Going Green: It's the American Way

The average price of a gallon of gas in America has passed $4. Oil is nearing $140 a barrel, soon to be going to $150 or higher. Glenn Beck (who I had the pleasure of meeting recently) inquired on his radio show where our energy "moon shot" was. We put a man on the moon 8 years after JFK declared our intent to do that. So where is the "moon shot" to get us to reduce our dependence on oil?

John McCain actually stuck his neck out there this week and proposed the "moon shot" that we've been looking for. He offered a government prize of $300 million for coming up with an efficient battery that can run our cars so we can get off oil. Naturally, the Democrats are calling this a gimmick. I would say to them, what's your alternative? How are you going to get us off oil? The only thing Democrats have proposed recently is taxing the oil companies, suing OPEC (yeah, like they wouldn't cut us off immediately if we tried that... hello $10 a gallon), and if that doesn't work, some of them have advocated nationalizing the oil industry... you know, like they do in socialist dictatorships like Venezuela. The one thing they have advocated (biofuels) has caused world food prices to skyrocket because we're growing corn for fuel instead of other crops that the world needs. But hey, it got the Democratic senators who were running for president votes in Iowa, and that's all that matters, right?

Luckily, behind the scenes something is being done, and it's being done using (gasp) the free market. It's called green technology. Fortune 500 companies are investing billions of dollars in coming up with ways to do things without oil. The National Green Building Conference has become such an annual event that they now have to turn people away because so many people want to attend. Here in Syracuse, the much-maligned Destiny USA project is 100% green, and they want to build an R&D park for green technology. We also have the under-construction Center of Excellence in Engineering and Environmental Systems and the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, combining to put eager young minds to work on new technology that will wean us off oil and leave the earth a little cleaner.

This isn't about global warming... because I don't believe global warming is happening, but that's another entry. You don't have to be concerned with climate change to want to do something that doesn't foul our air as much or potentially pollute our water. Nobody says they're for pollution, so why not support efforts to do things in a cleaner way?

This is not to say we shouldn't also be drilling for oil. This is the one thing that confounds me about the political debate over energy... one side says we need to only support renewable green energy, and the other side says we need to only drill for oil. Why can't we do BOTH?

Instead, despite a recent Rasmussen poll that says that two-thirds of the country is FOR offshore drilling, the Democrats refuse to let it happen. They continue to proclaim that this will only help the evil oil companies, and Paul Krugman (surprise, surprise) says that two-thirds of the country is for offshore drilling because they're being CONNED. Typical liberal elitism... if you disagree with us, you must be too stupid to realize that you're getting a pack of lies.

There is a simple way to fix this: we know that the oil companies are not using all the land they already have leases for in the Gulf of Mexico... so we give them the leases but we also REQUIRE them to get drilling. Give them a time limit on these leases and see how quickly they get working. The oil companies say that they lack the manpower and the equipment. Here's an idea... you say you need that $40 billion in profits to reinvest? Well, then REINVEST IT ALREADY! We need to let the free market work, but we also need to remind corporations that they have a responsibility to their shareholders (which is most of us who own stock), and the public at large to behave responsibly. Yes, I suppose these time limits qualify as "government regulation" but a little kick in the butt isn't a bad thing.

The common theme of all of this for me is that we seem to lack the enthusiasm for the solutions to our problems. I heard a Wall Street analyst recently say that people in this country say no to things way too easily. We say no to nuclear power because we're afraid of accidents (despite the fact that nuclear has had a sparkling safety record since Three Mile Island 30 years ago). We say no to wind farms because they're unsightly. We say no to solar power because zoning laws won't allow it. We say no to refineries because we don't want to live near them. Well, let's face it folks, we're gonna have to start saying yes once in a while if we're going to get out of this energy mess that we're in.

America has always been about finding the solutions, America has always been about take something and make it better. If it already works, that's great, but make it work even better. We've always been the "can do" country, and we need to remind people of that. McCain's $300 million prize is the perfect platform from which he should revive that Reagan optimism that connects so well with Americans. We need to get fired up again and encourage the people, especially the young people who have always known cynicism, to get out there and do what they can to make things better.

Seen Any Good Movies (Lists) Lately?

I've said it before, and I'll say it again... everybody loves a good list. I'm such a believer in that fact that I've finished every year of this blog with a list of things that happened that year. Good lists make for good discussion, bad lists make for even better discussion.

So it's no surprise that a lot of people have been talking about the latest movie lists from AFI (that would be the American Film Institute, not the band). They had a TV special last week where they listed the top 10 movies in 10 different categories. I'll run through these lists one by one, then I'll tell you my problem with the whole concept.

First, the part I agree with... they pretty much hit the nail on the head with the Animation category. Let's face it, the Disney folks have pretty much owned this category forever, so it should come as no surprise that 9 of the top 10 films were Disney or Disney/Pixar, and the 10th being "Shrek", that's fine too. Now a lot of people will look at all of these lists and complain that there aren't a lot of recent movies on these lists. Well, the classics are called classics for a reason, because they were really good and they were done a really long time ago. They set the standard for everything that has come since, so they should get their just due. I also find it interesting that despite all the bluster from film critics and people who give out awards, the only 3 movies from this decade that made any of these lists ("Shrek", "Lord of the Rings", and "Finding Nemo") were movies that people ACTUALLY WENT TO SEE. You can pass out all the Oscars you want for your "critical darlings", but are you ever gonna see "The English Patient" on any of these lists? Hell, no.

Let me run you through the #1 movies on these other lists... #1 Fantasy movie: "Wizard of Oz". Good call, deservedly the greatest fantasy movie ever, it's still a huge part of our pop culture almost 70 years after it was made. #1 Gangster movie: "The Godfather". Another natural. #1 Sci-fi movie: "2001: A Space Odyssey". Can't argue with that one, though I'm sure "Star Wars" geeks everywhere are crying in their parents' basements over it. #1 Western: "The Searchers". Have to admit I am not a big expert in the Western category, having only seen one of the 10 movies on this list ("Red River", the #5 movie), so I'll take their word for it. #1 Sports movie: "Raging Bull". Seen it, thought it was great, and yeah I'll take that over "Rocky", if only because of the black-and-white format and the fact that Scorsese tops Stallone as a director any day. #1 Mystery: "Vertigo". Seen it, thought it was great, and Hitchcock was the master, so it makes sense that 4 of his movies made that list. #1 Epic: "Lawrence of Arabia". Again, not a category that is my forte, so I'm cool with that choice.

Now, #1 Romantic Comedy: "City Lights". A silent Chaplin film from 1931. I like Chaplin, don't get me wrong, I loved "Modern Times", but "Annie Hall" should be #1. #1 Courtroom Drama: "To Kill a Mockingbird". Sorry, "12 Angry Men" was better, and more of a "courtroom drama" than "Mockingbird". Oh, by the way, where is "Inherit the Wind" on this list? One of Spencer Tracy's finest performances, but didn't make it.

This leads me to the movies that I feel are missing or misranked. Like I said, I'm not an expert on "epic" movies, but I know that the only thing thing that would qualify "Titanic" as an epic is the fact that it was eighty hours long. Yes, I know it's the top-grossing movie of all time, but I chalk that up to the fact that teenage girls kept going to see it over and over and over so they could fawn all over Leonardo DiCaprio. If you're gonna put it on the top 10 list, it CANNOT be higher than "The Ten Commandments". "Schindler's List" CANNOT be higher than "The Ten Commandments". And where, pray tell, is "Birth of a Nation" on this list? That was the ORIGINAL EPIC MOVIE! Yes I realize the movie was inherently racist but political correctness should not disqualify a movie.

I have a problem with nearly the whole "Fantasy" category. #1, "Wizard of Oz", fine. #2, "Lord of the Rings", maybe a tad high but okay. #3... "It's a Wonderful Life"? Great movie, I never miss it at Christmas time... but when I think "fantasy", I don't think of old George Bailey. "King Kong" is a fantasy, that should have been ranked higher. I'll give you "Harvey" and even "Big". But "Field of Dreams"? We already have a Sports category, and this is a SPORTS MOVIE. Move that over to the Sports top 10, drop "Breaking Away". And even then we're missing "Chariots of Fire" and "Million Dollar Baby", both of which I've seen and liked.

The bigger problem is that "Top 10 in 10 categories" is cute, but there aren't enough categories. For one thing, we have a category for Romantic Comedies but we don't have a category for COMEDY comedies. Now some are theme movies, and therefore I get putting "Caddyshack" on the Sports list and "Big" on the Fantasy list... but "Groundhog Day" is a COMEDY, not a "fantasy". Actually, it's a romantic comedy when you get right down to it, cuz Bill Murray spends the whole movie trying to make things right with Andie MacDowell. We need a comedy category! And we need a musical category. Then you can put a Bing Crosby/Bob Hope "road" movie in either category. And we need a War category. Some of the greatest movies ever made are war movies, but without a category of its own, you get "Saving Private Ryan" put in with the epics. Give me a War category with "Ryan", "Sergeant York", "The Longest Day", and "The Dirty Dozen" to top the list. And that still leaves movies that defy categorization. Yeah, we have Science Fiction, but where do you put Science FACT? "The Right Stuff"? And what about "Forrest Gump"?

So you see, these lists are quite handy because they give bloggers like me something to write about, and sometimes it's not easy looking for topics. Plus in this case, it reminds me of just how few of these 100 movies that DID make the lists I've seen. By my count, I've only seen 23. Something to put on the old "to do" list... there ya go, I'm making more lists of my own now...

New York Baseball Bloopers

It's done. It's over. The New York media and "Joe from Long Island" on the Fan got their pound of flesh. The Mets organization handled it in about the most unprofessional way imaginable, and this life-long Mets fan is just ashamed right now.

In case you don't know what happened, Mets manager Willie Randolph got fired this morning. As in early this morning. As in 3:15am New York time this morning. His job had been in jeopardy since the end of last season, when the Mets blew a 7-game lead with 17 games to play. They've been mediocre this season, flirting with the .500 mark all the way, and they haven't been within reach of first place since early May. So Mets fans (patient sort that they are) started the chants of "Fire Willie", and the New York media started their own Willie Watch, trotting out their talking heads on TV and radio to proclaim whether or not Willie had earned his pink slip after every loss.

Considering the Mets have been without Pedro Martinez for most of the season, Moises Alou can't play two games in a row without going down for a month, Ryan Church (their best player for the first six weeks of the season) got a concussion and was completely mishandled by the team, which has led to him missing almost a month... well, suffice to say, Willie hadn't been running all the A troops out there every time. Plus, he's had to deal with a struggling Carlos Delgado and a struggling Carlos Beltran, neither of whom have been giving 100 percent on a consistent basis (let's just say that when one of them dives for a ball, it's a surprise). Willie probably stuck his foot in his mouth when he wondered aloud if the criticism against him was racially motivated, but his biggest mistake there was saying it in confidence to a New York media member and thinking it would stay private.

Apparently, the decision had already been made to fire Willie after the Mets managed to get swept four straight by the cellar-dwelling Padres a week ago, but they wanted to "wait until the right time" to pull the trigger. Meanwhile, the organization developed more leaks than the Monica Lewinsky investigation, and the press knew everything before it was going to happen. So when GM Omar Minaya was reported to be heading to Anaheim with the Mets for this current roadtrip, it was assumed that Willie would be fired first thing yesterday (although that in itself is silly... why pay to fly a dead man walking cross-country when he's just gonna get fired before he can manage a game out there). Instead, Omar hung out at the hotel while the Mets were winning their 3rd game in the last 4 and actually showing some signs that they'd turned the corner. When the team got back after the game, Willie got whacked.

Classy, huh?

So Jerry Manuel will be running things for the rest of the season, and I have no reason to believe that this team is going to rally now. They might have for Willie, and it's nothing against Manuel, but it's kind of a tough hit to take when you're rallying around a guy, starting to play hard for him, and it doesn't matter. I foresee a .500 season, after which Manuel and the remaining coaches get fired and the organization will have to clean house. And to think, just 9 months ago, we Mets fans thought we were on the way to a 2nd straight division title and maybe a world championship run...

But leave it to Hank Steinbrenner to find a way to at least try to upstage the soap opera playing out in Queens. His ace pitcher, Chien-Ming Wang sprained his foot rounding the bases in Houston during interleague play over the weekend; Wang is likely out until September. American League pitchers, of course, don't bat normally, but in National League ballparks, you play by NL rules. Well, Mt. Steinbrenner Junior blew up yesterday, saying that the National League should "grow up and join the 21st century" and have a designated hitter like the AL does. Let me address Mr. Steinbrenner directly...

Listen up, assbag... the designated hitter is probably the stupidest rule baseball has ever come up with. Pitchers should hit just like everyone else does; hell, if the pitchers didn't hit back in the day, we never would have found out that Babe Ruth could hit a baseball nine miles and that guy MADE your franchise. It's part of the strategy that is baseball, figuring out what to do with a lesser hitter at the bottom of your lineup, instead of creating a new position that has been used ever since to give good-hit, no-glove types like Edgar Martinez a career, or worse to allow us to see hobbling 40-somethings who are well past their primes try to eke out a couple more halfway decent seasons and collect a few million more dollars. I have had it with you and your overinflated opinion of both yourself and your franchise, which is really your daddy's franchise, and I could tell you a few things about how one can play with daddy's money and run everything into the ground...

In short, Hank, I hope Randy Wolf starts tonight's game against your Yankees by throwing one right at Derek Jeter's head and then telling him, "That's how we do things in the National League, and you tell your stain of an owner that!" It'll never happen, of course, because that's another aspect of baseball that's been thrown out of the game, like AL pitchers batting... or team ownership handling their business in a dignified way... maybe it's just a New York thing...

Return to Dino-palooza

The summer concert season is upon us, and I have already plunked down some of my hard-earned cash on seeing Blues Traveler over Memorial Day weekend. They were as good as ever, but it made me realize that more and more of the bands I enjoyed in my teenage and college years are becoming irrelevant. Hey I'm still a loyal fan, buying the new CDs when they come out (except in the case of Blues Traveler, I did not buy the album where they covered their own songs... I thought that was a little cheesy).

However, for every band that has managed to keep their career afloat and have platinum album after platinum album, there are 5 more that are fading into obscurity. Weezer's new album came out today and I got it and immediately was pleased with my purchase... you have to appreciate anyone who can open a song with a Gordon Lightfoot reference ("Gordon Lightfoot sang a song about a boat that sank in a lake") and it winds up being the best damn song on the album. But also today, Cake lead singer John McCrae was quoted in an interview as lamenting the decline of his band and the fact that he really doesn't like touring but now that's all they've got because they haven't put out an album in years.

Well, it's Dave to the rescue... it is time to bring back Dino-palooza.

What's Dino-palooza, you might ask? Well, back in 2002, I wrote an entry (or Internet column, as I called it then, before "blog" was a word) about a concept born out of a combination of nostalgia and alcohol... the "Dinosaurs of Modern Rock Tour". Yes, modern rock has its dinosaur bands now, which is why I no longer laugh when I hear about tours like the Heart-Cheap Trick-Journey (with its 5th lead singer) jaunt that is coming through the 'Cuse at State Fair time. However, as this thing grew legs, we realized that this had to be a full-fledged multi-stage traveling festival, called Dino-palooza.

Since 2002, many more bands have slid off the radar screen and need the career boost that could only come from a place on Dino-palooza. Cake, for one. They're definitely in, main stage material at that. And Blues Traveler certainly is invited. So how does a band get on Dino-palooza? Well, it has to have been at least 5 years since their last major hit song. Breaking up at one point and getting back together always works too (Soul Asylum or Gin Blossoms, for example). The one common element is that they have to be in it for the dough. The best chance to make money is to do package tours, so this is a win-win for everyone involved.

Prime example: Stone Temple Pilots just got back together and they're touring this summer. STP admitted that this reunion is all about making money, so there's your headliner. See how long they last before Scott lands back in rehab. Good times. We'll add Filter to the bill so when Scott does fall off the wagon, they can just get Richard Patrick and reform Army of Anyone.

Now the difference between having a band like STP on Dino-palooza and a band like R.E.M. is status. STP has NO status. Sorry, guys, you rocked back in your day, but you are not seen as one of the great grand-daddies of current rock. I have WAY too much admiration for R.E.M. to saddle them with Dino-palooza status. Same goes for Pearl Jam. However, we'll invite The Cure onboard... they have a new album out and they could use the support. And Alice In Chains is definitely in. Influential or not, reforming without the late Layne Staley is very Queen with Paul Rodgers or "Doors of the 21st Century". Speaking of which, Ian Astbury now knows a thing or two about touring with rock dinosaurs, so The Cult can come along too.

And the following bands should sign up for this as well, while we still remember that we loved them way back when: Everclear, Better Than Ezra, Fuel, Live, Oasis, Third Eye Blind, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Collective Soul, Counting Crows, Our Lady Peace, Barenaked Ladies, Alanis Morissette, Liz Phair, The Cranberries, Garbage... and Limp Bizkit. Definitely Limp Bizkit. Talk about "oh how the mighty have fallen..."

They keep putting out new albums, they still want you to love them, and dammit, we do, so let's get them all together and lend them our support and $30 a ticket. Most importantly, we need to get something out there so that when people think "retro summer tour", they don't think of the 7 scariest words of the summer: New Kids on the Block Reunion Tour.