Why We Fight

This important documentary, deliberately named by director Eugene Jarecki after Frank Capra's 1942-1945 series, examines "unwarranted influence ... by the military-industrial complex" -- a phrase coined by President Eisenhower in his 1961 farewell address.

In a far more balanced inquiry than Michael Moore's 2004 Farenheit 9/11, Jarecki is all the more effective in exposing institutional excesses that go far beyond the partisan squabbling over "liberal" social programs. The film shows how the permanent defense establishment, unknown prior to WWII, consumes the lion's share of our national budget, and twists the political process to it's own ends.

The film doesn't spare Bill Clinton. During the public debate building up to the Kosovo War a frustrated Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said, "What's the point of having this magnificent military if you're not gonna use it?" And that, I think is Jarecki's point.

When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.   If a country pours a disproportionate abundance of its wealth into armaments, sooner or later there's going to be a war.

Stewart Hosts 78th Academy Awards

Author & comedian Jon Stewart will host the 87th annual AMPAS Academy Awards Show Sunday at 8:00 EST on ABC, with the red-carpet festivities beginning an hour earlier.

The only thing more lavish than the actresses' designer gowns and the nominees' and presenters' expensive gift baskets promises to be the Red-Orange-Amber security lending an air of spine-tingling nationalism and suspense to the event.

While Stewart is best-known for the topical humor displayed on The Daily Show, he is unlikely to be at his satiric best in a room half-full of Republican campaign-contributors. He may not be a Mark Twain or a Will Rogers, but Stewart could halt the Lenny Bruce -> Mort Sahl -> George Carlin death-spiral of American censorship. Only time will tell.

While I'm looking forward to the jokes maor than the acceptance speeches, Oscar night is all about the movies. "And the nominees are ..."

Best Picture

1. Brokeback Mountain
2. Munich
3. Crash
4. Capote
5. Good Night, and Good Luck

Best Director

1. George Clooney
2. Steven Spielberg
3. Ang Lee
4. Paul Haggis
5. Bennett Miller

Best Actress

1. Keira Knightley
2. Charlize Theron
3. Reese Witherspoon
4. Felicity Huffman
5. Judi Dench

Best Actor

1. Heath Ledger
2. Joaquin Phoenix
3. Philip Seymour Hoffman
4. Terrence Howard
5. David Strathairn

Best Supporting Actress

1. Rachel Weisz
2. Amy Adams
3. Michelle Williams
4. Catherine Keener
5. Frances McDormand

Best Supporting Actor

1. Jake Gyllenhaal
2. George Clooney
3. Matt Dillon
4. Paul Giamatti
5. William Hurt

Sophia Bush (No Relation)

The beautiful and charming Sophia Bush ("Brook Davis" on WB's One Tree Hill) created a flood of internet inquiries when she applied for an annullment of her five-month marriage to co-star Chad Michael Murray in Los Angeles Superior Court Wednesday, citing fraud.

(Courtesy UNDP)

Sophia was seen recently at the PEP(Poverty-Environment Partnership) head of state dinner, promoting world-wide poverty-reduction and sustainable development. Also present were singer-activist Wyclef Jean and actressess Kerry Washington and Rosario Dawson

The up-and-coming young star is a graduate of USC where she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority and the 2000 Rose Queen. So much for dumb blonds!

Age of Empires III

Microsoft & Ensemble Studios have combined to produce a third installment of their extremely popular Age of Empires Series. Continuing the historical progression of the previous two games, AoE III focusses on the Age of Discovery and the colonization of the New World.

Serious gamers were quick to snap up the much-anticipated sequel, which sports many new and advanced features, but wider adoption seems to have been slowed by the game's hefty system requirements. This edition requires Windows XP for starters, plus 256 Mb RAM, 2 Gb free HDD space, and a (minimum) 64Mb video card, Not to mention a 1.4 GHz or faster Intel or AMD CPU.

As you might hope with all that processing muscle behind it, the graphics are stunning. Building upon the excellent but neglected Age of Mythology engine, Ensemble has added HDR lighting effects and pixel shader 3.0 for truly photorealistic imaging. Action sequences are also much improved by the inclusion of the Havok physics engine.

Gameplay has been improved as well with considerable customization in the hands of players through the new home cities. Trading has been upgraded, requiring players to establish trading posts along trade routes which develop from initial footpaths ultimately into railroads.

Combat has also been improved with better AI and increased benefits accruing to units deployed in formation. The military units available have also changed from previous versions, reflecting the game's advanced timeline. Most notably, gunpowder is widely used, giving units much greater destructive power at a distance.

Since the graphics are so striking, the official website provides an unusual number and variety of screenshots

Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (DVD), the fourth in the phenomenally successful Harry Potter series, is scheduled for DVD release March 7th, as is the two-disc Deluxe Edition.

Extra material on the Deluxe Edition DVD ROM Includes a demo version of the Electronic Arts game Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, extensive interviews with the cast, and behind-the-scenes featurettes.

Details of the special effects used to create the three tasks Harry faces in the Triwizard Tournament and conversations with Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson are on the extra DVD, along with magical trading cards, a Hogwarts timeline, and web-interactive content.

Stormreach AD&D MMORPG

Stormreach is Atari's newly released Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) based on the 3.5 Core Rules of Wizards of the Coast / TSR's hugely popular Advanced Dungeons & Dragons.

Set in the new Eberron Campaign Setting, Stormreach is already being hosted by Turbine, and is the first game with voice chat. You can instantly marshal your party with this hands-free feature as you challenge the mysteries of Xen'drik.

The Sormreach Manual (4.73 Mb pdf) contains all the details you will need to create a character, log onto your Turbine account, and start hacking!The truly impatient can just read the Quick-Start Guide.

Two versions of Stormreach will begin shipping Tuesday (Feb 28, 2006) -- Stormreach Std. Ed., and Stormreach DVD. (Obviously, your Windows XP computer must be equipped witha DVD player to use this version.)

Initial beta-test reports indicate that the game-play is very smooth, and the quests are well thought-out and engrossing. Naturally, a number of stunning screenshots have been published.

Pop-Culture-Palooza

Pop Culture is a moving target. An ephemeral will o' the wisp nobody can quite capture. What's totally hot one minute is so last-century the next. Why would anybody attempt to pin it down and dissect it?

Who cares? Maybe I'm tired of checking out the Yahoo! Buzz Index and having no idea who or what they're talking about. Maybe I'm trying to recapture my misspent youth. Maybe I just want to become the Simon Cowell of the Blogosphere.

This week, American Idol shocked NBC, who's tape-delayed coverage of the winter olympics couldn't compete. Randy Jackson surged in popularity, as did Idol hopefuls Ace Young, Katharine McPhee, Becky O'Donohue, and Taylor Hicks.

Of course, tomorrow's another day. Clay Aiken, Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Bo Bice, and Ruben Studdard barely raised a ripple in the puddle of the collective consciousness, nor did middle-aged Laker Girl and one-time pop sensation Paula Abdul.

Perhaps their Grammys and lucrative contracts will console them.