I Love the Smell of Protoculture in the Morning

Looks like they're serious about making a live-action version of the famed 80's anime series Robotech. (I'd prefer a live-action re-make of Star Blazers, but then I realized there basically is one already. It's called Battlestar Galactica) How do we know they are serious this time? Instead of the usual no-name screenwriters rumored to be penning this epic, they've hired Lawrence Kasdan to write the screenplay.

Kasdan comes with an impressive resumé. He wrote the screenplays for both Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Empire Strikes Back, so I'm tentatively excited about this project. The thing that scares me the most, however, is that Tobey Maguire's production company has the rights. And guess who will most likely play Rick Hunter. Tobey's 'aww, shucks', routine was great for Spiderman, but won't work with Rick Hunter.

So that got me to thinking about who would make a great Rick Hunter. And that led to trying to cast all the main characters from the Macross Saga part of the Robotech story. Here's my list:

Rick Hunter - Christian Bale - There's nothing this man cannot do.

Lynn Minmay - Vanessa Hudgens - She can sing and can bring that annoyance factor that is much needed for an accurate re-make

Lisa Hayes - Jennifer Aniston - Don't see it? Go back and watch some episodes again. You'll be a believer.

Roy Fokker - Owen Wilson - This one was the hardest to cast. He has to be tough yet funny and easy going. Owen fits that bill better than any of the others that crossed my mind.

Max Sterling - Jim Sturgess - As long as he doesn't break into song in the middle of a battle, he's good to go.

Miriya Parino - Angelina Jolie - Who else could play a stealthy, steamy, Ventraedi sex-pot?

Ben Dixon - Seth Rogan - Only real choice here.

Cap't Gloval - Jurgen Prochnow - A great actor who is best in command-type roles. Plus, he has that 'from everywhere and nowhere' accent to add that special touch.

Claudia Graham - Beyoncé Knowles - Hey, this is the future! You can be Beyoncé and still be on the bridge of a space fortress.

Lynn Kyle - Kyle was never integral to any part of the story. He was just there as an irritant. But if his character were included in the film, I would probably cast Zachary Quinto. Put a long-haired wig on him and let Syler loose.

Breetai - Michael Ironside - Along with Rogan, the only slam dunk on the cast.

Khyron - Keifer Sutherland - Die his hair blue and let his inner rage show..!

On Secession Pt Deux

Texas Governor Rick Perry unwittingly (or not) set in motion the secession of Texas from the United States during a 'Tea Party' rally yesterday by saying Texans are fed up with federal tax policies, and might get so fed up that they decide they want to secede from the union. Whether he realized it or not, a governor using that powerful word has consequences and could set in motion a series of events that could, in fact, lead to Texas leaving the Union. If that happened, we would see a domino effect of states 'declaring' independence. As I predicted a few weeks ago, this country will not have fifty states twenty years from now. Having a sitting governor of a state as large as Texas more or less advocating secession just sets that timetable to move a little faster. Gov. Perry backtracked to reporters after his rally, but the damage has been done.

While I have always supported secession, and I agree that the 10^th Amendment to the Constitution has lain fallow for some time, I find his reasoning to be ridiculous, to be honest. The chief complaint at this rally was monetary. The attendees were there because they were tired of the government taking their money to fund 'pork'. If they had stopped to think about where they were, they would have realized they were protesting in what will become the centerpiece of the new Downtown Trinity River Project, paid for with a chunk of Federal money secured by Republican Kay Bailey Hutchison, who will be Perry's main rival for the governorship in 2010. If all the attendees agree to give that money back, I could take them a little more seriously.

While supporting secession myself, I am aware of the realities of what will happen. Most of these people have no clue. No federal money means no more therapy in the schools, no more FDA to protect your food, no more Federal money on the border, etc. If they think they're being taxed now, just wait. In order to sustain itself, Texas would have to tax its citizens at about an average of 50% of all income. That means Texas will start collecting an income tax and property taxes will skyrocket to replace money that school districts will lose. It won't be all wine and roses, folks. Just because the Federal Government isn't taxing you anymore doesn't mean that things are going to cost less. Food prices will jump dramatically because of tariffs and import costs, the same with almost all other goods and services. I think if most of those holding 'Secede!' signs (most of them misspelled, by the way) knew what it actually meant to leave the US, they would sit down and shut up.

And this brings me to another point. They are clamoring because they think the 10^th Amendment isn't being upheld. FOR FUCK SAKE, where the hell were they when the 1^st 4^th 5^th 6^th 8^th & 9^th amendments were torn to shreds?? They decry any whispered hint or accusation of communism but were just fine and dandy with despotism. But hey, they got to keep their money so what the hell, right?

I hope Texas secedes. It would be a nice wake-up call for these idiots.

On Secession

Seattle's Mayor, Greg Nickels, put out the idea that Seattle should secede from the rest of Washington state on Thursday.

While I'm not from Seattle, and in fact have never even visited that fair city, I fully support his notion. I think several other states and municipalities should also take this idea seriously.

There are many areas of this country, like Seattle, that literally support an entire region and are dragged down by surrounding areas. NW Arkansas, for example, is a great community with a thriving economy and an excellent school system while Arkansas ranks next to the bottom on nearly every category you can think of. Take away the cities of Fayetteville, Springdale, Bentonville, Rogers and the surrounding area, and Arkansas would rank last in everything. If that region of Arkansas were its own state, it would rank in the top 10 in many categories. Having lived in that area for half my life, I have thought for years that the NW Arkansas area should remove itself from the rest of that state and become a state itself. If that happened, I would move back there tomorrow.

Same goes for entire states. Nearly all states have some fringe groups calling for independence. Among those, Texas and Vermont seem to be the most vocal and organized. Depending on whose numbers you look at, Texas would be the fourth or fifth largest economy on the planet if it were independent. Hardly a backwater.

This all brings me to my main point. Over the centuries, civilization started in small areas. Over time, these areas became city states and then nations and then empires. Empires collapse and the cycle starts all over again. We are seeing a resurgence in regional identity of late. While in the United States, we all call ourselves 'American', we also call ourselves Texan or Californian or Virginian or New Yorker. The framers of our nation thought that the states should stay very independent, but have a central governing body to unify them, not to subjugate them. Over the last 200 years, we have stopped thinking of ourselves as a group of states brought together by common self-interest but more of a homogeneous society where our regional identities are discouraged.

I've felt a change over the last five years, however. Perhaps this has been brought about by a dissatisfaction with the Bush administration or it may be that it is just an idea whose time has come, but I would be very surprised if there were still 50 states 20 years from now.

All it takes is one municipality to secede from a state or a state to secede from the Union. Then the dominoes will begin to fall. I see the people of this nation still defining themselves as 'American', but more in the way that the French or Germans think of themselves as European. We will be more like the European Union - a collection of nation-states, completely sovereign, yet held together by a common constitution and currency,

So I say to Mayor Nickels. go for it, man... I'm right behind you.