Interview with The Grand Creator Of A Universe

A very good interview with Joe Michael Straczinsky(If you need to ask you probably won't be interested).

Yes, I'm a diehard...

http://filmforce.ign.com/articles/035/035904p1.html

A nice list

Sky TV today announced the results of the poll to determine who are/were the best british actors of all time.

Men :

Sean Connery
Anthony Hopkins
Alec Guinness
Michael Caine
Laurence Olivier
Richard Burton
Cary Grant
John Mills
Richard Attenborough
Peter Sellers

Women :

Judi Dench
Julie Walters
Elizabeth Taylor
Helen Mirren
Julie Andrews
Maggie Smith
Thora Hird
Vanessa Redgrave
Kate Winslet
Emma Thompson


I can live with these names, especially the men's list. At least Richard "Jenkins" Burton is in there. As he should be.

"And since that day he has not uttered one word"
Richard Burton in "Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf?"


Way to go Richard.

Melissa

This is Melissa Etheridge recently at the Grammy Awards. SHe is fighting breastcancer at the moment.



A fine woman, and I mean that.

Tell me why

There is a mental deficiency that I suffer from; I just cannot understand people who heckle(d) the band that wrote this :

Mothers crying in the street
Children dying at their feet, tell me why
People starving everywhere
There's too much food but none to spare, tell me why

Can you see that shaft of sunlight
can you see it in my eyes
I can feel the fire that's burning
anger and hope so deep
so deep within my heart before my eyes
for some it's too late
it seems there's no-one listening

People sleeping in the streets
no roof above, no food to eat, tell me why
See the questions in their eyes
listen to their children's cries, tell me why

If there's a God, is he watching
can he give a ray of hope
so much pain and so much sorrow
tell me what does he see
when he looks at you
when he looks at me
what would he say
it seems there's no-one listening


Who would think it still could happen
even in this time and place
politicians, they may save themselves
but they won't save their face
just hope against hope it's not too late


You say there's nothing you can do
is there one rule for them and one for you,
tell me why

Listen, can you see that shaft of sunlight
can you see it in my eyes
I can feel the fire that's burning
anger and hope so deep
so deep within my heart before my eyes
for some it's too late
it seems there's no-one listening

Hurry for me, hurry for me, they cry

And I'm not even going to bother mentioning the name of the band who could be so simple yet so effective in conveing their feelings. I'll just say 'thank you Tony, Michael and Phil'.

Anyone who calls these musicians technocrats: You Must Be Joking or Out Of Your Fucking Mind!

Church and State

I am a born heathen, if there is such a thing. And until quite recently I was merely a-religious(as opposed to anti-religious). I could be that way because there was no way on Earth for the christian church to impose their will on me. The only sounds you could hear in the distance every now and then were the dying breaths of some extreme christians who still think the world is flat.

So in my opinion, there was a status quo that was acceptable for the overwhelming majority of people. This did not prevent the extreme christians from calling all atheists heretics because of their free sex, drugs, euthanasia, you name it. And the heathen/atheist could still shake his head about so much christian stupidity. There was one thing missing in those days; the islam.

I do not doubt that there are factions of the christian church that have ideas that are just as inhuman as the ones within the extreme islam. If the fundamentalist town of Urk would have its way we would all be praying the whole sunday and dutch tv wouldn't even broadcast on that day.

But still; the principle of the separation of church and state - the principle that was even accepted by the christian fundamentalists(albeit with much wailing and gnashing of teeth) - is in danger of breaking down.

Now, it is very easy and simplistic to say to the extreme moslim "look, those neat christians know how Holland works, why don't you?". Two centuries of secularisation have not been without effect and there has been no thing so drastic in the muslim-world. But still, we must realize that freedom comes with a price, the price of eternal vigilance.The price of tolerance of others. And this price must be paid in order to remain free. Just as a christian or a muslim defends his or her religion we non-religious people must also defend what we stand for. In this respect I really don't see much difference between a freethinker and a muslim. We are all fighting for our right to our own convictions and beliefs.

During the last centuries a cultural climate was created in the Netherlands. A climate that is very liberal and that inspired the imagination of many people to such a extent, that these people came to Holland. Not only because they were persecuted in their homecountry, but also because there was more freedom of speech and more tolerance in the Netherlands in general. This climate goes back to the Golden Age(17th century) and was in fact one of the causes of this Golden Age. Our form of civilization has shown time and time again, that it is at least equal to - and I believe even better than - a society based on the superimposed will of religious clerics.

We have a lot to lose if we would ever return to the clerical religious state, and I for one do not intend to let The Inquisition return to Holland. Neither a christian inquisition nor a muslim inquisition.

In my view, good schooling and good education are the best ways to teach tolerance. Learning how to read and write at an early age is the silver bullet for any mixed society. What we learn at a young age we usually practice later in life.

Because of this I personally think that anyone should be allowed to be schooled on a christian basis, on a muslim basis, on whatever basis. But they should be taught these values outside normal schoolhours, outside of the schooling the state pays for. Religion does not belong in a standard schoolingsystem, except of course in history-class. The state should not teach people what to believe, it should teach people the basic knowledge to survive in society. All else is optional(although I believe it should be offered to anyone who wants to learn more). And one of the things that people should learn in school is that there is a holy scripture in the Netherlands too, it's called "The Constitution" and we have placed it above religion when it comes to the interaction between people and their freedom to choose.

I am absolutely convinced that the Dutch State is a lot more enlightened than Islam or Christianity. I only have to add up the victims caused by religion and religious wars through the centuries and even Dachau and Auschwitz are specks on the page of history.

Let us see those 'dogma's' for what they really are; from the christian "women aren't allowed to vote" to the muslim "all homosexuals must be thrown off the third floor of a building, head first". They are the opinions of people who are so small-minded that there is no room for tolerance in their heads whatsoever.

So there is the reason that I don't trust any religion. They are always convinced that they and only they are right. There is no room for doubt.

Any person should doubt his convictions, his beliefs and himself. it is what makes mankind grow.

People who know no doubt scare the hell out of me.

TM.

The Guide, the Blessed Guide...

It's coming! "Oh Joy" and "Oh Bloody Finally!"



Announced "Spring 2005", that's only months away.

Judging from this trailer here Douglas would be proud.

Ye Olde Lyrics

Found this recently. The first lyrics I wrote and then used in a band.
And HEY! please; I was 12 years old at the time so be gentle and don't start laughing immediately... :-)


Here I stand
I look around me and I search amongst the crowd
Nobody stands by me
They all go their own way
Worry about posessions
Everybody looks so smooth
Clothes all in the latest fashion

They read them magazines
And they all look so clean
Someone says smiling's in
And everybody grins

The say I behave bizarre
Think I am what they are
They say 'you're really weird
Those clothes were in last week dear
And they all go their own way
Worry about posessions
Everybody looks so smooth
Clothes all in the latest fashion

They read the magazines
And they all look so clean
Till they hear beards are in
And nobody shaves his chin

Fashions...

Drumming on acid...

This is Wally. He is not afraid to act his age... Sort of...
Happy Birthday drummerman!

Jeff Bridges - A man of many talents

Jeff Bridges is not just the famous actor. He has one of the most beautiful websites I have ever seen made by the artist him- or herself. And it is handwritten!

Pfffffffffff... nope, not me...really...

Did you evah see such a handsome dude?

Fred

There's this guy, his name is Fred, Fred On Everything, to be exact. Most of the times he is pretty much a right-wing American conservative, although he says that he moved to Mexico because he couldn't stand some of the things happening in the U.S.A. any longer.

But every now and then Fred writes interesting articles and here is one of them about The impossibility of objective journalism, and here is one about the price of war. Hate grows. Indeed...

Violence leading to death in the Netherlands - an overview

O.K. I've sort of had it. Time and time again we are confronted by senseless violence leading to death. And there we go again ; what colour was the skin of the guy who did it? Where did he come from? Etcetera etcetera. It gives room to all kind of unhealty discussions that invariably come down to accusations of racism, discrimination, etcetera. Why? Because apparently no one wants to take the trouble to keep track of these cases.

I'll keep this article updated with the facts as they become known in due course. As far as possible I will write down what happened, who was the victim, who did it(if names are available), where he/she came from, and all other info I can get my hands on.

And I hope that in a couple of months time I can detect a pattern of some sort. If there IS a pattern that is, because I don't know if I want to see a pattern.


Prelude

We already have one Volkert van der Graaf who shot Pim Fortuyn for reasons beyond understanding. White male.

We already have a Mohammed Bouyeri who slaughtered Theo van Gogh because "he didn't like the movie". Immigrant-roots and moslim-fanatic.

We already have one Murat D. who set fire to his girlfriend. Not once, no... twice was much more fun apparently. Immigrant-roots, juvenile.

And the list of past incidents goes on and on.


Raun Lensink

Now we have Raun Lensink, 20 years old, who got hit on or against the head, apparently for no special reason. Although it didn't look too bad, his father drove him to the hospital where the doctors saw that he had a massive crack in his skull causing all kinds of complications. And though one of the best surgeons in the country tried to help he could do nothing. Raun Lensink died on monday january 31st 2005 as a result of his injuries. The idiot who did it? His name is Richard M. In Holland that is, because we do not name last names. I'm not so saintlike. Because he was as good as caught red-handed, here his name is Richard Moens. No info on background but the name sounds very much native white dutch. And for those of you who want to see the grief it causes to the loved ones you can find the friends and family here.

Lest we forget, lest we forget.

Just duck...

A totally politically incorrect picture...



Thanks go out to Dom.