The Burr in the Burgh

Yesterday, the family and I happened to catch not one, but two movies. It was a day off school, you see. But don't think we observed our Memorial Day only with self indulgence. Earlier in the day we visited the Soldiers and Sailors Museum for a patriotic celebration.

• The Pacifier starring Vin Diesel was playing at the local dollar theater. And let me say that I thought it was a terrific family film. I enjoyed it A LOT. Admittedly, I'm kind of a Vin Diesel fan already because Saving Private Ryan is one of my all time faves.

• Why I liked it: No cursing (that I can recall). It was clean. It was very pro-family. And I would say that it was pro-military too. And it was funny, with a decent story and enjoyable characters. Occasionally, over-the-top silliness, but that's OK.
  

• Criticisms: A bit too much diaper humor. Gets a laugh the first time, maybe, but then after that it just reveals the laziness of the writers. Y'know, whenever you get stumped, just throw in another poop joke.
  
  And I suppose some might suggest that the subplot with the oldest boy is a subtle attempt to encourage acceptance of homosexuality, as was purported for Shark Tale. And that may well have been the producer's intent, but it could also just be a way to encourage the audience to accept that people are different and have different likes and dislikes. I guess I'm just not in the mood today to find a cultural boogeyman behind every bush.



• I, Robot with Will Smith. Watched on DVD. Second time for me. Not really based on the Isaac Asimov collection of stories of the same name, only "suggested" by it.


• Why I liked it: Awesome action sequences and special effects. Good story. And Will Smith remains an outstanding action movie hero but has something Arnold and Sylvester could never quite achieve, and that is humor. Bruce Willis is another one who can deliver in the rough-and-tumble department and still also deliver a funny line.

Another thing the movie did well, in my opinion, was to illustrate the classic Science Fiction theme that technology dehumanizes us. There's a note of warning in there somewhere. (It's ironic that I'm stating that on a blog.)


• Criticisms: Bad language all over the place.

I don't know if this is so much a criticism as an observation. The movie had almost no connection, plot-wise, to the Asimov book it was named for. However, the three laws of robotics which play a central role in the film do come from Asimov. Overall, a good flick.

In the media, Islam has been called the religion of peace. I suppose destroying all the infidels is one way towards creating harmony.

Here's an excerpt from a "sermon" delivered by Sheik Ibrahim Mudeiris on Palestinian television. I've talked about this general issue with Christian leaders and laity I know in Muslim countries and they agree that any Americans who think this "sermon" represents a small lunatic fringe is living with their heads in the sand. When my son was three years old, he believed that if he covered his eyes with his hands, it made the person he'd be looking at disappear. It just seems to me that there are a lot of people who think that if they don't think about this, it won't become a problem. Denial is not just a river in Egypt. It's a state of mind.

Jesus said, "I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world (Joh 16:33)." True peace is only available in Jesus Christ. He alone has reconciled sinners to the Heavenly Father.

I tip my hat to The Volokh Conspiracy.

Michael Yon is a journalist travelling with American soldiers in Iraq. You should click here to read what he writes about the Muslims who are intentionally killing Iraqi children and using them as shields and doing it in the name of their false god. Jesus talked about men who would do evil and think they were doing God a favor. Their god is the devil.

Yon also writes how the children in Iraq LOVE the American soldiers. He says that they come running filled with excitement when they hear the tanks rumbling the same way American children run when they hear the bell of the neighborhood ice cream man. And the soldiers are sadly forced to tell the children to stay back. Why? Because the evil ones they are fighting use the children as shields and have killed many.