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March 20, 2006
Entropy Monday
en·tro·py n. pl. en·tro·pies
2. A measure of the disorder or randomness in a closed system.
4. The tendency for all matter and energy in the universe to evolve toward a state of inert uniformity.
5. Inevitable and steady deterioration of a system or society.
Obviously, I am aiming for the meaning in definition 2... although one could argue that the very existence of my blog is a symptom of #5. And there's something kind of statement-ish about the phrase "inert uniformity," it feels very observational about suburban America or something. So I'm going with it. Anyway, here's a random and disordered series of thoughts and observations.
1. BU back on top. The last time Boston University's hockey team won the Hockey East title, I was a first year grad student living just off campus in the party apartment (8 parties for 30 or more people in the first 11 weekends of school... not one time were the cops called to our house... I'm still damn proud of that). Nine years later, the Terriers are back on top. BU charged through the Hockey East tournament this weekend, easily dispatching some overrated bums from UNH 9-2, then disposing of our arch rivals Boston College in the finals, 2-1, to win the conference championship. The Icedogs' reward was a #3 seed in the NCAA tournament out of 16 teams. To win out, my grad school alma mater will have to beat my undergrad alma mater, Minnnesota, who are the #2 seed. Despite having attended both schools, I have no split loyalties; I am a Terrier, through and through. SO congratulations to Coach Parker and the team for returning us to our rightful place atop Hockey East, and good luck in the NCAA!
2. Cutting edge humor. Chicago is home to a great baseball stadium, a funny accent, and at least one very flipped out dude. Jakub Fik went on an enraged fit last week, and when confronted by police, he began throwing things at them. Knives, for example. And of course, he also threw his own severed penis at them.
Fik, 33, cut off his own penis during a Northwest Side rampage Wednesday morning. When confronted by police, Fik hurled several knives and his severed organ at the officers, police said. Officers stunned him with a Taser and took him into custody.
Wow. Talk about losing one's head. He really went off half-cocked. He was robbing Peter to pay Paul. (Okay, Austin Powers, let's go. Right.)
3. Sour grapes make for a bad whine. The forces behind Brokeback Mountain continue to make themselves look like the creative equivalent of a two year old throwing a tantrum in the aisle of a toy store. Their incessant whining about not winning Best Picture is making the Academy's choice seem wiser by the day. The latest whine comes from the author of the short story upon which the screenplay was based, Annie Proulx.
"If you are looking for smart judging based on merit, skip the Academy Awards next year and pay attention to the Independent Spirit choices," Proulx advises.
Oh really, Annie? And that wouldn't just happen to be the award that your movie won, now would it?
She decries the "atmosphere of insufferable self-importance" inside the Kodak Theatre, the Oscars site, and describes the audience as a "somewhat dim LA crowd." The show, she writes, was "reminiscent of a small-town talent-show night."
Insufferable self-importance, huh? Well, I am certainly picking up a lot of insufferable self-importance out of this whole situation. However, to me it's all coming from the Brokeback Mountain crowd.
The "artistic vision" made with Brokeback Mountain is little different than Gibson's Passion of the Christ -- one part movie making, one part political statement. The statements may be on opposite sides of the spectrum, but making those statements was a primary driver behind making each film. And if I rejected statement-making as BS and self-important when Gibson did it, it would be hypocritical of me to accept it from people whose statements I support. The self-righteous "we wuz robbed" whining from backers of "Brokeback Mountain" smacks strongly of people who weren't just making a movie. And that's really too bad.
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Comments
congrats on the BU hockey team......enjoy the Frozen Four. I'm especially glad they beat Betting Central
Posted by: Marquette Hoops at March 20, 2006 09:54 AM
Roger Ebert wrote an excellent column on the whole Crash vs. Brokback Mountain BS. I replaced my blog URL w/ a link to his column for this comment. I wanted to quote it but, as usual, this commenting system won't let me ;)
Posted by: eden at March 20, 2006 11:37 AM
The Gophers are a dynasty. You dont stand a chance.
Posted by: Cuzin Jose at March 20, 2006 06:59 PM
Um, to be a dynasty, don't you have to have won? Unless I have forgotten how to read, the Denver Pioneers are two-time defending champs. If anyone could claim dynasty-ism, it'd be Denver.
Posted by: Curmudgeon at March 20, 2006 07:35 PM
the penis is a monument and should not be tossed.
ha. tossed.
And you know what. Yes, Brokeback Mountain, we know you had a movie about gay cowboys. We GOT it. Why don't you go rent "Spanking the Monkey" now and fight fot that freakin' award. Yeesh.
Posted by: thebeav at March 20, 2006 10:39 PM
Minnesota won championships in 2002 and 2003, 2nd round playoff appearance in 2004, 3rd round in 2005, and the #2 seed for this year. The Gophers are 131-50-23 in the past 5 years. I am going to call them a dynasty, like it or not.
Posted by: Cuzin Jose at March 21, 2006 03:05 AM
Fine, if you want to call a team that's bowed out of the playoffs two years running a "dynasty," that's your prerogative. Of course, the dictionary -- much less the folks who comment around here -- might say you're wrong, but who's counting?
Minny has a very, very strong program, it's true. However, they play in a weak-ass conference. ;-) Hockey East rocks, BU is back, and this year's tourney should be great hockey. May the best team win!
Posted by: Curmudgeon at March 21, 2006 06:21 AM
