I know it has, because Roger Ebert says so:

"Sometimes I think I am living in a nightmare. All about me, standards are collapsing, manners are evaporating, people show no respect for themselves." Well, he said it about the movie, "Step Brothers".

From his review, I would say: DON'T WATCH THIS MOVIE: your brain cells will die! It is about being mean. I'm not a Pollyanna, but we need more kindness in the world, not less.

_______

Elsewhere, more madness:

Here's an oxymoron (YOU know, like jumbo SHRIMP) -

How about "hygienic nightingale droppings" for cleansing and lightening, from traditional Japanese beauty care company for geisha, Chidoriya. The description claims you can rest assured this product is free of bacteria! And at $17.99 for one ounce, this is more affordable than Creme de la Mer ($125/oz.)

Except, it's still BIRDSHIT!!!

So, here's what I won't do for love or beauty - or money, for that matter: Botox, liposuction, tummy tuck, face lift, hair dye, and no, no, no nightingale droppings!

Even the Japanese are horrified by some of their own citizens' mania for perfect rice. Beyond variety, microclimate and growing conditions for the rice, HOW it's cooked is important. A rice cooker that costs more than $1000 apparently has some takers. Did you notice rice cookers don't only COOK the rice, but keep it warm, or cook it on a timer. We used to go to a small Japanese/Okinawan restaurant on Young St., where Son remarked the rice was exceptional (I only know when it's BAD) He was thanked for noticing, and that not only was the rice imported from Japan, it was cooked over a gas fire!

If you can pay $1000 for your rice cooker, would you blink at $4000 for your bidet? And it IS more bidet than your ordinary commode! Japanese facilities perform not only the flush and swirl, and warm and wash of bidet, but dispel odors with a fan and play music. They can even sense your coming and going and raise and lower the lid. Fuzzy logic moves into the restroom! 

I'd be happy with one that cleaned itself!

Come to think of it, automatic lid-closing is not a bad idea!

Lee, Terry, Stacy, Tracy, Gerry, Chris and of course, Pat. All names for boys. And girls.

Remember the Saturday Night Live skit with Julia Sweeney, where you were kept guessing "Pat's" gender? In real life, in a library where I worked, a member of the staff underwent gender reassignment. Confusing for his/her coworkers, no matter how open-minded we are. Gender so defines us that a shift takes us by surprise, upsets the assumptions we've made. Father, son, nephew, uncle, husband becomes mother, daughter, niece, aunt, wife? Makeup, clothing, hair, jewelry. What is masculine, what is feminine?

More importantly, what restroom does the transgendered choose? How do they feel in the women's restroom? In the men's facility?

Aside: 2 weeks ago, I was in the men's at Macy's in downtown HNL. The line was too, too, long, the pressure was unbearable, and an older woman volunteered to watch the door. A younger woman went in, the coast was clear, and she and I sighed with relief! A man waiting in the doorway looked stunned! Pee and run!!!

I saw this report about Thai schools providing a restroom choice for transgendered: http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=12812 Thai culture and society includes them in the workplace, beauty pageants and sports, a more accepting and inclusive attitude than ours.

I include this, as the related links are also very thought-provoking: http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/world-news/thai-school-opens-transvestite-toilet-for-transgender-students_10062437.html

Our own society merely accepts transgenders superficially. We tolerate their show queen pageants, acknowledge them among our sex workers, but fail to address their needs on the most basic level.

A librarian???

I watched the Charlie Rose interview with documentary filmmaker Alex Gibney, Rolling Stone magazine founder Jann Wenner and Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter and I'm still puzzled.

The film is about Hunter S. Thompson, and it's called Gonzo. I won't be seeing it. I think I already know too much about him. HST invented Gonzo journalism. His work involved making stuff up and writing about it. It was all about drawing attention to himself. Isn't that juvenile delinquent behavior that would normally get you suspended or kicked out of school? Are there current practitioners of this?

And I thought journalism was about being fair, balanced and accurate.

He was about guns, drugs and drama. HST was a doctor who wasn't a doctor and a journalist who wasn't a journalist.

Every clip I've seen of him was like watching a train wreck, and I've seen enough. Do Gibney, Wenner and Carter envy him? Is this a guy thing? What is Johnny Depp, the thinking woman's actor - thinking - by financing the drama of HST's funeral?

Is it like watching Dog Chapman?

Please tell me, what IS the appeal?