http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/14/op...b1c&ei=5087%0A

Sen. Obama wrote an editorial in the NY Times the other day on his plan for ending the war in Iraq. You'll remember that a few days prior to this column, Obama mentioned in a stump speech that he would, of course, consult with military planners and Gen. Patreus, who he commends. The McCain camp jumped on this one statement and cried "False Outrage" by claiming...

There isn't one particular genre of movies that I love more than any other one, although if you were to look at my DVD collection, now approaching 500, the plurality of films tends to be dramas or comedy/dramas now refered to as "dramedies", and then you'll see the rest divided along the lines of foreign films, documentaries, old films, a couple silent ones, a few westerns, a few musicals, some thrillers, and some animated films.

I seem to be lacking mostly in pure comedies...

I'm going to use my blog frequently to dole out hidden gems and other overlooked movies. I'm a movie freak. Every year I attend Roger Ebert's Overlooked Film Festival in Champaign-Urbana at the U of Illinois. He chooses about a dozen movies that are overlooked in some kind of way, and it's been there that I discover some really wonderful movies like Shotgun Stories which is now in limited release.

I thought it would be perfect to pick a political film as the first one to recommend...

Cheap shots in American politics are to be expected, especially in the presidential campaign. But in American politics, something a little uglier runs as an undercurrent under many campaigns sometimes, and it makes for great drama. Canadian politics is filled with stick figures and polite bureaucrats. People make their points and move on. But in America, there's a grandiosity to it. A theatricality. It's as though screenwriters are helping things along in speeches. American politicians use tons...

I'm a.k.a. MovieJay to many people, and that's because I heart movies. I spend so much time living that I've found it surprising how so many of the best parts of myself just fall by the wayside on this site. Perhaps it's because I care about politics, but in my own life, not so much.

I love acting and writing. I do a little tutoring. I find a few shifts here and there at restaurants and bars. Save a little cash. Travel. Love meeting people and hearing their stories. I love this blog...