BALLADEER’S BLOG: COLLEGE FOOTBALL NOV 10th

HEADLINES

THIRTEEN OVER SEVEN – The NAIA’s 13th ranked NORTHWESTERN (IA) COLLEGE RED RAIDERS visited the country’s number 7 DORDT UNIVERSITY DEFENDERS. In this very strange game neither team had scored by Halftime. The 3rd Quarter saw the Red Raiders put up 3 points which wound up being the ONLY points scored in the game. Yes, 3-0 was the final tally in this clash of ranked teams.

NUMBER EIGHT FALLS – Staying in the NAIA for right now, the number 15 BAKER UNIVERSITY WILDCATS took it on the road against the 8th ranked MIDAMERICA NAZARENE UNIVERSITY PIONEERS. MNU were on top 7-3 in the 1st Quarter, but the Wildcats went up 10-7 by the Half. A scoreless 3rd Quarter was followed by Baker U. winning out 20-14. Continue reading

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LONER (1988-1991) – ENGLAND’S ANSWER TO SABRE

This weekend’s escapist, light-hearted superhero post from Balladeer’s Blog will look at the British character Loner.

lonerLONER – In 1988 the U.K. comic book Wildcat introduced a sci-fi character called Loner. This figure was, shall we say, reminiscent of America’s post-apocalypse rebel Sabre (lower right), who debuted in 1978 and made his last appearance in 1985. I’m not accusing anybody of anything. We all know that comic books recycle and borrow ideas all the time. And at least they didn’t spell it “Lonre.”

While Sabre’s adventures were about a heroic rebel fighting the dictatorship that had arisen in the wake of a global epidemic, famine and nuclear disasters, Loner’s adventures were set far away from the planet Earth. 

sabre coverIn the year 2492 a huge spaceship called Wildcat searches the universe for a planet fit for the human race to settle on as Earth faces destruction from a meteor storm. Loner was the world’s highest-paid mercenary warrior and bought his way onto the Wildcat by chipping in twenty million in financing.

Armed with his custom-made, multi-projectile firearm “Babe,” Loner goes forth to explore potential new worlds for the human race to colonize. Naturally, he faces a variety of science fiction menaces while carrying out that mission of exploration.

NOTE: Like Sabre’s “flintlock” laser pistol, Loner’s gun may look like an antique pistol but is really a high-tech weapon in a deceptive vintage casing. Continue reading

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ELECTORAL MAP AND OTHER VISUALS

Independent Voter site Balladeer’s Blog offers up a few visual items as we head into the weekend.

First off, here’s the 2024 electoral map:

Next, some joke toys for this Christmas: Continue reading

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CLEOPATRA (1917) SILENT FILM WITH THEDA BARA

Regular readers of Balladeer’s Blog may remember my fondness for silent movies.

CLEOPATRA (1917) – Born Theodosia Goodman in Cincinnati, OH on July 29th, 1885, Theda Bara was the first monumental “man-eating”, femme fatale sex symbol in American cinema. It was inevitable that she would portray one of history’s most notorious women. Only part of this film has survived, and the story is a mix of various accounts of Cleopatra’s activities.  

Cleopatra is covertly brought to Julius Caesar (Fritz Leiber Sr.) wrapped in a carpet and seduces him. The pair plan to conquer the known world, but Caesar’s assassination prevents this. A plot to kill Cleopatra herself is formed within her own court, but Pharon (Albert Roscoe), the designated assassin, succumbs to his love for her instead. Continue reading

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ANCIENT SCIENCE FICTION: MOUNTAINS, SEAS AND GIANTS (1924)

bergeMOUNTAINS, SEAS AND GIANTS aka BERGE MEERE UND GIGANTEN (1924) – Written by Alfred Döblin, later famous for the novel Berlin Alexanderplatz. A 2021 translation of the book uses the title Mountains Oceans Giants: A Novel of the 27th Century.

I wanted to make sure I made my blog post about this work during its Centennial year and I’m squeezing it in with a little time to spare. Berge Meere und Giganten is quite a piece of work, ranging as it does from standard Future History themes to dystopian settings and ultimately an Earth ravaged by wild and grotesque abominations of nature unleashed by reckless experimentation and terraforming.

The novel is almost Dune-like in its environmental concerns and its epic scope, in this case from shortly after World War One to the 2600s AD. Given Döblin’s experimental use of language I would have loved to read a review by James Joyce if he had ever read this novel.   

Berge Meere und Giganten is broken down into nine main sections: Continue reading

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ELECTION DAY PLUS ONE ROUNDUP OF NEWS, MEMES AND POLITICAL CARTOONS

don it againEarlier today Independent Voter site Balladeer’s Blog posted my congratulations to President Donald Trump and his populist movement which has upset the American establishment’s cesspool of political corruption even more than in 2016.

           Hopefully parasitic political families like the Bushes, Cheneys and Romneys (Republican) and the Pelosis, Bidens and Clintons (Democrat) will trouble us no more.

trump being heroicPRESIDENT TRUMP ON HIS “HISTORIC REALIGNMENT” OF AMERICA’S POLITICAL LANDSCAPE.

PEGGY RYAN’S ITEM ABOUT THE TRUMP PHENOMENON. For just one excerpt, “ … in one of the darkest periods of our country’s history, a man stepped out from the political quagmire to stop the attacks on our Constitution, to save America.” 

GREAT PIECE ON “TRUMP’S ELECTRIFYING, WORLD-CHANGING VICTORY.”

latinos heart trumpRECORD LATINO SUPPORT FOR PRESIDENT TRUMP

CHARLIE HURT: TRUMP’S VICTORY HAS COMPLETELY REMADE THE REPUBLICAN PARTY.

JUST LIKE IN 2016, DEMOCRAT-RUN UNIVERSITIES ARE OFFERING “THERAPY” FOR THE EMOTIONAL CRIPPLES WHO CAN’T DEAL WITH THE UNIVERSITY’S PREFERRED CANDIDATE LOSING. Pathetic.

democrat snob

Democrat snob

THE DEMOCRATS AT MSNBC CONTINUE THEIR SNOBBERY BY CALLING AMERICA’S WORKING CLASS “UNGRATEFUL.

SALENO ZITO: THERE WILL NEVER BE ANOTHER ONE LIKE HIM. In praise of the new political coalition that formed around Donald Trump. “They have seen what the power of the cultural curators in our country, in academia, media, Hollywood, institutions, and corporations, and in the bureaucracies has done to their lives, and they have rejected it. Continue reading

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THE MORNING AFTER: TRUMP AND THE PEOPLE WIN THIS ROUND, KAMALA AND AMERICA’S CORRUPT ESTABLISHMENT LOSE

Congratulations to de facto Third Party President Donald Trump, America’s populist leader, for enduring a storm of cowardly, destructive attacks that no president since Abraham Lincoln had to endure from their enemies on the way to another term.

Trump’s incredible fighting spirit and grassroots efforts against the white-collar criminals of America’s political establishment have won so far with election night behind us.

Not to be forgotten are the many legislative and court victories for election integrity since the 2020 debacle. Balladeer’s Blog covered all those efforts to prevent a recurrence of such fraudulent tactics every step of the way. 

As for the other election races around the country, Real Clear Politics has projected Trump’s political party retaking the Senate, but with the final figure on House of Representatives races still undetermined. Continue reading

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THE TOP FIFTEEN GODS FROM PEGANA MYTHOLOGY

Gods of Pegana

Gods of Pegana

Lord Dunsany’s 1905 book The Gods of Pegana and its 1906 followup, Time and the Gods, are forgotten masterpieces of comparative mythology which introduced the author’s pantheon of fictional deities. Though neglected today Dunsany’s work inspired authors from H.P. Lovecraft to J.R.R. Tolkein to C.S. Lewis. (But oddly, NOT e.e. cummings or A.A. Milne. Go figure.)

Like many of my fellow mythology geeks I spent a lot of time during childhood inventing my own pantheons of gods and breaking down their powers, cultural relevance and relations to their fellow divinities. We can all appreciate the fun Lord Dunsany had with the concept and the ingenious way in which he fused elements of Hindu, Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Chinese mythology with his own ideas.  

Dunsany didn’t just dwell on surface details of the gods he created, he used their tales to reflect the philosophy, customs and taboos of the fictional land of Pegana, just like real-world belief sytems represent those aspects of the cultures that spawn them.

An additional benefit of Dunsany’s work is that it provides us with a consistent vision since it was all composed in the same time period. Real-world ancient myths often evolved or were “retconned” over the ages due to political or social reasons we have no written record of and we are therefore forced to speculate. Continue reading

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BEST OF N.E.T. PLAYHOUSE (1966-1972) FORGOTTEN TELEVISION

It is such a waste that so few installments of National Educational Television Playhouse are available despite video copies still being in their archives. For six years, N.E.T. Playhouse offered up some of the most interesting, profound and innovative productions from around the world. That 1966-1972 run puts what passes for educational television today to shame.   

HAMILE (January 15th, 1970) – A Ghanaian adaptation of Hamlet written by that nation’s Joe C. De Graft and performed by actors from the National Theatre of Ghana.

De Graft sets the action in Tongo, changes the names Hamlet and Laertes to Hamile and Laitu, plus he adapts swordplay into traditional Ghanaian wrestling in this 2-hour production.

YESTERDAY THE CHILDREN WERE DANCING (February 26th, 1970) – A 90-minute CBC drama about the 1964 terrorist attacks in Canada launched by Quebec Separatists and plans for further attacks during the federal elections.

The French-Canadien Gravel family falls apart over divisions on the entire issue of independence for Quebec. Adapted from the play by Gratien Gelinas.  Continue reading

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NOV 4th ROUNDUP OF NEWS, MEMES AND POLITICAL CARTOONS

Independent Voter site Balladeer’s Blog takes another look at current events.

minnesota somalisEVEN MORE OF MINNESOTA’S MUSLIM AND SOMALIAN COMMUNITY ENDORSE TRUMP. “We can’t afford anything as working class and middle-class people. Now please understand this, we love our brothers and sisters who are Democrats, but you left us.” one man said in a recurring theme of Democrats abandoning the working class and the poor.  

kimberly brownKIMBERLY BROWN, DAUGHTER OF NFL LEGEND JIM BROWN, DISCUSSES HER SUPPORT OF PRESIDENT TRUMP GOING BACK TO HIS FIRST TERM. Among her remarks:  “I came out as a Trump supporter because I saw the moves that Donald Trump was making … I saw that Trump was doing a lot for black people.”   

dearbornARAB-AMERICANS IN DEARBORN PRAISE TRUMP AND SAY THEY ARE LOOKING TO HIM “WITH HOPE. Among the remarks “A wise man once said, peace is the prize, and I stand before him today. As Arab-Americans, we unite against the betrayal of those in power.” And pointed out that the Kamala Harris-Joe Biden Regime “has failed miserably in all aspects of humanity.”

drea picDREA DE MATTEO BLASTS PATRIARCHAL, SEXIST MEN LIKE MARK CUBAN WHO CLAIM THAT WOMEN WHO DON’T OBEY HIS POLITICAL OPINIONS AREN’T STRONG WOMEN.

Among her remarks “Guess you haven’t met me yet, buddy. It takes a lot of balls to come out and support the anti-war machine, and you know it.” She also posted the following on her X account in response to Mark Cuban and his ilk

drea Continue reading

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