Re: [scifinoir2] See out the apocalypse in luxury: Vivos Underground Survival Shelter Network

[Martin Baxter]

No need for me to bother. My sat system can zoom in on the devastation from
the lunar surface with ease. Nice, if you want to taste death by
radiation/biologics/chemicals up close... I guess.

On Thu, Apr 15, 2010 at 3:17 PM, Mr. Worf  wrote:

>
>
>
> http://www.gizmag.com/vivos-underground-survival-shelter-network/14815/?utm_source=Gizmag+Subscribers&utm_campaign=19c19124bc-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email
>
> See out the apocalypse in luxury: Vivos Underground Survival Shelter
> Network
>
> By Darren Quick 
>
> *00:49 April 15, 2010*
>  [image: The Vivos Underground Survival Shelter will accommodate up to 200
> people in post 
> apocalypt...]
>
> The Vivos Underground Survival Shelter will accommodate up to 200 people in
> post apocalyptic luxury
> *Image 
> Gallery(8
>  images)
> *
>  Buy Survival Kits 
> $6.95+-
> www.QuakeKare.com
> Buy Top Quality Survival Kits Good for 5 Years. Buy Direct & Save
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> Must Have Survival 
> Gear-
> www.SteriPEN.com
> Handheld UV Water Purification System. Get Instant Drinking Water.
> MineARC 
> Systems

Re: [scifinoir2] I know what I saw

[Martin Baxter]

Mr Worf, I'm at about three pages an hour when I dictate. Would be more, but
my lung needs lots of breaks. [?]

On Wed, Apr 7, 2010 at 9:53 PM, Mr. Worf  wrote:

>
>
> I've been using the voice recognition program while I write the current
> story I'm working on. It has increased my productivity by 300%. About 5
> pages an hour. I can probably do more once I train it more and outline the
> story more in advance.
>
> On Wed, Apr 7, 2010 at 6:48 PM, Martin Baxter wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> Let us know how it works out, Mr Worf. Sounds like a great one.
>>
>>
>> On Wed, Apr 7, 2010 at 9:34 PM, Mr. Worf  wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>
>>> I have been working on that story. I'm stuck in the middle.
>>>
>>> I've also been thinking about doing it in an alternate reality.
>>>
>>> On Wed, Apr 7, 2010 at 5:29 PM, Martin Baxter 
>>> wrote:
>>>


 I'd love to see how they'd deal with an actual alien attack.


 On Wed, Apr 7, 2010 at 7:35 PM, Mr. Worf wrote:

>
>
> They seem to think that they can do it because they have shot a couple
> down before. (probably by accident) One of the things that I find
> interesting is that there have been ufo sightings in the DC area before.
> Back in the 50s there was one that put the government on high alert and
> prompted project blue book.
>
> On Tue, Apr 6, 2010 at 8:42 AM, Martin Baxter  > wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> Aubrey, there are those fools inside the Beltway who truly believe
>> that a few well-placed nukes can turn the trick. They conveniently ignore
>> the fact that the craft can pull Mach 12 on a slow day, turn on the 
>> width of
>> a positron and can't even be reliably tracked by conventional means.
>>
>> On Mon, Apr 5, 2010 at 7:33 PM, Aubrey Leatherwood <
>> aubrey.leatherw...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>
>>> That was along the lines of what I was going to say... Who had any
>>> faith that we could prevent an invasion in the first place?
>>>
>>> *Aubrey Leatherwood
>>> *www.aubreyleatherwood.com
>>> FaceBook  *
>>> MySpace 
>>> Model Lover
>>> Dime 
>>> *Imperfection* 
>>> A tale of perfect commitment, perfect love... and perfect sex.
>>> *The People You Know, The Sex They 
>>> Have*
>>> ROMANTIC TIMES NOMINEE FOR BEST CONTEMPORARY EROTICA 2008
>>> CAPA and PSYCHE AWARD NOMINEE FOR 2009
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
>>> From: martinbaxt...@gmail.com
>>> Date: Mon, 5 Apr 2010 19:10:05 -0400
>>> Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] I know what I saw
>>>
>>>
>>>  I did, Mr Worf, but I doubt that we're talking an invasion from
>>> beyond. If that were true, they could've mopped the floor with Humanity
>>> fifty years ago. IMO, they're observers from the future, UFOs being time
>>> machines, flitting back and forth via artificial wormholes.
>>>
>>> On Mon, Apr 5, 2010 at 6:56 PM, Mr. Worf wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Did anyone catch this show? It is a documentary on UFOs made by James
>>> Fox who gathered people from all over the world to tell their personal
>>> accounts of UFO sightings. The people that he invited were all former
>>> military, and airline pilots from the UK, France, Spain, and the US to 
>>> the
>>> National Press Club in DC.
>>>
>>> By the end of the show, it made me think that UFOs were not only real
>>> but we have no way to prevent an invasion.
>>>
>>> --
>>> Celebrating 10 years of bringing diversity to perversity!
>>> Mahogany at:
>>> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mahogany_pleasures_of_darkness/
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> The New Busy is not the too busy. Combine all your e-mail accounts
>>> with Hotmail. Get 
>>> busy.
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>
> --
> Celebrating 10 years of bringing diversity to perversity!
> Mahogany at:
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mahogany_pleasures_of_darkness/
>
>



>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> Celebrating 10 years of bringing diversity to perversity!
>>> Mahogany at:
>>> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mahogany_pleasures_of_darkness/
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>
> --
> Celebrating 10 years of bringing diversity to perversity!
> Mahogany at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mahogany_pleasures_of_darkness/
>
> 
>
<<347.gif>>

Re: [scifinoir2] The Most Bada$$ Alphabet Ever

[Martin Baxter]

Can't begin to answer it, but I love the comic. Had about fifty issues of
it. How can you not love an aardvark who goes from being a sword-for-hire to
dying as Prime Minister?

On Mon, Apr 19, 2010 at 12:41 PM, Aubrey Leatherwood <
aubrey.leatherw...@hotmail.com> wrote:

>
>
>
> Color me corrected... but how come? How come I say?
>
>
> *Aubrey Leatherwood
> *www.aubreyleatherwood.com
> FaceBook  * 
> MySpace
> Model Lover
> Dime 
> *Imperfection* 
> A tale of perfect commitment, perfect love... and perfect sex.
> *The People You Know, The Sex They 
> Have*
> ROMANTIC TIMES NOMINEE FOR BEST CONTEMPORARY EROTICA 2008
> CAPA and PSYCHE AWARD NOMINEE FOR 2009
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> --
> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
> From: martinbaxt...@gmail.com
> Date: Mon, 19 Apr 2010 11:36:41 -0400
> Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] The Most Bada$$ Alphabet Ever
>
>
>
>  Aubrey, Cerebus is a comic book, written and illustrated by Dave Sim.
> Wild stuff. I recommend it.
>
> Cerebus the Aardvark 
>
> On Mon, Apr 19, 2010 at 9:52 AM, Aubrey Leatherwood <
> aubrey.leatherw...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>
> Is there a "Cerebus"? I know about Cerberus, but is there really a Cerebus
> somewhere?
>
> *Aubrey Leatherwood
> *www.aubreyleatherwood.com
> FaceBook  * 
> MySpace
> Model Lover
> Dime 
> *Imperfection* 
> A tale of perfect commitment, perfect love... and perfect sex.
> *The People You Know, The Sex They 
> Have*
> ROMANTIC TIMES NOMINEE FOR BEST CONTEMPORARY EROTICA 2008
> CAPA and PSYCHE AWARD NOMINEE FOR 2009
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> --
> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
> From: martinbaxt...@gmail.com
> Date: Mon, 19 Apr 2010 07:18:59 -0400
> Subject: [scifinoir2] The Most Bada$$ Alphabet Ever
>
>
>  Just laugh.
>
> http://unrealitymag.com/index.php/2010/03/25/the-most-badass-alphabet-ever/
>
>
> --
> The New Busy is not the old busy. Search, chat and e-mail from your inbox. Get
> started.
>
>
>
>
> --
> The New Busy is not the old busy. Search, chat and e-mail from your inbox. Get
> started.
>  
>

Re: [scifinoir2] I know what I saw

[Mr. Worf]

One thing that I have noticed is that it is easier to stick to a set
schedule with using vocal commands. I only feel like talking for an hour and
have to stop. :)

One thing that I have found interesting is the error messages that it makes
sometimes. The sentences are very interesting.

On Thu, Apr 8, 2010 at 9:50 AM, Martin Baxter wrote:

>
>
> Mr Worf, I'm at about three pages an hour when I dictate. Would be more,
> but my lung needs lots of breaks. [?]
>
> On Wed, Apr 7, 2010 at 9:53 PM, Mr. Worf  wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> I've been using the voice recognition program while I write the current
>> story I'm working on. It has increased my productivity by 300%. About 5
>> pages an hour. I can probably do more once I train it more and outline the
>> story more in advance.
>>
>> On Wed, Apr 7, 2010 at 6:48 PM, Martin Baxter wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Let us know how it works out, Mr Worf. Sounds like a great one.
>>>
>>>
>>> On Wed, Apr 7, 2010 at 9:34 PM, Mr. Worf wrote:
>>>


 I have been working on that story. I'm stuck in the middle.

 I've also been thinking about doing it in an alternate reality.

 On Wed, Apr 7, 2010 at 5:29 PM, Martin Baxter 
 wrote:

>
>
> I'd love to see how they'd deal with an actual alien attack.
>
>
> On Wed, Apr 7, 2010 at 7:35 PM, Mr. Worf wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> They seem to think that they can do it because they have shot a couple
>> down before. (probably by accident) One of the things that I find
>> interesting is that there have been ufo sightings in the DC area before.
>> Back in the 50s there was one that put the government on high alert and
>> prompted project blue book.
>>
>> On Tue, Apr 6, 2010 at 8:42 AM, Martin Baxter <
>> martinbaxt...@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Aubrey, there are those fools inside the Beltway who truly believe
>>> that a few well-placed nukes can turn the trick. They conveniently 
>>> ignore
>>> the fact that the craft can pull Mach 12 on a slow day, turn on the 
>>> width of
>>> a positron and can't even be reliably tracked by conventional means.
>>>
>>> On Mon, Apr 5, 2010 at 7:33 PM, Aubrey Leatherwood <
>>> aubrey.leatherw...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>>>


 That was along the lines of what I was going to say... Who had any
 faith that we could prevent an invasion in the first place?

 *Aubrey Leatherwood
 *www.aubreyleatherwood.com
 FaceBook  *
 MySpace 
 Model Lover
 Dime
 
 *Imperfection* 
 A tale of perfect commitment, perfect love... and perfect sex.
 *The People You Know, The Sex They 
 Have*
 ROMANTIC TIMES NOMINEE FOR BEST CONTEMPORARY EROTICA 2008
 CAPA and PSYCHE AWARD NOMINEE FOR 2009









 --
 To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
 From: martinbaxt...@gmail.com
 Date: Mon, 5 Apr 2010 19:10:05 -0400
 Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] I know what I saw


  I did, Mr Worf, but I doubt that we're talking an invasion from
 beyond. If that were true, they could've mopped the floor with Humanity
 fifty years ago. IMO, they're observers from the future, UFOs being 
 time
 machines, flitting back and forth via artificial wormholes.

 On Mon, Apr 5, 2010 at 6:56 PM, Mr. Worf 
 wrote:



 Did anyone catch this show? It is a documentary on UFOs made by
 James Fox who gathered people from all over the world to tell their 
 personal
 accounts of UFO sightings. The people that he invited were all former
 military, and airline pilots from the UK, France, Spain, and the US to 
 the
 National Press Club in DC.

 By the end of the show, it made me think that UFOs were not only
 real but we have no way to prevent an invasion.

 --
 Celebrating 10 years of bringing diversity to perversity!
 Mahogany at:
 http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mahogany_pleasures_of_darkness/




 --
 The New Busy is not the too busy. Combine all your e-mail accounts
 with Hotmail. Get 
 busy.


>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Celebrating 

Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Do Past Mistakes Condemn a Star Forever?

[Martin Baxter]

Keith, I do, and I'm not the leas bit ashamed of it. I dumped all of my R.
Kelly music after he made those remarks, and I avoid Woody Allen like the
plague. As for Polanski in particular, I used to back him, based on one
photo of the girl he raped, because the girl looked 13 going on 35 in the
shot.

THEN I learned what he did to her. If ever I meet the man, I have a dull
butter knife with his name on it.

On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 3:31 PM, Keith Johnson wrote:

>
>
> The story about Roman Polanski's continuing battle to be free of his past
> made me think of famous people who commit crimes--or are rumoured to have
> done so--and how we treat them. So many times, the rich, famous, and
> powerful get off, or get forgiven, lickety-split, for things common people
> would wear as a cross forever.
>
>
>
> As a very liberal person, I am all in favor of innocent until proven
> guilty, the power of redemption, and one serving one's time to wipe certain
> slates clean. But I also find some behaviors repugnant enough to where I
> never forget, even if I forgive.
>
>
>
> In recent years, I have made conscious decisions not to support several
> high-profile people who've done things or espoused views I find
> objectionable. Even before the mess with that famous tape, i was disgusted
> by singer R. Kelley's spoken views about young girls. So, years ago, i quit
> buying his music, a personal ban to which I still hold. Now, i know the law
> says there's no proof of him being on that tape, but there are times when
> rumours are more than just hearsay. And like I said, his past is enough to
> where i want nothing to do with him. Given that past, I am amazed at how
> many black people still support and flock to him, including Tavis Smiley
> publishing his autobiography. Dude will never notice the lack of my ten
> bucks or so in his CD- or concert coffers, but it's my small protest.  And
> too bad, 'cause Brother can sing and I love his music...
>
>
>
> Similarly, i haven't seen or paid for a Woody Allen movie since he was
> revealed to have gotten with a young girl who was for all practical purposes
> being raised as his daughter. "The heart wants what it wants", perhaps, but
> my heart no longer wants to support an Allen film, old and classic, or new.
> Of course, he hasn't been on his game in years, so maybe I'm not missing
> much.
>
>
>
> Likewise, I have not supported a Polanski film since I was old enough to
> understand what he was charged with doing. Maybe if he had stood and faced
> his punishment like a man all those years ago...but no, i just can't bring
> myself to throw any ducats his way either...
>
>
>
> It's odd at times for a person as liberal as me to feel this way, and as a
> Christian, I totally believe in repentance and being a "New Man". But
> sometimes, the "ick" factor is still too much present for me, since these
> are issues of doing things to young kids or forcing themselves on
> people, not something as "simple" as being a cad or whoremonger. I know:
> there are a bazillion politicians, actors, singers, and businessmen who
> similarly have really sordid pasts and views, and I'm not trying to go on a
> witch hunt to decide who i will and won't support. But like I said, for
> people like those above, i just can't bring myself to support them anymore.
>
>
>
> Do you ever find yourself taking such a position on someone in the public
> eye?
>  
>



-- 
"If all the world's a stage and we are merely players, who the bloody hell
wrote the script?" -- Charles E Grant

Re: [scifinoir2] Trailer: Paper man

[Martin Baxter]

Thank you, Mr Worf! Now it's a definite must-see.

On Wed, Apr 21, 2010 at 2:13 AM, Mr. Worf  wrote:

>
>
> Here is another link to the movie trailer for Paper Man.
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81naJWXRuSk
>
> On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 3:59 AM, Martin Baxter wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> The video there refused to load up, Mr Worf. Still, this is one I'd like
>> to check out.
>>
>>
>> On Mon, Apr 19, 2010 at 11:37 PM, Mr. Worf wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Its not a super hero movie but it has a super hero in it. Its more of a
>>> middle aged guy trying to get on the right track gets wisdom from invisible
>>> friend and magic teenager.
>>>
>>> http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi2409826073/
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> "If all the world's a stage and we are merely players, who the bloody hell
>> wrote the script?" -- Charles E Grant
>>
>>
>>
>
>
> --
> Celebrating 10 years of bringing diversity to perversity!
> Mahogany at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mahogany_pleasures_of_darkness/
>  
>



-- 
"If all the world's a stage and we are merely players, who the bloody hell
wrote the script?" -- Charles E Grant

Re: [scifinoir2] Re: OT: Change I can believe in: Christina Hendricks replaces Megan Fox

[Martin Baxter]

Keith, can we append that that "skinny H'Wood blondes"? There's one blonde
on my personal list (not a starlet, though she should be, IMO), who's skinny
(though not by choice -- like me, genetics has had its evil way with her).

On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 5:13 PM, Keith Johnson wrote:

>
>
> I can see people loving both. Fox is a gorgeous woman, but a
> bit...slight...for some tastes. Hicks has much more of the old-school curvy
> figure that I grew up considering to be the best of the best. At least it's
> good to see one was a brunette, the other a red head: the love for skinny
> blondes as supposedly the best looking women has gone on too long.
>
> - Original Message -
> From: "Kelwyn" 
> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Tuesday, April 20, 2010 4:52:08 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern
> Subject: [scifinoir2] Change I can believe in: Christina Hendricks replaces
> Megan Fox
>
>
>
>
> http://omg.yahoo.com/blogs/a-line/christina-hendricks-voted-best-looking-woman/447/?nc
>
> Christina Hendricks has been named America's best-looking woman in an
> Esquire cover article, but there's more than meets the eye with this one.
>
> For starters, though the article appears in a men's magazine, the fiery
> "Mad Men" star won the best-looking title via a poll of over 10,000 women.
> Hendricks nabbed 30 percent of the votes that were cast, beating out the
> likes of Megan Fox, who got 14 percent of the votes, and Victoria's Secret
> model Adriana Lima, who got 17 percent. Fox was last year's title-holder in
> Esquire's annual issue dedicated to the fairer sex.
>
>
>



-- 
"If all the world's a stage and we are merely players, who the bloody hell
wrote the script?" -- Charles E Grant

Re: [scifinoir2] Robots Come To Life In Japan

[Martin Baxter]

"We are so boned." -- attr to B Bending Rodriguez, Visionary

On Wed, Apr 21, 2010 at 1:05 AM, Mr. Worf  wrote:

>
>
>  Slide show of a large Japanese real life robots.
>
> http://cbs3.com/slideshows/Japan.robots.technology.20.976838.html
>
>  
>



-- 
"If all the world's a stage and we are merely players, who the bloody hell
wrote the script?" -- Charles E Grant

Re: [scifinoir2] Bond 23 delayed indefinitely

[Martin Baxter]

Doesn't surprise me at all, this. I've been hearing reports of financial
troubles with the production. Unfortunate as well. A day without Bond is
like a day without a beautiful woman.

One not worth waking up for.

On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 5:41 PM, Kelwyn  wrote:

>
>
> http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=65332
>
> Bond 23 Delayed Indefinitely
>
> Source: EON Productions April 19, 2010
>
> 007 producers, Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli of EON Productions,
> today announced they have suspended development on the next James Bond film
> previously scheduled for release 2011/2012.
>
> "Due to the continuing uncertainty surrounding the future of MGM and the
> failure to close a sale of the studio, we have suspended development on
> 'Bond 23' indefinitely. We do not know when development will resume and do
> not have a date for the release of 'Bond 23,'" stated Michael G Wilson and
> Barbara Broccoli jointly.
>
> EON Productions have produced twenty two James Bond films since 1962. In
> 1995, Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli took over the 007 franchise from
> Albert R 'Cubby' Broccoli and are responsible for producing some of the most
> successful James Bond films ever, including Casino Royale and more recently
> Quantum of Solace. The James Bond franchise is the longest running in film
> history. EON Productions and Danjaq LLC are affiliate companies and control
> all worldwide merchandising for James Bond.
>
>  
>



-- 
"If all the world's a stage and we are merely players, who the bloody hell
wrote the script?" -- Charles E Grant

Re: [scifinoir2] Icelandic Eruption Accompanied by Mysterious Lightning

[Martin Baxter]

This, I've been led to understand, is the primary reason behind grounding
flights in Europe. yet, I learned yesterday from a dear friend that there
are still moe-rons out there who are paying up to $9000 to fly about anyway.

On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 5:36 PM, Keith Johnson wrote:

>
>
> Amazing...
>
> **
>
>
> http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20100420/sc_livescience/mysteriousvolcanolightningcreatesprettypictures
>
> Andrea 
> Thompson
> LiveScience Senior Writer
> LiveScience.com
>  andrea
> Thompson
> livescience Senior Writer
> livescience.com
>  –
> Tue Apr 20, 11:03 am ET
>
>  It may look like the special effects from a disaster movie, but the bolts
> of lightning photographed in the plume of the ash-spewing Icelandic volcano
> are real. Thing is, the process that creates volcano lightning remains a bit
> of a mystery.
>
> Several photographers have taken pictures of the stunning light 
> showshooting
>  from the angry mouth of Eyjafjallajokull, which has been pumping a
> cloud of ash into the atmosphere for several days. In addition to the
> spectacular electric storm in its plume, the volcano has created colorful
> sunsetsaround
>  the world with its ash, which has also hampered air travel over
> Europe.
>
> Scientists have long known the plumes that shoot from the mouths of
> erupting volcanoes can produce sheaths of lightning. While lightning is
> typically associated with thunderstorms, hurricanes and other severe
> weather, the roiling debris clouds of volcanoes can also produce them.
>
> The lighting in volcanic plumes is connected to the rotation that these
> plumes undergo, something like a tornado. As a plume 
> rotates,
> it can spawn waterspouts or dust devils, which gather together the electric
> charges in the plume to form a sheath of lightning.
>
> Scientists don't know exactly how lightning is created in an ash cloud,
> however. But they expect it's a result of particles rubbing together,
> generating friction and electrical charges.
>
> The volcano lightning may be generated in a similar way to that in normal
> thunderstorms in a process scientists have dubbed "dirty thunderstorms." In
> a normal thunderstorm, ice particles rub together to generate an electrical
> charge; in the case of a volcano, rock fragments, ash and ice may all rub
> together to produce this charge.
>
> When particles become charged during an eruption isn't known though, and
> scientists are just beginning to get a good look inside the plumes that
> generate the lightning - an unfriendly environment to be sure.
>
> One such opportunity came with the eruption of Alaska's Mount Redoubtalmost 
> exactly a year ago. Redoubt's eruption also produced a lightning
> display that scientists were able to "see" through the dust and gas of the
> eruption with an array of sensors deployed at the volcano.
>
> Several photographers were on hand to snap images of Eyjafjallajokull.
> Olivier Vandeginste was just outside the Iceland town of Hvolsvollur during
> some of the eruption and spent several hours photographing the spectacular
> lightning 
> show

Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Another Treasure Lost with Death of Dorothy Height

[Martin Baxter]

He was here in Atlanta not too long after he made those remarks, Keith, and,
if I'd had the time, I would've turned up where he was just to ask him what
was going on with that.

On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 3:34 PM, Keith Johnson wrote:

> I hear you, Martin. As one of the last holdouts who still greatly respected
> Smiley long past when others were done with him, I guess I'm still smarting
> at his behavior. I don't have heroes, per se, but I have long respected him,
> and find his behavior extremely troubling...
>
>
> - Original Message -
> From: "Martin Baxter" 
> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Tuesday, April 20, 2010 3:22:28 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern
> Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Another Treasure Lost with Death of Dorothy
>  Height
>
>
>
> Ab initio, requiescat in pace, dear lady. You shall be missed...
>
> Then, to answer your question, Keith, as to how Mr Smiley feels now that
> she's passed -- I'm long since past caring what that man thinks.
>
> On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 11:11 AM, Keith Johnson  > wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> First Dr. Hooks, now her. More and more people who have literally reshaped
>> the face of America are going on to their rewards. Bless them for the work
>> they did, which helps people of every color and creed--whether they realize
>> it or not. I've had some people ask me "Who is Benjamin Hooks?" recently. So
>> i ask everyone here, please make sure that your friends, relatives,
>> co-workers, and children especially get an idea of who these people were and
>> what they stood for. In a time when the whole world salivates over Beyonce
>> Knowles, and Will Smith is the biggest movie star in the Western world, it's
>> easy to forget how fragile and hard won the blessings people of color have.
>> Our young people especially need to be reminded of that struggle and how
>> long it has lasted.
>>
>> On another, bitter note: When Height first went into the hospital, my
>> first thought after praying for her was, "The last public words Tavis Smiley
>> uttered about her was that she was one of the Blacks who had sold out and
>> told Obama he didn't need a black agenda". Smiley included Height in his
>> list of blacks who were betraying the black race. I wondered then how he
>> felt for having ambused and backstabbed a woman whose garment hem he's not
>> worthy to touch, and I really wonder what he'll be thinking now that she's
>> died...
>>
>>
>> ***
>> http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/04/20/obit.height/?hpt=Sbin
>>
>> *Washington (CNN)* -- Dorothy Height, a leading civil rights pioneer of
>> the 1960s, died Tuesday at age 98, Howard University Hospital confirmed.
>>
>> Height died at 3:41 a.m., said hospital spokesman Ron Harris. No cause of
>> death was given.
>>
>> Height, who had been chair and president emerita of the National Council
>> of Negro Women, worked in the 1960s alongside civil 
>> rightspioneers, including the 
>> Rev. Martin
>> Luther King Jr. ,
>> future U.S. Rep. John Lewis and A. Philip Randolph. She was on the platform
>> when King delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech at the 1963 March on
>> Washington.
>>
>> President Obama  called her
>> the "godmother" of the movement, noting she "served as the only woman at the
>> highest level of the civil rights movement -- witnessing every march and
>> milestone along the way."
>>
>> "And even in the final weeks of her life -- a time when anyone else would
>> have enjoyed their well-earned rest, Dr. Height continued her fight to make
>> our nation a more open and inclusive place for people of every race, gender,
>> background and faith."
>>
>> Friend and former U.S. Labor Secretary Alexis M. Herman said she was
>> "deeply saddened" by Height's death.
>>
>> "She was a dynamic woman with a resilient spirit, who was a role model for
>> women and men of all faiths, races and perspectives," Herman said. "For her,
>> it wasn't about the many years of her life, but what she did with them."
>>
>> Height's years of service span from Roosevelt to the Obama administration,
>> the council said in a statement announcing her death and listing the
>> highlights of her career.
>>
>> Height was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1994 by President
>> Clinton and the Congressional Gold Medal in 2004. She was among a handful of
>> key African-American leaders to meet with Obama at the White House recently
>> for a summit on race and the economy.
>>
>> Her name is synonymous with the National Council of Negro Women, a group
>> she led from 1957 to 1988, when she became the group's chair and president
>> emerita. She was also a key figure in the YWCA beginning in the 1930s.
>>
>> Height was born in Richmond, Virginia, and grew up in Rankin,
>> Pennsylvania. Her civil rights work began in 1933 when she became a leader
>> of the United Christian Youth Movement o

Re: [scifinoir2] Way OT: Polanski Rumoured to Have Appealed to Obama

[Omari Confer]

Sent on the go from my Peek
-
Mr. Worf wrote:

Polanski's affair with the 13 yr old was turned into a huge media circus in
California after a particular DA got hold to it. Frankly I think he got a
free pass after what happened to his wife. (His wife was Sharon Tate who was
killed by the Manson family. She was pregnant at the time.)

On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 12:14 PM, Keith Johnson
wrote:

>
>
> Lessee...two whole months in a Swiss prison? Well, hell, that's enough:
> everyone knows the reputation of the fierce Swiss prison system. Almost as
> bad as Russia, South Africa, or America! Besides, dude spent over a month in
> detention here in the States. Talk about cruel and unusual punishment! I
> can't imagine why everyone doesn't just let him go about his business...
>
>
>
> And to think, Michael Vick has served more time--and apparently endured
> more scorn and moral outrage--for dogfighting...
>
>
>
> ***
>
> http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-04-19/polanski-begs-obama-for-mercy/?cmpid=p_yahoo
>
>
>
> In an astonishing act of backroom international diplomacy, French President
> Nicolas Sarkozy hand-delivered a letter from fugitive Oscar-winning
> filmmaker Roman Polanski to President Barack Obama last week on the
> sidelines of the international anti-nuke proliferation summit in Washington,
> according to a small and little-noticed 
> articleembedded
>  in the prestigious French political magazine, L’Express.
>
> It is unclear what Polanski or President Sarkozy, for that matter, think
> that Obama might be able or willing to do for a man who has acknowledged
> giving a Quaalude and champagne to a 13-year-old girl he then sodomized.
>
> Talk about dropping a stink bomb. The Polanski letter, which is not
> directly quoted in L’Express’ article, is said to suggest that the two
> months the aging director spent in a Swiss prison—in addition to the 47 days
> that he spent in detention in California in 1977—should suffice for the
> crime of unlawful sexual intercourse he pled guilty to. (Polanski is now
> under house arrest at his chalet in Gstaad, Switzerland while authorities
> seek his extradition to the United States.)
>
> * *
>
> Polanski’s letter also suggests that extraditing the Polish-born filmmaker
> (who became a French citizen in the 1970s) would do little more than feed
> the appetite of the American media that he believes just wants to humiliate
> him.
>
> It is unclear what Polanski or President Sarkozy, for that matter, think
> Obama might be able or willing to do for a man who has acknowledged giving a
> Quaalude and champagne to a 13-year-old girl who he then sodomized.
>
> Politically, pre-conviction clemency for Polanski might spark outrage along
> the lines of the infamous Marc Rich pardon (and it could only be ordered by
> Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger), and personally it is difficult to imagine
> the American president helping a man who used drugs and alcohol to
> manipulate a girl who was only a few years older than the Obamas' eldest
> daughter into sex.
>
> L’Express’ article, by Renaud Revel, is barely more than 100 words in
> length and it has garnered almost no attention in the French press, where
> Sarkozy has little desire to be seen as a diplomatic mailman for an aging
> pedophile, especially to his core conservative supporters who are
> increasingly unsatisfied with his presidency, both in substance and in
> style. The French media’s caution is understandable given Sarkozy’s
> influence over much of France's traditional media; he plays a dominant role
> in choosing the heads of state-run media, while privately held publications
> tend to be owned by his friends and supporters.
>
> It is unclear how Polanski's letter actually reached President Sarkozy's
> hands, but a number of possibilities stand out: Polanski’s wife, the femme
> fatale actress-turned-pop singer Emmanuelle Seigner, who is a generation
> younger than he, is a contemporary of supermodel-turned-pop
> singer-turned-first lady, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy.
>
> The Polanski-Sarkozy connection may also have been made by Minister of
> Culture Frédéric Mitterrand, who was initially an extremely vocal Polanski
> defender. Mitterrand argued that he should be immediately set free after
> Swiss police grabbed him on his way to receive a lifetime achievement award.
> Mitterrand largely went silent on the issue after elements from his own past
> came back to haunt him. (In 2005, he authored a book, *The Bad Life*, that
> details, among other things, the narrator’s louche quest for sexual
> gratification with paid “boys” in Thailand. Scenes from the book—which is
> slated for release in English this week—were read out of context as part of
> accusations that Mitterrand was an apologist for pedophilia, or worse. He
> insisted that “boys” referred to y

[scifinoir2] Re: Way OT: Polanski Rumoured to Have Appealed to Obama

[B Smith]

I imagine this is really high on the President's list. *snicker* 

If he did intervene I could see Republicans trying to make hay out of this in 
2012 with a Willie Horton style attack ads. Sorry Roman, have a nice time in 
Switzerland.

--- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com, Omari Confer  wrote:
>
> 
> 
> Sent on the go from my Peek
> -
> Mr. Worf wrote:
> 
> Polanski's affair with the 13 yr old was turned into a huge media circus in
> California after a particular DA got hold to it. Frankly I think he got a
> free pass after what happened to his wife. (His wife was Sharon Tate who was
> killed by the Manson family. She was pregnant at the time.)
> 
> On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 12:14 PM, Keith Johnson
> wrote:
> 
> >
> >
> > Lessee...two whole months in a Swiss prison? Well, hell, that's enough:
> > everyone knows the reputation of the fierce Swiss prison system. Almost as
> > bad as Russia, South Africa, or America! Besides, dude spent over a month in
> > detention here in the States. Talk about cruel and unusual punishment! I
> > can't imagine why everyone doesn't just let him go about his business...
> >
> >
> >
> > And to think, Michael Vick has served more time--and apparently endured
> > more scorn and moral outrage--for dogfighting...
> >
> >
> >
> > ***
> >
> > http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-04-19/polanski-begs-obama-for-mercy/?cmpid=p_yahoo
> >
> >
> >
> > In an astonishing act of backroom international diplomacy, French President
> > Nicolas Sarkozy hand-delivered a letter from fugitive Oscar-winning
> > filmmaker Roman Polanski to President Barack Obama last week on the
> > sidelines of the international anti-nuke proliferation summit in Washington,
> > according to a small and little-noticed 
> > articleembedded
> >  in the prestigious French political magazine, L’Express.
> >
> > It is unclear what Polanski or President Sarkozy, for that matter, think
> > that Obama might be able or willing to do for a man who has acknowledged
> > giving a Quaalude and champagne to a 13-year-old girl he then sodomized.
> >
> > Talk about dropping a stink bomb. The Polanski letter, which is not
> > directly quoted in L’Express’ article, is said to suggest that the two
> > months the aging director spent in a Swiss prisonâ€"in addition to the 47 
> > days
> > that he spent in detention in California in 1977â€"should suffice for the
> > crime of unlawful sexual intercourse he pled guilty to. (Polanski is now
> > under house arrest at his chalet in Gstaad, Switzerland while authorities
> > seek his extradition to the United States.)
> >
> > * *
> >
> > Polanski’s letter also suggests that extraditing the Polish-born filmmaker
> > (who became a French citizen in the 1970s) would do little more than feed
> > the appetite of the American media that he believes just wants to humiliate
> > him.
> >
> > It is unclear what Polanski or President Sarkozy, for that matter, think
> > Obama might be able or willing to do for a man who has acknowledged giving a
> > Quaalude and champagne to a 13-year-old girl who he then sodomized.
> >
> > Politically, pre-conviction clemency for Polanski might spark outrage along
> > the lines of the infamous Marc Rich pardon (and it could only be ordered by
> > Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger), and personally it is difficult to imagine
> > the American president helping a man who used drugs and alcohol to
> > manipulate a girl who was only a few years older than the Obamas' eldest
> > daughter into sex.
> >
> > L’Express’ article, by Renaud Revel, is barely more than 100 words in
> > length and it has garnered almost no attention in the French press, where
> > Sarkozy has little desire to be seen as a diplomatic mailman for an aging
> > pedophile, especially to his core conservative supporters who are
> > increasingly unsatisfied with his presidency, both in substance and in
> > style. The French media’s caution is understandable given Sarkozy’s
> > influence over much of France's traditional media; he plays a dominant role
> > in choosing the heads of state-run media, while privately held publications
> > tend to be owned by his friends and supporters.
> >
> > It is unclear how Polanski's letter actually reached President Sarkozy's
> > hands, but a number of possibilities stand out: Polanski’s wife, the femme
> > fatale actress-turned-pop singer Emmanuelle Seigner, who is a generation
> > younger than he, is a contemporary of supermodel-turned-pop
> > singer-turned-first lady, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy.
> >
> > The Polanski-Sarkozy connection may also have been made by Minister of
> > Culture Frédéric Mitterrand, who was initially an extremely vocal Polanski
> > defender. Mitterrand argued that he should be immediately set free after
> > Swiss police grabbed him on his way to receive a lifetime 

Re: [scifinoir2] Way OT: Polanski Rumoured to Have Appealed to Obama

[Keith Johnson]

Yeah, there were definitely some issues surrounding the trial. I think he felt 
the DA had a personal thing against him, and was trying to throw the full 
weight of the law against him. Might be true, but given what he did... 

- Original Message - 
From: "Mr. Worf"  
To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 1:19:39 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] Way OT: Polanski Rumoured to Have Appealed to Obama 






Polanski's affair with the 13 yr old was turned into a huge media circus in 
California after a particular DA got hold to it. Frankly I think he got a free 
pass after what happened to his wife. (His wife was Sharon Tate who was killed 
by the Manson family. She was pregnant at the time.) 


On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 12:14 PM, Keith Johnson < keithbjohn...@comcast.net > 
wrote: 








Lessee...two whole months in a Swiss prison? Well, hell, that's enough: 
everyone knows the reputation of the fierce Swiss prison system. Almost as bad 
as Russia, South Africa, or America! Besides, dude spent over a month in 
detention here in the States. Talk about cruel and unusual punishment! I can't 
imagine why everyone doesn't just let him go about his business... 



And to think, Michael Vick has served more time--and apparently endured more 
scorn and moral outrage--for dogfighting... 



*** 
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-04-19/polanski-begs-obama-for-mercy/?cmpid=p_yahoo
 



In an astonishing act of backroom international diplomacy, French President 
Nicolas Sarkozy hand-delivered a letter from fugitive Oscar-winning filmmaker 
Roman Polanski to President Barack Obama last week on the sidelines of the 
international anti-nuke proliferation summit in Washington, according to a 
small and little-noticed article embedded in the prestigious French political 
magazine, L’Express. 

It is unclear what Polanski or President Sarkozy, for that matter, think that 
Obama might be able or willing to do for a man who has acknowledged giving a 
Quaalude and champagne to a 13-year-old girl he then sodomized. 

Talk about dropping a stink bomb. The Polanski letter, which is not directly 
quoted in L’Express’ article, is said to suggest that the two months the aging 
director spent in a Swiss prison—in addition to the 47 days that he spent in 
detention in California in 1977—should suffice for the crime of unlawful sexual 
intercourse he pled guilty to. (Polanski is now under house arrest at his 
chalet in Gstaad, Switzerland while authorities seek his extradition to the 
United States.) 



Polanski’s letter also suggests that extraditing the Polish-born filmmaker (who 
became a French citizen in the 1970s) would do little more than feed the 
appetite of the American media that he believes just wants to humiliate him. 

It is unclear what Polanski or President Sarkozy, for that matter, think Obama 
might be able or willing to do for a man who has acknowledged giving a Quaalude 
and champagne to a 13-year-old girl who he then sodomized. 

Politically, pre-conviction clemency for Polanski might spark outrage along the 
lines of the infamous Marc Rich pardon (and it could only be ordered by 
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger), and personally it is difficult to imagine the 
American president helping a man who used drugs and alcohol to manipulate a 
girl who was only a few years older than the Obamas' eldest daughter into sex. 

L’Express’ article, by Renaud Revel, is barely more than 100 words in length 
and it has garnered almost no attention in the French press, where Sarkozy has 
little desire to be seen as a diplomatic mailman for an aging pedophile, 
especially to his core conservative supporters who are increasingly unsatisfied 
with his presidency, both in substance and in style. The French media’s caution 
is understandable given Sarkozy’s influence over much of France's traditional 
media; he plays a dominant role in choosing the heads of state-run media, while 
privately held publications tend to be owned by his friends and supporters. 

It is unclear how Polanski's letter actually reached President Sarkozy's hands, 
but a number of possibilities stand out: Polanski’s wife, the femme fatale 
actress-turned-pop singer Emmanuelle Seigner, who is a generation younger than 
he, is a contemporary of supermodel-turned-pop singer-turned-first lady, Carla 
Bruni-Sarkozy. 

The Polanski-Sarkozy connection may also have been made by Minister of Culture 
Frédéric Mitterrand, who was initially an extremely vocal Polanski defender. 
Mitterrand argued that he should be immediately set free after Swiss police 
grabbed him on his way to receive a lifetime achievement award. Mitterrand 
largely went silent on the issue after elements from his own past came back to 
haunt him. (In 2005, he authored a book, The Bad Life , that details, among 
other things, the narrator’s louche quest for sexual gratification with pai

Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Do Past Mistakes Condemn a Star Forever?

[Keith Johnson]

I never really had to forgive Vick. I'm from Texas, parents from the country; I 
live in the South. I grew up with a lot of Mexicans, and there are a lot of 
them here in Atlanta now. Trust me: dog and cock fighting are things very 
familiar to me. I don't support the practice at all, but I do think it means we 
have to look at Vick and people like him more as products of a certain 
background than natural born sociopaths. 

As for the second statement, i can't agree. Children--and in both cases, these 
were children--are literally not fully formed. They don't have the life 
experiences adults have. They don't have wisdom, discipline. They often don't 
have a sense of self-worth or self-esteem. Girls especially are subject to all 
kinds of pressures of being attactive, and are vulnerable to seemingly strong 
men who can sweet talk them. Scientists have even conclusively shown that our 
brains don't fully finish forming all the needed wiring--particularly, those 
that govern emotional control and decision making--until we're in our early 
twenties. 
Bottom line, children are to be protected, even if they're "fast", 
manipulative, deceptive, and seemingly worldly. I have known many girls just 
like you described, but, being a guy who wasn't trying to get with them, I got 
to know them as a friend. And I was always surprised to learn that underneath 
all that were still just nice girls who wanted to be liked, who were insecure, 
who did what they did because they thought it made them popular or grownup. No 
child can ever do or say enough to justify a grown man doing what these guys 
did to those women, even if the children go willingly. In that case, those kids 
need an adult to help them understand that their behavior is wrong, not 
encourage it. 

- Original Message - 
From: "Mr. Worf"  
To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 2:06:58 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Do Past Mistakes Condemn a Star Forever? 






I agree with most of what you said. Except I forgave Michael Vick. 

As for Woody and R Kelly: It takes two to tango. People try to make it sound 
like an adult was taking advantage of an innocent, but there are some 
youngsters that will put grown women to shame. The fake ID was invented a long 
long time ago. 


On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 12:31 PM, Keith Johnson < keithbjohn...@comcast.net > 
wrote: 








The story about Roman Polanski's continuing battle to be free of his past made 
me think of famous people who commit crimes--or are rumoured to have done 
so--and how we treat them. So many times, the rich, famous, and powerful get 
off, or get forgiven, lickety-split, for things common people would wear as a 
cross forever. 



As a very liberal person, I am all in favor of innocent until proven guilty, 
the power of redemption, and one serving one's time to wipe certain slates 
clean. But I also find some behaviors repugnant enough to where I never forget, 
even if I forgive. 



In recent years, I have made conscious decisions not to support several 
high-profile people who've done things or espoused views I find objectionable. 
Even before the mess with that famous tape, i was disgusted by singer R. 
Kelley's spoken views about young girls. So, years ago, i quit buying his 
music, a personal ban to which I still hold. Now, i know the law says there's 
no proof of him being on that tape, but there are times when rumours are more 
than just hearsay. And like I said, his past is enough to where i want nothing 
to do with him. Given that past, I am amazed at how many black people still 
support and flock to him, including Tavis Smiley publishing his autobiography. 
Dude will never notice the lack of my ten bucks or so in his CD- or concert 
coffers, but it's my small protest. And too bad, 'cause Brother can sing and I 
love his music... 



Similarly, i haven't seen or paid for a Woody Allen movie since he was revealed 
to have gotten with a young girl who was for all practical purposes being 
raised as his daughter. "The heart wants what it wants", perhaps, but my heart 
no longer wants to support an Allen film, old and classic, or new. Of course, 
he hasn't been on his game in years, so maybe I'm not missing much. 



Likewise, I have not supported a Polanski film since I was old enough to 
understand what he was charged with doing. Maybe if he had stood and faced his 
punishment like a man all those years ago...but no, i just can't bring myself 
to throw any ducats his way either... 



It's odd at times for a person as liberal as me to feel this way, and as a 
Christian, I totally believe in repentance and being a "New Man". But 
sometimes, the "ick" factor is still too much present for me, since these are 
issues of doing things to young kids or forcing themselves on people, not 
something as "simple" as being a cad or whoremonger. I know: there are a 
bazillion politicians, actors, singers, and businessmen who similarly have 

Re: [scifinoir2] Re: OT: Change I can believe in: Christina Hendricks replaces Megan Fox

[Keith Johnson]

Correct, and I certainly don't want to be offensive, so that wasn't very 
thoughtful. I have nothing against any type, but one type certainly has been 
foisted on us recently. I just don't get a universe when the likes of Paris 
Hilton and Jennifer Anniston beat out the likes of Jennifer Love Hewitt or 
Hendricks in *any* pol. 

- Original Message - 
From: "Martin Baxter"  
To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 6:35:10 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] Re: OT: Change I can believe in: Christina Hendricks 
replaces Megan Fox 






Keith, can we append that that "skinny H'Wood blondes"? There's one blonde on 
my personal list (not a starlet, though she should be, IMO), who's skinny 
(though not by choice -- like me, genetics has had its evil way with her). 


On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 5:13 PM, Keith Johnson < keithbjohn...@comcast.net > 
wrote: 









I can see people loving both. Fox is a gorgeous woman, but a bit...slight...for 
some tastes. Hicks has much more of the old-school curvy figure that I grew up 
considering to be the best of the best. At least it's good to see one was a 
brunette, the other a red head: the love for skinny blondes as supposedly the 
best looking women has gone on too long. 

- Original Message - 
From: "Kelwyn" < ravena...@yahoo.com > 
To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
Sent: Tuesday, April 20, 2010 4:52:08 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
Subject: [scifinoir2] Change I can believe in: Christina Hendricks replaces 
Megan Fox 






http://omg.yahoo.com/blogs/a-line/christina-hendricks-voted-best-looking-woman/447/?nc
 

Christina Hendricks has been named America's best-looking woman in an Esquire 
cover article, but there's more than meets the eye with this one. 

For starters, though the article appears in a men's magazine, the fiery "Mad 
Men" star won the best-looking title via a poll of over 10,000 women. Hendricks 
nabbed 30 percent of the votes that were cast, beating out the likes of Megan 
Fox, who got 14 percent of the votes, and Victoria's Secret model Adriana Lima, 
who got 17 percent. Fox was last year's title-holder in Esquire's annual issue 
dedicated to the fairer sex. 







-- 
"If all the world's a stage and we are merely players, who the bloody hell 
wrote the script?" -- Charles E Grant 

Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Another Treasure Lost with Death of Dorothy Height

[Keith Johnson]

Same here, Martin... 

- Original Message - 
From: "Martin Baxter"  
To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 6:52:50 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Another Treasure Lost with Death of Dorothy 
Height 






He was here in Atlanta not too long after he made those remarks, Keith, and, if 
I'd had the time, I would've turned up where he was just to ask him what was 
going on with that. 


On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 3:34 PM, Keith Johnson < keithbjohn...@comcast.net > 
wrote: 






I hear you, Martin. As one of the last holdouts who still greatly respected 
Smiley long past when others were done with him, I guess I'm still smarting at 
his behavior. I don't have heroes, per se, but I have long respected him, and 
find his behavior extremely troubling... 





- Original Message - 
From: "Martin Baxter" < martinbaxt...@gmail.com > 
To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
Sent: Tuesday, April 20, 2010 3:22:28 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Another Treasure Lost with Death of Dorothy 
Height 









Ab initio, requiescat in pace, dear lady. You shall be missed... 

Then, to answer your question, Keith, as to how Mr Smiley feels now that she's 
passed -- I'm long since past caring what that man thinks. 


On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 11:11 AM, Keith Johnson < keithbjohn...@comcast.net > 
wrote: 









First Dr. Hooks, now her. More and more people who have literally reshaped the 
face of America are going on to their rewards. Bless them for the work they 
did, which helps people of every color and creed--whether they realize it or 
not. I've had some people ask me "Who is Benjamin Hooks?" recently. So i ask 
everyone here, please make sure that your friends, relatives, co-workers, and 
children especially get an idea of who these people were and what they stood 
for. In a time when the whole world salivates over Beyonce Knowles, and Will 
Smith is the biggest movie star in the Western world, it's easy to forget how 
fragile and hard won the blessings people of color have. Our young people 
especially need to be reminded of that struggle and how long it has lasted. 

On another, bitter note: When Height first went into the hospital, my first 
thought after praying for her was, "The last public words Tavis Smiley uttered 
about her was that she was one of the Blacks who had sold out and told Obama he 
didn't need a black agenda". Smiley included Height in his list of blacks who 
were betraying the black race. I wondered then how he felt for having ambused 
and backstabbed a woman whose garment hem he's not worthy to touch, and I 
really wonder what he'll be thinking now that she's died... 


*** 
http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/04/20/obit.height/?hpt=Sbin 



Washington (CNN) -- Dorothy Height, a leading civil rights pioneer of the 
1960s, died Tuesday at age 98, Howard University Hospital confirmed. 

Height died at 3:41 a.m., said hospital spokesman Ron Harris. No cause of death 
was given. 

Height, who had been chair and president emerita of the National Council of 
Negro Women, worked in the 1960s alongside civil rights pioneers, including the 
Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. , future U.S. Rep. John Lewis and A. Philip 
Randolph. She was on the platform when King delivered his "I Have a Dream" 
speech at the 1963 March on Washington. 

President Obama called her the "godmother" of the movement, noting she "served 
as the only woman at the highest level of the civil rights movement -- 
witnessing every march and milestone along the way." 

"And even in the final weeks of her life -- a time when anyone else would have 
enjoyed their well-earned rest, Dr. Height continued her fight to make our 
nation a more open and inclusive place for people of every race, gender, 
background and faith." 

Friend and former U.S. Labor Secretary Alexis M. Herman said she was "deeply 
saddened" by Height's death. 

"She was a dynamic woman with a resilient spirit, who was a role model for 
women and men of all faiths, races and perspectives," Herman said. "For her, it 
wasn't about the many years of her life, but what she did with them." 

Height's years of service span from Roosevelt to the Obama administration, the 
council said in a statement announcing her death and listing the highlights of 
her career. 

Height was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1994 by President 
Clinton and the Congressional Gold Medal in 2004. She was among a handful of 
key African-American leaders to meet with Obama at the White House recently for 
a summit on race and the economy. 

Her name is synonymous with the National Council of Negro Women, a group she 
led from 1957 to 1988, when she became the group's chair and president emerita. 
She was also a key figure in the YWCA beginning in the 1930s. 

Height was born in Richmond, Virginia, and grew up in Rankin, Pennsylvania. Her 
civil rights work began in 1933 whe

Re: [scifinoir2] Re: Way OT: Polanski Rumoured to Have Appealed to Obama

[Keith Johnson]

Word! 

- Original Message - 
From: "B Smith"  
To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 9:34:58 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
Subject: [scifinoir2] Re: Way OT: Polanski Rumoured to Have Appealed to Obama 






I imagine this is really high on the President's list. *snicker* 

If he did intervene I could see Republicans trying to make hay out of this in 
2012 with a Willie Horton style attack ads. Sorry Roman, have a nice time in 
Switzerland. 

--- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com , Omari Confer  wrote: 
> 
> 
> 
> Sent on the go from my Peek 
> - 
> Mr. Worf wrote: 
> 
> Polanski's affair with the 13 yr old was turned into a huge media circus in 
> California after a particular DA got hold to it. Frankly I think he got a 
> free pass after what happened to his wife. (His wife was Sharon Tate who was 
> killed by the Manson family. She was pregnant at the time.) 
> 
> On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 12:14 PM, Keith Johnson 
> wrote: 
> 
> > 
> > 
> > Lessee...two whole months in a Swiss prison? Well, hell, that's enough: 
> > everyone knows the reputation of the fierce Swiss prison system. Almost as 
> > bad as Russia, South Africa, or America! Besides, dude spent over a month 
> > in 
> > detention here in the States. Talk about cruel and unusual punishment! I 
> > can't imagine why everyone doesn't just let him go about his business... 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > And to think, Michael Vick has served more time--and apparently endured 
> > more scorn and moral outrage--for dogfighting... 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > *** 
> > 
> > http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-04-19/polanski-begs-obama-for-mercy/?cmpid=p_yahoo
> >  
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > In an astonishing act of backroom international diplomacy, French President 
> > Nicolas Sarkozy hand-delivered a letter from fugitive Oscar-winning 
> > filmmaker Roman Polanski to President Barack Obama last week on the 
> > sidelines of the international anti-nuke proliferation summit in 
> > Washington, 
> > according to a small and little-noticed article< 
> > http://www.lexpress.fr/actualite/indiscrets/la-lettre-de-polanski-a-obama_884410.html
> >  >embedded in the prestigious French political magazine, L’Express. 
> > 
> > It is unclear what Polanski or President Sarkozy, for that matter, think 
> > that Obama might be able or willing to do for a man who has acknowledged 
> > giving a Quaalude and champagne to a 13-year-old girl he then sodomized. 
> > 
> > Talk about dropping a stink bomb. The Polanski letter, which is not 
> > directly quoted in L’Express’ article, is said to suggest that the two 
> > months the aging director spent in a Swiss prisonâ€"in addition to the 47 
> > days 
> > that he spent in detention in California in 1977â€"should suffice for the 
> > crime of unlawful sexual intercourse he pled guilty to. (Polanski is now 
> > under house arrest at his chalet in Gstaad, Switzerland while authorities 
> > seek his extradition to the United States.) 
> > 
> > * * 
> > 
> > Polanski’s letter also suggests that extraditing the Polish-born 
> > filmmaker 
> > (who became a French citizen in the 1970s) would do little more than feed 
> > the appetite of the American media that he believes just wants to humiliate 
> > him. 
> > 
> > It is unclear what Polanski or President Sarkozy, for that matter, think 
> > Obama might be able or willing to do for a man who has acknowledged giving 
> > a 
> > Quaalude and champagne to a 13-year-old girl who he then sodomized. 
> > 
> > Politically, pre-conviction clemency for Polanski might spark outrage along 
> > the lines of the infamous Marc Rich pardon (and it could only be ordered by 
> > Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger), and personally it is difficult to imagine 
> > the American president helping a man who used drugs and alcohol to 
> > manipulate a girl who was only a few years older than the Obamas' eldest 
> > daughter into sex. 
> > 
> > L’Express’ article, by Renaud Revel, is barely more than 100 words in 
> > length and it has garnered almost no attention in the French press, where 
> > Sarkozy has little desire to be seen as a diplomatic mailman for an aging 
> > pedophile, especially to his core conservative supporters who are 
> > increasingly unsatisfied with his presidency, both in substance and in 
> > style. The French media’s caution is understandable given Sarkozy’s 
> > influence over much of France's traditional media; he plays a dominant role 
> > in choosing the heads of state-run media, while privately held publications 
> > tend to be owned by his friends and supporters. 
> > 
> > It is unclear how Polanski's letter actually reached President Sarkozy's 
> > hands, but a number of possibilities stand out: Polanski’s wife, the 
> > femme 
> > fatale actress-turned-pop singer Emmanuelle Seigner, who is a generation 
> > younger than he, is a contemporary of supermodel-

Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Do Past Mistakes Condemn a Star Forever?

[Bosco Bosco]

Mr. Worf wrote: "As for Woody and R Kelly: It takes two to tango. People try to 
make it 
sound like an adult was taking advantage of an innocent, but there are 
some youngsters that will put grown women to shame. The fake ID was 
invented a long long time ago."

The number of of ways in which this is singularly the most offensive and 
disgusting thing I have ever read on this list is pretty long. However, I will 
try to boil it down. It's the horrible old sexist argument that the victim 
really wanted it and so it's not a crime. Children are considered children for 
a reason. As the parent of teenagers, I can assure you that just because they 
are capable of making stupid decisions does not mean they fully understand the 
consequences of those decisions. Excusing adults to prey on the inherent social 
awkwardness and weaknesses that are obvious in adolescents is pretty much 
totally f*#king disgusting.

Bosco

--- On Wed, 4/21/10, Mr. Worf  wrote:

From: Mr. Worf 
Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Do Past Mistakes Condemn a Star Forever?
To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
Date: Wednesday, April 21, 2010, 1:06 AM







 



  



  
  
  I agree with most of what you said. Except I forgave Michael Vick. 

As for Woody and R Kelly: It takes two to tango. People try to make it sound 
like an adult was taking advantage of an innocent, but there are some 
youngsters that will put grown women to shame. The fake ID was invented a long 
long time ago. 


On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 12:31 PM, Keith Johnson  
wrote:





















The story about Roman Polanski's continuing battle to be free of his past made 
me think of famous people who commit crimes--or are rumoured to have done 
so--and how we treat them. So many times, the rich, famous, and powerful get 
off, or get forgiven, lickety-split, for things common people would wear as a 
cross forever. 

 
As a very liberal person, I am all in favor of innocent until proven guilty, 
the power of redemption, and one serving one's time to wipe certain slates 
clean. But I also find some behaviors repugnant enough to where I never forget, 
even if I forgive.

 
In recent years, I have made conscious decisions not to support several 
high-profile people who've done things or espoused views I find objectionable. 
Even before the mess with that famous tape, i was disgusted by singer R. 
Kelley's spoken views about young girls. So, years ago, i quit buying his 
music, a personal ban to which I still hold. Now, i know the law says there's 
no proof of him being on that tape, but there are times when rumours are more 
than just hearsay. And like I said, his past is enough to where i want nothing 
to do with him. Given that past, I am amazed at how many black people still 
support and flock to him, including Tavis Smiley publishing his autobiography. 
Dude will never notice the lack of my ten bucks or so in his CD- or concert 
coffers, but it's my small protest.  And too bad, 'cause Brother can sing and I 
love his music...

 
Similarly, i haven't seen or paid for a Woody Allen movie since he was revealed 
to have gotten with a young girl who was for all practical purposes being 
raised as his daughter. "The heart wants what it wants", perhaps, but my heart 
no longer wants to support an Allen film, old and classic, or new. Of course, 
he hasn't been on his game in years, so maybe I'm not missing much.

 
Likewise, I have not supported a Polanski film since I was old enough to 
understand what he was charged with doing. Maybe if he had stood and faced his 
punishment like a man all those years ago...but no, i just can't bring myself 
to throw any ducats his way either...

 
It's odd at times for a person as liberal as me to feel this way, and as a 
Christian, I totally believe in repentance and being a "New Man". But 
sometimes, the "ick" factor is still too much present for me, since these are 
issues of doing things to young kids or forcing themselves on people, not 
something as "simple" as being a cad or whoremonger. I know: there are a 
bazillion politicians, actors, singers, and businessmen who similarly have 
really sordid pasts and views, and I'm not trying to go on a witch hunt to 
decide who i will and won't support. But like I said, for people like those 
above, i just can't bring myself to support them anymore. 

 
Do you ever find yourself taking such a position on someone in the public eye?




















-- 
Celebrating 10 years of bringing diversity to perversity! 
Mahogany at: http://groups. yahoo.com/ group/mahogany_ pleasures_ of_darkness/





 





 



  






  

[scifinoir2] Re: Way OT: Polanski Rumoured to Have Appealed to Obama

[Kelwyn]

Obama's war chest was filled by Hollywood money and Polanski still has friends 
in high places.  When you take the kind of money Obama took, you shouldn't be 
surprised if there are some strings (and expectations) attached.  I would not 
be at all surprised if a major Hollywood player/donor put the squeeze on Obama 
to pardon Polanski.  

Do not be surprised, should Obama be a one-term wonder, if Polanski is pardoned 
as the President exits office.

~(no)rave! 

--- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com, "B Smith"  wrote:
>
> I imagine this is really high on the President's list. *snicker* 
> 
> If he did intervene I could see Republicans trying to make hay out of this in 
> 2012 with a Willie Horton style attack ads. Sorry Roman, have a nice time in 
> Switzerland.
> 
> --- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com, Omari Confer  wrote:
> >
> > 
> > 
> > Sent on the go from my Peek
> > -
> > Mr. Worf wrote:
> > 
> > Polanski's affair with the 13 yr old was turned into a huge media circus in
> > California after a particular DA got hold to it. Frankly I think he got a
> > free pass after what happened to his wife. (His wife was Sharon Tate who was
> > killed by the Manson family. She was pregnant at the time.)
> > 
> > On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 12:14 PM, Keith Johnson
> > wrote:
> > 
> > >
> > >
> > > Lessee...two whole months in a Swiss prison? Well, hell, that's enough:
> > > everyone knows the reputation of the fierce Swiss prison system. Almost as
> > > bad as Russia, South Africa, or America! Besides, dude spent over a month 
> > > in
> > > detention here in the States. Talk about cruel and unusual punishment! I
> > > can't imagine why everyone doesn't just let him go about his business...
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > And to think, Michael Vick has served more time--and apparently endured
> > > more scorn and moral outrage--for dogfighting...
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > ***
> > >
> > > http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-04-19/polanski-begs-obama-for-mercy/?cmpid=p_yahoo
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > In an astonishing act of backroom international diplomacy, French 
> > > President
> > > Nicolas Sarkozy hand-delivered a letter from fugitive Oscar-winning
> > > filmmaker Roman Polanski to President Barack Obama last week on the
> > > sidelines of the international anti-nuke proliferation summit in 
> > > Washington,
> > > according to a small and little-noticed 
> > > articleembedded
> > >  in the prestigious French political magazine, L’Express.
> > >
> > > It is unclear what Polanski or President Sarkozy, for that matter, think
> > > that Obama might be able or willing to do for a man who has acknowledged
> > > giving a Quaalude and champagne to a 13-year-old girl he then sodomized.
> > >
> > > Talk about dropping a stink bomb. The Polanski letter, which is not
> > > directly quoted in L’Express’ article, is said to suggest that the two
> > > months the aging director spent in a Swiss prisonâ€"in addition to the 47 
> > > days
> > > that he spent in detention in California in 1977â€"should suffice for the
> > > crime of unlawful sexual intercourse he pled guilty to. (Polanski is now
> > > under house arrest at his chalet in Gstaad, Switzerland while authorities
> > > seek his extradition to the United States.)
> > >
> > > * *
> > >
> > > Polanski’s letter also suggests that extraditing the Polish-born 
> > > filmmaker
> > > (who became a French citizen in the 1970s) would do little more than feed
> > > the appetite of the American media that he believes just wants to 
> > > humiliate
> > > him.
> > >
> > > It is unclear what Polanski or President Sarkozy, for that matter, think
> > > Obama might be able or willing to do for a man who has acknowledged 
> > > giving a
> > > Quaalude and champagne to a 13-year-old girl who he then sodomized.
> > >
> > > Politically, pre-conviction clemency for Polanski might spark outrage 
> > > along
> > > the lines of the infamous Marc Rich pardon (and it could only be ordered 
> > > by
> > > Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger), and personally it is difficult to imagine
> > > the American president helping a man who used drugs and alcohol to
> > > manipulate a girl who was only a few years older than the Obamas' eldest
> > > daughter into sex.
> > >
> > > L’Express’ article, by Renaud Revel, is barely more than 100 words in
> > > length and it has garnered almost no attention in the French press, where
> > > Sarkozy has little desire to be seen as a diplomatic mailman for an aging
> > > pedophile, especially to his core conservative supporters who are
> > > increasingly unsatisfied with his presidency, both in substance and in
> > > style. The French media’s caution is understandable given Sarkozy’s
> > > influence over much of France's traditional media; he plays a dominant 
> > > role
> > > in choosing the 

Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Do Past Mistakes Condemn a Star Forever?

[Martin Baxter]

Agreeing with Keith again, Mr Worf. That one little girl Kelly took
advantage of probably saw nothing more than his fame and money, and would've
done anything, up to and including selling her own parents, to get a taste
of it.

On Wed, Apr 21, 2010 at 10:10 AM, Keith Johnson
wrote:

>
>
> I never really had to forgive Vick. I'm from Texas, parents from the
> country; I live in the South. I grew up with a lot of Mexicans, and there
> are a lot of them here in Atlanta now. Trust me: dog and cock fighting are
> things very familiar to me. I don't support the practice at all, but I do
> think it means we have to look at Vick and people like him more as products
> of a certain background than natural born sociopaths.
>
> As for the second statement, i can't agree. Children--and in both cases,
> these were children--are literally not fully formed. They don't have the
> life experiences adults have. They don't have wisdom, discipline. They often
> don't have a sense of self-worth or self-esteem. Girls especially are
> subject to all kinds of pressures of being attactive, and are vulnerable to
> seemingly strong men who can sweet talk them. Scientists have even
> conclusively shown that our brains don't fully finish forming all the needed
> wiring--particularly, those that govern emotional control and decision
> making--until we're in our early twenties.
> Bottom line, children are to be protected, even if they're "fast",
> manipulative, deceptive, and seemingly worldly. I have known many girls just
> like you described, but, being a guy who wasn't trying to get with them, I
> got to know them as a friend. And I was always surprised to learn that
> underneath all that were still just nice girls who wanted to be liked, who
> were insecure, who did what they did because they thought it made them
> popular or grownup. No child can ever do or say enough to justify a grown
> man doing what these guys did to those women, even if the children go
> willingly. In that case, those kids need an adult to help them understand
> that their behavior is wrong, not encourage it.
>
> - Original Message -
> From: "Mr. Worf" 
> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 2:06:58 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern
> Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Do Past Mistakes Condemn a Star Forever?
>
>
>
> I agree with most of what you said. Except I forgave Michael Vick.
>
> As for Woody and R Kelly: It takes two to tango. People try to make it
> sound like an adult was taking advantage of an innocent, but there are some
> youngsters that will put grown women to shame. The fake ID was invented a
> long long time ago.
>
> On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 12:31 PM, Keith Johnson  > wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> The story about Roman Polanski's continuing battle to be free of his past
>> made me think of famous people who commit crimes--or are rumoured to have
>> done so--and how we treat them. So many times, the rich, famous, and
>> powerful get off, or get forgiven, lickety-split, for things common people
>> would wear as a cross forever.
>>
>>
>>
>> As a very liberal person, I am all in favor of innocent until proven
>> guilty, the power of redemption, and one serving one's time to wipe certain
>> slates clean. But I also find some behaviors repugnant enough to where I
>> never forget, even if I forgive.
>>
>>
>>
>> In recent years, I have made conscious decisions not to support several
>> high-profile people who've done things or espoused views I find
>> objectionable. Even before the mess with that famous tape, i was disgusted
>> by singer R. Kelley's spoken views about young girls. So, years ago, i quit
>> buying his music, a personal ban to which I still hold. Now, i know the law
>> says there's no proof of him being on that tape, but there are times when
>> rumours are more than just hearsay. And like I said, his past is enough to
>> where i want nothing to do with him. Given that past, I am amazed at how
>> many black people still support and flock to him, including Tavis Smiley
>> publishing his autobiography. Dude will never notice the lack of my ten
>> bucks or so in his CD- or concert coffers, but it's my small protest.  And
>> too bad, 'cause Brother can sing and I love his music...
>>
>>
>>
>> Similarly, i haven't seen or paid for a Woody Allen movie since he was
>> revealed to have gotten with a young girl who was for all practical purposes
>> being raised as his daughter. "The heart wants what it wants", perhaps, but
>> my heart no longer wants to support an Allen film, old and classic, or new.
>> Of course, he hasn't been on his game in years, so maybe I'm not missing
>> much.
>>
>>
>>
>> Likewise, I have not supported a Polanski film since I was old enough to
>> understand what he was charged with doing. Maybe if he had stood and faced
>> his punishment like a man all those years ago...but no, i just can't bring
>> myself to throw any ducats his way either...
>>
>>
>>
>> It's odd at times for a person as liberal as me to feel

Re: [scifinoir2] Re: OT: Change I can believe in: Christina Hendricks replaces Megan Fox

[Martin Baxter]

No, No! I didn't take it as offensive in the least, merely an observation of
what is far too true in too many cases. I'm not the least bit fond of skinny
women, overall. The one blonde I spoke of simply endeared herself to me far
beyond her looks.

On Wed, Apr 21, 2010 at 10:13 AM, Keith Johnson
wrote:

>
>
> Correct, and I certainly don't want to be offensive, so that wasn't very
> thoughtful. I have nothing against any type, but one type certainly has been
> foisted on us recently. I just don't get a universe when the likes of Paris
> Hilton and Jennifer Anniston beat out the likes of Jennifer Love Hewitt or
> Hendricks in *any* pol.
>
>
> - Original Message -
> From: "Martin Baxter" 
> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 6:35:10 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern
> Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] Re: OT: Change I can believe in: Christina
> Hendricks  replaces Megan Fox
>
>
>
> Keith, can we append that that "skinny H'Wood blondes"? There's one blonde
> on my personal list (not a starlet, though she should be, IMO), who's skinny
> (though not by choice -- like me, genetics has had its evil way with her).
>
> On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 5:13 PM, Keith Johnson 
> wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> I can see people loving both. Fox is a gorgeous woman, but a
>> bit...slight...for some tastes. Hicks has much more of the old-school curvy
>> figure that I grew up considering to be the best of the best. At least it's
>> good to see one was a brunette, the other a red head: the love for skinny
>> blondes as supposedly the best looking women has gone on too long.
>>
>> - Original Message -
>> From: "Kelwyn" 
>> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
>> Sent: Tuesday, April 20, 2010 4:52:08 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern
>> Subject: [scifinoir2] Change I can believe in: Christina Hendricks
>> replaces Megan Fox
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> http://omg.yahoo.com/blogs/a-line/christina-hendricks-voted-best-looking-woman/447/?nc
>>
>> Christina Hendricks has been named America's best-looking woman in an
>> Esquire cover article, but there's more than meets the eye with this one.
>>
>> For starters, though the article appears in a men's magazine, the fiery
>> "Mad Men" star won the best-looking title via a poll of over 10,000 women.
>> Hendricks nabbed 30 percent of the votes that were cast, beating out the
>> likes of Megan Fox, who got 14 percent of the votes, and Victoria's Secret
>> model Adriana Lima, who got 17 percent. Fox was last year's title-holder in
>> Esquire's annual issue dedicated to the fairer sex.
>>
>>
>
>
> --
> "If all the world's a stage and we are merely players, who the bloody hell
> wrote the script?" -- Charles E Grant
>
>   
>



-- 
"If all the world's a stage and we are merely players, who the bloody hell
wrote the script?" -- Charles E Grant

[scifinoir2] J'Lo's Back-up Plan

[Kelwyn]

The Back-Up Plan, Jennifer Lopez's cinematic come-back vehicle, fits neatly 
into her film catalog. It is a middling project probably a step or two above 
Maid in Manhattan but not quite as good as The Wedding Planner, which may be 
the zenith of the J-lo oeuvre. Still, the Plan is not without its charms.

As far as cinema chicas go, Lopez is the bridge that gets you from Rosie Perez 
to Jessica Alba and, thus far, she is only one who has successfully top-lined a 
movie.

http://blackplush.blogspot.com/2010/04/back-up-plan-jennifer-lopezs-cinematic.html

Re: [scifinoir2] Re: Way OT: Polanski Rumoured to Have Appealed to Obama

[Keith Johnson]

I have to disagree with you in every way. There's favors, and there's career 
suicide. No amount of Hollywood connections one can imagine would make it 
logical for the President to assume someone would even circumspectly approach 
him about help with a child abuse situation--decades old though it may. And the 
last thing any Prez would do is pardon a man for drugging and abuse a 
child--hands down I can bet you this will *never* happen. 
And I'd say this even if Obama weren't the father of two young girls, and a man 
who obviously respects women. 
- Original Message - 
From: "Kelwyn"  
To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 11:55:59 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
Subject: [scifinoir2] Re: Way OT: Polanski Rumoured to Have Appealed to Obama 






Obama's war chest was filled by Hollywood money and Polanski still has friends 
in high places. When you take the kind of money Obama took, you shouldn't be 
surprised if there are some strings (and expectations) attached. I would not be 
at all surprised if a major Hollywood player/donor put the squeeze on Obama to 
pardon Polanski. 

Do not be surprised, should Obama be a one-term wonder, if Polanski is pardoned 
as the President exits office. 

~(no)rave! 

--- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com , "B Smith"  wrote: 
> 
> I imagine this is really high on the President's list. *snicker* 
> 
> If he did intervene I could see Republicans trying to make hay out of this in 
> 2012 with a Willie Horton style attack ads. Sorry Roman, have a nice time in 
> Switzerland. 
> 
> --- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com , Omari Confer  wrote: 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > Sent on the go from my Peek 
> > - 
> > Mr. Worf wrote: 
> > 
> > Polanski's affair with the 13 yr old was turned into a huge media circus in 
> > California after a particular DA got hold to it. Frankly I think he got a 
> > free pass after what happened to his wife. (His wife was Sharon Tate who 
> > was 
> > killed by the Manson family. She was pregnant at the time.) 
> > 
> > On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 12:14 PM, Keith Johnson 
> > wrote: 
> > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > Lessee...two whole months in a Swiss prison? Well, hell, that's enough: 
> > > everyone knows the reputation of the fierce Swiss prison system. Almost 
> > > as 
> > > bad as Russia, South Africa, or America! Besides, dude spent over a month 
> > > in 
> > > detention here in the States. Talk about cruel and unusual punishment! I 
> > > can't imagine why everyone doesn't just let him go about his business... 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > And to think, Michael Vick has served more time--and apparently endured 
> > > more scorn and moral outrage--for dogfighting... 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > *** 
> > > 
> > > http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-04-19/polanski-begs-obama-for-mercy/?cmpid=p_yahoo
> > >  
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > In an astonishing act of backroom international diplomacy, French 
> > > President 
> > > Nicolas Sarkozy hand-delivered a letter from fugitive Oscar-winning 
> > > filmmaker Roman Polanski to President Barack Obama last week on the 
> > > sidelines of the international anti-nuke proliferation summit in 
> > > Washington, 
> > > according to a small and little-noticed article< 
> > > http://www.lexpress.fr/actualite/indiscrets/la-lettre-de-polanski-a-obama_884410.html
> > >  >embedded in the prestigious French political magazine, L’Express. 
> > > 
> > > It is unclear what Polanski or President Sarkozy, for that matter, think 
> > > that Obama might be able or willing to do for a man who has acknowledged 
> > > giving a Quaalude and champagne to a 13-year-old girl he then sodomized. 
> > > 
> > > Talk about dropping a stink bomb. The Polanski letter, which is not 
> > > directly quoted in L’Express’ article, is said to suggest that the 
> > > two 
> > > months the aging director spent in a Swiss prisonâ€"in addition to the 47 
> > > days 
> > > that he spent in detention in California in 1977â€"should suffice for the 
> > > crime of unlawful sexual intercourse he pled guilty to. (Polanski is now 
> > > under house arrest at his chalet in Gstaad, Switzerland while authorities 
> > > seek his extradition to the United States.) 
> > > 
> > > * * 
> > > 
> > > Polanski’s letter also suggests that extraditing the Polish-born 
> > > filmmaker 
> > > (who became a French citizen in the 1970s) would do little more than feed 
> > > the appetite of the American media that he believes just wants to 
> > > humiliate 
> > > him. 
> > > 
> > > It is unclear what Polanski or President Sarkozy, for that matter, think 
> > > Obama might be able or willing to do for a man who has acknowledged 
> > > giving a 
> > > Quaalude and champagne to a 13-year-old girl who he then sodomized. 
> > > 
> > > Politically, pre-conviction clemency for Polanski might spark outrage 
> > > along 
> > > the lines of the infamous Marc Rich par

[scifinoir2] Leonard Nimoy set to retire

[brent wodehouse]

http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/tv/2010/04/19/13639516.html

Entertainment TV

Leonard Nimoy set to retire

By KEVIN WILLIAMSON, QMI Agency

Last Updated: April 19, 2010


Just when he thinks he’s out, they beam him back in.

How else to describe Leonard Nimoy’s enduring, at times conflicted
relationship with Star Trek, the franchise that’s defined his career for
more than four decades - regardless of how many times he swore it off or
believed it was finished?

“Countless times, I thought it was done,” he admits on the phone from Los
Angeles.

But this time, says the 79-year-old actor-director-photographer, there are
no more possibilities. Spock, his pointy-eared alter-ego, will live long
and prosper. But it will be without Nimoy.

“I want to get off the stage. Also, I don’t think it would be fair to
Zachary Quinto,” he says, referring to the actor who portrayed a youthful
Spock in last summer’s smash Star Trek relaunch. “He’s a terrific actor,
he looks the part, and it’s time to give him some space. And I’m very
flattered the character will continue.”

In other words, don’t expect to see Nimoy in the next Trek sequel,
scheduled for 2012. And don’t expect to see him anywhere else, either.
Having just shot what will be his final appearance as enigmatic genius Dr.
William Bell in TV’s Fringe, he says he’s retiring from acting altogether.

“I’ve been doing this professionally for 60 years,” he says with a laugh.
“I love the idea of going out on a positive note. I’ve had a great, great
time.”

After all, his involvement with Fringe was never intended to be permanent.
Rather, he’d only agreed to appear in a few episodes as a favour to J.J.
Abrams, who produces Fringe and, of course, directed Star Trek.

“I was away from acting for 12 years, so I guess I was seducable,” Nimoy
says. “But since J.J. Abrams revived the Star Trek franchise, I felt I
owed him something. And I’m glad I did it because he promised me a good
story, and it was.”

Also in question? How many more science-fiction conventions he has in his
future. He’ll be at this weekend’s Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo
which “could be the last go-round for that too,” he says, noting he only
has a few more public appearances planned.

Not that he doesn’t enjoy them. He describes each one as “a love fest. I’m
so grateful to the fans. I call these kind of experiences a victory lap
... It’s like having a family meeting - a family reunion.”

That goodwill mirrors how his own emotions about Trek have mellowed.
Famously, his 1975 autobiography was entitled I Am Not Spock. By 1995,
when he published his second autobiography, the title had been modified to
I Am Spock.

He explains he made peace with the iconic series during the 1980s and
particularly with Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, which he directed. “I
felt like Star Trek IV was my personal statement on Star Trek.”

Now, typecasting be damned, he feels no regrets about donning the ears
that made him famous. “Since Star Trek began in 1966, I’ve never had to
worry about where the next job was.”

Rather, with his acting and filmmaking career behind him, he wants to
concentrate on photography, citing an exhibition he has coming up in
Massachusetts. He acknowledges he was met with skepticism initially about
this latest creative venture, “but I’ve built credibility now in the art
world.”

And among the general population, too. He recalls an incident in which he
and Tom Hanks were approached by a young man who wanted his picture taken
with Hanks. When Hanks asked who would take the photo, the man turned to
the now former Mr. Spock.

“He said, ‘Mr. Nimoy, you’re a wonderful photographer. Would you take our
picture?’ ”

‘Spock’ headed to Vulcan, Alt.

If Leonard Nimoy is going to be in Calgary, it only seems logical that he
pays a visit to Vulcan too.

“I couldn’t resist,” he says with a very un-Spock-like laugh. “I thought,
‘Since I’m coming to Calgary, why not Vulcan?’ ”

Thus the Southern Alberta community of about 1,900 will get its
long-awaited chance to host Nimoy on Friday, ahead of his scheduled
appearance at this weekend’s Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo.

Nimoy’s fondness for the town is well-documented. Vulcan generated
worldwide headlines last spring when Nimoy backed its bid to host the
premiere of 2009’s Star Trek film. Ultimately, Paramount bused about 300
residents of Vulcan - which has long capitalized on the fact it shares the
name of Spock’s home planet - to Calgary for a private screening.

Not surprisingly, news of Nimoy’s visit has again put Vulcan in the
spotlight.

In addition to touring the town’s Trek museum, Nimoy will have his iconic
Vulcan salute canonized in a handprint ceremony. He’ll also be there for
the unveiling of a bronze Spock bust.

What message does he plan to convey to the townsfolk?

“How wonderful it is to be home in Vulcan.”

kevin.william...@sunmedia.ca

Re: [scifinoir2] Re: Way OT: Polanski Rumoured to Have Appealed to Obama

[Martin Baxter]

rave, I've gotta run with Keith again on this. Even if Obama were voted out
in '12, he'd lose every bit of credibility with parents if he made that
move.

On Wed, Apr 21, 2010 at 2:36 PM, Keith Johnson wrote:

>
>
> I have to disagree with you in every way. There's favors, and there's
> career suicide. No amount of Hollywood connections one can imagine would
> make it logical for the President to assume someone would even circumspectly
> approach him about help with a child abuse situation--decades old though it
> may. And the last thing any Prez would do is pardon a man for drugging and
> abuse a child--hands down I can bet you this will *never* happen.
> And I'd say this even if Obama weren't the father of two young girls, and a
> man who obviously respects women.
> - Original Message -
> From: "Kelwyn" 
> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 11:55:59 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern
> Subject: [scifinoir2] Re: Way OT: Polanski Rumoured to Have Appealed to
> Obama
>
>
>
> Obama's war chest was filled by Hollywood money and Polanski still has
> friends in high places. When you take the kind of money Obama took, you
> shouldn't be surprised if there are some strings (and expectations)
> attached. I would not be at all surprised if a major Hollywood player/donor
> put the squeeze on Obama to pardon Polanski.
>
> Do not be surprised, should Obama be a one-term wonder, if Polanski is
> pardoned as the President exits office.
>
> ~(no)rave!
>
> --- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com , "B
> Smith"  wrote:
> >
> > I imagine this is really high on the President's list. *snicker*
> >
> > If he did intervene I could see Republicans trying to make hay out of
> this in 2012 with a Willie Horton style attack ads. Sorry Roman, have a nice
> time in Switzerland.
> >
> > --- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com , Omari
> Confer  wrote:
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Sent on the go from my Peek
> > > -
> > > Mr. Worf wrote:
> > >
> > > Polanski's affair with the 13 yr old was turned into a huge media
> circus in
> > > California after a particular DA got hold to it. Frankly I think he got
> a
> > > free pass after what happened to his wife. (His wife was Sharon Tate
> who was
> > > killed by the Manson family. She was pregnant at the time.)
> > >
> > > On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 12:14 PM, Keith Johnson
> > > wrote:
> > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > Lessee...two whole months in a Swiss prison? Well, hell, that's
> enough:
> > > > everyone knows the reputation of the fierce Swiss prison system.
> Almost as
> > > > bad as Russia, South Africa, or America! Besides, dude spent over a
> month in
> > > > detention here in the States. Talk about cruel and unusual
> punishment! I
> > > > can't imagine why everyone doesn't just let him go about his
> business...
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > And to think, Michael Vick has served more time--and apparently
> endured
> > > > more scorn and moral outrage--for dogfighting...
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > ***
> > > >
> > > >
> http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-04-19/polanski-begs-obama-for-mercy/?cmpid=p_yahoo
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > In an astonishing act of backroom international diplomacy, French
> President
> > > > Nicolas Sarkozy hand-delivered a letter from fugitive Oscar-winning
> > > > filmmaker Roman Polanski to President Barack Obama last week on the
> > > > sidelines of the international anti-nuke proliferation summit in
> Washington,
> > > > according to a small and little-noticed article<
> http://www.lexpress.fr/actualite/indiscrets/la-lettre-de-polanski-a-obama_884410.html>embedded
> in the prestigious French political magazine, L’Express.
> > > >
> > > > It is unclear what Polanski or President Sarkozy, for that matter,
> think
> > > > that Obama might be able or willing to do for a man who has
> acknowledged
> > > > giving a Quaalude and champagne to a 13-year-old girl he then
> sodomized.
> > > >
> > > > Talk about dropping a stink bomb. The Polanski letter, which is not
> > > > directly quoted in L’Express’ article, is said to suggest that
> the two
> > > > months the aging director spent in a Swiss prisonâ€"in addition to
> the 47 days
> > > > that he spent in detention in California in 1977â€"should suffice for
> the
> > > > crime of unlawful sexual intercourse he pled guilty to. (Polanski is
> now
> > > > under house arrest at his chalet in Gstaad, Switzerland while
> authorities
> > > > seek his extradition to the United States.)
> > > >
> > > > * *
> > > >
> > > > Polanski’s letter also suggests that extraditing the Polish-born
> filmmaker
> > > > (who became a French citizen in the 1970s) would do little more than
> feed
> > > > the appetite of the American media that he believes just wants to
> humiliate
> > > > him.
> > > >
> > > > It is unclear what Polanski or President Sarkozy, for that matter,
> think
> > > > Obama might be able 

Re: [scifinoir2] Leonard Nimoy set to retire

[Martin Baxter]

Indeed. Let an old Vulcan have his pon farr in peace.

On Wed, Apr 21, 2010 at 2:52 PM, brent wodehouse <
brent_wodeho...@thefence.us> wrote:

>
>
> http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/tv/2010/04/19/13639516.html
>
> Entertainment TV
>
> Leonard Nimoy set to retire
>
> By KEVIN WILLIAMSON, QMI Agency
>
> Last Updated: April 19, 2010
>
> Just when he thinks he’s out, they beam him back in.
>
> How else to describe Leonard Nimoy’s enduring, at times conflicted
> relationship with Star Trek, the franchise that’s defined his career for
> more than four decades - regardless of how many times he swore it off or
> believed it was finished?
>
> “Countless times, I thought it was done,” he admits on the phone from Los
> Angeles.
>
> But this time, says the 79-year-old actor-director-photographer, there are
> no more possibilities. Spock, his pointy-eared alter-ego, will live long
> and prosper. But it will be without Nimoy.
>
> “I want to get off the stage. Also, I don’t think it would be fair to
> Zachary Quinto,” he says, referring to the actor who portrayed a youthful
> Spock in last summer’s smash Star Trek relaunch. “He’s a terrific actor,
> he looks the part, and it’s time to give him some space. And I’m very
> flattered the character will continue.”
>
> In other words, don’t expect to see Nimoy in the next Trek sequel,
> scheduled for 2012. And don’t expect to see him anywhere else, either.
> Having just shot what will be his final appearance as enigmatic genius Dr.
> William Bell in TV’s Fringe, he says he’s retiring from acting altogether.
>
> “I’ve been doing this professionally for 60 years,” he says with a laugh.
> “I love the idea of going out on a positive note. I’ve had a great, great
> time.”
>
> After all, his involvement with Fringe was never intended to be permanent.
> Rather, he’d only agreed to appear in a few episodes as a favour to J.J.
> Abrams, who produces Fringe and, of course, directed Star Trek.
>
> “I was away from acting for 12 years, so I guess I was seducable,” Nimoy
> says. “But since J.J. Abrams revived the Star Trek franchise, I felt I
> owed him something. And I’m glad I did it because he promised me a good
> story, and it was.”
>
> Also in question? How many more science-fiction conventions he has in his
> future. He’ll be at this weekend’s Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo
> which “could be the last go-round for that too,” he says, noting he only
> has a few more public appearances planned.
>
> Not that he doesn’t enjoy them. He describes each one as “a love fest. I’m
> so grateful to the fans. I call these kind of experiences a victory lap
> ... It’s like having a family meeting - a family reunion.”
>
> That goodwill mirrors how his own emotions about Trek have mellowed.
> Famously, his 1975 autobiography was entitled I Am Not Spock. By 1995,
> when he published his second autobiography, the title had been modified to
> I Am Spock.
>
> He explains he made peace with the iconic series during the 1980s and
> particularly with Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, which he directed. “I
> felt like Star Trek IV was my personal statement on Star Trek.”
>
> Now, typecasting be damned, he feels no regrets about donning the ears
> that made him famous. “Since Star Trek began in 1966, I’ve never had to
> worry about where the next job was.”
>
> Rather, with his acting and filmmaking career behind him, he wants to
> concentrate on photography, citing an exhibition he has coming up in
> Massachusetts. He acknowledges he was met with skepticism initially about
> this latest creative venture, “but I’ve built credibility now in the art
> world.”
>
> And among the general population, too. He recalls an incident in which he
> and Tom Hanks were approached by a young man who wanted his picture taken
> with Hanks. When Hanks asked who would take the photo, the man turned to
> the now former Mr. Spock.
>
> “He said, ‘Mr. Nimoy, you’re a wonderful photographer. Would you take our
> picture?’ ”
>
> ‘Spock’ headed to Vulcan, Alt.
>
> If Leonard Nimoy is going to be in Calgary, it only seems logical that he
> pays a visit to Vulcan too.
>
> “I couldn’t resist,” he says with a very un-Spock-like laugh. “I thought,
> ‘Since I’m coming to Calgary, why not Vulcan?’ ”
>
> Thus the Southern Alberta community of about 1,900 will get its
> long-awaited chance to host Nimoy on Friday, ahead of his scheduled
> appearance at this weekend’s Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo.
>
> Nimoy’s fondness for the town is well-documented. Vulcan generated
> worldwide headlines last spring when Nimoy backed its bid to host the
> premiere of 2009’s Star Trek film. Ultimately, Paramount bused about 300
> residents of Vulcan - which has long capitalized on the fact it shares the
> name of Spock’s home planet - to Calgary for a private screening.
>
> Not surprisingly, news of Nimoy’s visit has again put Vulcan in the
> spotlight.
>
> In addition to touring the town’s Trek museum, Nimoy will have his iconic
> Vulcan salute 

Re: [scifinoir2] J'Lo's Back-up Plan

[Martin Baxter]

Having never succumbed to Ms Lopez's charms, I shall pass.

On Wed, Apr 21, 2010 at 2:16 PM, Kelwyn  wrote:

>
>
> The Back-Up Plan, Jennifer Lopez's cinematic come-back vehicle, fits neatly
> into her film catalog. It is a middling project probably a step or two above
> Maid in Manhattan but not quite as good as The Wedding Planner, which may be
> the zenith of the J-lo oeuvre. Still, the Plan is not without its charms.
>
> As far as cinema chicas go, Lopez is the bridge that gets you from Rosie
> Perez to Jessica Alba and, thus far, she is only one who has successfully
> top-lined a movie.
>
>
> http://blackplush.blogspot.com/2010/04/back-up-plan-jennifer-lopezs-cinematic.html
>
>  
>



-- 
"If all the world's a stage and we are merely players, who the bloody hell
wrote the script?" -- Charles E Grant

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQUxw9aUVik

Re: [scifinoir2] J'Lo's Back-up Plan

[Keith Johnson]

I think her best role was in Soderbergh's "Out of Sight" (which incidentally 
spawned the criminally short lived and underappreciated TV series "Karen 
Sisco"). That movie was cool and smooth, and the Soderbergh style worked with 
her, Clooney, and Cheadle. 
As for her being a bridge from Perez to Alba, who is that for? Mainstream, 
clueless Americans, I guess? Why do we need a bridge from the proudly Latina 
Perez to the bland Alba? 

- Original Message - 
From: "Kelwyn"  
To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 2:16:34 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
Subject: [scifinoir2] J'Lo's Back-up Plan 






The Back-Up Plan, Jennifer Lopez's cinematic come-back vehicle, fits neatly 
into her film catalog. It is a middling project probably a step or two above 
Maid in Manhattan but not quite as good as The Wedding Planner, which may be 
the zenith of the J-lo oeuvre. Still, the Plan is not without its charms. 

As far as cinema chicas go, Lopez is the bridge that gets you from Rosie Perez 
to Jessica Alba and, thus far, she is only one who has successfully top-lined a 
movie. 

http://blackplush.blogspot.com/2010/04/back-up-plan-jennifer-lopezs-cinematic.html
 

[scifinoir2] Re: ISO good book recommendations

[angelababycat]

That's a good point.  I guess I need to think about the kinds of books I used 
to read...they were probably more fantasy, but I think I want something with a 
little techy edge to it too.  So like "Lord of the Rings" (all which I've read) 
with space ships and other planets.  

MEANWHILE, I took the liberty of making a table in the Database section with 
the recommendations.  Everyone is free to add/edit/delete their recommendations 
as they wish.  When I go to the bookstore, I'm taking the table with me.

Thanks.

Angela

--- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com, Keith Johnson  wrote:
>
> Pure scifi only, or are you open to fantasy as well? 
> 
> - Original Message - 
> From: "Angela Robinson"  
> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
> Sent: Sunday, April 18, 2010 10:30:48 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
> Subject: [scifinoir2] ISO good book recommendations 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> It's been a while since I've made time/had time to curl up with a book, but 
> now am looking for a good sci-fi novel to sink my teeth into. If you could 
> maybe only get through one sci-fi book this year, what would it be? 
> 
> Angela
>

[scifinoir2] Group Databases

[angelababycat]

I just created a table in the Databases section for good book recommendations.  
Please feel free to contribute.

Is anyone interested in a table for movies? TV shows?

Angela

Re: [scifinoir2] Leonard Nimoy set to retire

[Keith Johnson]

Good for him. I find it fascinating how his and Shatner's careers have 
dovetailed. Shatner--Mr. Captains Courageous himself--has gone on to do a host 
of campy and entertaining roles, in commercials, TV, and movies (I love his 
turns in both "Miss Congeniality and "Showtime"). He's always somewhere 
laughing, always a cut up. Due to his girth, my wife says Shat reminds her of 
Santa Clause. He also looks much younger than his years (he and Nimoy are the 
same age). Nimoy has had a life of reflection, of serious dramatic work, of 
exploring his Jewish heritage in writing, painting, and photography, and is 
seen in many ways as the Grand Old Man of scifi. 
Good for both of 'em! 

- Original Message - 
From: "Martin Baxter"  
To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 3:45:07 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] Leonard Nimoy set to retire 






Indeed. Let an old Vulcan have his pon farr in peace. 


On Wed, Apr 21, 2010 at 2:52 PM, brent wodehouse < brent_wodeho...@thefence.us 
> wrote: 








http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/tv/2010/04/19/13639516.html 

Entertainment TV 

Leonard Nimoy set to retire 

By KEVIN WILLIAMSON, QMI Agency 

Last Updated: April 19, 2010 

Just when he thinks he’s out, they beam him back in. 

How else to describe Leonard Nimoy’s enduring, at times conflicted 
relationship with Star Trek, the franchise that’s defined his career for 
more than four decades - regardless of how many times he swore it off or 
believed it was finished? 

“Countless times, I thought it was done,” he admits on the phone from Los 
Angeles. 

But this time, says the 79-year-old actor-director-photographer, there are 
no more possibilities. Spock, his pointy-eared alter-ego, will live long 
and prosper. But it will be without Nimoy. 

“I want to get off the stage. Also, I don’t think it would be fair to 
Zachary Quinto,” he says, referring to the actor who portrayed a youthful 
Spock in last summer’s smash Star Trek relaunch. “He’s a terrific actor, 
he looks the part, and it’s time to give him some space. And I’m very 
flattered the character will continue.” 

In other words, don’t expect to see Nimoy in the next Trek sequel, 
scheduled for 2012. And don’t expect to see him anywhere else, either. 
Having just shot what will be his final appearance as enigmatic genius Dr. 
William Bell in TV’s Fringe, he says he’s retiring from acting altogether. 

“I’ve been doing this professionally for 60 years,” he says with a laugh. 
“I love the idea of going out on a positive note. I’ve had a great, great 
time.” 

After all, his involvement with Fringe was never intended to be permanent. 
Rather, he’d only agreed to appear in a few episodes as a favour to J.J. 
Abrams, who produces Fringe and, of course, directed Star Trek. 

“I was away from acting for 12 years, so I guess I was seducable,” Nimoy 
says. “But since J.J. Abrams revived the Star Trek franchise, I felt I 
owed him something. And I’m glad I did it because he promised me a good 
story, and it was.” 

Also in question? How many more science-fiction conventions he has in his 
future. He’ll be at this weekend’s Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo 
which “could be the last go-round for that too,” he says, noting he only 
has a few more public appearances planned. 

Not that he doesn’t enjoy them. He describes each one as “a love fest. I’m 
so grateful to the fans. I call these kind of experiences a victory lap 
... It’s like having a family meeting - a family reunion.” 

That goodwill mirrors how his own emotions about Trek have mellowed. 
Famously, his 1975 autobiography was entitled I Am Not Spock. By 1995, 
when he published his second autobiography, the title had been modified to 
I Am Spock. 

He explains he made peace with the iconic series during the 1980s and 
particularly with Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, which he directed. “I 
felt like Star Trek IV was my personal statement on Star Trek.” 

Now, typecasting be damned, he feels no regrets about donning the ears 
that made him famous. “Since Star Trek began in 1966, I’ve never had to 
worry about where the next job was.” 

Rather, with his acting and filmmaking career behind him, he wants to 
concentrate on photography, citing an exhibition he has coming up in 
Massachusetts. He acknowledges he was met with skepticism initially about 
this latest creative venture, “but I’ve built credibility now in the art 
world.” 

And among the general population, too. He recalls an incident in which he 
and Tom Hanks were approached by a young man who wanted his picture taken 
with Hanks. When Hanks asked who would take the photo, the man turned to 
the now former Mr. Spock. 

“He said, ‘Mr. Nimoy, you’re a wonderful photographer. Would you take our 
picture?’ ” 

‘Spock’ headed to Vulcan, Alt. 

If Leonard Nimoy is going to be in Calgary, it only seems logical that he 
pays a visit to Vulcan too. 

“I couldn’t resist,” he says with a very un-Spock

[scifinoir2] Re: ISO good book recommendations

[B Smith]

If that's the case Martin's recommendation of Perdido Street Station is spot on 
for you. Cherie Priest's Boneshaker might be a good fit too.


--- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com, "angelababycat"  wrote:
>
> That's a good point.  I guess I need to think about the kinds of books I used 
> to read...they were probably more fantasy, but I think I want something with 
> a little techy edge to it too.  So like "Lord of the Rings" (all which I've 
> read) with space ships and other planets.  
> 
> MEANWHILE, I took the liberty of making a table in the Database section with 
> the recommendations.  Everyone is free to add/edit/delete their 
> recommendations as they wish.  When I go to the bookstore, I'm taking the 
> table with me.
> 
> Thanks.
> 
> Angela
> 
> --- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com, Keith Johnson  wrote:
> >
> > Pure scifi only, or are you open to fantasy as well? 
> > 
> > - Original Message - 
> > From: "Angela Robinson"  
> > To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
> > Sent: Sunday, April 18, 2010 10:30:48 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
> > Subject: [scifinoir2] ISO good book recommendations 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > It's been a while since I've made time/had time to curl up with a book, but 
> > now am looking for a good sci-fi novel to sink my teeth into. If you could 
> > maybe only get through one sci-fi book this year, what would it be? 
> > 
> > Angela
> >
>

Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Do Past Mistakes Condemn a Star Forever?

[Mr. Worf]

It is very easy taking that point of view after the fact. However I will
offer you the best example of what I am talking about. Case in point Traci
Lords. You may recognize the name from the numerous bad movies she has been
in on the syfy channel.

Traci Lords started her career as a porn star when she was 15. After
obtaining a fake id she proceeded to perform in several films and discovered
and moved into larger films. After making over 100 films and posing in
Penthouse a background check exposed her as being underage.

She wasn't the first one to do that. It happens every day.

On Wed, Apr 21, 2010 at 8:07 AM, Bosco Bosco  wrote:

>
>
> Mr. Worf wrote: "As for Woody and R Kelly: It takes two to tango. People
> try to make it sound like an adult was taking advantage of an innocent, but
> there are some youngsters that will put grown women to shame. The fake ID
> was invented a long long time ago."
>
> The number of of ways in which this is singularly the most offensive and
> disgusting thing I have ever read on this list is pretty long. However, I
> will try to boil it down. It's the horrible old sexist argument that the
> victim really wanted it and so it's not a crime. Children are considered
> children for a reason. As the parent of teenagers, I can assure you that
> just because they are capable of making stupid decisions does not mean they
> fully understand the consequences of those decisions. Excusing adults to
> prey on the inherent social awkwardness and weaknesses that are obvious in
> adolescents is pretty much totally f*#king disgusting.
>
> Bosco
>
>
> --- On *Wed, 4/21/10, Mr. Worf * wrote:
>
>
> From: Mr. Worf 
> Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Do Past Mistakes Condemn a Star Forever?
> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
> Date: Wednesday, April 21, 2010, 1:06 AM
>
>
>
> I agree with most of what you said. Except I forgave Michael Vick.
>
> As for Woody and R Kelly: It takes two to tango. People try to make it
> sound like an adult was taking advantage of an innocent, but there are some
> youngsters that will put grown women to shame. The fake ID was invented a
> long long time ago.
>
> On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 12:31 PM, Keith Johnson  comcast.net > wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> The story about Roman Polanski's continuing battle to be free of his past
>> made me think of famous people who commit crimes--or are rumoured to have
>> done so--and how we treat them. So many times, the rich, famous, and
>> powerful get off, or get forgiven, lickety-split, for things common people
>> would wear as a cross forever.
>>
>>
>>
>> As a very liberal person, I am all in favor of innocent until proven
>> guilty, the power of redemption, and one serving one's time to wipe certain
>> slates clean. But I also find some behaviors repugnant enough to where I
>> never forget, even if I forgive.
>>
>>
>>
>> In recent years, I have made conscious decisions not to support several
>> high-profile people who've done things or espoused views I find
>> objectionable. Even before the mess with that famous tape, i was disgusted
>> by singer R. Kelley's spoken views about young girls. So, years ago, i quit
>> buying his music, a personal ban to which I still hold. Now, i know the law
>> says there's no proof of him being on that tape, but there are times when
>> rumours are more than just hearsay. And like I said, his past is enough to
>> where i want nothing to do with him. Given that past, I am amazed at how
>> many black people still support and flock to him, including Tavis Smiley
>> publishing his autobiography. Dude will never notice the lack of my ten
>> bucks or so in his CD- or concert coffers, but it's my small protest.  And
>> too bad, 'cause Brother can sing and I love his music...
>>
>>
>>
>> Similarly, i haven't seen or paid for a Woody Allen movie since he was
>> revealed to have gotten with a young girl who was for all practical purposes
>> being raised as his daughter. "The heart wants what it wants", perhaps, but
>> my heart no longer wants to support an Allen film, old and classic, or new.
>> Of course, he hasn't been on his game in years, so maybe I'm not missing
>> much.
>>
>>
>>
>> Likewise, I have not supported a Polanski film since I was old enough to
>> understand what he was charged with doing. Maybe if he had stood and faced
>> his punishment like a man all those years ago...but no, i just can't bring
>> myself to throw any ducats his way either...
>>
>>
>>
>> It's odd at times for a person as liberal as me to feel this way, and as a
>> Christian, I totally believe in repentance and being a "New Man". But
>> sometimes, the "ick" factor is still too much present for me, since these
>> are issues of doing things to young kids or forcing themselves on
>> people, not something as "simple" as being a cad or whoremonger. I know:
>> there are a bazillion politicians, actors, singers, and businessmen who
>> similarly have really sordid pasts and views, and I'm not trying to

Re: [scifinoir2] Leonard Nimoy set to retire

[Mr. Worf]

Is this before or after he finishes his role on Fringe?

On Wed, Apr 21, 2010 at 1:32 PM, Keith Johnson wrote:

>
>
> Good for him. I find it fascinating how his and Shatner's careers have
> dovetailed. Shatner--Mr. Captains Courageous himself--has gone on to do a
> host of campy and entertaining roles, in commercials, TV, and movies (I love
> his turns in both "Miss Congeniality and "Showtime"). He's always somewhere
> laughing, always a cut up. Due to his girth, my wife says Shat reminds her
> of Santa Clause. He also looks much younger than his years (he and Nimoy are
> the same age). Nimoy has had a life of reflection, of serious dramatic work,
> of exploring his Jewish heritage in writing, painting, and photography, and
> is seen in many ways as the Grand Old Man of scifi.
> Good for both of 'em!
>
> - Original Message -
> From: "Martin Baxter" 
> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 3:45:07 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern
> Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] Leonard Nimoy set to retire
>
>
>
> Indeed. Let an old Vulcan have his pon farr in peace.
>
> On Wed, Apr 21, 2010 at 2:52 PM, brent wodehouse <
> brent_wodeho...@thefence.us> wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/tv/2010/04/19/13639516.html
>>
>> Entertainment TV
>>
>> Leonard Nimoy set to retire
>>
>> By KEVIN WILLIAMSON, QMI Agency
>>
>> Last Updated: April 19, 2010
>>
>> Just when he thinks he’s out, they beam him back in.
>>
>> How else to describe Leonard Nimoy’s enduring, at times conflicted
>> relationship with Star Trek, the franchise that’s defined his career for
>> more than four decades - regardless of how many times he swore it off or
>> believed it was finished?
>>
>> “Countless times, I thought it was done,” he admits on the phone from Los
>> Angeles.
>>
>> But this time, says the 79-year-old actor-director-photographer, there are
>> no more possibilities. Spock, his pointy-eared alter-ego, will live long
>> and prosper. But it will be without Nimoy.
>>
>> “I want to get off the stage. Also, I don’t think it would be fair to
>> Zachary Quinto,” he says, referring to the actor who portrayed a youthful
>> Spock in last summer’s smash Star Trek relaunch. “He’s a terrific actor,
>> he looks the part, and it’s time to give him some space. And I’m very
>> flattered the character will continue.”
>>
>> In other words, don’t expect to see Nimoy in the next Trek sequel,
>> scheduled for 2012. And don’t expect to see him anywhere else, either.
>> Having just shot what will be his final appearance as enigmatic genius Dr.
>> William Bell in TV’s Fringe, he says he’s retiring from acting altogether.
>>
>> “I’ve been doing this professionally for 60 years,” he says with a laugh.
>> “I love the idea of going out on a positive note. I’ve had a great, great
>> time.”
>>
>> After all, his involvement with Fringe was never intended to be permanent.
>> Rather, he’d only agreed to appear in a few episodes as a favour to J.J.
>> Abrams, who produces Fringe and, of course, directed Star Trek.
>>
>> “I was away from acting for 12 years, so I guess I was seducable,” Nimoy
>> says. “But since J.J. Abrams revived the Star Trek franchise, I felt I
>> owed him something. And I’m glad I did it because he promised me a good
>> story, and it was.”
>>
>> Also in question? How many more science-fiction conventions he has in his
>> future. He’ll be at this weekend’s Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo
>> which “could be the last go-round for that too,” he says, noting he only
>> has a few more public appearances planned.
>>
>> Not that he doesn’t enjoy them. He describes each one as “a love fest. I’m
>> so grateful to the fans. I call these kind of experiences a victory lap
>> ... It’s like having a family meeting - a family reunion.”
>>
>> That goodwill mirrors how his own emotions about Trek have mellowed.
>> Famously, his 1975 autobiography was entitled I Am Not Spock. By 1995,
>> when he published his second autobiography, the title had been modified to
>> I Am Spock.
>>
>> He explains he made peace with the iconic series during the 1980s and
>> particularly with Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, which he directed. “I
>> felt like Star Trek IV was my personal statement on Star Trek.”
>>
>> Now, typecasting be damned, he feels no regrets about donning the ears
>> that made him famous. “Since Star Trek began in 1966, I’ve never had to
>> worry about where the next job was.”
>>
>> Rather, with his acting and filmmaking career behind him, he wants to
>> concentrate on photography, citing an exhibition he has coming up in
>> Massachusetts. He acknowledges he was met with skepticism initially about
>> this latest creative venture, “but I’ve built credibility now in the art
>> world.”
>>
>> And among the general population, too. He recalls an incident in which he
>> and Tom Hanks were approached by a young man who wanted his picture taken
>> with Hanks. When Hanks asked who would take the photo, the man turned to
>> the now f

Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Do Past Mistakes Condemn a Star Forever?

[Keith Johnson]

But the point is she was a child. Have you read her bio? She had a lot of abuse 
and self-hatred in her past, like many, many women in the adult film industry. 
Kids get fake IDs to obtain alcohol too, and we don't say "Oh well" if they get 
drunk. We as a society have to protect kids from themselves, *especially* when 
those kids intentionally try to go down the wrong path. 
And Lords is now one of the most ardent people who wants to protect young girls 
from getting themselves into such dire straits. 

- Original Message - 
From: "Mr. Worf"  
To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 4:47:17 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Do Past Mistakes Condemn a Star Forever? 






It is very easy taking that point of view after the fact. However I will offer 
you the best example of what I am talking about. Case in point Traci Lords. You 
may recognize the name from the numerous bad movies she has been in on the syfy 
channel. 

Traci Lords started her career as a porn star when she was 15. After obtaining 
a fake id she proceeded to perform in several films and discovered and moved 
into larger films. After making over 100 films and posing in Penthouse a 
background check exposed her as being underage. 

She wasn't the first one to do that. It happens every day. 


On Wed, Apr 21, 2010 at 8:07 AM, Bosco Bosco < ironpi...@yahoo.com > wrote: 





Mr. Worf wrote: "As for Woody and R Kelly: It takes two to tango. People try to 
make it sound like an adult was taking advantage of an innocent, but there are 
some youngsters that will put grown women to shame. The fake ID was invented a 
long long time ago." 

The number of of ways in which this is singularly the most offensive and 
disgusting thing I have ever read on this list is pretty long. However, I will 
try to boil it down. It's the horrible old sexist argument that the victim 
really wanted it and so it's not a crime. Children are considered children for 
a reason. As the parent of teenagers, I can assure you that just because they 
are capable of making stupid decisions does not mean they fully understand the 
consequences of those decisions. Excusing adults to prey on the inherent social 
awkwardness and weaknesses that are obvious in adolescents is pretty much 
totally f*#king disgusting. 

Bosco 


--- On Wed, 4/21/10, Mr. Worf < hellomahog...@gmail.com > wrote: 




From: Mr. Worf < hellomahog...@gmail.com > 

Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Do Past Mistakes Condemn a Star Forever? 
To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
Date: Wednesday, April 21, 2010, 1:06 AM 






I agree with most of what you said. Except I forgave Michael Vick. 

As for Woody and R Kelly: It takes two to tango. People try to make it sound 
like an adult was taking advantage of an innocent, but there are some 
youngsters that will put grown women to shame. The fake ID was invented a long 
long time ago. 


On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 12:31 PM, Keith Johnson < KeithBJohnson@ comcast.net > 
wrote: 








The story about Roman Polanski's continuing battle to be free of his past made 
me think of famous people who commit crimes--or are rumoured to have done 
so--and how we treat them. So many times, the rich, famous, and powerful get 
off, or get forgiven, lickety-split, for things common people would wear as a 
cross forever. 



As a very liberal person, I am all in favor of innocent until proven guilty, 
the power of redemption, and one serving one's time to wipe certain slates 
clean. But I also find some behaviors repugnant enough to where I never forget, 
even if I forgive. 



In recent years, I have made conscious decisions not to support several 
high-profile people who've done things or espoused views I find objectionable. 
Even before the mess with that famous tape, i was disgusted by singer R. 
Kelley's spoken views about young girls. So, years ago, i quit buying his 
music, a personal ban to which I still hold. Now, i know the law says there's 
no proof of him being on that tape, but there are times when rumours are more 
than just hearsay. And like I said, his past is enough to where i want nothing 
to do with him. Given that past, I am amazed at how many black people still 
support and flock to him, including Tavis Smiley publishing his autobiography. 
Dude will never notice the lack of my ten bucks or so in his CD- or concert 
coffers, but it's my small protest. And too bad, 'cause Brother can sing and I 
love his music... 



Similarly, i haven't seen or paid for a Woody Allen movie since he was revealed 
to have gotten with a young girl who was for all practical purposes being 
raised as his daughter. "The heart wants what it wants", perhaps, but my heart 
no longer wants to support an Allen film, old and classic, or new. Of course, 
he hasn't been on his game in years, so maybe I'm not missing much. 



Likewise, I have not supported a Polanski film since I was old enough to 
understand what he was charged with doing. Ma

Re: [scifinoir2] Group Databases

[Keith Johnson]

Absolutely! 

- Original Message - 
From: "angelababycat"  
To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 4:09:38 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
Subject: [scifinoir2] Group Databases 






I just created a table in the Databases section for good book recommendations. 
Please feel free to contribute. 

Is anyone interested in a table for movies? TV shows? 

Angela 

Re: [scifinoir2] Re: ISO good book recommendations

[Keith Johnson]

How techie does it need to be? Modern and up-to-date, with the tech pretty 
realistic, or can it be older stuff written from the 50s and later, where the 
science wouldn't now be considered cutting edge? Does it need to be deep and 
socially relevant, or just fun? I can think of EE "Doc" Smith's Lensmen series, 
which dates back to the '50s era. It's fun, but definitely of its time. 

Let me ask about old classics. Ever read any of Larry Niven's or Jerry 
Pournelle's stuff? "Footfall" is a good book, about a race of intelligent 
pachyderms that invade Earth. Then there's the "Ringworld" series, which is 
really good. 

- Original Message - 
From: "angelababycat"  
To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 4:05:02 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
Subject: [scifinoir2] Re: ISO good book recommendations 






That's a good point. I guess I need to think about the kinds of books I used to 
read...they were probably more fantasy, but I think I want something with a 
little techy edge to it too. So like "Lord of the Rings" (all which I've read) 
with space ships and other planets. 

MEANWHILE, I took the liberty of making a table in the Database section with 
the recommendations. Everyone is free to add/edit/delete their recommendations 
as they wish. When I go to the bookstore, I'm taking the table with me. 

Thanks. 

Angela 

--- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com , Keith Johnson  wrote: 
> 
> Pure scifi only, or are you open to fantasy as well? 
> 
> - Original Message - 
> From: "Angela Robinson"  
> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
> Sent: Sunday, April 18, 2010 10:30:48 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
> Subject: [scifinoir2] ISO good book recommendations 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> It's been a while since I've made time/had time to curl up with a book, but 
> now am looking for a good sci-fi novel to sink my teeth into. If you could 
> maybe only get through one sci-fi book this year, what would it be? 
> 
> Angela 
> 

Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Do Past Mistakes Condemn a Star Forever?

[Mr. Worf]

We are talking about two different points here. I said that there are young
people that intentionally do this. Not that it was ok or not.

On Wed, Apr 21, 2010 at 1:51 PM, Keith Johnson wrote:

>
>
> But the point is she was a child. Have you read her bio? She had a lot of
> abuse and self-hatred in her past, like many, many women in the adult film
> industry. Kids get fake IDs to obtain alcohol too, and we don't say "Oh
> well" if they get drunk. We as a society have to protect kids from
> themselves, *especially* when those kids intentionally try to go down the
> wrong path.
> And Lords is now one of the most ardent people who wants to protect young
> girls from getting themselves into such dire straits.
>
>
> - Original Message -
> From: "Mr. Worf" 
> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 4:47:17 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern
> Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Do Past Mistakes Condemn a Star Forever?
>
>
>
> It is very easy taking that point of view after the fact. However I will
> offer you the best example of what I am talking about. Case in point Traci
> Lords. You may recognize the name from the numerous bad movies she has been
> in on the syfy channel.
>
> Traci Lords started her career as a porn star when she was 15. After
> obtaining a fake id she proceeded to perform in several films and discovered
> and moved into larger films. After making over 100 films and posing in
> Penthouse a background check exposed her as being underage.
>
> She wasn't the first one to do that. It happens every day.
>
> On Wed, Apr 21, 2010 at 8:07 AM, Bosco Bosco  wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> Mr. Worf wrote: "As for Woody and R Kelly: It takes two to tango. People
>> try to make it sound like an adult was taking advantage of an innocent, but
>> there are some youngsters that will put grown women to shame. The fake ID
>> was invented a long long time ago."
>>
>> The number of of ways in which this is singularly the most offensive and
>> disgusting thing I have ever read on this list is pretty long. However, I
>> will try to boil it down. It's the horrible old sexist argument that the
>> victim really wanted it and so it's not a crime. Children are considered
>> children for a reason. As the parent of teenagers, I can assure you that
>> just because they are capable of making stupid decisions does not mean they
>> fully understand the consequences of those decisions. Excusing adults to
>> prey on the inherent social awkwardness and weaknesses that are obvious in
>> adolescents is pretty much totally f*#king disgusting.
>>
>> Bosco
>>
>>
>> --- On *Wed, 4/21/10, Mr. Worf * wrote:
>>
>>
>> From: Mr. Worf 
>> Subject: Re: [scifinoir2] OT: Do Past Mistakes Condemn a Star Forever?
>> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com
>> Date: Wednesday, April 21, 2010, 1:06 AM
>>
>>
>>
>> I agree with most of what you said. Except I forgave Michael Vick.
>>
>> As for Woody and R Kelly: It takes two to tango. People try to make it
>> sound like an adult was taking advantage of an innocent, but there are some
>> youngsters that will put grown women to shame. The fake ID was invented a
>> long long time ago.
>>
>> On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 12:31 PM, Keith Johnson > comcast.net > wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>
>>> The story about Roman Polanski's continuing battle to be free of his past
>>> made me think of famous people who commit crimes--or are rumoured to have
>>> done so--and how we treat them. So many times, the rich, famous, and
>>> powerful get off, or get forgiven, lickety-split, for things common people
>>> would wear as a cross forever.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> As a very liberal person, I am all in favor of innocent until proven
>>> guilty, the power of redemption, and one serving one's time to wipe certain
>>> slates clean. But I also find some behaviors repugnant enough to where I
>>> never forget, even if I forgive.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> In recent years, I have made conscious decisions not to support several
>>> high-profile people who've done things or espoused views I find
>>> objectionable. Even before the mess with that famous tape, i was disgusted
>>> by singer R. Kelley's spoken views about young girls. So, years ago, i quit
>>> buying his music, a personal ban to which I still hold. Now, i know the law
>>> says there's no proof of him being on that tape, but there are times when
>>> rumours are more than just hearsay. And like I said, his past is enough to
>>> where i want nothing to do with him. Given that past, I am amazed at how
>>> many black people still support and flock to him, including Tavis Smiley
>>> publishing his autobiography. Dude will never notice the lack of my ten
>>> bucks or so in his CD- or concert coffers, but it's my small protest.  And
>>> too bad, 'cause Brother can sing and I love his music...
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Similarly, i haven't seen or paid for a Woody Allen movie since he was
>>> revealed to have gotten with a young girl who was for all practical purposes
>>> 

[scifinoir2] Re: OT: Do Past Mistakes Condemn a Star Forever?

[B Smith]

Agreed. And the sad thing is that R. Kelly is still preying on underaged girls 
so it's not like this was a one time incident. His last public escapade caused 
a split with his longtime management team because the girl in question was 
their niece.

--- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com, Martin Baxter  wrote:
>
> Keith, I do, and I'm not the leas bit ashamed of it. I dumped all of my R.
> Kelly music after he made those remarks, and I avoid Woody Allen like the
> plague. As for Polanski in particular, I used to back him, based on one
> photo of the girl he raped, because the girl looked 13 going on 35 in the
> shot.
> 
> THEN I learned what he did to her. If ever I meet the man, I have a dull
> butter knife with his name on it.
> 
> On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 3:31 PM, Keith Johnson wrote:
> 
> >
> >
> > The story about Roman Polanski's continuing battle to be free of his past
> > made me think of famous people who commit crimes--or are rumoured to have
> > done so--and how we treat them. So many times, the rich, famous, and
> > powerful get off, or get forgiven, lickety-split, for things common people
> > would wear as a cross forever.
> >
> >
> >
> > As a very liberal person, I am all in favor of innocent until proven
> > guilty, the power of redemption, and one serving one's time to wipe certain
> > slates clean. But I also find some behaviors repugnant enough to where I
> > never forget, even if I forgive.
> >
> >
> >
> > In recent years, I have made conscious decisions not to support several
> > high-profile people who've done things or espoused views I find
> > objectionable. Even before the mess with that famous tape, i was disgusted
> > by singer R. Kelley's spoken views about young girls. So, years ago, i quit
> > buying his music, a personal ban to which I still hold. Now, i know the law
> > says there's no proof of him being on that tape, but there are times when
> > rumours are more than just hearsay. And like I said, his past is enough to
> > where i want nothing to do with him. Given that past, I am amazed at how
> > many black people still support and flock to him, including Tavis Smiley
> > publishing his autobiography. Dude will never notice the lack of my ten
> > bucks or so in his CD- or concert coffers, but it's my small protest.  And
> > too bad, 'cause Brother can sing and I love his music...
> >
> >
> >
> > Similarly, i haven't seen or paid for a Woody Allen movie since he was
> > revealed to have gotten with a young girl who was for all practical purposes
> > being raised as his daughter. "The heart wants what it wants", perhaps, but
> > my heart no longer wants to support an Allen film, old and classic, or new.
> > Of course, he hasn't been on his game in years, so maybe I'm not missing
> > much.
> >
> >
> >
> > Likewise, I have not supported a Polanski film since I was old enough to
> > understand what he was charged with doing. Maybe if he had stood and faced
> > his punishment like a man all those years ago...but no, i just can't bring
> > myself to throw any ducats his way either...
> >
> >
> >
> > It's odd at times for a person as liberal as me to feel this way, and as a
> > Christian, I totally believe in repentance and being a "New Man". But
> > sometimes, the "ick" factor is still too much present for me, since these
> > are issues of doing things to young kids or forcing themselves on
> > people, not something as "simple" as being a cad or whoremonger. I know:
> > there are a bazillion politicians, actors, singers, and businessmen who
> > similarly have really sordid pasts and views, and I'm not trying to go on a
> > witch hunt to decide who i will and won't support. But like I said, for
> > people like those above, i just can't bring myself to support them anymore.
> >
> >
> >
> > Do you ever find yourself taking such a position on someone in the public
> > eye?
> >  
> >
> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> "If all the world's a stage and we are merely players, who the bloody hell
> wrote the script?" -- Charles E Grant
>

[scifinoir2] A steampunk desk

[Mr. Worf]

He calls it a steampunk command center:
http://www.gizmag.com/steampunk-organ-command-desk/14861/?utm_source=Gizmag+Subscribers&utm_campaign=0d26c14555-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email

more pictures here:
http://www.gizmowatch.com/entry/steampunk-home-owner-s-all-in-one-workstation-is-latest-to-fall-for/




-- 
Celebrating 10 years of bringing diversity to perversity!
Mahogany at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mahogany_pleasures_of_darkness/

[scifinoir2] Facebook Sci-Fi Groups

[angelababycat]

I decided to enter the 21st century and finally set up a facebook page.  Well, 
that's a week worth of work  

Anyway, I was searching sci-fi groups to see if any interested me and there's 
one called "Fans of crappy sci-fi channel original movies." LMAO!

But, seriously, anyone a fan of any sci-fi groups on facebook?

Angela

[scifinoir2] Re: Group Databases

[angelababycat]

Please do the honors and post the first movie.

--- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com, Keith Johnson  wrote:
>
> Absolutely! 
> 
> - Original Message - 
> From: "angelababycat"  
> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com 
> Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 4:09:38 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern 
> Subject: [scifinoir2] Group Databases 
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> I just created a table in the Databases section for good book 
> recommendations. Please feel free to contribute. 
> 
> Is anyone interested in a table for movies? TV shows? 
> 
> Angela
>