AN ODD COUPLE MADE IN COMEDY HEAVEN

I haven't really kept up with the news of Vladimir Putin's latest shenanigans, simply because I don't particularly care for him in any respect. When I saw a picture circulating of Putin next to Steven Seagal my curiosity was peaked. I glanced over the article where the "Star" called Putin a brother and so on. I realized then that Putin has a side gig, luring fat has been actors into Russia with promises of of doughnuts, cheese, and fine wine.

I think Putin believes that with warriors like Seagal and Gerard Depardieu he can make make the world think twice about his martial arts and governing abilities. Seagal is a Mob Hitman, CIA Operative, Martial Arts Guru, Action Star, Cop, Reality Star and Voodoo Priest. The implications here are that Putin can learn so very much from the jolly fat weapon of mass pollution, he may well be unstoppable.

Let's see how these two bangerz threaten the world, and yes that was a Miley reference.

THE SECRECY IS MIND BOGGLING

If you ever watched the TV show X Files chances are that your inner conspiracy theorist was indulged thoroughly. I have to wonder though if it's really that far off. I was watching a show on MILITARY television and I was blown away by the way government works down to the most minute detail. The first half of the show was dedicated to the Doomsday plane, existing for the purpose of saving the President and senior members of congress in case of a tragedy.

In a way yes it gives people a feeling of safety that in case of an eventual mass tragedy government can restore functions through other mediums. As the show went on it spoke of the top secret facility known as Mt Weather and it's basically the White House underground. The big issue is all the secrecy, yes I understand not a lot can be revealed but it does make you wonder how much exactly is being hidden.

We live in a secretive society where the big thing is " What they don't know won't hurt them." Secrecy is in some ways what supposedly guards democracy. Are the secrets limited though? Does knowing everything about everyone come in that package? I guess it's in the name of democracy, still it's mind boggling.

AN APP FOR MURDER? WHAT IN THE HELL IS WRONG WITH SOCIETY?

We are coming up on the 50th anniversary of the JFK assassination, 50 years since America suffered its first televised tragedy. I have always maintained that November 22nd 1963 was the day America lost that veil of innocence and hope. When you examine everything that the Kennedy White House stood for, the loss is  far greater. In 1963 we lost a young president, the father of two small children, and a man considered reckless because he was willing to buck the system in order to make America the people's country. So why continue to relieve a dark period by focusing on the negative historical context?

In this age of apps it's incredible to think that an app is actually available for the assassination. There is an app called " The Grassy Knoll Report App" and I guess it takes users through the scene and provides a host of information that covers multiple angles of the assassination. I guess I'm just curious as to what the hell is wrong with society. This was a dark period that can never be erased and on top of that the crime itself was never solved and at this point it will never be solved.

What bothers me is that for the modest sum of 99 cents we can wallow in the macabre instead of letting this tragedy rest. JFK was a human being and the last leader that offered real hopes of a better system. Yes there were flaws to JFK's presidency such as the continued involvement in Vietnam, which eventually got out of control. We lost the Bay of Pigs invasion and yes there was serious tension with the Soviet Union. Somehow it was Kennedy's youth coupled with the allure of our first lady that made that era progressive and promising.

It's sad the there's an app that gives every amateur detective the idea that their theory is the correct one. Hey, it's okay because Jimmy Fallon says everyone has to see this app. If the star of "Taxi" says it's good let's all get it.

NEVER FORGET

I rarely ever think of dark times, simply because I feel it prohibits the soul from moving forward. There is one dark time that I can never forget, not even as I sit typing this entry on a PC keyboard in the cold, Amsterdam, night. I wonder if I still remeber simply because the impact was so massive that I, still, just can't believe it happened. 9/11 was the day that America as a whole became vulnerable, a day that would determine a long course of action that's been considered highly debatable, if not completely incorrect.

I was sitting in my car listening to the radio when suddenly all the music stopped and the news began frantically coming in. I drove to my mother's home and witnessed in horror as the Twin Towers slowly fell. I remebered 1993 and the attempted bombing and thought '' they did it this time, fuckers.'' I remember explaining to my 5 year old boy that the bad people who did that would be caught. The sense of unison hurt and unity that served as a sheet was unlike anything I had ever seen or felt. That day was the day America fell, and there were no answers.

As I saw the many shots of frightened victims falling to their death I remembered tears falling in silence. Our fellow citizens had fallen and lives, countless lives were being affected in a manner that could only be described as horrific. Yes, this was the first time someone decided to walk into our property line and try to make us crumble. I could hear the comparisons to Pearl Harbor, but this was nothing at all like Pearl Harbor. The average citizen had been sent into a panic, and the mighty power was left questioning "What next?''

A presidency in its infancy was tasked with finding the guilty and making them pay. It was during that week that there were no Republicans, no Democrats, just Americans united in one tragedy that affected the entire country, the entire world. The various weeks that followed there was a cry for war, justice, and no face to go after. As the years passed there would be war, a recession, heightened fear, prejudice where there need not be prejudice, and doubt. The US was made to fear an enemy without a face. The theory that 9/11 was an inside job, and the many near tragic, and tragic events that followed would only strengthen the fear.

I'll never forget 9/11 and I'll never forget how that one tragic event served as a showcase for the value of unity in the face of tragedy. It did not matter if you were black, white, atheist, it only mattered that you were willing to stand behind the fallen. Yes, this was a hard time, but it was the kind of time that saw no gray areas, just the colors of unity, and bravery. Try not to remember the doubt, the hate, the tragedy, wars, loss, remeber what you can gain and what makes us a damn great society.

America is no Eutopia, but we live in a world where there is no perfect place. Our society and democracy is ideal in thought and imperfect in practice, but it is still a society worth protecting, and standing up for. 9/11 was a dark time, perhaps the darkest ever, but we managed to see light again, so never forget. Never forget the actions of a few derranged animals do not represent the majority people. Never forget that in the end, even a considerable number of animals do not have enough power to break the one key feature that keeps us up, the spirit of freedom.

KEEP IT IN THE HOLSTER GENERAL

We live in a world where stepping in it is something that happens way too often. Case and point is the General Petraeus sex scandal currently captivating the nation. When a man wants to use his "hose" in a manner that really should be question given his marital status and position he should think twice. This was not a case of  Petraeus the factory foreman but Petraeus the CIA Director.

This to me is a clear example of someone not knowing how to "keep it in the holster" or taking it out without stepping on it. The good General pretty much allowed his libido to compromise private information that could well be considered a violation in terms of national security matters. Petraeus was drilling (pun intended) the woman that wrote his biography.

I wonder why with all his money and power Petraeus did not just consider the possibility of a hooker. I hear that there is this one girl in Colombia that does this great thing that is known in Washington authority circles as "La Paella Frita." Seriously Petraeus be smart next time and keep it in the holster.