DaddyTips.com

Non Kiddie CD Player Is, In Fact, Good for Kids [DaddyShop]

Guess what? That Sony CD Boombox with Digital AM/FM Tuner is, in fact, a non-kiddie CD player that is good for kids.

My youngest has the ability to break almost anything. If you don’t believe me, try this — internal power supply on a desktop computer. Beat that!

But this Sony CD Boombox? We’ve had it since June of 2010, and so far it’s still working. It even looks good, which is rare. I think the reason is the controls. They are located on top of the device and easily accessed by little hands, particular the volume dial, which turns like buttah. We mostly use the CD player but there is an AM/FM radio and a line-in jack for an iPod or other music player.

This is an item that I bought and have used, so this is a real world review based on actual usage. The model number of the device I own is ZSE5RED. Highly recommended.

Sony CD Boombox with Digital AM/FM Tuner (Red) at Amazon.com

Young Justice Cartoon Will Air November 26

The new Young Justice cartoon will air November 26, according to a report from New York Comic Con on Poptimal.

We’re always excited about any new superhero cartoon. For some reason, it was hard to find an exact date anywhere online. But we did — Cartoon Network will air a one-hour premiere of Young Justice on November 26, 2010. The series starts up for real in Spring of 2011. Which isn’t specific enough for my taste, but whatever.

What is Young Justice? It’s kind of like Teen Titans, but different. You’ll see the young heroes/sidekicks like Robin and Speedy, but some things will be different. UGO.com says that the Young Justice cartoon will “reboot the reboots“, which could be OK as long as it’s not “Infinitely Finally The Last Crisis Ever No Really We Mean It” type of nonsense.

For those who want even more background on Young Justice, it all started with comics, as usual. There were some issues written by Peter David (one of my favorite comics writers), and there are trade paperbacks although some, such as Young Justice: Sins of Youth, are out of print. Then there is the 2-issue miniseries JLA: WORLD WITHOUT GROWN-UPS, which is being reprinted as a plain ol’ overpriced comic book under the title DC Comics Presents Young Justice #1. My guess is that there will be more of these reprints leading up to the premiere on November 26; hopefully they will reprint the Peter David issues, because I like his writing. And let’s face it, it’s all about my needs.

Here’s the official video preview with the Young Justice cartoon producers Brandon Vietti and Greg Weisman discussing the characters.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiOjAmXDjW4]

And here is five minutes of slightly shaky Young Justice footage from a New York Comic Con panel.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsnuMjbaqbM]

Poptimal also has video of the producers discussing the show.

What do you think? Looks good? Gonna watch? Read the comics? Let us know!

NY Comic-Con 2010: Young Justice Preview : Poptimal.com

Dads in Spain Want Breast-Feeding Leave

From ParentDish, a story about dads in Spain who want breast-feeding leave.

The Luxembourg high court has ruled that for the first 9 months of a baby’s life, dads can take 30-minute “breastfeeding leaves” during their work day, London’s Daily Telegraph reports.

That’s dumb enough but the reasoning is even more ridiculous.

“It’s not fair to extend breast-feeding benefits only to women,” says the European Union Court of Justice, calling it “unjustified discrimination on grounds of sex, ” the newspaper says.

Are you kidding me? Unfair? Discrimination?

Dads don’t breast-feed!

Am I missing something here? Did I provide milk to my children from my body? Did I huddle in the bathroom with a breast-pump? Did I have to explain to airport security that said breast-pump was not, in fact, a weapon of mass destruction?

This isn’t discrimination. It’s biology.

I think it’s great that women are being allowed to take time off to breast-feed their babies. I’m in favor of breast-feeding, I think it’s healthier for the kid, and so on.

But how can anyone say with a straight face that only offering this benefit to women is “discrimination”?

Discrimination is a woman being paid less for doing the same job as a man.

Apparently this ruling came in response to the existing law, which states that dad’s are allowed to ask for breast-feeding leave only if the mom works full-time. Which is pretty damn progressive, methinks.

And even though they call it “breast-feeding leave”, it is designed to allow the dad to spend time with the child. If that’s the case, why not call it that?

Breast-feeding is something that women choose to do. It’s not easy. It takes time and effort. Men can’t do it any more than we can give birth.

This is yet another case of men trying to get a piece of everything. We run the world, guys. Look around. Things really aren’t so bad for us. Let women have some benefits that we don’t have. It’ll be okay. Really. I promise.

The Milkmen Are Coming: In Spain, Breast-Feeding Leave Not Just for Women [ParentDish]

Full disclosure: Brett Singer writes for ParentDish and other AOL properties.

Breastfeeding: What’s A Dad Supposed to Do? image via Amazon

Mel Gibson’s Father Thinks Pope is Gay [Daddy Issues]

TMZ has audio of Hutton Gibson, Mel Gibson’s father, calling in to a radio show and saying that Pope Benedict XVI is gay. As in homosexual. TMZ has the recording; here is a partial transcript.

The elder Mr. Gibson called “the Political Cesspool Radio Program to discuss the issues involving the Catholic Church,” according to TMZ.

When asked by the host if the Catholic Church had “become politicized…so that it was no longer able to take on controversial issues like homosexuality,” or if perhaps they were simply “unwilling to do so,” Hutton Gibson replied: “It’s not willing to do so because half of the people there in the Vatican are queer.”

Gibson added that they (presumably the gay people in the church hierarchy) have “fostered it” (gay stuff?) because they want to “destroy the church.”

In the recording posted at TMZ.com, Gibson is asked by the host about the involvement of the Freemasons in the church’s supposed demise. When Pope Benedict’s name came up, Gibson said, “He’s one of them. He was the one that influenced the last four… the last four anti-popes.” When asked if Benedict could be a Freemason, Gibson says, “I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised.”

And finally, the money shot:

Host: Now I’m going to ask you a very controversial question. Do you think that Benedict is a homosexual?

Hutton Gibson: I certainly do. Why else would he put up with this? He was in charge of stamping it out. And he did nothing. He just kept quiet. Keep things quiet, don’t do anything. We don’t want to disturb anybody.

Hutton Gibson also says that the Pope is a “slippery character” who is now going to “get behind the thing he’s always scorned.” Make up your own joke.

WOW. I thought I had daddy issues. And I do. But, um. WOW.

Asides:

– This will probably be the only time that I slightly agree with Hutton Gibson. It was wrong of the Church to keep what appears to have been rampant sexual abuse among the preisthood under wraps. That’s kind of a minor point in all of this, but I thought it was worth mentioning.

– Can you imagine if this guy was your father? Unless you moved out at a very young age, what are the odds that you wouldn’t end up a nutjob?

– Anti-Popes would be a good name for a band.

TMZ via Daily Mail

Introduction To Christianity Image via Amazon.com

Use The Crusts As Bread Crumbs [Cooking Tip]

For some mysterious reason, most children will not eat a sandwich unless the crusts have been cut off. Today’s tip: use the crusts as bread crumbs when you are cooking.

This morning, like most mornings, I made lunch for my son. Currently, he will eat a bologna sandwich, on wheat, with the crusts removed. I was about to toss the crusts in the trash when I realized that they would make good homemade bread crumbs.

Here’s what you do:

– Break the crusts apart into smaller pieces.

– Put into a mortar and pestle. If you don’t have a mortar and pestle, use a bowl. Then go buy a mortar and pestle because they are inexpensive, useful and, in their own way, awesome.

– Add spices. I used herbs du provence, truffle salt, and pepper.

– Smoosh it up until it looks like the bread crumbs you get from the can, only without the additives (or the can).

Bingo! You have homemade bread crumbs. I put mine on some roasted carrots that were in this week’s farm share box. What do you put bread crumbs on?

Mortar and Pestle image from Amazon.com

New Tron Movie Has Daddy Issues [So Do I]

The new Tron movie has daddy issues.

So do I.

‘Tron: Legacy’ is the sequel to the 1982 film ‘Tron‘. I’d say ‘classic’ but if I’m being honest (and I always am, ahem) I don’t remember the original film well enough to call it a classic. I’m not sure if anyone else would agree. More on that later.

A new trailer was revealed at the San Diego Comic Con (SDCC). Here it is:

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7s8goEO7ma4]

The movie looks like a lot of fun. What caught me by surprise were the daddy issues on display.

Jeff Bridges’ character Kevin Flynn appears to have had a son named Sam (played by Garrett Hedlund) at some point between 1982 and now. (It’s possible he had one in the original film; like I said, I don’t remember.) From the trailer, it looks as if poppa Flynn disappeared when Sam was a little guy, and no one knows what happened. Cue the title card — “20 years later”. Alan Bradley (Bruce Boxleitner, also returning from the original film, although he isn’t playing the Tron character this time) gets a page from dad’s office number, which has been disconnected for 20 years. (When was the last time he used that pager? Was it in storage all this time?) Sam Flynn enters Flynn’s Arcade, which is all wrapped up in saran. He is absorbed into the Tron world, or whatever it was called. Nerds everywhere pop geeky boners. He rides a lightcycle and throws those cool-looking disc things. Boners get bigger. Hot girl in tight cyber suit (Olivia Wilde). Boners get more valid.

During all of this, the bad guy, Clu 2.0 reveals his face. It’s the same face as Sam’s dad, Kevin. No beard, though.

Daddy Kevin is trapped somewhere, and Sam must find him. He also needs a shave. (If I were trapped in cyber world, I wouldn’t shave either.)

Not earth-shattering stuff I suppose. But big-time daddy issues.

“Hi Daddy!”

Oh, the daddy issues. Have we mentioned the daddy issues? Think about it. Kevin Flynn, Sam’s dad, disappeared when he was young. (8 years old? 9? Something like that.) Sam never found out why. (I’m guessing about this part.) After 20 years, his father’s former business partner tells him that Kevin paged him from a number that has been disconnected since dad fell off the face of the Earth. Sam goes to the arcade dad used to run, gets digitized, and discovers that the evil overlord of cyber world is someone who LOOKS JUST HIS FATHER. BUT! It’s not his father. His father is trapped somewhere and he must go and get him out.

My dad died when I was 10; this plotline could have been pulled directly from my brain. I’ve had several dreams over the years where I find out that my father has been alive all this time, living somewhere else. Usually I ask why he didn’t contact me. He has an answer but I can’t remember what it is. Even in the dream, I don’t think I really hear him. I vaguely recall a couple of dreams where he said something about not wanting to upset me, which of course makes sense since it is MUCH better to believe your father is dead than it is to find out he’s been alive but didn’t want to tell you. (OK, breathe… OK. OK.)

In ‘Tron: Legacy’, Sam finds out his dad is alive, trapped, and he can save him — from a bad guy that looks exactly like his dad. (Without facial hair, as noted.)

For me, this raises more issues than Life Magazine.

An older trailer (dated March 29, 2010) has a longer version of the “your dad paged me” scene. Sam says, “You think I’m going to find him… sorry kid, lost track of time?” “Wouldn’t that be something.”

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVJwwbTc98c]

Yeah. It would, wouldn’t it. Too bad it’s only a movie.

(BTW, the movie looks awesome, but I may have to check my emotions at the door when I see it with the kids. It would be way too hard to explain why dad is getting upset during a film in which the major attraction is CGI light cycles.)

Trailer via YouTube; originally seen on Topless Robot – It’s Jeff Bridges Vs. Jeff Bridges in Tron: Legacy.

15-Year-Old Kid Tricks Apple App Store [Smart Kids Rock]

I love smart kids. I love tech folks who stick it to THE MAN.

These days, despite protestations from iHoles worldwide, Apple is THE MAN. Especially when it comes to the iPhone app store.

Here’s what happened: according to Gizmodo, Nick Lee, a 15-year-old kid, was selling an iPhone app called Handy Light. It looked like one of probably thousands of “colored flashlight apps” that are in the app store.

BUT! Handy Light had a secret feature — “hidden code that made it a full tethering application—a program that allows you to use your iPhone as a 3G modem.” This is something that AT&T charges $20 a month for. But if you have Handy Light, you can do it for free — well, ok, a one-time charge of 99 cents.

A couple of points:

• Cellphone carriers who charge for tethering are annoying.
• Apple’s claim that they filter apps in order to protect users now sounds silly. Especially when they rejected a farting app. (They eventually approved it, I think.)
• It’s great that kids are still programming. Computers in schools are mostly used now as gaming machines.
• This is NOT evil hacking. This is a kid who figured out a way to buck the system.

According to Gizmodo, Apple removed Handy Light from the app store, but anyone who downloaded the thing can keep using it. Not sure if it’s possible to load your own apps onto the iPhone. If so, I hope the kid released the source code so people can keep doing this on their own. It may be a violation of AT&T’s agreement (I have no idea if it is or not); if so, that’s their problem.

GO! SMART! KIDS! David Lightman! Represent!

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukXXcOn7V7o]

How a 15-yo Kid Tricked Apple With a Disguised iPhone Tethering App (Gizmodo)

Wargames DVD image via Amazon.com