Sonia Sotomayor nominated….FIESTA!

It’s the end of the world as we know it again, with returning player North Korea.

On a scale of 1 to 10, how unsafe does Phil the Pill feel?

—-

In other news, Obama has made his Supreme Court pick and it is, in fact, an Hispanic woman!

President Barack Obama named federal appeals judge Sonia Sotomayor as the nation’s first Hispanic Supreme Court justice on Tuesday, praising her as “an inspiring woman” with both the intellect and compassion to interpret the Constitution wisely.Obama said Sotomayor has more experience as a judge than any current member of the high court had when nominated, adding she has earned the “respect of colleagues on the bench,” the admiration of lawyers who appear in her court and “the adoration of her clerks.”

…The Senate Republican leader, Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, issued a statement that said: “Senate Republicans will treat Judge Sotomayor fairly. But we will thoroughly examine her record to ensure she understands that the role of a jurist in our democracy is to apply the law evenhandedly, despite their own feelings or personal or political preferences.”

…Democrats hold a large majority in the Senate, and barring the unexpected, Sotomayor’s confirmation should be assured.

Fiesta!

As a Latino, it’s good to see that we’ve made it to a prominent level of office. Also, it’s funny to see Republicans squirm, because they can’t block the vote without offending the growing amount of Hispanic voters.

So, I was going to put up something more relevant, but my rule is, if it passes a certain treshold of offensiveness, it must be shared.

Actually, let’s see what our friends at the Drudge Report have to say about all this.

Republicans F*cked.

From Jeffrey Rosen at The New Republic

Her former clerks report that because Sotomayor is divorced and has no children, her clerks become like her extended family–working late with her, visiting her apartment once a month for card games (where she remembers their favorite drinks), and taking a field trip together to the premier of a Harry Potter movie.

The most consistent concern was that Sotomayor, although an able lawyer, was “not that smart and kind of a bully on the bench,” as one former Second Circuit clerk for another judge put it. “She has an inflated opinion of herself, and is domineering during oral arguments, but her questions aren’t penetrating and don’t get to the heart of the issue.”

…Her opinions, although competent, are viewed by former prosecutors as not especially clean or tight, and sometimes miss the forest for the trees. It’s customary, for example, for Second Circuit judges to circulate their draft opinions to invite a robust exchange of views. Sotomayor, several former clerks complained, rankled her colleagues by sending long memos that didn’t distinguish between substantive and trivial points, with petty editing suggestions–fixing typos and the like–rather than focusing on the core analytical issues….

…I haven’t read enough of Sotomayor’s opinions to have a confident sense of them, nor have I talked to enough of Sotomayor’s detractors and supporters, to get a fully balanced picture of her strengths. It’s possible that the former clerks and former prosecutors I talked to have an incomplete picture of her abilities. But they’re not motivated by sour grapes or by ideological disagreement–they’d like the most intellectually powerful and politically effective liberal justice possible. And they think that Sotomayor, although personally and professionally impressive, may not meet that demanding standard. Given the stakes, the president should obviously satisfy himself that he has a complete picture before taking a gamble.

So she’s a typo-correcting, perceived dumbass who can’t see the forest for the trees, and she takes out her law clerks to see Harry Potter?

Hmm…BUT SHE’S HISPANIC!

Seriously, let’s let the confirmation process go forward. Different judges have different styles and it seems like most criticisms stem from a single contention: Obama picked her. Go boil your heads, knee-jerk reaction conservatives. The Court is still fairly balanced. You can keep your guns.
—-

In other news, this kid keeps a lending library of books that are “banned” in her school in her locker.

I encourage everyone who goes to a high school that bans books to do this. Spread information. Spread ideas. Crush ignorance.

And. finally, continuing with the theme of animals and pictures:

That’s it for today. Until next time, this is Phil the Pill and I’ll be throwing a FIESTA!…while working and taking summer classes, but as much as posisble

I Love You, Man review: Bromance on Girl’s Night

It’s the End of the World as We Know It and I Feel Fine, Kim Jong Il edition.

On a scale of 1 to 10, how unsafe does Phil the Pill feel?

—-

A Movie Review today.

Some of my friends of the female persuasion decided to have a Girl’s Night Out and I got myself invited, because it’s important to occasionally do some reconnaissance. We had Chinese food and went to the movies. As per GNO rules, they picked a movie that, in my opinion, didn’t look very good. We went to see I Love You, Man, which I figured would suck because even funny guys like Paul Rudd and Jason Segel eventually make the Shitty Romantic Comedy. But, hey, I had a couple of free movie tickets to use as a result of my Regal Crown Club card, so it wasn’t like I was going to be paying $10 in support of it.

After blowing $50 in bad movies and overpriced refreshments, you get a free bad movie!

I ended up loving it.
—-

I Love You, Man, directed by John Hamburg, is the quintessential turn-of-the-century Bromance. Realtor Peter Klaven (Paul Rudd – Role Models, Knocked Up) has just proposed to his girlfriend of eight months, Zooey (Rashida Jones – Karen from The Office). Wedding plans are underway when the couple realizes that Peter, as a result of spending most of his time with his girlfriends, has no one to be his best man. After various, interesting man-dates, he runs into Sydney Fife (Jason Segel – Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Marshall from How I Met Your Mother). Sydney and Peter hit it off and, inevitably, it starts to weigh on the engagement, especially given the fact that Peter’s new friend is honest to a fault and impulsive in his decisions.

The ensemble cast is comedically solid. Andy Samberg, J.K. Simmons, and Jane Curtin all play eccentric members of Peter’s family without stealing scenes inappropriately. Sarah Burns and smoking-hot Jamie Pressly play Zooey’s best friends, the latter married to a very rude and very hilarious Jon Favreau. Best extended cameo goes to the 70’s-era Incredible Hulk Lou Ferrigno playing himself.

Spoiler alert: This ends badly

I Love You, Man follows a formula, but reminds us why the formula exists in the first place. Trivial conflicts lead to hilarious awkward moments, the predictable drama among the main characters and loose ends getting neatly tied up. However, while other films force the humor to go places the story doesn’t merit, ILYM enjoys its simple moments, indulges on all the right occasions and doesn’t make excuses for what it is — a movie about guy love. Much like Sydney Fife, the movie knows that there are rules for its genre and follows them, but it never gives you the sense that it needs to make up for these limitations. The moments within the pre-destined journey are non-stop enjoyable.

Rudd and Segel are funny, but are neither obnoxious nor entirely non-grating. At some points, I got the sense that Rudd was too good at being pathetic, while Segel could get creepy enough to be considered a caricature. However, both leads were able to pedal back to give the characters some credibility. There actually are Peters and Sydneys out there in the world and it’s refreshing to see everyone having fun on screen.

Ironically for the Girl’s Night, the movie also has humor that guys will appreciate best such as the contents of the “man cave” and the creepy-crawliness of girlfriends who “share” a lot. The girls I was with enjoyed it, too, though they made a claim that Peter’s attempts at forced best-friendship initially were “too awkward to watch,” which is an issue I don’t think guys have. All in all, the enjoyability factor still seemed pretty universal across gender lines, so it makes a good date movie.

I'm listening.

I think that was the best part of the movie, because it would have been very tempting to make Sydney Fife into a completely batshit insane stalker, which was how the trailer set him up. Instead, he’s just a guy who speaks his mind and doesn’t ask permission to be who he is or go through with an idea. This would get anyone in trouble in the real world and it gets Sydney in trouble here, but you could imagine forgiving him in the end. Comparable characters in comedies never deserve any sort of sympathy but receive it anyway.

Finally, the pacing of the movie is really well done. Each scene, while you could have seen it coming, elicits constant laughter and chuckling and they’re very simple in their premises. Towards the beginning, Peter Klaven goes through the “we’ve-seen-it-before” dating schtick, but rather than finding completely inappropriate romantic prospects, he’s looking for a dude to fulfill the platonic void. This kickstart freshens the dynamic enough to enjoy the gags both big and small. It’s also satisfying on a character level to see Peter pick up some of Sydney’s quirks and move away from being a girlfriends’ boy.

So, on the whole, much better than I would have expected and a comedy on par with Rudd and Segel’s proving grounds, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, and Forgetting Sarah Marshall. I’d give it 8 out of 10 Rush jam sessions.

—-

Just listened to: The Hazards of Love by The Decemberists…it’s good and an interesting concept album, but it doesn’t match Her Majesty and Picaresque.
Read recently: Finished Part I of The Fountainhead. I must say…against my better judgment, I’m enjoying it.
Watching tomorrow: Ben Stein’s Expelled, because I have to be, as Math puts it, “politically correct” and watch something with a right-wing bent in my documentary project