tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-363641942011-04-22T01:08:07.056-04:00Hypothesizing the worst so you don't have to.Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.comBlogger651100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-26141983992785235812007-10-17T01:02:00.000-04:002007-10-17T02:01:13.179-04:00

Lynne Cheney divulges that Barack Obama and Dick Cheney are eighth cousins.Mrs. Cheney told MSNBC on Tuesday that it was 'an amazing American story that one ancestor ... could be responsible down the family line for lives that have taken such different and varied paths.'Well, let's not pee ourselves about it, they're both career politicians. But nonetheless, yes, it's mildly interesting.The

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-33068545589573042952007-09-21T22:54:00.000-04:002007-09-22T01:06:50.255-04:00

This is one of those moments of unintended comedy that only having a genuinely embarrassing national leader can provide:"Nelson Mandela is still very much alive despite an embarrassing gaffe by U.S. President George W. Bush, who alluded to the former South African leader's death in an attempt to explain sectarian violence in Iraq. "'It's out there. All we can do is reassure people, especially

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-56208649645142098992007-09-17T02:37:00.000-04:002007-09-17T04:03:55.946-04:00

...bababadalgharaghtakamminarronnkonnbronntonnerronntuonnthunntrovarrhounawnskawntoohoohoordenenthurnuk!(STATIC)....and so ahem, and yes, we are back on the air aft......terference on the waves, airwaves we should say, one of those things you just can't help, exactly, but that's just how it.......oodness gracious great balls of.......still having some transmission troub.......to the faraway towns

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1168333594555172832007-01-09T04:03:00.000-05:002007-01-09T04:07:40.250-05:00

A complicated few weeks has severely diminished our blogging here at DHAIP, but having run across this fascinating video we couldn't resist posting the link, for any who may not have seen it. Your town is next!Watch the skies... we repeat, watch the skies!--The Thing From Another World

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1167548359767991902006-12-31T02:01:00.000-05:002006-12-31T01:59:19.780-05:00

Cheney hails Ford's pardon of Nixon"Ford's decision to pardon Richard Nixon, so divisive at the time that it probably cost him the 1976 election, was dealt with squarely in his funeral services by his old chief of staff, Vice President Dick Cheney."'It was this man, Gerald R. Ford, who led our republic safely though a crisis that could have turned to catastrophe,' said Cheney, speaking in the

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1167083750461128742006-12-25T16:57:00.000-05:002006-12-25T17:02:21.980-05:00

Mikhail Bulgakov's great satirical novel The Master and Margarita never saw print during his lifetime; using Christ and the Devil to mock the corrupt culture of Moscow was perhaps not the wisest gambit for publication under Stalin. Bulgakov did not catch many breaks at all as a writer -- his plays were frequently closed in rehearsal and his best writing was relegated to samizdat. His request to

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1166955619502017302006-12-24T05:30:00.000-05:002006-12-24T05:23:11.106-05:00

On the face of it, a classic case of overreaction:"A man used flammable liquid to light himself on fire, apparently to protest a San Joaquin Valley school district's decision to change the names of winter and spring breaks to Christmas and Easter vacation."The man, who was not immediately identified, on Friday also set fire to a Christmas tree, an American flag and a revolutionary flag replica,

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1166851210670723222006-12-23T00:19:00.000-05:002006-12-23T00:36:36.816-05:00

A patently unreliable news story suggests that those calling themselves "optimists" may live longer lives."Optimists may enjoy longer lives than people with a dimmer outlook on the future, a long-term study suggests."They're probably just being optimistic. We submit that we pessimists more correctly comprehend the odds life stacks against us, and so are logically less likely to engage in

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1166651349901239082006-12-20T16:59:00.000-05:002006-12-20T16:49:10.316-05:00

The odd story of John Lennon's FBI files, in which the FBI refused release after claiming for 25 years "that an unnamed foreign government secretly provided the information, and releasing the documents could lead to diplomatic, political or economic retaliation against the United States," poses a small riddle. Given the apparently innocuous nature of the information therein, why on earth should

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1165986547074587502006-12-13T12:13:00.000-05:002006-12-13T00:09:07.680-05:00

After several days of distractions and reorganization here at DHAIP, we returned to our blog with fresh eyes, and experienced a certain sense of bemused puzzlement over our last post, which seemed oddly random in focus, out of nowhere you might even say. Ever on the alert for subconscious tremblings from within, we immediately plunged into self-analysis.Strange, you may say? Yes, but it's the

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1165605855766621522006-12-08T14:30:00.000-05:002006-12-08T16:29:27.420-05:00

(A perhaps unnecessary disclaimer, but safety first: we here at DHAIP make no claims for the truth of that which follows, nor are we attempting to forward any of the agendas mentioned herein. Our motives are those of intellectual curiosity and open debate. We believe that in dealing with sensitive topics such as anti-Semitism, the national perception of September 11, and conspiracy theory, it

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1165524764341077442006-12-07T16:02:00.000-05:002006-12-08T04:08:12.683-05:00

Thank goodness for Wikipedia! After reading this article, and remembering dimly that lead was a fairly harmful substance, we decided to check the facts. The Wikipedia article confirmed the memory, and also, to our joy, provided us with this useful information:"Pete wentz and ryan ross are hott and they dont asociate with lead. lead is a monster! lead will take your babies!! DONT EAT IT OR ANUL

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1165520112048063012006-12-07T14:45:00.000-05:002006-12-07T15:03:41.350-05:00

According to the New York Times, the justices of the Supreme Court have become our nation's most prestigious slackers:"The court has taken about 40 percent fewer cases so far this term than last. It now faces noticeable gaps in its calendar for late winter and early spring. The December shortfall is the result of a pipeline empty of cases granted last term and carried over to this one."The number

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1165381969574747762006-12-06T02:58:00.000-05:002006-12-07T01:03:35.630-05:00

Alerted by a sudden profusion of Youtube videos featuring people announcing that they "deny the Holy Spirit," we here at DHAIP, ever on the lookout for an unusual trend, followed a provided link to this:"In the spirit of Christmas, the Rational Response Squad is giving away 1000 DVDs of The God Who Wasn't There, the hit documentary that the Los Angeles Times calls 'provocative -- to put it mildly

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1165345617091517632006-12-05T14:18:00.000-05:002006-12-05T14:06:57.103-05:00

Just because we are atheists does not preclude our having a spiritual side. This strangely moving photograph gave us both joy and pause for thought.We trust he escaped the Lord's grasp without injury.

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1165302687651124882006-12-05T02:21:00.000-05:002006-12-05T02:11:47.936-05:00

...and anyway, honestly, sometimes the jokes/sad truths simply write themselves.Not even we can outdo the facts.

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1165293912552800842006-12-05T00:30:00.000-05:002006-12-05T02:13:02.346-05:00

This is becoming comical, in a bitter sort of way. We have counted at least fifteen variations on this same headline in the past three weeks:Bush says Iraq progress too slow.The air of ponderous discovery in this announcement reminds us of the childhood fact we were all taught about the Apatosaurus -- back when it was Brontosaurus, in fact. (Or was it the Diplodocus? Run fact-check if time. -

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1165030809958628152006-12-01T22:49:00.000-05:002006-12-01T22:48:06.000-05:00

Milgram lives, apparently."Ogborn was told to empty her pockets and surrender her car keys and cell phone, which she did. Then the caller demanded that Summers have Ogborn remove her clothes — even her underwear — leaving her with just a small, dirty apron to cover her naked body."Summers says she never second-guessed what she was being asked to do, as she firmly believed the person she was

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1164968656717757322006-12-01T05:34:00.000-05:002006-12-01T05:24:16.730-05:00

This rather interesting post that we happened across led to questions in our minds. Whereas we don't know the specific results of such a poll would be for the U.S.A., we could certainly, and gloomily (as is our wont) guess. The UK has for a great deal of its history had church and state rather closely intertwined -- they don't call it the C. of E. for nothing -- whereas the United States was

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1164958514431519832006-12-01T02:45:00.000-05:002006-12-01T02:35:14.856-05:00

"We hope you might be interested in helping to sell this book to the attention of the American public -- and thus, perhaps, helping to halt totalitarianism."Harcourt, Brace and Company, Inc., plugging their new novel 1984 to J. Edgar Hoover, 1949.We must confess that with each new disclosure of the government's attempts to gather information, we feel a certain thrill of curiosity: how much do

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1164775415460045442006-11-28T23:54:00.000-05:002006-11-28T23:50:10.390-05:00

A news item caught our eye:"U.S. soldiers fought with suspected insurgents using a building as a safe house in Ramadi on Tuesday, killing one Iraqi man and five females, ranging in age from an infant to teenagers, the U.S. military said...."The battle in Ramadi began when a U.S. patrol discovered a roadside bomb in the Hamaniyah section of the city, and two suspected insurgents fled to a house,

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1164700022943940532006-11-28T02:57:00.000-05:002006-11-28T02:47:30.436-05:00

From the Raw Story:"DENVER — In a town in scenic southwestern Colorado, homeowners are battling over whether a Christmas wreath that includes a peace sign is an anti-Iraq war protest or a promotion of Satan..."Kearns... said he was concerned about the pagan symbolism of the peace sign. 'It’s also an anti-Christ sign. That’s how it started,' he told the Durango Herald."We assume this explains

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1164695746734242652006-11-28T01:45:00.000-05:002006-11-28T01:44:37.680-05:00

This item, posted by Mr. Oliver Willis, truly gladdened our hearts.Mr. Cheney, quite the pin-up in his lily-white Stetson, can grace your wall for a mere twenty-five dollars."Keep track of important dates with the Official 2007 RNC Calendar filled with full-color photographs of President Bush, the First Lady, Vice President Cheney and Lynn Cheney. Each month features fascinating, little-known,

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1164672121773779032006-11-27T19:03:00.000-05:002006-11-27T19:02:01.950-05:00

The situation in Iraq has apparently entered a "new phase.""Addressing the upcoming meetings with al-Maliki, Hadley said, 'We're clearly in a new phase characterized by an increase in sectarian violence that requires us to adapt to that new phase.'"We're disturbed to hear that Iraq is becoming a trouble spot. As pessimists, we predicted this, but no one likes to be right all the time."The

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1164525386433393872006-11-26T02:18:00.000-05:002006-11-26T02:30:43.706-05:00

(This post is third in a series of which the total number is as yet unknown. We warn you in advance that it will not be appreciated by all -- we certainly do not wish to offend anyone, but our mission is clear and we bravely march ahead. That is our way.)Let us examine the final minutes of Dracula, A.D. 1972, directed, appropriately, in 1972, by Alan Gibson, for the esteemed Hammer Studios of

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1164176160969618592006-11-22T13:22:00.000-05:002006-11-22T01:20:19.000-05:00

"The spectacle presents itself as something enormously positive, indisputable and inaccessible. It says nothing more than 'that which appears is good, that which is good appears.'"--Guy Debord, The Society of the SpectacleThere at times seems to be nothing more trite, and inherently unnewsworthy, than the public meltdown of a celebrity. "Celebrities are by definition false creations," we say to

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1164009632115045592006-11-20T03:02:00.000-05:002006-11-20T03:00:32.126-05:00

Henry Kissinger announced yesterday that a military victory is impossible in Iraq.We here at DHAIP don't like to boast, but apparently our understanding of foreign affairs is deeper and more insightful than that of ex-Secretary of State, Nobel Laureate, and popular war criminal Henry Kissinger. We've been saying this since late 2003. That means we have three years more insight than he does. We

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1163834742408491852006-11-18T02:30:00.000-05:002006-11-18T02:25:42.630-05:00

This, which we learned about here."Researchers in Timbuktu are fighting to preserve tens of thousands of ancient texts which they say prove Africa had a written history at least as old as the European Renaissance.Private and public libraries in the fabled Saharan town in Mali have already collected 150,000 brittle manuscripts, some of them from the 13th century, and local historians believe many

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1163746442050488602006-11-17T01:56:00.000-05:002006-11-17T01:54:02.376-05:00

We enjoyed this video very much, although in the end it told us somewhat less about the ideas of Marx and somewhat more about how wonderfully socially charged many of the classic cartoons actually were.The more we ponder it, in fact, the more we have begun to wonder about how our world-view was shaped in our childhood years by popular culture. Many of us here at DHAIP long ago read C. S. Lewis's

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1163659646539330492006-11-16T02:02:00.000-05:002006-11-16T02:03:39.016-05:00

We won't deny that there was a point in time when we believed that O. J. Simpson was not terribly bright. He seemed to be behaving in odd ways, making unwise statements to the press, and generally compromising his enviable position as the most famous acquitted murderer in the world. And yet now our eyes have been opened, and we understand that Mr. Simpson may be the defining genius of our age."

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1163538059303135122006-11-14T16:03:00.000-05:002006-11-14T16:00:59.543-05:00

Apparently we were not the only ones who found this slightly odd.Not to say there's any necessary significance to all this, beyond the terrorists being, as ever, good conservatives. To suppose anything more would probably be rather paranoid. Still, as number three of Thomas Pynchon's Proverbs for Paranoids points out:"If they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don't have to worry

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1163499281933427422006-11-14T05:13:00.000-05:002006-11-14T05:14:41.943-05:00

We found this idea rather appealing. Granted, it would be even nicer to see the Amerikansan public for once well-informed, but honestly, what are the odds of that?It is in the nature of governments to trade in misinformation. In the intent to deceive, there's tragically little difference between the US government and, for example, Stalin -- now, hold on a moment -- before we hear outraged

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1163405541946070802006-11-13T03:14:00.000-05:002006-11-13T03:14:25.313-05:00

"For almost a century, Halliburton has made an indelible impression on the world."--from the Halliburton website"The chief business of the American people is business."--Calvin Coolidge, 1925We here at DHAIP issue a demand: the Internet must be stopped! There is simply too much information and all of our eyes have become tired. Here we were, trying to compose a simple little post summarizing

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1163323588045945372006-11-12T04:23:00.000-05:002006-11-12T04:30:48.253-05:00

Some time ago we presented a strange rewrite of the Bush-Limbaugh interview, prepared by a staffer (whom we shall call MC) who had been driven insane with loathing and disgust by the experience of reading the actual transcript. We are pleased to report that he has been released from the hospital following intensive chemical treatment. He has not yet regained the power of speech, but his tremors

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1163201138836606802006-11-10T18:22:00.000-05:002006-11-10T18:25:38.843-05:00

It's impossible not to detect his glee. We congratulate any public servant who is still able, after years of effort, to enjoy his job.

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1163197988726934062006-11-10T17:34:00.000-05:002006-11-10T17:33:08.733-05:00

We confess that we wonder sometimes whether the Al-Qaeda management speaks regularly with Karl Rove. They certainly seem bent on saying everything the Republican Party would wish them to:“The American people have put their feet on the right path by ... realizing their president’s betrayal in supporting Israel,” the terror leader said. “So they voted for something reasonable in the last elections

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1163182397942254502006-11-10T13:15:00.000-05:002006-11-10T15:13:52.236-05:00

Sometimes it seems that pessimism just isn't enough. Prepare to laugh until you weep or consider suicide, depending on how much you admire the pop group U2.We confess amusement. Our thanks to our correspondent MD, for directing our attention to this matter.

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1163137782478947902006-11-10T00:52:00.000-05:002006-11-10T01:31:56.113-05:00

...but what is a conspiracy theory? (We couldn't leave it alone.) For several years now the White House has been angrily warning us to ignore "conspiracy theories" about why we went to war in Iraq. In practice, then, their definition of the term "conspiracy theory" would include any theory that differs from the reasons they gave themselves: WMDs, 9/11, bringing democracy to the oppressed.

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1163110953273938762006-11-09T17:23:00.000-05:002006-11-09T17:26:18.463-05:00

Most of our readers -- hello all! -- are probably unaware of the rigorous, even savage review process each post must undergo before it appears here on the DHAIP site. Arguments last well into the small hours about the most seemingly mundane issues: use of italics, photo choices, the spelling of "tumescence," etc. We do this because we care. About you. The Reader. (Italics approved 4:30 PM

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1163017783580338192006-11-08T15:32:00.000-05:002006-11-08T15:33:30.393-05:00

In Montana, Jon Tester has been declared the victor. A recount will most likely be asked for in Virginia. (We here at DHAIP would love to say to the GOP: "Get over it. You lost." They themselves have recited this mantra for the past six years, in reference to the initial "election" of Mr. Bush. The irony would be delicious, but also crass. Let the recount proceed, then... we'll wait. On a

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1163011968252281012006-11-08T13:54:00.000-05:002006-11-08T16:39:56.280-05:00

"Hey, why all the glum faces?"--George Bush, 11/8/06When we mentioned "sudden dismissals" in our previous post, we didn't quite expect a departure quite so quickly, but we'll take it, we'll take it. Mr. Bush and Mr. Rumsfeld have jointly decided that "new leadership is needed in the Pentagon." Our shock is boundless.His replacement will be former CIA chief and Texas A&M University President

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1162978595639426382006-11-08T04:36:00.000-05:002006-11-08T04:36:35.776-05:00

We pride ourselves on being rarely wrong here at DHAIP. (That's the great thing about pessimism -- it's a winner's bet!) But when we are wrong, we admit it, and graciously. Election Day appears to have taken on a positive slant. What can we say? Our Tarot reading must have been off. The Hanged Man did indeed make an appearance, but he proved too little, too late. The Magician fumbled and

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1162872952354587722006-11-06T23:17:00.000-05:002006-11-07T02:54:09.340-05:00

(Beale is sitting behind the desk, his eyes glazed. On the screens in the control booth he looks so lost as to be ghostly. He begins to speak the moment he is cued.)We know things are bad - worse than bad. They're crazy. It's like everything everywhere is going crazy, so we don't go out anymore. We sit in the house, and slowly the world we are living in is getting smaller, and all we say is, '

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1162853366316712902006-11-06T17:50:00.000-05:002006-11-06T21:36:51.286-05:00

"It's a major achievement for Iraq's young democracy and its constitutional government."--George W. BushTruly, what other image could spell out so clearly what it means to "replace the rule of a tyrant with the rule of law"?An interesting excerpt from the press: "You now have absolute proof that you've got an independent judiciary in Iraq," White House spokesman Tony Snow told NBC television.

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1162846834317000982006-11-06T16:01:00.000-05:002006-11-07T03:26:20.320-05:00

(This is Part 2 of a series of n, in which n is an undefined value related to our unpredictable willingness to let it go. Part One here.)In 1952 a young man named Guy-Ernest Debord created a true cinematic work of art. The following clip constitutes the first four minutes of the film. If you feel able to, we suggest watching it in its entirety. If you are not a fluent speaker of French (we

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1162712804547884082006-11-05T02:44:00.000-05:002006-11-07T02:41:41.250-05:00

The GOP's recent "These are the Stakes" ad, which we featured in an earlier post (and which the folks at Minitrue have rather nicely improved on) has been justly compared to, and almost certainly deliberately refers to, the infamous LBJ nuclear swipe at Goldwater:A true marvel of fearmongering, even by modern standards. We ourselves can hardly watch it without urinating. The fact that the GOP

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1162422240737644642006-11-02T16:36:00.000-05:002006-11-03T16:42:30.916-05:00

A terrible tragedy has occurred here at DHAIP. One of our staffers, asked to prepare a follow-up report to our previous post regarding the Bush/Limbaugh interview that took place earlier this week, has apparently gone insane.Several days of repeated knocking at his office door produced no result; when the door was forced, we found him collapsed on the floor, in front of what can only be

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1162425572068775352006-11-02T01:17:00.000-05:002006-11-02T02:49:20.510-05:00

We suggest that you turn off the sound on your computer for a moment. Then play this clip.Now turn your sound on. Playing it again reveals a piano accompaniment, music that attaches itself immediately to the visual and reduces it to quaintness, allowing the mind to sort it into a category: an old silent movie. Our mind's eye then sees Chaplin twirling a cane and Lillian Gish crossing an ice

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1162420187701976772006-11-01T17:30:00.000-05:002006-11-01T17:29:47.710-05:00

"WASHINGTON - President Bush said Wednesday he wants Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Vice President Dick Cheney to remain in his administration until the end of his presidency...."In other news, a gall bladder today announced that it would "greatly prefer" that a brain, heart, and spinal column remain connected to it until the end of its life.

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1162367662165157702006-11-01T03:25:00.000-05:002006-11-01T03:32:55.620-05:00

We think it is fair to say that we here at DHAIP do not view the world through rose-colored glasses. Yet even we were mildly surprised to come across this information.Only a few scant days after Mr. Limbaugh sealed his already-firm status as a dreadful, waddling blight upon humanity, the esteemed leader of Amerikansas himself will be stopping by for a quick spot of chat. The commentator in the

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1162358437573392892006-11-01T00:05:00.000-05:002006-11-01T01:17:52.760-05:00

In the vast and uncatalogued research library here at DHAIP headquarters, on a few mildewed shelves in a murky corner, we maintain a sizeable assortment of literature relating to ghosts. In honor of the day we pull down the Ghost Book of Charles Wood, 2nd Viscount Halifax (1839-1934). Lord Halifax, in his 95 years of life, was an ardent collector of supernatural anecdotes related to the

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1162258197896850092006-10-31T03:24:00.000-05:002006-10-31T03:21:48.950-05:00

A news item from the IMDB:Comedy Central Pulls Clips from YouTubeIn what could amount to a telling blow to the video website YouTube.com -- purchased by Google last month for $1.6 billion -- Comedy Central has forced it to remove thousands of clips from The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert's The Colbert Report, and South Park, the New York Post reported today (Monday). Ordinarily,

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1162251757162411412006-10-30T18:45:00.000-05:002006-10-31T02:09:04.263-05:00

In the recent reawakening of interest in Lynne Cheney's past literary career -- the subject of much scurrilous humor and thoughtful analysis -- we find ourselves mildly puzzled at the presence of what appears to be a former thoughtful feminist scholar at the side of our staunchly conservative Vice/Shadow President of the United States, Dick Cheney.The "Acknowledgements" of her rediscovered and

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1162192776516387202006-10-30T02:20:00.000-05:002006-10-30T02:19:36.573-05:00

In our relentless attempts to mine the back files of Youtube before its new owner Google finds a way to render this great resource useless, we came across a document to be cherished: the Nobel lecture of last year's laureate, the remarkable and brilliant dramatist Mr. Harold Pinter. With our usual care for your well-being, we have judged it worth the 46 minutes it will take to watch it in its

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1162017884592686602006-10-28T02:44:00.000-04:002006-10-30T02:36:48.276-05:00

In the wake of Rush Limbaugh's extraordinary demonstration of human decency, we have another response to Michael J. Fox's campaign ad -- a supergroup of concerned celebrities giving us their opinion of stem-cell research:This deserves analysis. First, of course, we have James Caviezel (known for playing Jesus in a recent film by B'nai B'rith award-winner Mel Gibson) and, to his right, what

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1162011051391032812006-10-28T00:45:00.000-04:002006-10-28T01:45:58.926-04:00

Clearly some people have nothing better to do with their time than be spoilsports.Fortunately Mr. Efthimiou's irresponsible assertions can be disproved on all three counts:

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1161983210729054742006-10-27T18:30:00.000-04:002006-10-27T18:37:59.960-04:00

We've been so busy being depressive here, we'd almost forgotten the holiday season! We're a mere four days from the ONLY HOLIDAY THAT MATTERS, and our favorite time of year has arrived: when the souls of the dead creep blindly through the darkness, when the wind is brisk and leaves scuttle merrily across the pavement, when the evenings are rosy and filled with Dickensian -- oops, pardon us,

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1161882883648503182006-10-26T13:17:00.000-04:002006-10-26T13:14:43.660-04:00

So where will the next war be?We have noted a curious phenomenon in these past few years. With a disastrous war already undertaken and rumbling along quite steadily, with the national resources stretched thin and patience stretched thinner, it would seem counterintuitive that another war should be a question on everybody's minds. And yet the question above is asked as frequently, if not more,

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1161850397189261892006-10-26T12:05:00.000-04:002006-10-26T12:10:50.576-04:00

The fact that we are less than a month away from the publication of over a thousand pages of Pynchon has caused us a certain conflict of interest here at DHAIP, on two levels:A: It does not behoove us to be enthusiastic about the future, professionally speaking.B: Advertising is not our game.Therefore, we officially predict disappointment in the finished product and refuse to link to any site

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1161759552898087662006-10-25T02:55:00.000-04:002006-10-25T03:07:04.486-04:00

To balance out the previous post.The real reason capitalism is the greatest economic system: it ends civilization the fastest. And we here at DHAIP are highly curious to see what comes afterward.But then isn't everybody?

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1161750673840740222006-10-25T00:34:00.000-04:002006-10-25T20:47:55.160-04:00

Our spirits were uncharacteristically lifted by this.Jaime Ocampo says he proudly tells people he meets in the street that “the police are different now - we read”... “I think of myself as [Don] Quixote and my buddy, my partner, as Sancho Panza, who has to watch my back,” says Pedro Martinez, referring to the Spanish classic his class read last year in a digested version. “They were a little

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1161668494107795362006-10-24T01:42:00.000-04:002006-10-24T01:41:34.116-04:00

We here at DHAIP certainly do all we can to encourage the arts. However, if one is to believe all one hears, the US military were the ones who truly found the cutting edge. Abu Ghraib or Avant-Garde?It comes in eleven parts. Here is part one. The rest are linked thereto. The digressions are many. We advise sticking with it. His observations on Casablanca and Vertigo should please any

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1161630344796065792006-10-23T15:32:00.000-04:002006-10-23T22:58:54.020-04:00

"...you mere man who comes here to put you and your pipestem between clay and sky, do you think that because you can strike a bit of green light from the Leyden jar that you can thoroughly avert the supernal bolt? Your rod rusts, or breaks, and where are you?"Do you ever wonder exactly why the USA is losing the fight in Iraq? And why we didn't commit more troops in the first place, just to be

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1161575975775489432006-10-23T00:39:00.000-04:002006-10-23T21:39:41.623-04:00

We here at AIP have recently noticed certain flarings of cautious optimism regarding the results of the upcoming midterm elections. Pooh! we say. Committed as we are to firm opposition to any premature hope, we advise battening down the hatches for further thundersqualls of outrage. Consider that this election is probably more important than the 2008 presidential round, to the GOP, anyway. We

Dr. Hulbeckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14952434485138242963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36364194.post-1161380956872805912006-10-20T17:32:00.000-04:002006-10-20T18:01:04.633-04:00

Following some technical issues and management disputes, Adventures in Pessimism will now break through the radio silence to resume scheduled programming. Any indication of conflict within the organization can be safely disregarded. There is no reason to regard any content or information contained in our broadcasts as anything but irrefutable. The world has become more dangerous these days and

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