Aug 24, 2013 | Arts and Entertainment, General Advice, mic
Published: mic (August 24, 2013) The nerd community is in a fit over the recent announcement that Ben Affleck will be donning the legendary cowl in the upcoming Batman vs. Superman movie. Here are 10 reasons why they should give the man a chance. 1. He's a talented actor. Not only did he do an excellent job in the Oscar-winner Argo (although he was snubbed for his acting as well as his directing...
Jul 18, 2013 | Arts and Entertainment, General Advice, mic
Published: mic (July 18, 2013) As the multiplexes bombard us with such irredeemably awful fare as Grown Ups 2 and The Lone Ranger, I figured it was time to take a look at four movies so awful, they're actually pretty wonderful. In no particular order... 1. Troll 2 (1990) Yeah, anyone familiar with B-movies could have guessed that this garbage would make an appearance. For those of you unfamiliar...
Jul 17, 2013 | General Advice, Libertarianism, mic, Political Ideologies
Published: mic (June 17, 2013) The slaying of sacred cows is one of the foremost responsibilities of anyone who hopes to shape public opinion in a responsible fashion. That is why most of America's prominent political groups have received their fair share of ridicule, from The Colbert Report's shtick parodying conservatives to South Park's legendary lampoons deflating liberals. Considering the...
Jul 11, 2013 | Arts and Entertainment, Gender and Sexism, General Advice, mic
Published: mic (July 11, 2013) Sometimes it's necessary to feel ashamed of yourself. This unpleasant epiphany came to me when I came across a Dustin Hoffman interview in which the Academy Award-winning actor discussed his experience preparing for the 1982 cross-dressing comedy Tootsie. As he described the studio's attempts to make him look like a convincing woman, he recalled his shock at being...
Mar 4, 2013 | Arts and Entertainment, General Advice, mic
Published: mic (March 4, 2013) When I think of the cookie-cutter music so often churned out today — the visceral club beats of a Nicki Minaj or Kesha, the vapid tween-targeted sugar pop of Justin Bieber or the Jonas Brothers — I can't help but remember a quote from Alexis de Tocqueville, back when the legendary French sociologist went on his famous tour of America in the 1830s: "It would be to...
Nov 27, 2012 | Democrats, General Advice, mic, Political Parties, Republicans, Scandals
Published: PolicyMic (November 27, 2012) This may seem odd coming from the pen of a liberal Democrat (er, keyboard), but here it goes: Gerald Ford is my favorite president of the past forty years. There are plenty of good reasons for liberals to admire Ford. Foremost among them is the fact that he was the last genuinely moderate Republican to inhabit the White House, with his battle against...
Nov 7, 2012 | Democrats, Elections, Elections - Presidential (2012), General Advice, mic, Political Parties, President Obama, Republicans
Published: PolicyMic (November 7, 2012) "When news of the surrender first reached our lines our men commenced firing a salute of a hundred guns in honor of the victory. I at once sent word, however, to have it stopped. The Confederates were now our prisoners, and we did not want to exult over their downfall." By now, most of you probably recognize this quote as the famous passage from Ulysses S....
Jul 3, 2012 | Arts and Entertainment, General Advice, mic
Published: PolicyMic (July 3, 2012) The Stephanie Meyers of the world may come and go, but as fans of classic television will happily remind you, only one franchise will ever be truly deserving of the word "Twilight." I refer, of course, to "The Twilight Zone," that timeless anthology of the supernatural that premiered in 1959 and remained on the air for five seasons (156 episodes) before CBS...
May 18, 2012 | Arts and Entertainment, General Advice
Published PolicyMic (May 18, 2012) Film critics haven't been mincing words about The Avengers. From Hollywood Life and The Washington Times to the Dekalb County Times-Journal, pundits of the silver screen are not only praising Joss Whedon's take on the band of Marvel icons, but referring to his motion picture as the greatest superhero film ever made. While I don't quite agree with this...
May 5, 2012 | Centrism, Conservativism, Extremism, General Advice, Liberalism, Libertarianism, mic, Political Ideologies
Published: PolicyMic (May 5, 2012) No one wants to be an ideologue. Defined by Merriam-Webster's Dictionary as "an often blindly partisan advocate or adherent of a particular ideology," ideologues are correctly viewed as one of the banes of the political world. While at their most extreme, they provoke violence and oppress non-believers, even the more innocuous ones manage to hinder debate and...