Date registered: January 6, 2016
Jan 01
Flat Screen TV manufacturers & Sales Outlets are not in a hurry to tell consumers that their brand new flat screen plasma televisions are already obsolete even as they are parading out the doors (faster than our retirement savings are evaporating) because the screens on those TVs are … too flat. They will not be able to be used for the new improved 3-D video productions that are expected sweep Hollywood and major sports productions over the years to come.
Jan 01
This one was wall to wall action with lots of special effects and more than one or two scenes that were (gasp!) actually shot during the light of day. It is the story of how things can get out of hand in a world that is becoming more and more invasive through the advent of automation and digital surveillance
Runner Up: “Journey to the Centre of the Earth”
Not so much for its story or acting, but more for it’s unveiling of a new 3-D venue that could be the biggest movie innovation since the introduction of sound.
Jan 01
“Shock Doctrine” by Naomi Klein
A real eye opener that became more poignant as the events of this year progressed. Synopsis: ‘In order to push through profoundly unpopular economic policies that enrich the few and impoverish the many, there needs to be some kind of collective crisis or disaster – either real or manufactured. A crisis that opens up a “window of opportunity” when people and societies will be too disoriented to protect their own interests…’ Despite what sounds like a dry and boring subject this is actually an excellent and easy read for the average person on the street. Regardless of political lean, you should read this book even if it is the only book you ever read. There will definitely be some revelations (at least one per chapter) as it describes the underbelly of some of the most newsworthy global disasters of our time and how they were used by hook and by crook to further the economists’ dreams of a free market utopia that is, well…you be the judge.
Jan 01
“Stop and Stare” by One Republic
Honorable Mention:
“When I Grow Up” by The Pussycat Dolls;
“The Little Things” by Danny Elfman;
Jan 01
They spent most of October and November warning Canadians that the sky was about to fall with their 24/7 reports that went something like, “danger Will Robinson the sky is falling and no-one in the world is ever going to buy anything ever again so you might as well just sign all of your money over to the bankers and crawl into a hole until the bankers foreclose on that too” message. Then suddenly, on the night that the Toronto Stock Exchange reported its largest one day loss since Black Tuesday on 1987, a meteor hurtles out of the sky and smashes into Saskatchewan. Holy Chicken Little batman, they were right! The global financial market meltdown has gone galactic!
Jan 01
Suddenly General Motors finds itself in crash and burn mode. Early in 2008, Toyota overtook GM to become the world’s largest car maker (however, a stubborn if not senile GM head office are appealing the ruling on the grounds that they are still making the world’s largest cars). In closing out their year long celebration of 100 years of operation, GM closes said operations all over North America and sends every employee who does not qualify for the usual round of multi-million dollar performance bonuses home for a well earned (and open-ended) vacation without pay.
Jan 01
The music industry is up in arms again. This time they have learned that their music was being used to torture prisoners at Abu Ghraib and Guantanimo Bay. As bad as that may “sound”, it gets worse – the industry seems less concerned over the alleged terrorists’ human rights and more intent on getting royalties from the government for every time a song was used.
Jan 01
The California Governor announces a state of emergency in Santa Barbara County, where a wildfire has destroyed 100 homes, several mansions among them, in a celebrity enclave for the rich and famous. Meanwhile, back in the real world, Californian home foreclosure activity for the previous month of October was pegged at 56,954 properties. That total was down from a peak of more than 100,000 in August, but was still up 13 percent from October 2007.
Jan 01
As 2008 south of the border came to a close amidst a tsunami of bankruptcies, property foreclosures and factory layoffs, one Austin, Minnesota plant reported that it would be adding additional shifts and operating around the clock in order to keep up with customer demand. Alas, the company in question is Hormel Foods Corporation, the makers of Spam, that shiny tin of pig renderings that is emblematic of hard-times.
Jan 01