According to Reuters and the University of New Hampshire Institute on Disability disabled Americans are entering the work force at a greatly increased rate compared to prior to 2017.
For the entire article Continue reading
REUTERS: TRUMP’S POLICIES ARE HELPING THE DISABLED GET THEIR DREAM JOBS
Filed under LIBERALS AND CONSERVATIVES, Neglected History, opinion
BLACK PANTHER: PANTHER’S RAGE (1973-1975) REVIEW
Here’s Balladeer’s Blog’s examination of Don McGregor’s 1973-1975 Black Panther story Panther’s Rage. I’m no comic book expert but in my opinion Panther’s Rage surpasses much of the work done by the overrated and overpraised Alan Moore.
This Marvel Comics figure first appeared in 1966 as a guest star alongside the Fantastic Four and Captain America before joining the Avengers.
“Memes … memes, everywhere.”
Here are chapter by chapter links to my review –
ONE: PANTHER’S RAGE – Prince T’Challa, the Black Panther, returns to his isolated African kingdom of Wakanda to try to put down a violent rebellion led by a Wakandan calling himself Erik Killmonger. CLICK HERE
TWO: DEATH REGIMENTS BENEATH WAKANDA – The Black Panther battles Venomm, the supervillain in charge of Killmonger’s operation tunneling toward Wakanda City while simultaneously mining and stealing the nation’s vibranium reserves. CLICK HERE
THREE: MALICE BY CRIMSON MOONLIGHT – Killmonger sends a super-powered woman called Malice to help Venomm escape from the Royal Palace’s prison on the same night that T’Challa is undergoing his renewal of the Panther Herb ritual. CLICK HERE Continue reading
Filed under Superheroes
THE WORST JASON VOORHEES STYLE KILLERS
It’s Friday the Thirteenth! In previous years Balladeer’s Blog has examined the 1907 novel Friday the Thirteenth, the odd horror/ arthouse film Friday the Thirteenth: The Orphan and the Texas 27 Film Vault presentation of Friday the Thirteenth Part 3D. This year I’ll take a look at some of the worst Jason Voorhees imitators and forerunners.
BARTHOLOMEW
Movie: Horror House on Highway Five (1985)
Lore: Bartholomew wore a Richard Nixon mask while slicing and dicing his victims. He was a simple-minded man transformed into an unstoppable killer by a Nazi mad scientist … A Nazi mad scientist who, strangely enough, wore a yarmulke. With a swastika on it. (?)
FOR MY FULL-LENGTH REVIEW CLICK HERE
MISTER RABBEY
Movie: The Psychopath (1975)
Lore: Mister Rabbey was a child-minded nutcase who hosted a Mister Rogers-type kiddie show. When he discovers that some of the children he visits at the local hospital have been abused by their parents he sets out to kill those abusers. He kills by strangling one victim with his security blanket but also uses weapons like a baseball bat, garden shears and a lawnmower in his deadly crusade.
FOR MY FULL-LENGTH REVIEW CLICK HERE Continue reading
Filed under Bad and weird movies, Halloween Season
COLLEGE FOOTBALL RESULTS FROM SEPTEMBER 12th
HEADLINES
UPSET IN THE RANKINGS – In NCAA Division Two a Top 25 team got knocked off. The MISSOURI WESTERN STATE GRIFFONS traveled to face the number 22 FORT HAYS STATE TIGERS. The Griffons were chasing the Tigers 3-0 in the 1st Quarter but by Halftime held a commanding 21-3 lead. From there Missouri Western State coasted to a 28-17 victory.
NUMBER TWELVE TAKES A FALL – Down in the NJCAA the 18th ranked JONES COUNTY COLLEGE BOBCATS welcomed the number 12 team in the nation – the HINDS COLLEGE EAGLES. The Bobcats put the Eagles on Upset Alert by the Half with a 14-7 edge. In the 2nd Half Jones County shut out Hinds College while adding 17 more points of their own. The Bobcats won it 31-7. Continue reading
Filed under college football
FOUR ODD MATADOR DEATHS
The era of the “superstar” Matadors, aka guys who used swords to kill bulls for entertainment – began in the 1700s. Since then fewer than 100 name Matadors died in the ring facing a bull. In or out of the ring here are four examples of Matadors dying under unusual circumstances.
JUAN ANLLO
Year of Death: 1925
The Scenario: At the age of 27 Anllo attended a Bull Fight as a spectator rather than a participant. Another spectator disagreed with Juan’s critique of the Matador in the ring. The argument escalated until finally the spectator struck Anllo over the head with a bottle with such force that it killed him. Continue reading
Filed under Neglected History
COLLEGE FOOTBALL RANKINGS
Per the Glitternight Index:
NAIA 1. MORNINGSIDE COLLEGE MUSTANGS (Defending Champions) ### 2. BENEDICTINE COLLEGE RAVENS ### 3. KANSAS WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY COYOTES ### 4. SAINT XAVIER UNIVERSITY COUGARS ### 5. UNIVERSITY OF SAINT FRANCIS (IN) COUGARS ### Continue reading
Filed under college football
ANNUAL SEPTEMBER 11th POST
Independent Voter site Balladeer’s Blog, the Open City of America, takes a look at a parallel Earth today. As usual this is the only site on the ‘net that is truly non-partisan in its criticism of left-wing and right-wing zealots.
Several years ago a big deal was made over whether or not the 9-11 attacks could have been prevented by greater coordination between elements of the forever corrupt intelligence community. Amid the predictable partisan bickering and childish finger- pointing that characterized the 9-11 Commission and its findings an important consideration was overlooked.
That consideration was how events would have unfolded if the attacks had actually been thwarted. Let’s take a quick look at both the leftist idiocy and the right-wing idiocy that would have followed.
THE LEFTIST IDIOCY –
*** The insecure American Left always feels that the only officially “intellectual” thing to do is to take sides against one’s own country no matter what the situation is. I agree there are plenty of times when reasonable people WILL take sides against their own country, but with American leftists the rest of us have learned to just yawn and listen with amusement while they twist logic as severely as they have to in order to stick to their apparent loyalty to “everyone who hates America, right or wrong.”
*** The sheer unlikelihood of the 9-11 attacks would have served as the springboard for the leftists’ attack on the opposition party’s intelligence services foiling those attacks.
*** Leftists would have scoffed at the notion that the attacks could have ever succeeded. They would have ridiculed that possibility and made remarks like: “So the Bush administration would have us believe that this perfectly charming Mr Mohamed Atta and his friends would have succeeded in multiple plane hijackings and then, with the minimal pilot training they had, manage to fly those planes with pinpoint accuracy into the World Trade Center towers! Where- EVER does that cowboy in the White House get such notions?”
*** The default argument of all leftists is that the only people in the world that are irredeemably evil are Americans and they feel it is bigotry to ever suspect anyone else of any ugly intentions. They would have insisted the intelligence services nabbed Atta and his accomplices based solely on “racist” or “Islamophobic” assumptions. They’d have insisted it was “A Sacco and Vanzetti story for the 21st Century.”
( By the way, if you’re not sure if you’re an American leftist or not here’s a quick guide: If you’re condescendingly assuming that other people won’t understand the Sacco and Vanzetti reference then you just might be an American leftist!) Continue reading
Filed under LIBERALS AND CONSERVATIVES, opinion
100 YEARS OF TIME TRAVEL IN MOVIES
Balladeer’s Blog once again presents a new infographic from Enlightened Digital. The previous one examined AI in movies. This time around it’s a look at 100 Years of Time Travel in Movies. Enjoy!
Filed under Neglected History
POLL: PRESIDENT TRUMP VS “THE SQUAD”
Balladeer’s Blog remains the only site on the web that equally criticizes both Democrats and Republicans. Recent polling has demonstrated that in Americans’ perception of de facto Third Party President Trump, the four Democrats called the Squad (Tlaib, Omar, Ocasio-Cortez and Pressley) and Democrat Nancy Pelosi, Trump has much higher approval ratings.
As always I’m wary of polling but I have to laugh at the way that anti-Trump fanatics insist polls are THE measure of the national mood … except when those polls say something they disagree with.
At any rate the poll showed Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez with a favorable rating of just 30% … Rashida Tlaib with a mere 26% favorable … Ilhan Omar with an even lower 25% favorable … and Ayanna Pressley bringing up the rear with just 24% favorable. And then we come to Nancy Pelosi. Continue reading
Filed under LIBERALS AND CONSERVATIVES, Neglected History, opinion
BABYLON ELECTRIFIED (1888): ANCIENT SCIENCE FICTION
BABYLON ELECTRIFIED (1888) – Written by Albert Bleunard. In the tradition of his fellow Frenchman, Jules Verne, Bleunard crafted this work of science fiction with an international cast.
British magnate Sir James Badger wants to reestablish old trade routes leading from Europe eastward through Mesopotamia and the Persian Gulf. He and his associates plan a railroad but lack of coal in sufficient quantities seems to be a project-killer.
Jack Adams, one of Badger’s colleagues, recommends the new invention of a French electrical engineer and inventor named Cornille. This inventor has designed a method of generating electricity from sunlight aka solar power. He agrees to let his technology be used to construct an electric train for the railroad project.
Things get underway, with hydroelectric dams built in the mountains of Kurdistan and wind plus tidal power-stations set up in the Persian Gulf. Cornille’s solar tech will be used for the overwhelming majority of the territory to be covered. Continue reading
Filed under Ancient Science Fiction
