could have shortened this ending because in 30 minutes we don't learn that much.

It could have been squeezed into five minutes. The movie seems to take a boring turn at this point and fails to answer any questions we hadn't figured out already. Other than that and the music, I would say this is one of my favorite Spielberg movies, especially in recent years.

The action and futuristic world are spot on and Cruise is great as always. Throughout the movie, I tried to gather an evaluation on Farrell, but I still can't pinpoint it. I was looking for something to make him not live up to his negative reputation. I don't know. I still can't figure out if he is that great of an actor. Hard to tell in this one.

"Everybody runs."

4 of 5 stars