dimland radio 3-24-18 show notes

Mom Had Surgery And Recovery Has Been Complicated

My mom had surgery on Monday, which went well. However, she's old, so very old, and not the most physically fit. That combination has made recovery slow going. She is in transitional care now. She is improving, so maybe she'll be back home soon.

Pedantic Moment: Long John Silver

It was 44 years ago on an episode of Match Game '74. One of the fill-in-the-blank statements was (something along the lines of), "Long John Silver and his parrot are so much alike the parrot even has a blank."

 

The contestant and all six of the celebrities answered either peg leg or wooden leg (both were considered the same). Only thing is...

 

 

Long John Silver did NOT have a peg leg!

It's Not True #1: Michelle Obama Said White People Are What's Wrong With America

Remember what Abraham Lincoln said about internet memes that show a photo of someone and have a quote alleged to be said by that person? Essentially he said there's a strong chance they are bullshit. This one about Michelle Obama is bullshit.

 

 

Snopes.com lists this as false and shows that the claim stems from a commencement speech the former First Lady made at Tuskegee University in 2015. She did talk about the obstacles African Americans faced through America's history, but if you hear her saying white people are what is wrong with America when she tells of that history, you have a problem.

 

Here's something she really did say about the people of America:

 

"The people of this country are universally good and kind and honest and decent. Don't be afraid of the country you live in. The folks here are good."

It's Not True #2: British Singers Try To Sound American While Singing To Make More Money

I used to believe this one, but I learned that the act of singing in English tends to make the singer sound as though they have a generic American accent. It's something that happens to British, Irish, and even Swedish singers. It even happens to singers with a strong New York or Southern accent. You can learn more about it here.

 

The Jam - Bruce Foxton, Rick Buckler, & Paul Weller

I talked about Paul Weller, who was the lead singer of The Jam and later The Style Council. His speaking voice has a strong Cockney accent. When he sang in The Style Council his British accent washes away. However, when he sand for The Jam, he would purposefully retain the British accent. That is something singers will do, but if they just sing as comes naturally to them, most the time they sound American.

 

The Style Council - Mick Talbot & Paul Weller

I gave examples of Weller singing British in The Jam on their song This Is The Modern World, his speaking voice, and his generic American accent while singing in The Style Council on their song Boy Who Cried Wolf.

 

Top Three Cool Things Of The Week

Here's Three Cool Things from this week.

3) I did some art from Nostalgia Zone, the comic book store I work for. The two pieces I did turned out OK and it was cool to do some comic book art again.

 

 

2) YouTube has a Columbo channel. It's an official channel put up in commemoration of Columbo turning 50 this year. And in the last three weeks now, they've posted three full episodes, two from season one and one from season 2. So far. It's looking like they'll post a full episode each week.

1) My mom and I spent an evening while she was in the hospital watching a really good movie (Open Range - It's an excellent Western). It brought back memories of when we would watch movies together on a regular basis. It was like the old days. Pretty cool.

Music heard on the show...

Dimland Radio opening theme song: 'Ram' by The Yoleus 
First ad break bumpers: 'White And Lazy' by The Replacements & 'Eye In The Sky' by Alan Parsons Project

Second ad break bumpers: 'Rough Boys' by Pete Townshend & 'Emotional Rescue' by The Rolling Stones

Closing song: 'Angler's Treble Hook' by $5 Fiddle

That's it! See you next Saturday night for Dimland Radio 11 Central, midnight Eastern on www.ztalkradio.com you can also download my show from the z talk show archives page. You can email your questions and comments to drdim@dimland.com

Please subscribe on iTunes! Just search for Dimland Radio in the podcast section. And if you could leave a good rating and a positive review it would be awesome.

You can also go to my CafePress store and buy stuff with my artwork on it and have me do a portrait for you if you like. Find out more here and here.

dimland radio 3-17-18 show notes

Happy Anniversary

Dimland Radio debuted on March 13, 2010. In eight years, I have amassed a few fans, one of them is especially loyal. I appreciate every one of that quite select group.

Let's see if my exceedingly modest downloads numbers can be increased in the next eight years.

It's Not True: 10 Mile High Tree

It seems way too silly, but, with the rise of the Flat Earthers, it isn't beyond possible that there are people who believe there were trees that grew to be 10 miles high. The mesa seen in the photo (above) is said to be the petrified remains of one of those trees, apparently cut down be a giant chainsaw.

Click here for more.

No Good Guy With A Gun Ever Stopped A Bad Guy With A Gun?

Not that it is a common argument on the social media, but I have seen it suggested that it's never happened that good guys (other than cops) with guns ever stopped bad guys with guns. I recently learned of one times when civilians with guns assisted the police in stopping a bad guy. They helped stop Charles Whitman in August, 1966. In Texas, where else?

Perfect

I've been noticing that younger women like to use the word "perfect." The sample size is very small and it's purely anecdotal, but it's curious.

Do You Mind?

At the last MN Skeptics meet-up we talked about how fluid language can be. Meanings of words and phrases can change depending on how they are used. It can be frustrating to pedants, like myself.

One phrase, in particular was brought up. The "do you mind" question. It's an odd question that can be weird to answer. It's a little confusing, but I think I get through it.

 

Pedantic Moment: Begging The Question

To beg the question is a logical fallacy. It's what a certain kind of circular logic. Such as saying the Bible is the word of God, because it says in the Bible that it is the word of God. That's begging the question.

However, as I discussed in my talk about the "do you mind" question, language is fluid and, sometimes, we pedants just have to accept that certain phrases are just going to be used wrong by a greater and greater number of people. It will come to a time when the phrase will take on that meaning, even if it is wrong.

"Begs the question" is beginning to mean "raises the question." And the host of the YouTube series History Buffs (an excellent series about the accuracy of films that depict historical events) often says, "Begs the question."

Oh, well.

And I also recommended watching History Buffs. I think it's well done and it appears to be accurate. But beware! There are spoilers.

Movie Recommendation: Blade Runner: 2049 (2017)

 

 

Ridley Scott has given us a worthy sequel to the 1982 film noir, sci-fi classic. He recaptures the tone and look. And he may have surpassed the original. If you liked the original, I think you will be pleased.

Top Three Cool Things Of The Week

Here's Three Cool Things from this week.

3) Stephen Hawking died. That's not cool. What's cool is that he lived and thrived, despite a crippling disease, and left quite a legacy in the world of science.

2) As a nerd, it's always cool to be able to communicate with comic book producers. Through Facebook I was able to chat with Mike DeCarlo.

1) The Netflix series History's Greatest Hoaxes. The series examines so great hoaxes throughout history in a way that makes this skeptic very happy.

Music heard on the show...

Dimland Radio opening theme song: 'Ram' by The Yoleus 
First ad break bumpers: 'Beatle Boots' by Love Tractor & 'All That I Wanted' by Belfegore

Second ad break bumpers: 'Chardonnay' by Game Theory & 'Kiss Off' by Violent Femmes

Closing song: 'Angler's Treble Hook' by $5 Fiddle

That's it! See you next Saturday night for Dimland Radio 11 Central, midnight Eastern on www.ztalkradio.com you can also download my show from the z talk show archives page. You can email your questions and comments to drdim@dimland.com

Please subscribe on iTunes! Just search for Dimland Radio in the podcast section. And if you could leave a good rating and a positive review it would be awesome.

You can also go to my CafePress store and buy stuff with my artwork on it and have me do a portrait for you if you like. Find out more here and here.

dimland radio 3-10-18 show notes

No School. Do Your Homework.

Just a quick story about a winter storm that sneaked up on us. It allowed my son to have a day off of school. But I did my duty as a father and made sure he finished his homework Sunday night, so he'd have no worries on his snow day.

Just How Does A Director Effect A Film?

 

I'm not quite sure about every way a director influences the final film. I know the main job is to get the best performance out of the actors as possible. Remind them of the story, their motivations. I've heard of stories in which a director tells the actor one simple character trait or something that isn't part of the film but is part of the history of the character. When that's been done the character can click into place.

 

Some directors have a loose narrative and allow the actors to improvise until a story as made. Robert Altman worked that way. Alfred Hitchcock, on the other hand, had the final film in mind and plotted out from the start, filming the actors was a formality.

A Dimland Radio Pedantic Moment: Coke Zero?

My pedantic nature was challenged when I unpedantically called Coca-Cola Zero Sugar Coke Zero. I was told "sugar" was added to the name when the flavor had been improved.

 

Well, I was drinking a can of the soda in question. The main part of the label does in fact read Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, but when I turned the can around, right there, above the nutrition information was Coke Zero™.

 

 

Yep. It even has the trademark symbol. Who's the pedant here, eh?

 

How Editors Saved Star Wars

 

After my brief timeout for a Pedantic Moment, I returned to some movie talk. This time I talked about a YouTube video that told how Star Wars, the original movie, would have been a disaster had George Lucas been surrounded by the same kinds of people who went along with his Special Edition changes to the original trilogy and the prequals, which I've been trying to forget.

 

However, in 1977, Lucas wasn't the powerful billionaire he would become. He was a filmmaker, early in his career, and he had filmmaker friends willing to say his rough cut of Star Wars needed help. A lot of help!

 

It's a fascinating video that gives us some insight on how editing is so very important in film. It's called How Star Wars Was Saved In The Edit. Go there and watch it!

 

Dimland Radio Science Zero: PUR

 

There's an ad for a PUR water filtering system there is straight up fear-mongering. It takes place in a "water bar" with tap water from all over the USA. Real people are made to think the tap water is filled with lead and lead is dangerous. Oh, the spokesperson tells the fear-filled folks the water has legally acceptable amounts of lead, but he never says it's safe to drink. Which it is.

 

The people are misled and react exactly the way PUR wants them to, with unnecessary fear. Shame on them.

Dimland Radio Science Hero: Dr. Jason Westin

Cancer doctor Jason Westin decided to run for the Democratic nomination to serve in the Texas Congress. He ran on the proposal to bring sound science to his stat's government. He voiced his concerns with America's turn away from and subsequent falling behind the rest of the world in science. His campaign produced a stirring ad to promote him as a reasoned candidate to advance science.

 

It's terrific. Watch it here.

 

I'm sad to say he didn't win. However, more science promoting folks are entering the world of politics, some are having success, and that's a very good thing for America and the world.

 

Movie Recommendation: The Way Back (2010)

 

 

 

A harrowing tale, based on what is claimed to be a true story, of the escape from a Siberian gulag and a 4000 mile trek to India - on foot. There is some doubt about the truthfulness of the claim, but the film is pretty good. It's lower budget and it's a little abrupt and jumbled in the gulag and escape sequences, but it settles in well as we witness the hardships encountered and the bonds made on this impossible journey.

It's streaming on Netflix.

 

Top Three Cool Things Of The Week

Here's Three Cool Things from this week.

 

 

3) More evidence that we should not say, "I know what I saw." This image (above) fooled me as I thought it was a picture of a concert. It's not.

 

2) My son took part in a school-approved walk-out and march to the MN State Capitol to protest the lack of meaningful action to curb gun violence in schools. I'm very proud of him. (Even if he did take video in portrait format).

 

1) I was commissioned to draw the above image for a friend. He was very pleased.

Music heard on the show...

Dimland Radio opening theme song: 'Ram' by The Yoleus 
First ad break bumpers: 'Megacity 1' by The Screaming Blue Messiahs & 'One Thing' by INXS

Second ad break bumpers: 'Stigmata Martyr' by Bauhaus & 'Teacher, Teacher' by Rockpile

Closing song: 'Angler's Treble Hook' by $5 Fiddle

That's it! See you next Saturday night for Dimland Radio 11 Central, midnight Eastern on www.ztalkradio.com you can also download my show from the z talk show archives page. You can email your questions and comments to drdim@dimland.com

Please subscribe on iTunes! Just search for Dimland Radio in the podcast section. And if you could leave a good rating and a positive review it would be awesome.

You can also go to my CafePress store and buy stuff with my artwork on it and have me do a portrait for you if you like. Find out more here and here.

dimland radio 3-3-18 show notes

Pedantic Moment: Pres. Trump A Nowhere Man?

Do those lyrics seem off to you? They do? That's because the person who put this image together had to make a change in order for this to be insulting toward the President. There are a couple lines that have been changed, but the one that had to be changed for sure was, "Isn't he a bit like you and me?"

 

What?! Oh, no. This is supposed to insult him, not suggest he would have anything in common with us.

It Was The Short Change Scam

 

While in line at the register at the grocery store, a fellow in front of me pulled off the Short Change Scam on the young, inexperienced cashier. I wasn't paying attention as the scam began, but I did eventually see something was up. I wasn't able to stop it and I'm not sure how I would, but I did speak up for the kid with his manager.

You can learn about the Short Change Scam here.

A Cool Coincidence

 

I believe in coincidences. I don't think the universe is trying to tell me something when I think of a particular TV show theme song (Lost In Space) and, a couple days later, a friend asks if I can identify that same theme song. If the universe is trying to tell me something having to do with that theme, I have no idea what it could be.

 

It's Not True: KFC Can't Say "Chicken"

 

Hard to read, I know. Sorry. Best image I could find.

There's an odd conspiracy theory that been going around the internets every since Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurants started calling themselves KFC in 1991. I spotted the meme above detailing the "real" reasons for the name change. KFC doesn't use chickens. No, they use "genetically manipulated organisms" (it was early on, so the meme maker probably hadn't heard the term genetically modified organisms yet), which the government says can't be called chicken.

 

For crying out loud. It's not true. On the KFC website the word "chicken" is used multiple times. And the original name is still at the top of every page.

Crisis Actors

 

Answer: No, it's not.

It's one of the newer conspiracy theories. The crisis actor. People who "they" send in to fake or over-dramatize major events, such as mass shootings. It's ridiculous and disrespectful and needlessly cruel to those whose lives have been ended or touched be these tragedies.

 

Skeptic Bob Blaskiewicz gives a good overview of the crisis actor conspiracy here.

 

Top Three Cool Things Of The Week

Here's Three Cool Things from this week.

 

3) True, the stamp on the container is not giving an expiration date, but I still think it's cool that someone had a little fun with this 250 million year old sea salt.

 

2) I spotted this live concert video of Cheap Trick from 1977. It's nearly 22 minutes of some damn cool rock.

1) This will undoubtedly just be cool to me, but I've been encouraging old art school friends to post pictures from back in the day on Facebook. A few have shown up. Very cool!

Music heard on the show...

Dimland Radio opening theme song: 'Ram' by The Yoleus 
First ad break bumpers: 'Inside A Fireball' by Hunters & Collectors & 'Still Ill' by The Smiths

Second ad break bumpers: 'Ahead' by Wire & 'Love Is For Lovers' by The dBs

Closing song: 'Angler's Treble Hook' by $5 Fiddle

That's it! See you next Saturday night for Dimland Radio 11 Central, midnight Eastern on www.ztalkradio.com you can also download my show from the z talk show archives page. You can email your questions and comments to drdim@dimland.com

Please subscribe on iTunes! Just search for Dimland Radio in the podcast section. And if you could leave a good rating and a positive review it would be awesome.

You can also go to my CafePress store and buy stuff with my artwork on it and have me do a portrait for you if you like. Find out more here and here.