City Council: Dispensing Shit?

Recent city ordinances were passed against LA medical marijuana dispensaries. They include dispensaries not being able to be within 1000 feet of churches, schools, and residential areas, and closing dispensaries– limiting them to only 70 to 137 versus the hundreds already open. On Good Day LA today, Jillian really impressed me. She put together an actually intelligent thought: what are these people thinking? How many millions of dollars is medical marijuana making for LA because of all these dispensaries? What will closing them down do?

Hey LA City Council: Jillian from Good Day LA is smarter than you guys. If only she was a councilwoman… or maybe not….

People I Would Love to Photograph

Photography has always been one of my interests. After taking photography in high school, it taught me to look for certain things when finding people to take pictures of. Every once in a while I will come across a photograph of a famous person and wish that I could have been there to snap the photograph. Being photogenic is not about bone structure or looks, it’s about attitude and persona. Here’s just a few of the people I would love to photograph:

1. Lil’ Wayne
   
2. Jason Schwartzman
   
   
3. Ernest Hemingway
   
4. Salvador Dali
   
5. Jack Nicholson
6. John Lennon/The Beatles
7. Emile Hirsch
8. Natalie Portman

   So who would you photograph?

Hipsters: The Death of Western Civilization?

Adbusters, a popculture magazine and website, published an article about a fairly recent cultural phenomenon: the hipster. Who doesn’t have a set image of a “hipster?” Well for those of you that don’t, see this article, “Hipster: The Dead End of Western Civilization.”

Hipsters. Ironic, sarcastic, materialistic, flannel-clad, tight-jean-wearing, PBR-drinking, Parliament-smoking teens and young adults who have taken cultural relics of the past (see neon colors of the 80s, flannel of the 90s, Ray Bans, etc.) and brought them to the forefront of modern popular culture. They could be the cure to the recession or the unoriginal, apathetic future of America.

I have to say, I don’t see the bad side of being a “hipster.” Ok, so you’re a vain, self-centered, egotistical, yet snarky, sarcastic individual. That might not be a bad thing though. I’d rather someone who can be intelligent enough to understand sarcasm and dry humor be the future of our country than a person who can’t.

Remembering the Good Ol’ Days…

Recently, I read an article by Stephen Marche title “A Thousand Words about Our Culture: Aren’t We Enjoying All This Death a Little Too Much?” The article analyzes how celebrities are treated after death, immortalized at their peaks, and forgiven/forgotten of their trespasses. Marche is really dead-on with his statements regarding our dying society. America really has peaked. We have been trying to hold on to those “good ol’ days” when we were on top and we knew it. We are trying to remember our highlights, our celebrities at their highest moments, while viewing shows that highlight our downfalls– our addicts with biting humor (see “Nurse Jackie,” “House”) and our failing/dying/crumbling cities (see “Hung;” Detroit, among others…).

America will continue to press on–like its celebrities– and continue to grow in its depression and even denial of its current state. America, the shadow of its former self. America, immortalizing its finest. America, forgetting the “death of Hope.”

Happy-Sad (Inbetween) Venn Diagram

Happy-Sad Venn Diagram

Stumbledupon this and thought it was pretty funny, and sadly true. Here’s to life, somewhere in the middle.

Ghost Hunters Academy on SyFy

What is coming to the world?
Not only do we have MTV’s reality show about people from the Jersey Shore, but we also find this entertaining as a society: SyFy’s Ghost Hunters Academy. See Below.

Parisienne

So I was watching MTV today and all of the sudden Kate Moss consumed my screen. Not that I minded. She’s weirdly attractive in my opinion, but that’s not the point. What is the point? Parisienne: the new perfume from Yves Saint Laurent.

This was the perfect perfume commercial. First, a well-known, attractive women (see Kate Moss, Brittney back in the day) is necessary. Second, a sexy scene (see Kate Moss in bed moaning). Third, music and short plotline.

I don’t know what it was about it, but it drew me in completely. Just see it for yourself:

The Starbucks Section

So I was shopping at Ralph’s for coffee today. I’ve been doing it for months, always grabbing the same ground French Roast from Starbucks. I didn’t realize until today though that Starbucks has its own “section.”

Just a small, rod-iron looking fence that contains the Starbucks packages. On the outside, it only says “Starbucks.” Seems pretty understated right? But by putting their products in a “fence,” Starbucks makes their products to appear subconsciously superior to the surrounding products. It says: “This is not like the riff-raff outside the fence. This is the real stuff. This is Starbucks.” Maybe it’s just good advertising, but I still buy it.

Good Day LA

I disdain Good Day LA. I loathe Good Day LA. So it only makes sense that I watch it every morning. Good Day LA on Fox11 is not like any other morning news show I’ve ever seen. It’s unprofessional; it’s poorly shot; half of it is improvisation; it’s on Fox… need I go on? I’m a fairly liberal person, and I consider myself to be pretty open to change. However, I just can’t stand the news show. It’s so un-legit. The two women on it are bimbos, and Steve seems slightly senile and worn out at this point. Then why do I sit down with my coffee and watch it every morning? Because I love to hate it.

I never know what they will do next. Are they going to talk about Jillian’s boobs? Is it tabloid Thursday (one of my biggest bones to pick with them)? How long are we going to watch the cat in the tree?! These questions may never be answered, but I do know that I’m going to keep watching it.

JFK: Conspiracy Live On

Before becoming a film major, I was planning on becoming a history professor. JFK has always been one of my favorite presidents so when I saw that the History Channel was showing a program called “JFK: 3 Shots that Changed America,” I became intrigued. How after all these years is Kennedy’s assassination still interesting and controversial? Is it just popular culture that has propogated this myth or is there truth behind it? We may never know, but one thing is for sure: conspiracy always sells.