http://blogcritics.org/ A sinister cabal of superior bloggers on music, books, film, popular culture, politics, and technology - updated continuously. en Copyright 2005-2007 by the authors Sun, 23 Jan 2005 13:56:56 EST http://backend.userland.com/rss Blogcritics.org custom software http://blogcritics.org/ Phillip WinnSunday, August 26, 2007, marks the switch of all Blogcritics.org article feeds from full-content to short-content. This is the result of several converging factors, and is unfortunately a permanent decision (as permanent as any decision can be on the web, that is). We are aware of all of the reasons that this is a Bad Idea, and we are aware that some of you will be quite upset about having to click on something to read the free content, and we're sorry. Unfortunately, despite great effort, full-content feeds are not currently economically viable. Two other factors are involved: full-content feeds have resulted in an unprecedented level of content theft, with BC content appearing on many websites, usually spam sites, without attribution or permission. This duplicate content causes a cascading set of problems, not the least of which is that search engines generally aren't favorable to duplicate content, and don't always guess correctly. Finally, our RSS advertising partner is strongly in favor of short-content feeds. We hope that you'll continue to subscribe to BC via RSS, and when an article grabs your eye, it's only a click away, still free on the BC website. Thank you for your understanding. Administration0@blogcritics.org Sun, 26 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EDT http://blogcritics.org/archives/2005/01/23/135656.php Joe McNallyMy wife is running a marathon next weekend and I'm trying to fill the Ipod with some tunes to take her mind off the fact. Please submit your idea of a great tune to listen to while logging 26.2. And, yes, Chariots of Fire is nice and all, but only if you're running in slow motion. Thanks! Music24581@blogcritics.org Sun, 23 Jan 2005 13:56:56 EST http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/11/20/020708.php Joe McNallyThe 2004 Ironman Triathlon World Championship was held on October 16th of this year and while it was not without controversy (the women's champion was disqualified for using EPO) the broadcast is always compelling viewing.This year NBC will broadcast highlights this Saturday, November 20th, 4 p.m. EST, 1 p.m. PST.Prepare to be inspired. Sci/Tech22430@blogcritics.org Sat, 20 Nov 2004 02:07:08 EST http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/07/02/181710.php Joe McNallyThe 91st Tour de France, July 3-25, 2004 You're going to be hearing about it for the next month, so here's a little background.The Tour On Saturday, 189 riders embark upon the 91st Tour de France. The objective is to cover roughly 2,107 miles through the French countryside in a series of 21 races in the shortest aggregate amount of time. Each day's race is called a stage and for the Tour there are 20 different stages, in addition to the first day's individual time trial/warm-up called the Prologue. There are 21 teams with nine riders each. One rider is the team leader who the rest of the team is working to support to the finish. The rest of the team is composed of sprint and climbing specialists to guide the leader through the stages and domestiques (the guys that do the grunt work). This year, 11 of the stages cover flat, rolling terrain and six are in the mountains of the Pyrennees and the French Alps. For these stages the riders move within the peloton: a swirling, belching, farting, joking, cutthroat mass of adrenaline where teams and individuals constantly jockey for position. The remaining stages are conducted as time trials where riders are solely racing against the clock. For this year's Tour, there are two individual time trials, plus the prologue, and a team trial where the team races as a group with individuals receiving the time for the fifth rider on the team.For such a prestigious sporting event, the Tour has a relatively small purse. 3 million Euros, split up with 400K going to the overall winner (tradition dictating that the winner divides that among his teammates) and the remainder spread out for various bonuses, individual stages, and other standings. The Maillot Jeune, the famous yellow jersey of the tour, is awarded daily to the rider with the lowest total time. Additionally, riders compete for the a green, polka-dot, and white jersey for best sprinter, climber, and best rider under 25 years old, respectively.Favored RidersLANCE ARMSTRONG (U.S.) U.S. Postal/Berry Floor Age: 32 Trying to make it six, how much does Armstrong have left in the tank? Last year he contended with a failing marriage, stomach flu, and outright bad luck. This year he has a new girlfriend and faces doping allegations revealed in a new book (which he denies). Still the man to beat although many of his rivals saw last year as the beginning of his decline and are entertaining hopes of being spoilers.JAN ULLRICH (Germany) T-Mobile Age: 30 Jan Ullrich is Ivan Drago to Armstrong's Rocky. He was born and raised in East Germany and inducted into the state athletic development program at an early age before the re-unification. He won the Tour in '97 prior to Armstrong's reign and at the time was hailed as having the potential to realize the kind of success that Armstrong has had. Instead he has come in second four times since with absences from the tour in '99 and 02. He had the strongest team, on paper, but the loss of last year's third place finisher, Alexander Vinokourov, to a shoulder injury, evens the playing field.TYLER HAMILTON (U.S.) Phonak Age: 33 Hamilton became a hero to many last year when he finished in fourth place despite breaking a collarbone in two places on the first stage. Many say that the experience has added the soul of a champion to a rider that already posessed the skills and brains of one. Formerly a rider under Armstrong while with US Postal, he's been consistently good in time trials, excellent in the mountains, he leads a disciplined, up-and-coming Phonak team.IBAN MAYO (Spain) Euskaltel Age: 26 Mayo is a talented Basque rider who is renowned for his climbing. He won the Alpe d'Huez stage last year which will be the site of one of the critical time trials this year. Additionally he won the Dauphine Libere race in April against none other than the current Tour champion.ROBERTO HERAS (Spain) Liberty-Seguros Age: 30 Heras was a key member of US Postal who departed after last summer to try his hand at leading a team. He's an excellent climber and pretty good on time trials. Many will be watching to see just how indispensible he was to US Postal. IVAN BASSO (Italy) Team CSC Age: 26 He's a young Italian climber, who took seventh place last year and has been consistently improving each year. Is mentioned by most top riders as a serious contender and has a strong team supporting him.Keys to the TourThe time trials are going to be huge. The first individual one, Alpe d'Huez, Stage 16, July 21, is also uphill the entire way which will provide riders with the opportunity to make huge time gains or incur huge time losses. The second individual time trial in Besancon Stage 19, July 24, is really the last chance riders will have to win the Tour as the 20th stage is largely a ceremonial ride into Paris and the Champs Elysees. Last years tour was decided by a time margin of 61 seconds which could definitely be made or lost in this time trial. The prologue, is not so huge, for a couple of reasons. First, it's very short, 6.1Km and, second, while most riders want to come out strong and assertive, most don't want to peak to early. The team time trial will be somewhat important but there is a rule change this year in which individuals can lose no more than 2:30 minutes as a result of the team time trial so teams that aren't so strong in this event can sandbag and won't be penalized too severely.I really think this race will all hinge on the final week. The first week is all flats and will favor sprinters. The second week will have a few climbs and will start in establishing a pecking order. The last week will be absolutely critical with the two time trials and three days of climbs. Stage 17, Le Grand-Bornand, July 22, is what I'm predicting will be the make or break stage this year because is comes the day after the first time trial and I think most of the contenders will try to save themselves for that. Additionally, this stage has the most challenging climbs and I think that is where whoever wins this will have to do it.Additional InformationCyclingNews.com is an excellent source for daily race reports and news as well information on the stages, history, and a TdF FAQ. The Outdoor Life Network carries live broadcasts every morning and re-broadcasts every evening, check your local listings. (Do I get some kind of endorsement fee for that?)CBS will be carrying weekly recaps every Sunday on the following dates and times: July 11 3:00pm EST July 18 5:00pm EST July 25 2:00pm EST If past performance is any indication, these are just the same coverage that OLN has uses but in a condensed format. Sports17061@blogcritics.org Fri, 2 Jul 2004 18:17:10 EDT http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/04/14/152601.php Joe McNallyAir America finds itself off to an inauspicious start.From the Chicago TribuneAfter just two weeks of broadcasting, Air America Radio, the fledgling liberal talk-radio network featuring Al Franken and Janeane Garofalo, was pulled off the air this morning in Chicago and Los Angeles, the network's second- and third-largest markets, in a dispute over payments for airtime.Arthur Liu, owner of Multicultural Radio Broadcasting, which owns Air America affiliates WNTD-950 AM in Chicago and KBLA-1580 AM in Los Angeles, said Air America bounced a check and owes him more than $1 million.This is probably the funniest thing I've seen from Franken since "Stewart Soils Himself." Politics14724@blogcritics.org Wed, 14 Apr 2004 15:26:01 EDT http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/03/05/204243.php Joe McNallyThey were a tribe, not some synth-pop, one-hit wonder, these men without hats. Most of their lives were spent hidden from view, hanging in limbo. But they had their pride and their heritage and that was something. Most had forgotten the ritual and tradition that was part of their birthright. Instead, their provenance had become an issue of clinical routine. Detached from their roots and incised from collective consciousness, fewer and fewer could understand the decision to undergo the sacrifice and many questioned the benefit conferred by membership in the tribe.Some even questioned whether there truly was a sacrifice. They would not acknowledge the scars so plainly visible, or the evidence of beatings, or the general state of hardship which burdened the members of the tribe. The ignorance of these naysayers was of no consequence. Perhaps it was the stylish turtlenecks or the shiny raincoats which distracted others from understanding the true nature of the tribe's climactic imperative.The mere mention of the tribe had been known to incite outrage. This was the result of misunderstanding the tribe and the inherent difficult some people had getting their hands around the issue of how to deal with their uprising. It was generally accepted that the goal of the tribe was power and dominance, but what they trulywanted was to be deeply embedded in something greater than themselves. This ambition made it possible for them to stand tall and proud, their good eye squinting in the warm caress of daylight. Culture13444@blogcritics.org Fri, 5 Mar 2004 20:42:43 EST http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/02/10/133552.php Joe McNallySalon.com had an interesting article last week about anonymous bloggers (it's part of their premium site so you may have to suffer through an ad to see it). The article discusses how several blogs with anonymous authors have risen to prominence within journalism and examines where they fit in the context of modern media. It raises some pretty interesting points of view regarding the blogging community:It takes a certain courage to shoot half-cocked into the media landscape like that. Or does it? These and other bloggers have made names for themselves by having no names at all -- and by using the safety and security of their secret identities to spread gossip, make accusations and levy the most vicious of insults with impunity.and Not surprisingly, journalism experts suggest anonybloggers are operating outside of any reasonable ethical line. "One of the things that's going to have to become a standard for the Internet is, if you want to be taken seriously, you have to be identified," says Alex Jones, director of Harvard's Shorenstein Center. "Anonymity is almost always, for the mainstream anyway, something that says, 'Be very, very careful.'" I raise this as a point of discussion because Blogcritics has a variety of bloggers of both flavors and I'm very interested in hearing other's opinions on the issue. Obviously, I'm for full disclosure and am pro-choice on the issue, however, I must concede that I'm probably biased towards other full disclosure types. Your thoughts? Sci/Tech12600@blogcritics.org Tue, 10 Feb 2004 13:35:52 EST http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/02/04/105729.php Joe McNallyBill Simmons, ESPN's Sportsguy, pointed out this fascinating series from the Miami Herald. It follows the college recruiting trips of Willie Williams, ranked sixth among high school football players nationwide.A gifted outside linebacker with a 3.0 GPA and a 1070 SAT, Willliams is flown on private jets, feted like a king, and shown the sights. The ritual presentation of a team jersey with his name and number to wear as prospective colleges take him through mock team introductions at their respective stadiums gives you a glimpse of the psychological warefare at play in college recruiting.Thus far, Williams has visited:Florida State UniversityAuburnUniversity of MiamiandUniversity of FloridaJust read it. Today is the National Signing Day for highschool recruits, I'll update this when the next article is posted.UPDATE: Herald.com: Williams Picks MiamiUPDATE to the UPDATE: Somehow they missed this! Sports12373@blogcritics.org Wed, 4 Feb 2004 10:57:29 EST http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/01/08/113011.php Joe McNallyThis morning, on the way to work, I nearly had an accident when an oncoming car swerved into and out of my lane. It was one of those moments that leaves you pissed, gasping, and trying to get your sphincter to unclench. And, oddly, the first thing I thought of was a scene from a movie I saw last year which left me feeling the exact same way. So, without any further ado, my belated, only year-in-retrospect list for last year:1. The scene that I was reminded of this morning was the car crash scene with Chris Cooper in Adaptation. Basically it's shot from a perspective of viewing into the car from outside the driver's side as it is backing out of a driveway with the view of oncoming traffic blocked by a truck. As soon as the truck is cleared, we see the front of the oncoming car and SMASH. It was so unexpected it caused me to sieze up when I first saw it. (Additionally, there is a crash scene later in the film where Nicholas Cage exits the vehicle headfirst through the windshield which is also pretty harsh.)2. The whole deal with Buck in Kill Bill had me squirming in my seat. Maybe it's just me.3. Kathy Bates hottub scene in About Schmidt. Do I really need to explain? It's like seeing your mom naked.Please feel free to add your own. Video11548@blogcritics.org Thu, 8 Jan 2004 11:30:11 EST http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/01/06/010928.php Joe McNallyThe genesis for this book was a desire to grasp the nature of religious belief. I've spent most of my life in the West, in the happy company of Latter-day Saints, I decided to narrow my subject to a more manageable scope by examining belief more or less exclusively through the lens of Mormonism. I grew up with Mormons in Corvallis, Oregon, which had (and has) a robust LDS community. Saints were my childhood friends and playmates, my teachers, my athletic coaches. I envied what seemed to be the unfluctuating certainty of faith professed so enthusiastically by my closest Mormon pals; but I was often baffled by it. I've sought to comprehend the formidable power of such belief ever since. John Krakauer chronicled his personal experience of the 1996 Mount Everest tragedy in the book Into Thin Air. He followed that with Into the Wild, the true story of Christopher McCandless, a young man from an affluent family in Washington DC, who upon graduating from Emory University hitchhiked to Alaska and set out alone, on foot, to live in the wilderness north of Mount McKinley. Four months later, his decomposed, emaciated body was found by a hunting party. Krakauer continues on the theme of apparently rational people undergoing tragic circumstances with Under the Banner of Heaven - A Story of Violent Faith. As his primary case study, he examines brothers Ron and Dan Lafferty, former members of mainstream Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, who left the church to join a fundamentalist LDS sect. According to the brothers, upon a revelation from God, they were commanded to "remove" an impediment to the establishment of the "one true church", their sister-in-law and her 16 month old daughter. With the backdrop of the murder of Brenda and Erica Lafferty, Krakauer examines the evolution of the church from its beginning with Joseph Smith through it is violent and bloody migration to Utah. He discusses the pervading mysticism which led to controversial practices such a polygamy and blood atonement. This exploration probes fundamentalist Mormon movements, the resultant schisms of different interpretations of church doctrine.Krakauer is pretty fair in his assessment of the church and remains impartial in his accounting of how the church came into being, despite condemnation of the book as "anti-Mormon." The book actually has three distinct narratives: the story of the Lafferty brothers, the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and the prevalent fundamentalist movements. By presenting the subject in this manner the intertwined nature of belief put into practice is put together in an engrossing package.Through interviews and exhaustive research, Krakauer does a good job of presenting the circumstances which have made the church such a lightning rod for criticism. The accounts of life within polygamous communities provide a fascinating insight into faith gone awry and the tragic consequences. I read this book basically coming from an agnostic viewpoint with a similar background as Krakauer as quoted above. I came away from it with a much better understanding of the church, its history, and what can happen when faith is compromised. Definitely worth reading for the compelling insight into this most American of religions. Books11477@blogcritics.org Tue, 6 Jan 2004 01:09:28 EST http://blogcritics.org/archives/2003/11/30/154035.php Joe McNallyWe're already at the end of American Diabetes Month but that doesn't mean that you still can't make a contribution. One of the best preventative measures you can take against diabetes is exercising regularly. If you have diabetes one of the best things you can do for yourself is participate in a regular routine of physical activity.Besides the obvious health benefits, there are many programs in which you can help to raise money for research and treatment of Diabetes. The American Diabetes Association sponsors the Walk for Diabetes in which walkers raise money by walking. What could be easier? For those looking for a more technical challenge there is the Tour de Cure, a cycling event which is staged across in over 70 cities across the country. And if you want to turn it up a notch or two, the Ride for the Cure stages events in California and Australia.My own experience has been that having an event to focus on is helpful in pursuing a fitness program for several reasons. First, it allows you to concentrate your efforts and provides a goal to shoot for. Second, it's fun and it allows you to meet people from diverse backgrounds with similar goals. And lastly and probably most important, it offers an opportunity to both contribute and learn and grow.If you're unsure about how to get started, one way is to get involved with an event as a volunteer. This will provide you an opportunity to see the event firsthand and understand the organizational and logistical issues that you'll face as a participant. Additionally, it helps by putting a face on the people who participate in the events which can serve as both motivation and inspiration. So what have you got to lose?For more information about events in your area Active.com provides a searchable nationwide directory of racing events. Have fun! Sports10557@blogcritics.org Sun, 30 Nov 2003 15:40:35 EST