American Idol

Well American Idol is over for another year, and I for one am very glad that I have DVR. Even if it doesn't quite work properly due to the incompetence of Charter.

Even though it may not be 'cool' to say it, I still kind of like American Idol. It is an interesting show, but there is so much crap and filler I simply would not watch it at all unless I could DVR it and then fast forward through most of it.

I think that the outcome was a bit stupid this year. Apparently America voted for the guy that was consistently inconsistent, and while he may of won, we all know that Adam Lambert is going to be huge.

The blessing in disguise is that as a runner up, Adam will likely have a lot more control over his music career going forward. Perhaps the best news is that he won't have to release that steaming turd of a song written by Kara DioGuardi et al.

For those who missed it, allow me to share a small selection of some of the extraordinary lyrics with you:

"Every moment last forever if you feel you’ve lost your way"

"With every step you climb another mountain
Every breathe it’s harder to believe"

"You’ll make it through the pain (or through all the aches and pains)
Weather the hurricanes"

"Just when you think the road is going nowhere
Just when you’ve almost gave up on your dreams"

"You can go higher
You can go deeper
There are no boundaries
Above and beneath you"

It is perhaps part of the reason that Adam lost Idol; even he couldn't polish this turd of a song and sell it to the American people. Sadly the last image we have of the guy is him singing this right before the phone lines open.

It's like asking Sting to sing The Chicken Song.

Time will tell if Kara will be back for another season. In many ways I would welcome it, just so we can see Randy and Simon make fun of her stupid song.

As for the guy who won, the big question will be if he can overcome the embarrassment of putting out that song as his debut single.

No discussion of American Idol this year would be complete without the weird bitchfest that former Idol runner up Clay Aiken started on his web site. Apparently Clay, rips off his fans by making them subscribe to his blog. They then get to read what Clay really thinks about the world around him (who the fuck would pay for that seriously?).

When asked his thoughts on Adam Lambert, Clay went off on a rant, that included talk of his ears bleeding. Although catty Clay did admit that he didn't actually watch Idol anymore.

For the record, I wouldn't go and see Clay Aiken perform if he was in my living room. And I've no idea what was to be gained from attacking a talented singer for no reason other than a cynical attempt to get his name back in the news.

Whatever the reason, I say that the attack and then half assed apology showed a complete lack of class by Clay. Hopefully he will disappear back into obscurity, and maybe he will take that old fucking windbag Dick Cheney with him. Maybe they can go hunting together.

More Oppression Of Saudi Women

Life is not always good for women of Saudi Arabia. Forced to wear stupid oppressive costumes their whole life once they leave childhood. Not allowed to drive. Not allowed to get a proper education, or leave the home most of the time. The criminal justice system revolves around men. Women can be put to death, or flogged for a multitude of crimes, including riding in a car with a 'strange' man, being raped, and so on.

It is really quite sick that our nation is 'friends' with such a hotbed of evil. I'll be interested to see how friendly we are with them once their oil runs out.

The latest story out of Saudi Arabia is unsurprisingly one of further oppression of women. Since women are not allowed to attend places that men go (without an escort), the only way they can stay in shape is to attend a women's only gym. The only problem with that arrangement is that it is illegal to open a women's only gym without a license. And the only problem with that is that the government does not issue licenses for women's gyms.

For a few years gyms for women have operated in secret around the county, and the authorities have turned a blind eye to the practice. But not being oppressive assholes is not something the authorities are good at in Saudi. So the government has now begun a crackdown on female gyms, closing them for not having a license.

Another argument they make against women getting exercise, is the belief that a woman can lose their virginity by playing sports. This in turn puts them in danger of being stoned to death, if her new husband doesn't believe he has married a virgin after his wedding night.

It really is so sad to see an entire nation operating in such a disgusting manner. Oppressing half the population in so many despicable ways. I hope their oil runs out soon, so we can cut off all trade relations with these nasty scumbags.

LOL @ Carrie Prejean

I had to laugh at Carrie Prejean (AKA Miss Anti-Opposite Marriage) getting her ass kicked in the media this week.

Carrie Prejean was bitter because her dumb homo prejudiced pageant answer cost her the win (so she claims). So she decided to use her 15 seconds of fame to stand up and campaign for the Christians values of 'normal' marriage between a man and a woman.

She went on the rampage in the media spouting crap about how it was her RIGHT to discriminate against other people and encourage others to do so also (it was remember, her OPINION). And there was no arguing with her; after all GOD was on her side.

Unfortunately a few facts emerged recently that sully the clean cut Christian image, that she was trying to exploit for personal gain.

First off, it is becoming clear that she accepted the gift of a free boob job, when everyone knows there is no such thing as a free boob job.

Next is the contract she entered into to become Miss California. She agreed to various ethical standards and gave her word that she had not ever been involved in nude photo shoots. Turns out she lied about that.

Various web sites today released some topless pictures of her wearing tiny panties and nothing else. Carrie Prejean went on the offensive claiming that 'they' were trying to silence her Christian views, while simultaneously explaining that nude and semi-nude photography is common for models. She further claimed to have been under 18 when the pictures were taken, which many believe is a lie.

He's the problem that I, and so many others, have with this bimbo. She has set herself up as a good Christian woman, who just wants to push that agenda. And there is nothing especially wrong with that, if your motives are genuine (and you are who you claim to be).

Carrie Prejean is a fraud though. She is a stripper who whores herself to get ahead in life. She recognised that her stupid answer in the pageant cost her a win, so decided to dig her heels in and pretend to be a martyr for her Christian cause, but really was simply using the situation to build on her celebrity. But when you are a liar, a stripper, and a whore, it is hard to preach to others about how they should lead their lives.

It will be interesting to see the reaction of the ultra right wing Christian groups who have been fawning around her since she took her 'stand' against 'opposite marriage' as more and more facts come out about this fraud.

A Christian talk show presenter made a comment on the news today that I believe in wholeheartedly. She said, Christianity isn't a buffet. You can't just pick and choose the bits you like, and ignore the things you don't. Either the Bible is the infallible word of God or it is not. If you are going to use the Bible to justify discrimination against the gay community, it makes no sense to simply ignore other equally important Biblical principles and rules for the sake of convenience.

Just to be clear, I am not conservative. I don't have a problem with women who wish to strip, become prostitutes, or have cosmetic surgery to become models. To each their own. But you can't do things that are blatantly against the teaching of the Bible, and then thump the Bible to push your particular cause or agenda.

UAE = SHIT

People in the West seem to be under the mistaken impression that the United Arab Emirates (especially Dubai) is the Las Vegas of the Middle East, and is just a safe joyous place. People go there to vacation or to earn lots of tax free dollars in this oil rich country.

But I would not go there if I had the best suite at the 'seven star' Burj Al Arab hotel comped and all the spending money I could spend.

There are many reasons why, many of which include injustice and oppression of women.

I read a story today that typifies why I think the place is so shit. It doesn't matter how 'progressive' they think they are, or how much less oppressive they are than some places in the Middle East. The fact is they are still horribly oppressive and sexist, with a nice mix of religious fanaticism thrown in.

In the story I read an Australian nurse who worked in a hospital there was heading home from a 13 hour shift. He got stuck behind a driver who was driving erratically while talking on his mobile phone.

He finally overtook the bad driver and out of stress and frustration gave a one finger salute to the other driver, expecting this to be the end of the matter.

The other driver proceeded to re-overtake, slam his brakes on nearly causing an accident, before following the Australian nurse home to his apartment. After a minor verbal altercation, he called the police and pressed charges against the nurse. Despite making a full confession and apology, the Aussie was jailed for 24 days before being deported.

It's stories like this, and the one about a year ago where a guy was jailed because they found some weed (about the same amount as a grain of sugar) on the sole of his shoe, that makes me think that the UAE is just a nasty hole that would be nothing were it not for their oil.

People in the West need to wise up, become independent of Middle Eastern oil, and leave countries like this to evolve into something that is acceptable and reasonable in this century.

My Pick: Annie Duke

I've really been enjoying the Celebrity Apprentice this season, and I have to say Annie Duke surely deserves to take down this competition.

After the final round of eliminations this week she gets to play heads up with Joan Rivers, the old hag who has repeatedly compared Annie to Hitler.

Now clearly Joan Rivers is mentally ill, who else does that to their face? But despite that, I can't wait to see Annie take the bitch down next week.

This is a charity reality show, and there is simply no reason for Joan Rivers to go after Annie and poker players generally in such a bitchy way. I thought Omarosa was crazy (and I was right), but Joan is taking this to a whole other level of crazy. Especially odd behavior for someone who claims to have such class, yet cannot seem to separate business from the bitchy ad hominem.

So good luck Annie. Show no mercy.

Weird Marketing

The other evening I saw this business card sitting in the lobby of some business in Virginia. As I was waiting for someone I was curious as to what they were advertising, which I guess from a marketing standpoint makes it a success.

Once I had read the card, I was left a little confused about why they had chosen this form of marketing. The card was exactly the same size as a poker playing card, and looked at first glace like it was advertising a "gentleman's club."

Of course, as you can see it is actually offering to teach people to get a GED. I just thought it was weird enough to share.

Gun Accidents

An idiot living in Northport, Alabama, may have to re-think his home defense strategy.

The 24-year-old hick decided that he would be a lot safer if he slept with a .40 caliber pistol in his bed. Unfortunately he somehow discharged the gun while sleeping and shot himself.

Sadly the gunshot wound was not fatal.

***

In an unrelated story a 59-year-old man in Colorado was visiting a relative in hospital, and accidentally shot himself as he reached into his pocket to pay for his lunch.

Apparently, the man was illegally carrying the concealed weapon for personal protection, and was unaware of the hospital's no gun policy, nor the concept of a safety catch.

***

My final story of gun idiocy happened last year.

A Texas man was playing poker and drinking with his friends in Fort Worth. The 44-year-old man left the room and noticed he had an itchy back. So he figured what better way to scratch his back, than with the loaded revolver he was carrying.

The man shot himself in the back, but was not seriously injured. The brain damage was said to be a pre-existing condition.

Stupid Gains A Foothold In The UK

A rather sad survey came out in February. Apparently the education system is failing so badly in Britain that half of adults now do not believe in evolution.

It's always a sign that the education system is fucked when you see surveys like this.

22% of adults surveyed said they believed in creationism, intelligent design, or some other made up magic to explain the world.

A scary 10% said that they believed in the young Earth 'theory' that this planet is only about 10,000 years old!

A significant percentage of people had intermingled poorly understood science, with mythology, magic and religion, to form weird twisted ideas that showed ignorance and stupidity was king. But at least there might be hope with these people. They are clearly morons, but perhaps with some remedial education, we can teach them the difference between made up fiction, and reality.

Thankfully around 50% of those surveyed stated that the theory of evolution was true (with varying degrees of certainty).

With such a disturbing statistic, I think it's time to push back. It's time we took prayer out of British schools, and stopped peddling stupid fairy tales of talking snakes, and magic, as if it were fact.

Girl Of Eight Granted Divorce

A judge in Saudi Arabia has finally seen sense and granted an eight year old child, a divorce from her FIFTY YEAR OLD HUSBAND!

As previously mentioned on this blog, some guy decided to sell his daughter to a fiftysomething year old man, on the basis that he was not allowed to rape his new wife until she turned 18. Apparently this Saudi pedophile was more than happy with this condition, and was prepared to give her a decade to grow up. Meanwhile, her father enjoyed the $7,000 he sold her for.

Well, amazingly mommy was a little unhappy with this deal and so went down to court to get her child a divorce. Unsurprisingly, the judge made some excuse and the marriage was not annulled.

It in fact took THREE trials and finally a settlement to get a divorce granted.

Seriously, let's hope we can ween ourselves of the oil teat soon, because kissing up to these crazy sick sexist bastards really turns my stomach.

In Saudi Arabia, there is no legal minimum age for marriage. Although technically a woman must give consent to be married, this rule is often ignored.

British Pregnant Woman Faces Firing Squad

I was reading a story in The Independent today about a 20-year-old British citizen, Samantha Orobator-Oghagbon, who is in prison in Laos awaiting trial for smuggling heroine.

Before I even talk about the story, I have to say the article in The Independent is littered with a ridiculous number of mistakes. I find it hard to believe that a major British newspaper has such poor editing. Maybe they will have cleaned up the article by the time you read this...

So this woman goes on what can only be described as a voyage of the stupid. She leaves the UK, and heads for the Netherlands. Famous for its drugs and dikes. Then goes to Thailand, famous for stupidly aggressive drug laws, and then finally ends up in Laos where she is captured carrying 680 grams of heroine.

Once arrested she goes directly to jail, to one of the harshest prisons in the country. Conditions there are inhumane to say the least. She is raped soon after she arrives and becomes pregnant. Meals there consist of two bowls of pig fat water soup, and some sticky rice each day. It was months before British officials were even notified of her arrest. She has not had access to a lawyer, and she is only allowed one 20 minute meeting with a British consular official every month, with a guard present at all times.

The jail is also famous for its lack of medical care. Several inmates have died, simply because they were deemed not sick enough to receive medical attention.

In Laos, the penalty of possession of this quantity of heroine is death by firing squad. A punishment that the government claim is necessary to deter drug smuggling.

Now in all fairness to this young woman, she claims she was forced to carry the drugs by a third party. This may well be true. But if she volunteered to go to Thailand or Laos of her own free will, I have very little sympathy for her. It seems that every year we hear of another tourist arrested in that part of the world because they found a tiny amount of drugs on their person, and now they get to spend thirty years in jail (assuming they avoid the death penalty).

The fact is, there are still some backwards parts of the world where morons make the laws, and a combination of religion, culture, and stupidity cause overly harsh punishments to be imposed on travelers, with little regard to actually convicting the guilty or protecting the innocent.

To me I cannot fathom why anyone would want to leave the competitive safety of a modern and progressive country, and travel to see 'exotic' parts of the world where shit like this is common place.

This young woman of 20 has already spent nine months in jail, and her life has already been destroyed. Even if she were released tomorrow, she will never be the same again. Even if she was complicit and guilty of this crime, she has already suffered far more than she deserves. But despite this news story, any many others like it, idiots with too much money will still jump on a plane and head off for an 'adventure' in these backwards shit hole countries.

People in the West need to wise up, and boycott these places, until they join this century and create a justice system.