Posts Tagged ‘News’
Man Learns About Dad’s Past Via Nazi Banner
This is a heavy news story.
Imagine getting a big Nazi banner in the mail and then realizing it has something to do with your Dad. (Actually, if it didn’t have anything to do with your Dad, that would be even more messed up.)
From Wauwatosa Now:
Wauwatosa — Robert Griffin was overcome with a wave of memories as he read a letter from a distant stranger — a letter that, at least in part, filled in some of the blanks of his father’s wartime experiences.
The letter was sent by Gigi Hickey, who uncovered a 12-foot-long, crumpled Nazi banner emblazoned with a black swastika — and complete with 84 American soldiers’ signatures — while cleaning out her deceased mother’s North Dakota home about two years ago. The banner was stuffed inside a howitzer canister and hidden in a trunk, a painful piece of history that Hickey thinks her mother, Georgia Henrichsen, wanted to stow away and forget.
Other than the specifics, this is the main bit:
Robert Griffin was overcome with a wave of memories as he read a letter from a distant stranger — a letter that, at least in part, filled in some of the blanks of his father’s wartime experiences.
I’m in the process of piecing together some of my own father’s past. There’s a lot I don’t know, and a lot that I’ve accepted I will never know. For me, this article is somewhat validating, since it shows that I’m far from the only son who wants to find out about his Dad. I can’t say that I’m expecting any artifact as dramatic and jarring as the one this man received. That said, it sounds like it was illuminating, which is a good thing.
Source: Through Nazi banner, Wauwatosa man learns of father’s experiences at war
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Robert Downey Jr. Brings Georgia Boy Bionic Arm (DaddyTube)
The line between Robert Downey Jr. and Iron Man is growing slimmer every day. Here is a video of the actor bringing a Georgia boy named Alex Pring a real bionic arm.
It’s OK if you get a little misty-eyed. We’ll wait.
The important bit here is that a group called The Collective Project made a bionic arm for a child, Alex, who was “born with a partially developed right arm,” according to the video. The arm was made by Albert Manero, “a college student who builds and donates low-cost, 3D-printed bionic limbs to kids around the world,” according to the YouTube video. Here’s a quote from the Fox 5 DC story where we found this:
“The arm doesn’t have a lot of supernatural powers, but it makes life easier on Alex both physically and mentally.”
The two then compare arms, with Downey pulling his out of a case with the Stark Industries logo.
Which brings us to what we were talking about when we said the line between Robert Downey Jr. and Iron Man is getting slimmer every day.
Remember in 2012 when we posted that Robert Downey Jr surprised kids at Comic Con? (Heck, remember 2012? I’m not sure I do.) Here’s what we had to say back then:
…Marvel could easily drop this footage into ‘Iron Man 3‘ if they want to. … Have the kids shouting out “IRON MAN!”, people cheering when Downey Tony Stark shows up… Free idea from me to you, ‘Iron Man 3? filmmakers. I’ll take a special thanks and perhaps a repulsor ray if you’ve got an extra one lying around.
(They didn’t take my idea. Maybe for Iron Man 4, or a future Avengers movie.)
The second best thing about this new video (the first, of course, is the kid getting the arm, because that’s actually real-life awesome) is the moment when someone off-camera asks Alex, “Do you know who that is?” “Iron Man,” Alex replies, to the delight of everyone in the room (and us home viewers). But then comes the follow-up:
“What’s his name?”
“Robert.”
Downey does nothing to correct Alex, nor does anyone else. In Alex’s 7-year-old mind, Robert Downey Jr. is Iron Man. To Downey’s credit, he’s a good enough actor that playing the super-rich Avenger has not hampered his film career; he can play other roles just as convincingly as he always has. But if he keeps this up, he might have to change his name to Tony Stark. Or maybe Marvel will just change Iron Man’s name to Robert Downey Jr. Both are about as likely to happen as me turning into Thor. But this particular blurring of fact and fiction is fun to watch.
On a more serious note, huge, massive, supremely large shout-outs to Albert Manero, who is apparently making bionic arms for kids who need them (it’s OK if that makes your head explode a little bit), and to Mr. Downey Jr., whom we like both on and off screen. And best of luck to Alex, a young man growing up in very interesting times.
‘Iron Man’ surprises boy in Georgia – DC News FOX 5 DC WTTG.
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Why Do I Read The News?
This is a serious question. Why do I read the news? It only leads to problems.
I was looking for an image to go with this post. I decided Grumpy Cat could be fun. But that only annoyed me more.
What should I do? Ignore everything? Only read comic books? That’s not the worst idea. It is limiting, though.
I want to tell you what piece of news has me so irritated. It’s not net neutrality. I like net neutrality. The idea that flying a banner with a meme over the corporate headquarters of Comcast is somehow a good use of time and, more importantly, money, that I think is stupid. But whatever.
I am wearing my CrankyPants! And I’m not going to tell you why because, as the kids say, reasons. Mostly it has to do with not wanting to get into certain issues of a personal nature, and/or not wanting to talk about certain issues in a public forum. (Is that vague enough?)
Mostly, grah. Stupid news.
The World is Doomed, Part 984
Once again, proof that the world is doomed. This is a “Hot Network Question” on StackExchange.com:
I found it here. The answer is fairly simple: CENTAURS DON’T EXIST.
Except on this car commercial. WHICH ISN’T REAL.
To be fair, the current list toppers are Drawing an histogram from a bash command output (that’s a Unix-thing I think) and How would plants be affected by a 48 hour day? which in my opinion is an interesting question. Consider: what if we find a planet that has 48 hour days? Could the plants that we grow on Earth survive there?
But seriously folks. Centaurs? C’mon. Let’s step up our game for 2015.
Cool Space Images of Saturn
In our ongoing effort to get more excited about space, here is a link to some cool space images of Saturn.
(This isn’t a picture of real space travel. It’s Captain Video and His Video Rangers. Old TV show.)
This quote from writer Jesus Diaz sums it up nicely:
I don’t know about you, but all these photos taken by a camera 746 million miles (1.2 billion kilometers) away from us blow me away.
Two-mile-high structures rising on Saturn’s rings. (via Sploid)
DaddyTips Comment 12-20-14 (Video)
The third DaddyTips Video commentary has arrived. Today, 12-20-14, I’m talking about NFL football.
Because this video is a little bit longer than usual (it’s about 3 minutes long; the other two have been closer to 2 minutes), and because I wrote it out rather than improvising, I’m going to include the full text here. It’s still faster to watch the video, unless you happen to be a speed reader. But if you don’t watch, you miss out on my stellar wit and brilliant facial expressions.
So here we go. This is fun. If you like the video, please share it with anyone and everyone.
Thanks for reading/watching/sharing, and most of all thanks for just being you. Happy holidays!
(Text of video follows.)
<singing>
The NFL, The NFL
Today I’ll be talking / about football-all-ell
</singing>
Today is Saturday, December 20. There will be 2 football games, billed as a special Saturday edition of Thursday Night Football. Despite the fact that that phrasing is a sign of the apocalypse – kind of like midnight movie premieres that are actually at 7pm – I like football enough that I’m going to watch the games.
Today’s comment is not about one of the Saturday games, it’s about the Bears/Lions game, which is on Sunday.
Apparently the Bears are going to start Jimmy Clausen instead of Jay Cutler. This quote is from an article on Michigan’s MLive.com written by Kyle Meinke, titled “Golden Tate hopes Jimmy Clausen ‘stays safe’ against Detroit Lions defense“.
“He may give us a spark. Who knows? We’re not sure, but I think it was a good time to take a look.”
That’s Chicago Bears coach Marc Trestman talking about his decision to start Clausen instead of Cutler.
NFL coaches are an intriguing breed. Generally they live and breathe football. They spend endless hours studying tape, coming up with plays, and thinking of ways to motivate their players.
“He may give us a spark. Who knows?”
Compare this to Arizona Cardinals coach Bruce Arians, who, when asked if his team could win the Super Bowl with their backup quarterback, said yes. To be fair, he was ASKED. He didn’t make a proclamation like Rex Ryan, the sometimes crazy coach of the hapless New York Jets.
The Cardinals have suffered a pile of injuries to key players, including starting quarterback Carson Palmer. They are currently 11-3, first place in their division, the NFC West. They are also the ONLY team in the NFC that has clinched a playoff spot.
The Bears are 5-9. That’s LAST place in the NFC North. They haven’t lost their starting quarterback. Until Sunday, when they plan to put in a guy who hasn’t started a game since 2010. Because they’re out of the playoffs.
Maybe coaching does matter.
It was suggested to me by a friend that I end these videos with a Tip, since they are being posted on – wait for it – DaddyTips.com. My tip today is:
Be more like Bruce Arians than Marc Trestman. I don’t follow the Cardinals closely, but from what I’ve heard and read, Arians appears to do everything he can to help his team win, including convincing his players that they CAN win, no matter what. Trestman – you know, the guy who said “Who knows?” when asked if starting Jimmy Clausen would help the Bears beat the Lions, would seem to be cut from different cloth.
My point? Buck the odds. Say “why not me?” instead of “who knows?”
Happy holidays.
(Note: The music used at the end is “I Am A Bear In A Lady’s Boudoir” by Cliff Edwards, recorded circa October 25, 1933. It’s in the Public Domain and available for download at the invaluable Internet Archive.)
Previous DaddyTips Video comments:
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Oops! Sears Pulls Swastika Rings
Item: Sears Pulls Swastika Rings from their marketplace website.
Oopsie! Are Swastikas still offensive? Sheesh, can’t you people get OVER it already?
To be fair, these rings showed up in the “Sears Marketplace”, which I believe is not officially Sears. Consumerist also reports that the rings were “briefly” on Amazon.com as well.
The item’s description, according to the Consumerist article, is quite something:
“This gothic jewelry item in particular features a Swastika ring that’s made of .925 Thai silver,” the item description read. “Not for Neo Nazi or any Nazi implication. These jewelry items are going to make you look beautiful at your next dinner date.”
So if, as the song says, you don’t know you’re beautiful…
perhaps one of these rings can help? I doubt it.
Sears Apologizes For Selling Swastika Rings In Online Marketplace – Consumerist.
