BMW i3: The Environmentalists Dream Car

If you're currently looking for a car that's sporty and fun but also want to help save the planet, the all-new BMW i3 may be right for you. The first car launched from BMW's all electric "i" division started deliveries in the U.S. back in May and has already sold 3,300 units globally through March.

I had the privilege of test-driving the i3 as part of an event at South Bay BMW in Torrance, CA. The car may look safe and friendly, like a new incarnation of the EVI, but under the hood, it's an absolute beast to drive. I have ridden shotgun in Bimmers and Mini Coopers before, but it was the first time I had myself been behind the wheel of an ultimate driving machine. With 170 horsepower and 184 pound feet of torque, it's a zippy little car that makes you feel like you're back at the Cars Ride at Disney Adventures. Another cool thing about the car is how high up the seats are, so you can feel like you're in an SUV without having to worry about fitting it into a parking space.And with even the cheapest gas now set above $4 a gallon, the i3 gets a jaw-dropping 124 combined mpg, saving you over $9,000 over five years compared to other vehicles.

However, despite its outstanding performance and environmental friendliness, the i3 does have a few drawbacks. Like any BMW, the i3 is not a very intuitive car. The controls take some time figuring out, especially the navigation system. And despite saving you money at the pump, that saving comes at a significant cost. As you would expect from any BMW, the i3 is not cheap, with a base price of over $42,000. Federal tax credits can bring the price down to just below $35,000, which is still pretty expensive. Leasing the car isn't cheap either, with a 36-month lease set at $648 a month with $5,000 down. With that amount you can get a much roomier and more powerful BMW 5 series. And although the three-hour charge can give the i3 a range of 70-110 miles, you'll need a garage that makes it possible to plug in your car, so unless electric charging stations start springing  up soon, you're out of luck.

But if you do have a garage that makes it possible for you to charge electric vehicles and have the means, I would highly recommend the i3. Not only is it fun to drive, but you'll also be helping to save the planet at the same time. 

Why I Miss Traditional Animated Movies

When I was seven I had the privilege of going to the premiere of Toy Story at the El Capitan with my mom and brother. It was a very exciting event for me, because it was the first time that I had ever seen an animated movie made entirely from computers. It wasn't just me that was experiencing computer animation for the very first time, but the entire world. The release of Toy Story in November 1995 was no doubt the biggest event in animation history since the release of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937. Not only did Pixar's first feature film beat Batman Forever to become the highest grossing movie of 1995 in the U.S. and Canada, but it was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. 

But now, the fascination I had with computer animation when I was seven has long since gone, because nowadays every animated movie is made entirely from computers. 

This is because in the early 2000s, 2D animated flops such as Titan A.E., Treasure Planet, and Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas convinced studios that traditional animation was a guarantee of financial ruin, while at the same time the success of Pixar and DreamWorks Animation's Shrek franchise convinced the studios that CGI was a guarantee of financial success. Animators with only 2D experience were laid off, while animators with CGI experience were in demand. 

However, DreamWorks Animations recent Box-Office misfires Rise of the Guardians, Turbo, and Mr. Peabody and Sherman as well as the Disney flop Mars Needs Moms shows that CGI is no longer a guarantee of an animated film being financially successful. 

I hope that Disney and DreamWorks will someday realize this and release a 2D animated movie every once in a while, because I'm sick and tired of seeing commercials for computer animated movies all the time. I miss living in the era of the Disney Renaissance, when the Mouse House released 2D animated fare such as Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and The Lion King. Not only do I consider these movies entertaining masterpieces, but also beautiful works of art. There is just something about 2D animation that makes it so beautiful to look at, while CGI animation to me seems too dull and too real. 

After being hired as Walt Disney Animations Chief Creative Officer in 2006, Pixar Guru John Lasseter convinced the Mouse House to produce The Princess and the Frog in 2D rather than 3D animation. Despite being a critical success and grossing $267 million worldwide, Disney has refused to release another 2D animated movie since. But I'm hoping that someday Disney, DreamWorks, or any other animation studio will take a chance on 2D animation once again. 

Why Cleveland will host the next GOP Convention

Cleveland and Dallas were announced Wednesday as the two finalists to host the 2016 GOP Convention, and I have no doubt which one of them will come out on top.

It has been said many times but it is worth repeating again: no Republican has ever won the White House without winning Ohio. The Buckeye State may be even more important than ever to the GOP since it was the state that gave America a second term of President Obama. With it's 18 electoral votes, it is the second largest battleground state prize after Florida, and you can bet that winning it will be a top priority for whoever wins the GOP Presidential nomination.

The last time Cleveland hosted a GOP convention was in 1936 when it nominated Alf Landon to run against FDR, and the last time Dallas was the host city was in 1984, when it nominated President Reagan for re-election. Although Texas is much larger than Ohio with 38 electoral votes, it is a reliably Republican state. Having a Republican Convention in Dallas would be like having a Democratic Convention in San Francisco-holding a convention in a state the party can take for granted and would in no way help in winning the White House.

But I believe there are other reasons why the GOP will avoid having their next national gathering in Dallas. Part of it is due to the last Republican President, who by sheer coincidence lives in and has his presidential library in Dallas. Despite former President George W. Bush's approval numbers having increased significantly since he left office, having the convention in his home city might end up reminding voters about his policies and why they disliked his administration in the first place. If the convention was in Dallas, it is a pretty sure thing that Dubya would have to have a speaking slot, since it would be awkward to hold the gathering in his own backyard and not invite him. But if it was in Cleveland, then it would be a lot easier for the party to disinvite him.

But the more significant danger to the GOP in holding their convention in Dallas is that it would run the risk of giving Texas Senator and Tea Party champion Ted Cruz a starring role at the convention. At a time when mainstream Republicans are fighting off against the Tea Party, having the convention in the home state of one of the Tea Party's most recognizable faces is not on their wish list. Giving Cruz a starring role could also run the risk of reminding voters about the government shutdown, something the party would like everyone to forget.

The only way I can see Dallas beating Cleveland in hosting their convention would be if Cleveland was unable to raise the necessary funds in hosting the event. Dallas has a variety of high-net worth GOP donors that would make raising money for the gathering a piece of cake, which has even more significance after Congress passed legislation stripping away public financing of political conventions. But even if that were the case, I think it would be more likely that the party would be willing to go into debt in order to win Ohio-and the White House-once again. 

Voice of Shaggy in "Scooby Doo" Dead at 82

Radio legend and former American Top 40 host Casey Casem died this morning in Washington State at the age of 82. Casem died as the result of complications from Lewy body dementia, a type of dementia that is often associated with Parkinson's disease. His daughter Kerri broke the news this morning on FaceBook.

If you are 30 or younger you probably never heard of Kasey Casem, but chances are you would recognize his voice. From 1969 to 2009 Casem voiced the role of cowardly teenage slacker Norville  "Shaggy" Rogers, the best friend and owner of the beloved canine Scooby-Doo. Together with Fred Jones, Daphne Blake, and Velma Dinkley, Scooby and his gang of five have solved various mysteries as part of the crime solving group Mystery, Inc.

Casem first voiced the role of Shaggy in the popular Hanna Barbara Saturday Morning Cartoon Scooby-Doo: Where Are You (1969-1971) and played the role in subsequent series such as Scooby-Doo and Scrappy Doo (1979-1980), The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries (1983-1984) and A Pup Named Scooby-Doo (1988-1991). Casem's last performance as Shaggy was in the direct-to-video movie Scooby-Doo and the Samurai Sword. 

Just a few weeks ago, Casem was involved in a mystery case himself when he went missing. He was later found at a hospital in Washington State. For a long time now, there has been a huge family fued between Kasem's second wife Jean Casem and his children. Back in October, His oldest children with his first wife Linda Myers claimed that Jean had blocked contact with them for three months. Just a month ago Kerri Casem was granted conservatorship of her father despite Jean's objections.

The voice actor who entertained millions on radio and TV lost his ability to speak when he was diagnosed with Lewy Body Dementia. In a statement, Kerri said that even though her father "is in a better place and is no longer suffering, we are heartbroken". If you ever watched Scooby-Doo on Saturday mornings, you probably share that same sentiment.

Schweirtzer comments point to potential run against Hillary

With countless prominent Democrats announcing their endorsement of Hillary Clinton this early in the game, it was a surprise to hear one of them say something negative about the former First Lady.

In an interview with Time Magazine, former Montana Governor and potential 2016 Presidential contender Brian Schwetizer said he would make a better President than Hillary, pointing to her ties to Wall Street and her vote for the Iraq War Resolution as liabilities.

While his candidacy currently has no chance of beating the Clinton machine, his candidacy might cause Hillary some major headaches in the Iowa, a state whose economy relies a lot on agriculture. Not only does Montana also rely heavily on agriculture, but Schweitzer also served in the U.S. Department of Agriculture during the Clinton Administration. So having the chance to pick a candidate who knows a thing or two about agricultural issues might give some Iowans something to think about.

In 2008 Clinton placed third in the Iowa Caucuses against eventual nominee and President Barack Obama and John Edwards. Although Schwetizer doesn't have the starpower that Obama did, beating Hillary in Iowa or coming very close to her in the nation's first presidential contest  would have the potential to destroy the "inevitability" factor for the Democratic nomination that she currently has. So if Schweitzer gets in the game, it's a possibility that the Clintons will have to worry about Iowa all over again. 

What the media isn't telling you about the Botched Execution in Oklahoma

You've probably heard by now about the botched execution in Oklahoma, the one in which a man died of a heart attack 43 minutes after the execution took place.

But did you know that the man that died of a heart attack-Clayton Lockett-shot and buried alive a 19-year old who just graduated high school and that the man who was scheduled to be executed after him-Charles Warner-raped and murdered an 11-month old baby girl? Probably not, because for some strange reason there hasn't been any TV coverage of why these two men are on death row in the first place.

In 1999, Lockett forced 19-year old Stephanie Neiman to witness one of her friends being gang raped and then ordered his accomplices to bury her alive after shooting her. Two year later, Warner raped and murdered Adriana Waller, the baby daughter of his girlfriend.

Now, I'm not saying that you are wrong if you don't believe in the death penalty. If you believe nobody should be executed no matter how heinous a crime that person commited, that's a valid opinion to have.

But I do not believe anyone should immediately start being against the death penalty because of what happened in Oklahoma without knowing all the facts.

For me, after discovering the circumstances that led these two men to be on death row, I feel that they got/are getting exactly what they deserve.

The debate about the death penalty has been going on for quite a few years now. But I believe a bigger debate needs to take place on how to prevent horrible acts like the ones Lockett and Warner committed from happening in the first place. 

Why "How I Met Your Mother" Finale should have included funeral scene

According to Alyson Hannigan, the series finale of How I Met Your Mother could have been a lot more gut-wrenching.

A scene showing Tracy's funeral that was included in the script was cut because the creators thought it would hit the viewers, and us fans, way too hard.

But even if this scene had been gut-wrenching, I believe Carter Bays and Craig Thomas made a terrible mistake by not including it in the finale.

For starters, I believe it would have helped many fans be ok with Ted ending up with Robin. While I was satisfied with how the series turned out, I feel that the last five minutes were too rushed from Ted meeting Tracy to Ted wanting to date Robin again. It isn't until Penny says "Come on Dad, Mom's been gone for six years now, it's time" that the viewer knows for certain that the mother is dead and that she has been dead for six years. Before she says this, it's easy to assume that Tracy could be dying in a hospital or that she just recently passed away. Showing Tracy's funeral and her tombstone would have shown viewers that Ted had been a widowed father for six years before it cut back to him finishing telling the story to his kids.

Unfortunately, this scene wasn't shot, so we won't get a chance to view it on the season nine DVD. Which is a shame, because it's a scene that might have given fans a lot more closure.