So Hot

Lately I cannot get enough of Hot Chip. They are obviously the recent favorite listen, along with jj, and the lovely Joanna Newsom. Some people would refer to these groups as an "acquired tastes". Those are the people that have NO taste (according to me). Anyway, here is an update on me. I'm studying for a test I have to take by midnight tomorrow. I also have to write a research design about the institutional effects on judicial voting habits. In other words, I need to write a paper on the effects of procedures on the way the Supreme Court justices vote/rule. I also need to write a policy paper for my 376 class. For that one I need to investigate to what extent the U.S. is providing support (fiscal/technological/intelligence...) for Mexico in its war on drugs. Then I need to take a position and argue if the U.S. should increase its support for the Mexican government or if it should decrease the amount of support it provides. This sounds boring and tedious, but I kind of find it interesting; more so the paper for Psci 376 because everyone knows I love Mexico. Also, at this moment I have bad gas. It kind of sneaks up on me then screams for release. Other than that, not much is new. Here is a favorite Hot Chip song, Over and Over.

Let Go

This week was pretty difficult and Wednesday was a pretty frustrating day. Fate would have it that on that day, "hump day", university professors would collaborate in order to frustrate all Plsci 310, Plsci 376, and Spanish 326 students. Unfortunately, I am taking all three classes which meant that on Wednesday, I took three midterms. They were brutal. Anyways, 'Nuff said. Thursday was a much better day. Other than that, nothing is new. I'm ready for summer because that means I get to take a break...maybe. I can't think of a better video/song than this one at this time and in this situation. If you didn't understand that, just think of it as one of those Bilbo Baggins' sayings from Lord of the Rings. After all of that, here is the song. It is "Let Go" by jj. If you don't love it, you WILL.

Se acabó la música

After reading "Race in American Politics" by a cuartet of political scientists and "The Feminist Method" by Sandra Harding, I decided to take a "mental" break and watch a movie. I must say that Netflix is amazing. The selection of movies is astonishing. You will find movies on Netflix that you will never see on the shelves at Blockbuster. Last time, I mentioned the movie Dear Zachary: A Letter to a son about his Father. Tonight, a few friends and I watched El Violín, a movie released in 2005 by the director Francisco Vargas. El Violín is a somber, slow-paced, black and white film that depicts the struggles of many indigenous people throughout Latin America. The movie tells the story of a family composed of Plutarco Hidalgo the grandpa (Ángel Tavira), Genaro Hidalgo the son and guerilla (Gerardo Taracena), and Lucio Hidalgo the grandson (Mario Garibaldi). Here is the plot as it comes from the film's website (roughly translated by yours truly). Plutarco and his family lead a double life. On one hand, they are humble rural musicians and on the other hand they are active supporters of a guerilla movement against an oppressive government. When the army invades their village, the guerillas are forced to abandon their supply of ammunition. Plutarco, taking advantage of his appearance as a humble violinist, comes up with a plan to recuperate the ammunition. This movie is absolutely beautiful. The plot is well-developed, the black and white photography is awe-inspiring, and the acting is topnotch. The following is a clip from the movie showing and interaction between the general and Plutarco as well as the official trailer. Unfortunately, there are no subtitles for those who do not speak Spanish. However, a this link you can find a video that does.

Dear Zachary

THE Documentary

Good films are a rarity in recent years. Hollywood is a business like any other with its main focus on profit margins. Because this is the case, there are a plethora of movies like Avatar, Transformers 1 & 2 (WORST movies ever), and Twilight. You are probably wondering why I decided to include Avatar with what are possibly the worst movies being both movies in the Transformers series and the Twilight series. The answer is as follows: First, while containing blatant undertones referencing Iraq and Bush, it has been completely over-hyped as cerebral and bold. Second, it was nothing more than cliché. When I think of these movies, the words accredited to Lars von Trier;

"American studios give money to directors to educate them away from their creative fingerprint, even if that's the reason they wanted them in the first place. I've avoided that fate by making movies here. You have to fight the urge to do a big action movie. You avoid 'Batman.' The bigger it is, the worse it is."

However, thanks to Netflix, I watched a documentary that shows good films DO EXIST. Dear Zachary: A letter to a son about his Father, a documentary film by Kurt Kuenne details the story behind the murder of Dr. Andrew Bagsby. The documentary is filmed in such a way that is essentially a letter to the son of the late Dr. Andrew Bagsby; Zachary. The director, Kurt Kuenne who is a childhood friend of Bagby, embarks on a trip that covers three nations in an attempt to interview friends and family of the aforementioned. The story of the murder is heartbreaking and this feeling is compounded as a result of injustices that follow the crime. This movie was tough to watch, but not in a bad way. It provokes anger, sadness, and sympathy. This is definitely a film that must be seen. Here are a few reviews that will do more justice than I possibly can. And to give you a taste, here is the trailer.

Parent Pleaser

Convo

The last time I spoke with my mother she shared a funny story with me. She had told me that one night she found my dad watching a video for a song by Laura Veirs. I posted the video on my facebook page and apparently my dad was intrigued and mesmerized as he watched it. According to my mother, she asked him what he was doing and he said he was "waiting for something". Why this is funny is because a while ago, I posted a video by Holy Ghost!. My mother was mistaken and watched the video expecting some sort of gospel message. Needless to say she was left waiting just like my dad was left waiting. I guess my taste is just different. Anyways, here is a video that will please my mother because it has a "message". It is a cool song by El Perro Del Mar.