The Case for Joe Biden

He is a whit man in his late 70s. He has been criticized for his handling of the Anita Hill hearings in the wake of the Me-too Movement. And he wrote a crime bill that led to mass incarceration of African-Americans. 

Yet despite these factors Joe Biden may very well be the best Democrat to face off against President Trump. After all the tweeting and all the rallies and all the lies, what America may want more than anything else is stability. Nothing says stability more than Joe Biden. After four years of the chaos of the Trump Administration, boring may be the new exciting. 

I see what's going on nationally as being very similar to what happened not to long ago in my home state of California. About 15 years ago, in midst of a recession and $20 billion plus deficits,  Californians voted out Governor Gray Davis and replaced him with movie star Arnold Schwarzenegger. Like Trump, Schwarzenegger was a celebrity politician with no government experience who vowed to clean up Sacramento. But after seven years of having a celebrity governor with no government experience, California voters realized they needed a governor with government experience and in 2010 elected Jerry Brown, who served two terms as California Governor in the 1970s and 1980s. As a former Vice-President who served for 36 years in the Senate, no other potential Democratic candidate for President has more experience than Biden. 

Besides his experience, another factor that may work in Biden's favor are the debates. Can anyone ever forget Trump interrupting Hillary Clinton? Does anyone think Biden would let Trump get away with that? I can certainly imagine Biden turning to Trump and saying "excuse me Mr. President, don't interrupt me, I'm talking." After Trump's constant bullying, Democrats may want a fighter who would fight for them. When campaigning for Clinton, Biden even said that if he and Trump were in high school he would take him out behind the gym. Conservatives and Fox News might complain about Biden being too "mean" like they did after his debate with Paul Ryan in 2012, but the way you fight a bully is not to be nice to him but to punch him in the nose. Biden exemplifies a toughness that is rare in a politician, and certainly lacking in the President we have now. This is a man who lost his wife and daughter in a horrific car accident and lost his son to brain cancer yet kept serving his country. 

I mentioned earlier the crime bill that Biden wrote that led to mass incarceration of African-Americans. Of course Biden needs to apologize for that and say it was a mistake, yet I still expect African-Americans to show up for him only because he served as VP under the first African-American President. No doubt Obama would stump for him, pointing to the glory years of Obama-Biden and all they accomplished-saving America from financial collapse, saving the auto industry, expanding health insurance to 20 million Americans, and killing Osama Bin Laden. Yes, Hillary Clinton did serve as Obama's Secretary of State, but she was abroad most of the time when she served under Obama. She wasn't by Obama's side the entire eight years. Biden was, so he he can claim credit for the success of the Obama Administration as much as Obama can. Besides African-Americans, women will also turn out for Biden. Despite his handling of the Anita Hill hearings, only the most die-hard female Trump voters will vote to re-elect a President who bragged about grabbing women by the pussy over the author of the Violence Against Women Act. 

Perhaps the biggest concern voters have about Biden is his age. After all, he'll be 78 just a few weeks after the 2020 election, 86 after eight years. But Biden doesn't have to serve the full eight years. He could spend four years fixing the country and then step down to let someone else run. Alexandria Octasio-Cortez will be 35 in 2024 so she could run. This I believe would be the best strategy for a Biden campaign because a) it would make his age that much of an issue and b) it would let him focus solely on governing instead of running for re-election. 

As of this writing Biden still hasn't made up his mind, but sources say he is leaning towards a yes. If he does jump in he'll face a Democratic primary field more diverse than any other in history, facing off against several female candidates, a female African-American candidate, and a Latino candidate. But I would bet that there is something America wants more than to elect the first woman president or the first African-American woman President or the first Latino President, and that is for the country to get its sanity back. 

The 90s Were Not All That

The contemporary phenomenon of Pokemon Go more than anything reflects the millenial generations nostalgia for the 90s, a time of peace and prosperity, a time of Friends and Nickelodeon and Backstreet Boys and Pokemon and so on. 

But while the 90s may have provided  movies worth watching, books worth reading and music worth listening to, like all decades the 90s had a lot of darkness as well as light. 

If you're gay, the 90s were especially a dark time with The Defense of Marriage Act, which allowed states to pass laws banning same-sex marriage. In 1998 Ellen was canceled after Ellen Degeneres came out, and the idea of an openly gay person hosting a talk show or anchoring an evening news cast was akin to being visited by an extraterrestrial being from The X-Files. Also in 1998, Matthew Shepard was tortured and beaten to death just outside Laramie, Wyoming. It wasn't until 2009 that it became a hate crime to commit harm to someone based on their sexual orientation. And it wasn't until 2000 when Vermont became the first state to allow civil-unions. 

The recent tragedy in Orlando which left 49 people dead was shocking and saddening. But in 1995 168 people were killed in the Oklahoma City Bombing, including 19 children, some of whom were babies. Hundreds more were injured. In 1993 76 people were burned alive during the Branch Davidian raid in Waco, Texas. And of course in 1999 there was the Columbine shooting in which 13 people were gunned down. And this was all during the pre-9/11 era. The crime was also a lot higher than it is now. 

Not only were there no such thing as smartphones, but if you had dial up it was impossible to talk on the phone and go on the internet at the same time, unless you had a cellphone which no kid had back then. Video streaming was slow and could take hours to download. That is why many Star Wars fans paid to see the trailer for The Phantom Menace in theaters rather than watch it online. There's a lot memes going around lamenting for the good old days of the 90s before the advent of technology when children went out and played. Well guess what? There is nothing stopping children from going outside to play! In fact I see children playing outside a lot when I house sit at my dads. There's also nothing stopping children from passing notes in class, roller-bladding, or playing jump rope. 

I believe the 90s renaissance has most to do with my generations nostalgia for their childhood, and there's nothing wrong with that. But I believe there's been so much reflection about how awesome the 90s were that we forget about all the bad stuff happened and neglect all the progress that has been made. Now that I'm finished you can go back to playing Pokemon Go. 

Why I refuse to belive "Indepence Day: Resurgence" even exists

I highly regret paying $9 to go see Independence Day: Resurgence, the highly anticipated sequel to the 1996 blockbuster. 

Even with the $2 discount I got by signing up for AMC stubs, it was still too much for this giant heap of garbage. The film was made out of nothing but pure greed to pump whatever money 20th Century Fox and the filmmakers could get from people who were nostalgic for the first film. I didn't get to see ID4 in theaters but I did watch it often on video with my brother and grandmother after school, back in the day when VHS tapes actually existed. 

Despite all the destruction and mayhem, ID4 to me is a "fun" movie, with Will Smith's scenes the parts I enjoy the most (the scene of him dragging the alien through the desert while complaining is my absolute favorite). Now 20 yeas later Smith's Steven Hiller is dead for no other reason than Smith's refusal to take a pay cut, even though his career is not what is used to be what with his recent flops After Earth and Focus. Smith was no doubt the shinning star of the first film, so watching the sequel without him was like viewing an apple without it's core. 

In Resurgence Hiller's adopted son Dylan (Jessie T. Usher)  is now a hot shot fighter pilot like his stepfather, while his mom (Vivica A. Fox)  somehow went from being a stripper to a hospital administrator. The only exchange between Dylan and his mom is a brief telephone conversation, so when he sees her perish in a falling building the emotional payoff is lacking (I don't really care if I spoiled the movie for you. Trust me, I'm saving you nine bucks). 

James Whitmore (Bill Pullman)  is of course no longer President, but why did the writers have to write him as an old man with declining mental health? Hasn't he gone through enough with his wife being dead? And why, oh why did they replace Mae Whitman with Maika Monroe as Whitmore's daughter Patricia? It's not like Whitman's acting career is no longer active. For five years she was on the hit NBC series Parenthood and just last year she proved she could carry a film with the hit comedy The Duff. If Whitman were in this film I would this film at least one star, maybe two. Instead, I give it zero. 

What's infuriating is that the role of Patricia Whitmore wasn't even Whitman's to turn down to begin with. They cast Monroe because they saw Whitman as not being "hot enough" for a major blockbuster, which is complete bullshit because Whitman is hot. I'd even go far as to say that she's hotter than Monroe, but that's just my opinion. Seeing Monroe as Patricia was like watching paint dry. Yeah she's good looking but there's nothing really there. 

And whatever happened to David's (Jeff Goldblum) wife or ex-wife? Did she die or did they separate for good? The sequel acts as if she never existed and doesn't even matter. Just like Dylan and his mom, this shows that director Roland Emmerich and producer Dean Devlin forgot about what made the first film so special. It wasn't so much the special effects but the relationship between the characters. David and his dad drove all the way to the White House to save his ex even though she left him years ago. It was this act of heroism, to jump into harm's way to save someone you love who might not love you back anymore, which gave the audience the necessary emotional connection to the character of David Levinson. It is the relationships between the characters that connected audiences to the first film, from the relationship between David and his ex-wife to the relationship between Whitmore and his wife and daughter to the relationship between drunk fighter pilot Russell Casse (Randy Quaid) and his three children, and so on. But unfortunately in the sequel the emotional connection between the characters is entirely lacking. Sure there's Patricia and her fiance Jim Morrison (Liam Hemsworth) but there doesn't seem to be a lot of chemistry between them. It seems as if the only reason they are getting married in the first place is because they both find each other attractive, just like Heidi and Spencer find each other attractive, and just like Barbie and Ken find each other attractive.

If you haven't seen the film you're probably wondering what the film is all about. You're guess is as good as mine. Something to do with the alien queen? After the first 15 minutes I got so bored I started checking FaceBook and wasn't really paying attention because frankly I didn't care anymore. 

It seems as if I'm not the only one who was disappointed by Resurgence. While it took the first film a mere 6 days to cross the $100 million mark in the U.S. and Canada, as of this writing in it's 26th day of release the sequel has yet to cross that milestone, and that's not even accounting for ticket price inflation over the past two decades. Worldwide the sequel has made $342 million, yet that is nowhere near the juggernaut $817 million worldwide gross of the original. 

ID4 was one of those film's that should have remained as a stand alone film, just like E.T., Citizen Kane, and It's a Wonderful Life should forever be stand alone films. No matter how many sequels are made to Independence Day, the final scene in the first film will forever be the end of the franchise for me. 

Why Sly won for Creed

There were many cheering Rocky fans last night as the creator mind and star of the boxing series won the recognition they felt was long overdue.

Sylvester Stallone was nominated for both Best Actor and Best Original Screenplay at the 1976 Academy Awards for the first Rocky but was defeated for both. But now, after his Golden Globe win for Best Supporting Actor for the series Spinoff Creed, Stallone is unarguably a shoe-in to finally win that golden statue.

But it wasn't so much his performance in Creed that won him the Golden Globe last night as the character he portrayed. Rocky Balboa has been with us for 40 years-40 years! We've seen him fall in love, get married, have a son, lose his wife to cancer, and now we've seen him battling cancer himself. Seeing the character of Rocky Balboa go through chemotherapy was like seeing a favorite uncle go through chemotherapy, because he's been in our national psyche for so long that it feels like he is a member of our American family. To many Americans and die hard Rocky fans, Rocky Balboa is the embodiment of the American Dream-an underdog boxer who faces off against the heavyweight champion of the world and in the end achieves fame and glory.

His win last night was also the culmination of a great reversal of fortune for the Rocky franchise from the lows of Rocky V, which tanked at the Box Office back in 1990 and was seen as a dismal end for a franchise beloved by so many fans. Stallone said later he did V because of greed and was his prime motivation for writing and directing Rocky Balboa, which not only did better commercially and critically than the previous installment, but also had one of the most inspirational motivational speeches in movie history.

Oscar nominations are this Thursday morning. When Stallone's name is read for Best Supporting Actor, you can bet they will be many fans cheering his name, ready to stand in his corner one more time.

Why I Agree With The President's Action on Gun Violence

I was never more ashamed of my government than on that fateful day in April, 2013, when the U.S. Senate voted to block common-sense gun control legislation that would have expanded background checks in the wake of Sandy Hook. The key word is blocked. The measure, which would have prevented criminals and people with mental illnesses from buying a gun, actually passed with 54 votes, but because it didn't get those three extra votes the Senate GOP and several red-state, Pro-NRA Democrats were able to filibuster it (I'm thinking about you, Mark Pryor. How did that vote turn out for you?).

In the almost three years since that "shameful day for  Washington", as the President described it while standing in the Rose Garden with family members affected by Sandy Hook, this nation has experienced even more senseless gun tragedies in Isla Vista, in Charleston, in Lafayette, in Roseburg, in Colorado Springs, and just recently in San Bernardino. 33,000 Americans died in 2013 from gun violence, including 21,000 who used guns to take their own lives. This has gone far enough, and that's why I'm glad the President acted today. 

With Congress unwilling to do their jobs, instead focusing on another Repeal Obamacare bill, the President stood with Gabby Giffords, who was shot in the head in the Tucson Massacre five years ago that left six people dead, along with several other people affected by gun violence, to announce his executive order that would help prevent tragedies like Tucson and Newtown and San Bernardino from happening in the future. 

The core  of the executive order is that it would expand background checks to guns purchased online or at gun shows. This is supported 90% of Americans, including 90% of gun owners, which isn't much of a surprise because it's common sense. What's the point of going to a gun store and find out your criminal history prevent you from buying a gun when you can just buy one at a gun show, or, more conveniently, buy one over the internet? Does anyone seriously think domestic abusers, criminals, and people with mental illnesses should be able to go out and buy a gun? (I know the NRA does but that's a whole other matter). The executive order will also direct the FBI to hire an additional staff of 230 to help process background checks 24/7. $500 million in additional funding for mental health services would need Congressional Approval. 

By far the biggest moment of the speech was when the President shed a tear when mentioning the first graders that were gunned down at Sandy Hook, saying that whenever he thinks of them it "makes me mad". It makes me mad to, that we live in a country where most of our representatives care more about scoring political points and winning the next election than keeping their constituents safe. But I'm glad at least we have a President who understands that this has gone on long enough, and that we need to do something about it. 

Pixar's "Inside Out" Is a Great Idea (And a Great Movie)

Over the past 20 years since the release of Toy Story, Pixar Animation has taken us on many great adventures, from the oceans to outer space to the monsters living inside our closet.

It's newest release Inside Out, takes us on a journey through the thing that has puzzled humanity for most of our existence on Earth: that of the human mind.

The 15th film from the Disney-owned Emeryville studio begins with the birth of Riley, which causes her emotion Joy (Amy Poehler) to come into existence. But she is soon joined by Sadness (Phyllis Smith) right when Riley starts crying. Later as Riley grows up her emotions begin to include Anger (Lewis Black), Fear (Bill Hader) and Disgust (Mindy Kaling).

Everything in Riley's life seems perfect, until her family suddenly moves from their home in Minnesota to San Francisco where her dad creates a start-up company. Being in a new home and going to a new school causes Riley's emotions to fight against one another, the main conflict between Joy, whose top priority is to make sure Riley is happy all the time, and Sadness, who Joy tries to contain as best she can. But once Joy and Sadness accidentally get sucked out of headquarters and have to find her way back, Riley is left with her three other emotions to deal with, causing her to become a moody preteen and run away from home.

Of course the film comes with a happy ending, as you would expect from a Pixar movie. But what makes this one different from all the rest is that there's no clear-cut villain. Sure Joy and Sadness come across a scary clown that is a part of Riley's biggest fears, but other than that there's no antagonist throughout the whole picture. That is because the movie's entire conflict exist within Riley herself. Inside Out deals with her thoughts, her emotions, the choices she makes, her deepest, darkest fears, and what means the most to her.

When I first heard of the movie's plot I was a bit skeptical, but once again Pixar has pulled off the impossible brilliantly. Riley's mind is a world of it's own, a visual wonderland that you can get lost in. There's imagination land with enormous french fries, Dream Productions that produces her dreams, and other parts of her brain and subconscious. There's also Riley's train of thought, which is actually a literal train.

The movie's message is a surprising one, that the emotion of sadness is actually a good thing and can be beneficial to our lives. This message may be somewhat confusing to younger viewers, but will certainly resonate with parents and older moviegoers, especially those who have dealt with depression in their own lives. The film reminds me of The Simpsons episode Lisa Sings The Blues where Lisa is sad for the most of the episode until Marge tells her that sadness is ok and that you don't have to pretend to be happy.

Some of the best moments in the film are when we go through the emotions of other characters such as Riley's parents (moms and dads will get a kick out of Riley's dad replaying a game he saw on TV in his head during dinner while his wife is talking to him). Poehler and Smith make a great pair, with Joy's bright, sunny personality contrasting with Sadness's sad, downbeat demeanor. Sadness's morbid sense of humor is also fun to watch.

While the film deals with some complex emotional issues, it shies away from including characters who have any sort of mental illness, treating everyone's mind as if they are all the same. What about people who are Bi-polar, have post traumatic stress disorder, or any other sort of emotional issue? How do the emotions within their minds interact? As the writer of this blog who has Asperger's surely knows, not everyone's minds works the way Riley's does. As the issue of mental issue has become more prevalent in our society, I'm hoping that if there is a sequel it will deal with some aspect of this. Still, Inside Out is a cinematic delight and another win for the studio that brought you Woody and Buzz. 

15 years after "Titan A.E."

15 years ago today saw the release of perhaps one of the most underrated animated movies in the history of cinema.

The film I am referring to, Titan A.E., is a visually stunning thrill ride for anyone who enjoys science fiction but ended up being a huge box-office disappointment, losing 20th Century Fox $100 million and essentially shut down the studio's animation department.

This however, doesn't necessarily mean that Titan is a bad movie. Most of the blame for the movie's demise had to do with it's botched marketing campaign, which couldn't figure out whether to target children or teenagers. Luckily I was one of the few people who saw it in theaters, and it was a blast I will always remember.

Set in the year 3043 A.D., 15 years after Earth was destroyed by a sinister alien race called The Drej (who were obviously inspired by the aliens from Independence Day) Titan finds a young man named Cale (Matt Damon) who discovers that the ring his father gave him before Earth was blown to smithereens contains a ship called the Titan, which has the ability to create a planet and give the human race a new home. Together with pilot Akima (Drew Barrymore) and her ships's captain Joseph Korso (Bill Pullman), Cale sets out on an adventure through different planets in order to find the Titan, but not without a few twists along the way.

The movie's biggest strength are its visuals, with Roger Ebert citing one sequence as demonstrating "what live action can do and animation cannot". Made by the same team who made 1997's Anastasia, Titan combines traditional 2-D animation with amazing computer generated effects when needed. Together they create a movie that is just stunningly beautiful to look at, and along with its always-moving story and great soundtrack, Ttian is one of those under the radar films that is worth checking out.