In the days leading up to the Super Bowl, we witnessed the usual chatter and previews of the high-dollar car ads for the big game: a Ferris Bueller-channeling Matthew Broderick for Honda, the return of Volkswagen’s Darth Vader kid, Audi’s teen vampire killer, etc. But the game’s most memorable — and thought-provoking — ad came at halftime, as an American movie icon fronted a Chrysler spot that was part car commercial, part pro-Detroit PR clip, and part political campaign ad. We’ll take a closer look at what it says (and doesn’t say) after the jump.
What would Henry Rollins do if he were president? Would he fast-track a ban on hipsterdom? Or replace State of the Union addresses with intense conversations with his favorite filmmakers? In fact, it sounds like he would be a much better — and more practical — leader than some of our real presidents. In an interview with Big Think in which he discusses what he’d do, given the keys to the Oval Office, Rollins said, “My first day in office, I would have lost Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. I would have re-established Glass-Steagall. I would have demanded that the Bush tax cuts would have sunsetted… I would have gone in reacting to eight years of George W. Bush, two useless wars that make America hemorrhage life and treasure. I would immediately start repairing the perception of America in the world.” Of course, he also believes some government higher-ups would sit him down and disabuse him of the notion that meaningful change is possible. Watch the video after the jump, and see if it doesn’t inspire you to make your very own Rollins/MacKaye ’12 sign.
Rapists. Thieves. Louts. Clowns. An unruly mob. Pond scum. Losers. Schmucks. That pretty much sums up the stream of insults Sin City author/artist Frank Miller has hurled at Occupy protesters around the country. In a blog post that enraged Richard Metzger at Dangerous Minds, Miller writes, “‘Occupy’ is nothing short of a clumsy, poorly-expressed attempt at anarchy, to the extent that the ‘movement’ – HAH! Some ‘movement’, except if the word ‘bowel’ is attached – is anything more than an ugly fashion statement by a bunch of iPhone, iPad wielding spoiled brats who should stop getting in the way of working people and find jobs for themselves.” Why yes, folks, the guy whose most famous work deals with such issues as economic inequality and police corruption, just made a poop joke at the expense of a movement that seems to be addressing exactly these topics.
There are a lot of possible responses to this news, but we’re giving the last word to the Dangerous Minds commenter who seems to sum it up best: “Huh. I never realized that Sin City was Frank Miller’s vision of what he WANTED the US to become. For some bizarre reason I thought it was depicting a ‘dystopian’ US. My bad.”
Sounding more like an episode of The X-Files than official government news (or maybe it’s not that crazy after all … ) comes confirmation from our political leaders that there is ” … no evidence that any life exists outside our planet, or that an extraterrestrial presence has contacted or engaged any member of the human race.” Awesome. The White House responded to several recent petitions that called for a formal statement regarding U.S. government contact with alien beings. The request was signed by thousands of people since ” … more than 50% of the American people believe there is an extraterrestrial presence and more than 80% believe the government is not telling the truth about this phenomenon.” The petitions stem from an Obama administration initiative called “We the People” that assigns White House staffers to answer questions for the general public. 25,000 online signatures are required to take action — a number bumped up from its former 5,000 requirement (for obvious reasons). [via TIME]
If we asked you who has been the worst president in US history for medical marijuana, would you ever guess that the answer to that question was Barack Obama? Or at least he is according to this chart compiled by the Marijuana Policy Project. As they point out, this seems pretty surprising considering that Obama pledged to respect state laws on the matter during his 2008 campaign. That said, there’s seems to be a trend of stricter regulation happening here that begins with the Clinton administration. What do you make of it all? [via BuzzFeed]
Like Monopoly but hate the old-timey feel of the game? Well then why not try one that’s a little more modern? This Occupy USA board game by the Village Voice‘s William Banzai is just like the classic you’ve come to love except that it includes cities that are hosting their own versions of Occupy Wall Street and modern issues like federal bailouts and subprime mortgages. It might just be the best possible way to pass the time while you occupy the financial capital of your city. Click on for a bigger version.
Over at his always excellent blog Spine Out, designer John Gall has posted a collection of political protest posters and defaced leaders from the Middle East and elsewhere, imploring us to ignore for the moment the political messages, and consider them as art, as the most “passionate form of visual communication.” He contrasts the wild, urgently defaced posters with the coolly Photoshopped American versions – though, to be fair, the citizens in our country are not under the kind of distress as those in the countries where these posters were made. Though these posters were not created as art, they represent a boiling over of emotion and cultural expression that rivals many pieces made with artistic intention. Click through to see the most compelling pieces from Gall’s roundup and let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Just when we were about to surrender to supercut fatigue, the geniuses at Wonkette had to lure us in with this inspired edit of Bill O’Reilly’s pre-Super Bowl interview with President Obama. (Yes, folks, although you may have been too busy gulping beer and snarfing hot wings, this did indeed happen.) O’Reilly is known for undermining his more liberal guests, and while he didn’t go so far as to cut Obama’s mic, he did repeatedly interrupt the president. And by repeatedly, we mean 48 times. Watch the video after the jump.
A brilliant person from Reno, Nevada named Joseph has put Hosni Mubarak up for sale on eBay, with 100% of the proceeds going to Oxfam America. Here’s some additional info from the listing: “Buy your very own used Egyptian dictator! President Hosni Mubarak is 82 years old. He is currently the President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, a position he has held for 30 years! Don’t miss out on this opportunity to buy your very own despot! All items sold in ‘as-is’ condition! No exchanges! No returns! Thanks for looking and happy bidding!” Bidding is currently at $90, and the auction ends on February 11th — unless it’s taken down by eBay first. Do we have any takers? [via The Daily What]
Juju, an 8 year old Saudi Arabian girl, shares her thoughts on Egypt’s President Mubarak and the current protests going on in Cairo. We particularly like it when she leans in conspiratorially to tell him that “by the way,” some of his police officers are deserting their posts and joining the people. You go, girl. Video after the jump!
