Not the character. The movie itself.

That is all.

Let them eat crow. This guy lasted less than six seconds. “It is way worse than I thought it would be, and that’s no joke,” he said. “…and I don’t want to say this: absolutely torture…I mean that’s drowning…it is the feeling of drowning.”

Holy crap. I love it. Of course, the streets of LA will be filled with smoke tonight, no doubt.

Alright, well I buy the excuses. I noticed when the July 8 opening night was announced there was a concert in the arena the night before by Madonna. That seemed strange, logistically. The official statement via this “press conference” is that , since Mike has grown the show’s production beyond what they originally envisioned (from 90 minutes to 22 songs, btw), they need more time in the venue to build the staging and dress rehearse onsite. I buy that.

Unfortunately, the folks who bought 2nd, 3rd and 4th night tickets now have to wait until March 2010 to have their tickets honored. I am lucky that I got opening night seats. The opening night show is now scheduled for July 13, instead of July 8. It will cost me about $1,000 to move flights and hotel dates. It’s nice of MJ and his team to appreciate how much more opening night tickets cost the fans, but the early run of the shows are also expensive. Couldn’t they have just plugged those nights in between the other early shows???

They also screwed over the fans who paid more for the big finale show at the end of February that is now scheduled for March 6.

Sigh.

NO MORE DELAYS (or greatest hits compilations), PLEASE!!!

This is a great promotional piece for the London concerts. My favorite parts are the brief clip of Mike smacking his gum while checking out a dancer’s resume and the end (around 8:30) where he finally introduces himself to all the new dancers (who, btw, are pretty hot). 50 days to “This Is It!”

Based on Will Ferrell’s “thanks to Darrell Hammond” comment at the end of the show and the accompanying closeup shot of the current cast-member (the longest-running ever, btw), I am nervous that it was Darrell’s last show. Sad-face.

UPDATE: last night was Don Pardo’s final show as the announcer. He does it right there on the floor too, so back in September Dave and I did the whole “hey, OMG you’re Don Pardo!” and he smiled back at us when we were there. Glad I got to do that before he left.

Forget “Home Economics” (which wasn’t even required by the time I reached high school). I propose a sophomore year requisite course for ALL public high school students: “Personal Economics.”

Dave reminded me this afternoon that the only economics course available at his high school was at the AP level. This is common everywhere. Most students aren’t even exposed to practical knowledge about operating their lives in the American economy until they’re dumped into the real world.

Since the age at which students may elect to drop out of high school is 16 years old, the course should precede the junior year of high school so those students who drop out might still have the tools to survive. It should be taught by tenured or tenure-track teachers who would therefore actually know what they’re talking about. The course should encourage Americans to enjoy their lives independently, without relying on government aid or family assistance.

I imagine the curriculum should look something like this:

–What $10/hour will buy you and why you’ll need welfare to survive on that
–The rules and limits of local welfare programs
–The cost of having a child and its effects on various levels of personal wealth
–Dead-end jobs: the difference between working and having a career
–Diploma v. GED v. Associate’s v. Bachelor’s v. Graduate degrees
–The positive impact of a college education on personal wealth
–Choosing the right college education
–Ways to pay for college
–Balancing a checking account on paper and online
–Making and (more importantly) adhering to a personal budget
–Building an effective resume
–How to apply for, interview for, and keep a job
–How to climb the ladder in any field
–Personal spending habits: prioritizing wants, needs and goals
–Credit card management
–Avoiding predatory lenders: beware of payday loans and title loans
–The anti-investment: how to wisely buy a car
–How to wisely buy a home
–Choosing and paying for insurance: health, car, homeowners, title, life, renters, travel, etc.
–The worthlessness of status symbols and their impact on your ability to survive
–Crime and economics: good and bad neighborhoods
–Red flags to look out for in your social life
–The American Delusion: get-rich-quick will not happen for you
–How to do your taxes at all levels of wealth
–Retirement planning at all levels of wealth

An Atlanta developer has just given a $100 million gift to Habitat for Humanity, which will be used to build 60,000 homes for people in need, per MSNBC.

Governor Palin just released a statement today expressing support for Miss California, claiming “I respect Carrie for standing strong and staying true to herself, and for not letting those who disagree with her deny her protection under the nation’s First Amendment Rights.

The problem with that statement is that Carrie Prejean’s constitutional rights have not been denied. You are free to speak your mind, yes. But am I not given the same freedom to disagree with you?

The Constitution prohibits the government from passing laws that abridge freedom of speech. It does not protect individuals from the risks associated with expressing themselves. For example, it does not prohibit me from shunning you for your ideas.

The First Amendment:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

A much bigger government could offer the kind of one-sided, pseudo-fascist “protection” that Mrs. Palin believes to be necessary. I don’t think anybody should be arguing for more government, Governor. Especially not a Republican with presidential aspirations.

Will Kris Allen get all his voters next week?

Despite the gossip here, which was parroted (citing a secondary source citing another secondary source) here, Billboard Magazine and the LA Times today are reporting Michael Jackson’s upcoming concerts are far from in jeopardy.

In fact, according to Billboard, they’ve upped the running time from 90 minutes to “two-plus hours.” Nice.

The show is now confirmed to be directed by Kenny Ortega (the director of Mike’s previous two tours). Awesome.

Jennifer Batten’s performance schedule apparently frees up on June 14, so she may be available to rock it out on guitar for the full run of 50 shows. Heck yeah!