One World

Tokyo is the largest city in the world by a wide margin.  The metropolitan area population of Tokyo is 32.45 million which is approximately 12 million more people than the second largest city, Seoul.  If Tokyo was its own nation, it would be the 38th largest in the world--larger than Morocco, Iraq, Nepal, and Peru.  Tokyo is approximately the size of New York City and London--combined.  It's very big.

The twenty largest cities in the world are listed below.  China is home to three of them but its largest, Shanghai is only number 10.  India has three of the top twenty as well--Mumbai (5), Delhi (8), and Kolkata (14).  Japan and the United States also have two each. Asia hosts 13, North America 3, South America 2, Africa 1, and Europe 1.  Eleven serve as capital cities for their nations. Only three cities lie south of the equator--Jakarta (6), Sao Paulo (7), and Buenos Aires (17).  Interestingly, the population of New York City (4) is greater than that of the entire state of New York because the metropolitan area extends into both Connecticut and New Jersey. 

         City                                Population (Metropolitan Area)

1. Tokyo, Japan                                    32.45 M
2. Seoul, South Korea                            20.55 M
3. Mexico City, Mexico                          20.45 M
4. New York City, USA                           19.75 M
5. Mumbai, India                                  19.20 M
6. Jakarta, Indonesia                            18.90 M
7. Sao Paulo, Brazil                               18.85 M
8. Delhi, India                                       18.60 M
9. Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto, Japan                  17.38 M
10. Shanghai, China                              16.65 M
11. Manila, Phillipines                           16.30 M
12. Hong Kong-Shenzhen, China             15.80 M
13. Los Angeles, USA                             15.25 M
14. Kolkata, India                                  15.10 M
15. Moscow, Russia                               15.00 M
16. Cairo, Egypt                                    14.45 M
17. Buenos Aires, Argentina                   13.18 M
18. London, UK                                      12.89 M
19. Beijing, China                                  12.50 M
20. Karachi, Pakistan                             11.80 M

[Source: wikipedia.org]

West London's Finest

The xx - Intro
 

Awesome Deal

Upon being asked about the death of a half million children as the result of US sanctions against Iraq in 1996:

"I think this is a very hard choice, but the price--we think the price is worth it."

--Madeleine Albright, then Secretary of State of the Clinton Administration

Syntax Error

IRS suicide bomber Joseph Stack is a terrorist.  Flying a private plane into a building full of defenseless civilians is nothing short of the very definition.

According to Stack, "Violence not only is the answer, it is the only answer."  Morbid, disturbing, terrifying.  Of note however, is that the media is not using the word terrorist as the descriptor of Stack.  He is being called insane, criminal, misguided.  Fringe elements have even disgustingly touted him as a hero. 

Unfortunately, what he is--a terrorist, is not being used because he is not brown, and because he is not a Muslim.  Had there been just a simple difference of ethnicity, he would have been appropriately labeled.  Importantly, this highlights the double standard in how the media portrays crimes of white Euro-Americans and those that are more foreign to us. 

The key here is that the actions of a terrorist are not defined by the color of skin, accent of tongue or place of one's worship--they are defined by the action itself.  This is a critical time to reassess the use of this term that is thrown around without caution.  The likes of the Unabomber, Timothy McVeigh, the Ku Klux Klan and Joseph Stack should continually remind us that terrorism is not a foreign concept.  It is time for the media and populace to drop its racist attitude and Orientalism in dealing with such acts of cowardice--for they can very well be, and often are home-grown.

Feminism Coming Last

Racing in her second NASCAR nationwide race this past weekend - Danica Patrick - finished 26th out of 31st - which she claimed was disappointment but to be expected as a rookie NASCAR driver. Patrick, a star in the IndyCar circuit is transitioning into NASCAR racing and has a large following that has helped her ink the two-year contract with JR Motorsports this past year.

Her fans are thrilled of the new venture.

But lets make it very clear for everyone; Patrick is a lousy driver and has made all her earnings off of her appearance as a darling. A women can garner top media headlines in the first two NASCAR races without having any meaningful driving accomplishments speaks to how easily women are objectified within sporting circles.

She isn't talented enough to be in the top tier of drivers in IndyCar or NASCAR, has only won a single race in five years and has never come in the top three in any race in years. The only accomplishment she has on her record is that she is able to play into the idea of people have of women in Racing and in sports in general; female athletes are not competitive and garner their earnings through the exploitation of their sexuality.

Well done sweetheart.

Danica Patrick's actions are reckless - instead of challenging the current gender dynamics that persist in sports - she is abiding by them and reinforcing them. No one expects her to be competitive, no one expects her to win races or even come close - because she never has. Yet there is a clear understanding that the only expectation that can fully be realized is - Patrick - will do what it takes to capitalize on her sexuality rather than her talents.

Go Daddy!

It is unclear what ambitions Patrick truly has - we know that there is a sizable portion of her fan group that are young women who aspire to be like her. It is important for Patrick to acknowledge openly that her celebrity is merited on her sexuality more than her accomplishments. It is her obligation to her fans, the young women that follow her and to the countless women athletes who have actually accomplished meaningful careers, that Patrick acknowledge her popularity as a athlete has very little to do with her athleticism - but rather by the exploitation of her gender.

She isn't a fraud - she is a women athlete that is making it harder for talented women athletes to break the barriers of equal perception... so maybe Patrick is a fraud.

Finkelstein vs Gissin

Put Them in the Octagon

Mitt Romney allegedly put a vulcan grip on rapper Sky Blu of LMFAO while the two were flying out of Vancouver from the Olympics.  The reason?   Apparently, Skyler Gordy aka Sky Blu reclined his seat before takeoff impinging on Romney's leg room.  Romney asked Gordy to move his seat up but got no response as the musician was trying to go to sleep. Sky Blu had this to say about the flopped Presidential hopeful:

“He grabbed my shoulder, and I was like boom get off of me,” the artist says. “The man assaulted me. I was protecting myself."

The situation was diffused and the world lost a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for an epic throwdown between a rapper of "I'm in Miami Bitch" fame and a guy who wanted to double the size of Guantanamo.  Who do you think would win? 

FYI, they were in economy class.  It's still a recession, remember.

On the Culling of Chickens

Historically, male chickens were grown to adulthood and slaughtered for meat consumption.  Female chickens obviously were used to provide eggs for your omelette breakfasts.  With the advent of modern techniques, separate breeding lines for meat and egg production were developed.  The male chicks in the egg-bearing group served no value--the cost of raising them outweighed the financial gains. 

To eliminate this inefficiency, approximately 200 million male chicks are sent to their deaths every year very shortly after their birth.  If these were people, we are talking about executing without cause the entire population of Brazil or Indonesia every year.  What is even more disturbing than this poultry injustice, is the method to this madness--the chicks are sent into giant meat grinders alive. 

Clearly the bottom line here is economic, but does that justify this cruelty?  If Congress can bail out Wall Street thugs, they can certainly allocate monies to make it worthwhile to raise these chicks to adulthood.  Such subsidization would not only benefit the ill-fated chicks, but could be used to attack poverty and hunger both domestically and abroad. 

Here is a video expose of this sick process (note: we are advocating awareness, not being a vegan):

Aim High

"I'm a dreamer. I have to dream and reach for the stars, and if I miss a star then I grab a handful of clouds."

--Mike Tyson

20 Sets of 10

Syles P and Jadakiss - Some Niggas

Kim Jong-il: The Improbable Golfer

While other world leaders are busy dropping bombs on civilians, using mercenary armies to occupy foreign lands and building apartheid walls, Kim Jong-il is just keeping it real.  Kim is always described as a dictator and an evil despot--somebody the rest of the world should fear.  The last time I checked, the North Korean army wasn't occupying Iraq or Afghanistan.  And it wasn't threatening to level Lebanon.

While other politicians were singing about bombing Iran, Mr. Jong-il was just busy shooting the best round of golf in the history of the world.  According to state media, KJI shot a 34 on a 7700 yard, par 72 course.  That is 38 strokes under par--something that should shame Tiger Woods into hiding for more than a few months.  He reportedly had 5 holes in one.  The probability of having a hole in one, is 1 in 5000.  The probability of 5 in one round?  You figure that out. 

Wouldn't you much rather have a world leader be the best damn golfer in the world than one who invades foreign lands in search of oil and democracy? 

And if you were wondering, the first time Jong-il ever bowled--he scored 300.  Chew on that, Nicolas Sarkozy.

Kobe & Israel Continued

UPDATE: Regarding our earlier report about Kobe Bryant and his fanship of Israel.  Here is a picture of Mr. Bryant posting with Israeli Consul of Los Angeles Jacob Dayan, and Israeli Ambassador to the US, Michael Oren.

Kobe Bryant Loves Israel

According to Israel Today, Kobe Bryant met with Israeli Ambassador to the United States, Michael Oren and said:

"I'm a big fan of the State of Israel."

Now that Kobe is going to throw his hat into the political arena, we have a few questions for him:

Mr. Bryant, are you a fan of state-sponsored terrorism?

Mr. Bryant, are you a fan of extrajudicial killings?

Mr. Bryant, are you a fan of apartheid?

Mr. Bryant, are you a fan of creating the world's largest outdoor prison?

Mr. Bryant, are you a fan of stealing other people's land?

Mr. Bryant, are you a fan of denying millions their basic civil rights?

Mr. Bryant, are you a fan of indiscriminately killing civilians on a whim?

Mr. Bryant, are you a fan of murdering children by bullet shots to the head and chest?

Being a Lakers fan just became a whole lot of ugly.

The Real Geniuses of the NBA

The NBA trade deadline is less than 2 days away and the rumors are fast and furious.

Amare Stoudemire to the Cavs?  To the Heat?

Antwan Jamison to the Cavs?

T-Mac to the Knicks or the Bulls?

Andre Iguodala to the Cavs?  Suns, maybe?  Celtics?

But the buzz word here is expiring contracts, not the big names involved.  The NBA's trade deadline always brings alot more excitement than the NFL but most trades are made for financial reasons.  The teams that have control of their cap space can essentially leverage their good standing and exploit the have nots.  Every year at this time, teams that want to improve their finances--whether it be positioning for free agency or avoiding the luxury tax, attempt to pick up expiring contracts--money that won't be on the books after the season's end.  For example, the Knicks are trying to pick up expiring contracts so at the end of the year, they have less and less financial obligations so they can lure in Lebron James & Co.  Likewise, the Suns do this charade all the time to avoid luxury taxes.  Teams in position to win like the Cavaliers, Celtics, etc--who have their books in order, can exploit the situation and pick up some talent.  That's why the trades are so lopsided--talent has alot less to do with it than cash money.

The real interesting part is that the owners who trade for the expiring contracts to clear up cap space--always end up using their newfound financial flexibility to overpay players. Whether it is giant maximum contracts like $20M/yr to Rashard Lewis or $5.5M/yr to fringe players like Luke Walton.  The owners are their own worst enemies.  They give away talent thinking they will get better value in the future, and then almost always end up making things even worse.  The classic example is Detroit, who hustled out All-Star Chauncey Billups for AI's expiring contract, and then ended up paying $95M to Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva--2 bench players.  Detroit screwed themselves for a long time and in a few years will undoubtedly be heavily shopping Gordon and Villaneuva's expiring contracts. 

It is not a stretch to say that the GMs and owners throwing around the cash have no clue what they are doing, otherwise Desagana Diop wouldn't be making over $6.5M/yr.  But I am very happy for the players--they are absolutely within their right to milk the system, as long as it lasts.  They are shopped around like chattel and canned at the convenience of the owners.  After all, Gilbert Arenas's weapons charges are conveniently being used by the Washington Wizards in attempts to terminate his $96M contract.  I don't think the Pollin family (owners of the Wizards) could have dreamed of a better scenario than Arenas pulling out his six-shooter in the MCI Arena locker room.

Drone Alert: Winter Olympics 2010 Version

During our last update on July 8, 2009 we reported that since Barack Obama had taken office there had been at least 25 drone attacks with over 440 people killed in western Pakistan.  In the interval time period, there have been a multitude of additional attacks--approximately 39 killing over 358 people.  The attacks are being chronicled fairly well here, a page we will use in conjunction with other available information to keep further tally.  With additional data since our previous reports, the total death toll via US drone attacks during Obama Administration stands at 798 including numerous women, children, and civilians.  As always, this number is quite conservative with the actual number of casualties much greater. 

It is important to note that the usage of drones is not restricted to Pakistan, but the situation there is unique as that nation is allegedly an ally of the United States and by many considered to be sovereign.  Here is the rapid escalation of such attacks in Pakistan under the hawkish Barack Obama:

2004: 1         (Bush)

2005: 1         (Bush)

2006: 3         (Bush)

2007: 5         (Bush)

2008: 36       (Bush)

2009: 53       (Obama 52, Bush 1)

2010: 14*     (Obama)

*To date

2010 has started off an a particularly bloody pace with attacks at the rate of one almost every third day.  It should also be noted that since our last briefing, Mr. Obama picked up the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize.  Not too shabby for a president whose foreign policy is war--both declared and undeclared.  It is not surprising that Obama accepted the award while overseeing, expanding, and starting wars--but it does further diminish the credibility of the Norwegian foundation bestowing him the award.

As summary since he began his term, Barack Hussain Obama has ordered approximately 66 drone attacks killing well over 798 people in Pakistan, and had 1 Nobel Prize of Peace decreed upon him.

Nobody Mixes it Like Mau5

Medina - You and I (Deadmau5)

Detroit Red

"Be peaceful, be courteous, obey the law, respect everyone; but if someone puts his hand on you, send him to the cemetery."

--Malcolm X

Cleveland: Epicenter of Fun

Things could be worse. You could be living in Cleveland. Home of the Browns, Indians, and Cavaliers. AND THIS:



Well as long as you don't live in Detroit

See more funny videos and Funny Videos at Today's Big Thing.

Dresden 45

Today marks the 65th anniversary of the Dresden terror bombing in Germany near the end of World War II.  From the night of Feb 13th through 14th, 1945 the British Royal Air Force (RAF) and the USAAF mercilessly firebombed the city center of this yet, untouched capital of Saxon.  The result?  The evisceration of 15 square miles of city block and the slaughter of up to 40,000 people.  It remains as one of the worst war crimes perpetrated to date.

The razing of Dresden, as ordered by Winston Churchill was quite likely for reasons other than defeating the Germans.  Dresden had been declared as Die Lazarettstadt, a hospital city and also known as Fluechtlingsstadt, or City of Refugees--not as a crucial launching pad for Nazi operations.  The key military and industrial installations that were in Dresden, resided in the suburbs--not the center city that was destroyed.  In addition, a key railway station that was allegedly targeted remained structurally intact enough to be operational within days.  The most damning evidence that this was not a strategic military operation is that a key Luftwaffe airfield, only a few kilometers north of the city, was not attacked.  

The aerial assault resulted in an ocean of fire purportedly 3 miles long by 2 miles wide.  Temperatures of 1100 degrees Farenheit sucked the oxygen into the fire and winds of 100 miles per hour hurled people into the raging inferno.  Victims perished by being burned alive, via direct hits from carpet bombing, and most disturbingly by asphyxiation, as the giant fire pulled the oxygen out of cellars, basements and other places of gathering.  Needless to say, it has been described by survivors as an utter scene of panic and horror.  The aftermath--the carnage, the cremation of bodies stacked high in pyres, burning day after night is equally gruesome.

So why was Dresden attacked?  The conventional argument that it was to defeat the Germans doesn't hold up given the facts.  The alternate argument--to weaken the Eastern front for the Soviets also is equally untrue.  It has been falsely claimed that the Soviets requested an Allied air campaign--in fact the Russians were marching forward so quickly that the Anglo-Americans feared that they would penetrate deeper into Germany than they wanted them to.  According to this article by Jacques Pauwels, Dresden was destroyed because of Operation Thunderclap.  Thunderclap, a plan to obliterate a German city evolved in its goal--no longer to defeat the Germans, but to send a message to the Kremlin that the UK/US air power would reign supreme.  To let Stalin know in no uncertain terms that they better play the game right, or a similar fate could happen to any city in Russia.  Dresden was carefully picked for its location on the East near the Russians and as a virgin, untouched city--to show the effects of superior, massive Western air firepower.  The evidence strongly supports this.

The Dresden firestorm was seen at least 50 miles away (some reports of 180 miles) and up to 15,000 feet high, well in the glancing eyeballs of the advancing Red Army.  The British RAF could have easily have flown solo on this project.  But the USAAF joined forces--not only to provide Churchill some cover in this heinous act, but to show that this was a multi-player game and the the Ruskies best be afraid.  It is quite unfortunate that this chess match, the opening salvo in the Cold War, was played with the lives of so many--a massacre remembered, 65 years ago today.

Silver Bullets

Benicio Del Toro and Anthony Hopkins are starring in the new release, the Wolfman and you may want to think twice before heading out to the theater to watch it.  In theory, the film should be excellent--star power cast, big Hollywood budget, and new interpretation of a classic bad guy. 

The cinematography and setting in rural 19th century England is excellent, providing a great backdrop for the story.  Also the scenes from London rooftops are somewhat enchanting, reminding me of the Peter Pan ride in Disney World.  However don't expect riveting performances from Benicio or Hopkins who are capable of much more.  Their characters are under developed, and the actor's skills are barely tapped--it is almost shocking that they agreed to these parts.  The plot is predictable and never really captivating.  Even half way through the movie the viewer thinks that somehow it could become a better movie, but it never does.

The special effects were so-so, and I have seen better werewolf costumes in Michael Jackson videos.  Maybe the wolfman concept isn't all that it is stacked up to be or maybe this movie just doesn't do it justice.  Hugo Weaving, better known as Agent Smith in the Matrix was a pleasant surprise playing police inspector.  I wouldn't say the movie was absolutely horrible--just wait til it hits HBO or cable TV.

Rating:  3.5 out of 10