SOTU Blogathon (2 of 3): Does Bernie Sanders Like Moo Goo Gai Pan?

With images of President Barack Obama, Washington Wizards star John Wall, and Cong. Peter King (R-NY), we present with a second round of tonight's tweets regarding the SOTU:

1) John Harwood of CNBC: Obama: 'We're threatened less by evil empires and more by failing states."

2) Lizz Winstead: Peter King needs some Activa.

3) Roll Call: Obama: 'The United States of America is the most powerful nation on Earth. But, there are still threats.'

4) Miriti Murungi: Bernie's about to order Chinese food (image of him pulling out iPhone was beneath tweet).

5) Ken Rudin (NPR): A little history here. This is the first SOTU where the two men standing behind the president debated each other in the last election.

6) Jonah Goldberg (National Review): Wait.....WAIT!! Barack Obama killed Osama Bin Laden? I never heard that before."

7) The Onion (satire news): Biden Urges Paul Ryan To Check Out Nude Scenes from 'Porky's' on Phone.

8) Politico: Obama: "If you doubt America's commitment or mine to see that justice is done, ask Osama bin Laden."

9) The Weekly Standard (conservative magazine): Obama's talking foreign policy at SOTU right now. But, he's leaving out the sailors detained by Iran today.

10) Catholic Democrats: Did anyone ever think 8 years ago that a Democratic president would be quoting a pope in his SOTU?

11) Nicholas Kristof (New York Times): Obama has been mostly in law professor mode. But he showed passion when he denounced attacks on Islam as unfair and counterproductive.

http://www.nytimes.com/politics

http://www.theonion.com

http://www.weeklystandard.com

http://www.newrepublic.com

SOTU Blogathon: Let's Drop the Gloves (1 of 3)

With our hearts and minds on the ISIS terrorism victims from today's senseless ISIS attack in Istanbul, Turkey, which we hope to dwell into later this week, we focus on tweets from tonight's State of the Union Address (SOTU), the final one for President Barack Obama.

Picture here we have Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), Alex Ovechkin captain of the Washington Capitals, and new Speaker of the House Cong. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.).....

Here are tweets from right, left and center.........

1) Ana Marie Cox: Paul Ryan thinking about how tomorrow is legs day.

2) Mormon Democrats: Obama calls for bipartisan work on criminal justice reform.

3) Susan Davis (NPR): Prescription drug abuse is one of those issues that crosses party lines. Big and growing problem in both red and blue states.

4) Molly Ball (The Atlantic): Oh god, the WH livestream is full of cheesy graphics.

5) Larry Sabato: Camera focused on Bernie. Those stars in his eyes are actually polling numbers.

6) Chris Cillizza: Direct Trump shot: "Promising to restore past glory if just get some group or idea that was threatening America under control."

7) Michael Crowley (Time): Only two sentences on Iran in this speech.

8) Washington Week: Obama asks: "How can we make our politics reflect what's best in us, and no what's worst."

9) New Republic: Paul Ryan and Joe Biden: Awwkwarrdddd

10) NBC Nightly News: Former Congresswoman Gabbie Giffords is attending tonight's SOTU.

11) Post Politics: Obama: 'I want to focus on the next five years, ten years, and beyond. I want to focus on our future. '

http://www.thehill.com

http://www.rollcall.com

http://www.politico.com

The Last Ten Films We've Seen: Lots of Whodunits....

Here are the last ten films we have seen; this idea came to us from "Film Comment" magazine, which has declared "Carol," directed by Todd Haynes and starring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara as the best film of 2015. Blanchett actually played Bob Dylan in "I'm Not There" (2007).

One of these films "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia," which starred Kristi McNichol was one of the few films that Mark Hamill played in besides being Luke Skywalker in "Star Wars."

1. The Last of Sheila (1971)

2. A Teacher (2013)

3. The Hateful Eight (2015)

4. Third Person (2013)

5. The Cheap Detective (1978)

6. The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia (1981)

7. Mommo (Turkey. 2009)

8. The Yakuza (1974 w/Robert Mitchum)

9. Marfa Girl (2012)

10. Manson Family Vacation (2015)

http://www.filmcomment.com

http://www.imdb.com

The Best 20 Films of 2015 ............according to me, anyway.............

Yes, it has been more than two months since our last entry!

In film, 2015 was the year of reality as many of the most exceptional films we saw were either documentaries or based on true stories.

There are exceptions, of course, including "Mad Max: Fury Road" chosen as the best film of the year by Bilge Ebiri of "New York" magazine as well as film critics Manohla Dargis and Wesley Morris.

Meanwhile, Amy Nicolson of "The Village Voice" named Quentin Taratino's much-anticipated western "The Hateful Eight" as the third best film of the year even though it did not make the "Film Comment" top 50 list, which had the Todd Haynes film "Carol" as the top film of the year.

Here is our top 20..........since we reside in a small market, we are hoping to catch up as we explain in our entry in our sister blog "Politics, Culture and Other Wastes of Time" http://www.politicscultureandotherwastesoft.blogspot.com which we cheekily entitle "The Best Films of 2015 That We Haven't Seen.".............

1. Listen to Me Marlon (documentary; pict. top)

2. Spotlight

3. Best of Enemies (documentary)

4. Trumbo

5. Steve Jobs (pict. center)

6. The End Of the Tour

7. Mad Max: Fury Road

8. About Elly (Iran)

9. Amy (doc; pict. bottom)

10. The Wolfpack (doc)

11. White God (Hungary)

12. Wild Tales (Argentina)

13. Phoenix (Germany)

14. The Big Short

15. The Hateful Eight

16. Star Wars: The Force Awakens

17. What We Do in the Shadows

18. Time Out of Mind

19. Mistress America

20. Love and Mercy

http://www.filmcomment.com/

http://www.rottentomatoes.com

Democratic Debate from Winthrop U in Rock Hill, SC (3 of 3): Marijuana Is NOT Legal in the Palmetto State

Amazingly enough, a woman from Atlanta tries to smuggle marijuana into the Democratic Candidates Forum at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, SC, earlier tonight.

The images above are of Cong. James Clyburn (D-SC, he represents the Charleston area), the only Democratic member of the House in Congress is also one of the most powerful Democrats on the Hill. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) who, along with Martin O'Malley, is running against front-runner Hillary Clinton.

Here are the tweets:

1) Catholic Democrats: Contrast to the GOP_ they want softball moderators who support their typical ideological position. Liberal Rachel Maddow is asking sharp questions.

2) Philip Rucker (Washington Post): O'Malley did pretty well tonight: Some tough questions, but he gave sharp impassioned answers and drew contrasts with Clinton and Sanders.

3) Rock Hill Herald: Woman arrested on pot charge at Winthrop's DemForum in Rock Hill.

4) Ana Kasparian (liberal tv host): Who else is feeling the Bern!? (Bernie Sanders)

5) Brad Gorham (Syracuse University): Good showing for O'Malley; no major flubs, thoughtful answers, didn't dodge the tough questions.

6) Lex Alexander (liberal activist): O'Malley didn't say he'd close Gitmo, and Rachel Maddow let him off the hook.

7) Liz Mair (Republican strategist): Martin O'Malley.....still the only D that makes me look favorably on Hillary Clinton. What a clown.

8) Dan Zak (Washington Post): Martin O'Malley brought a Martin O'Malley to a knife fight.

9) Ari Melber (MSNBC): Martin O'Malley says Dems have lost SC because they've forgotten the middle class.

http://scdp.org/

https://www.hillaryclinton.com/

http://www.winthrop.edu

http://www.catholicdemocrats.org/

Democratic Debate Tweets (2 of 3): Starring Martin O'Malley as Hercules

Here is our second tweet script from tonight's debate at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, SC. These tweets were taken as Martin O'Malley (pict. top) the former Democratic governor of Maryland took the stage.

 One female tweeter's enthusiasm for his physical appearance made us decide to compare him with Hercules, last played on film by Lou Ferrigno (pict. bottom), well, not that may not be entirely accurate!

Brer Rabbitt (pict. center) is our way of making sun of the South (my mom's side of the family is actually from South Carolina). On a personal note, my late grandfather Dudley "Doc" Sturgis taught at Winthrop. Here are the tweets:

1) Jessica Taylor (NPR): O'Malley applauds Obama on Keystone decision but not Secy. Clinton got there just last week.

2) Abby Miles: Could not be prouder to be a student at Winthrop University than I am tonight.

3) John Iodorola (Liberal talk show host/producer): On O'Malley's etch-a-sketch, he's winning in a landslide.

4) Dayna Colbert: I'm loving this. We need more forums.

5) Rachel Wright: O'Malley brought up the zeitgeist. I love fancy words.

6) David Doyen ("Salon"): None of the things O'Malley is saying will help him in the South.

7) Phillip Kessler: Candidates get to talk turkey without interruption from other candidates.

8) Kay Hanley: Martin O'Malley has ripped abs and glistening pecs but for some reason he insists on being in politics.

9) Toasty Poptart (Bernie Sanders supporter): I don't hate Martin O'Malley, but he has ZERO chance. He's barely a contender. This is a waste of time.

http://www.winthrop.edu

https://martinomalley.com/

Democratic Debate Forum Tweets from Winthrop U in Rock Hill, SC (1 of 3): Larry David 2016

Tonight, we give you live tweets from the Democratic Debate/Forum aired on MSNBC (which we are taping, but first we want to inform the world that the University of North Carolina women's volleyball featuring Paige Neunfeldt (pict. bottom) won on the road at Syracuse University by a score of 3-1 (25-19; 18-25; 26-24; 25-21). Kudos to the Tar Heels.

The Democratic debate took place at Winthrop University (center image is school mascot) in Rock Hill, SC, where my late grandfather Dudley "Doc" Sturgis once taught economics.

Though we didn't find any tweets we could use referring to comedian/actor Larry David (pict. top), there was much mention of him as he played presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) who was joined at Eagles U by Hillary Clinton and Martin O'Malley.

Since the last debate in Las Vegas, candidates Jim Webb and Lincoln Chaffee have dropped out of the race.

Here we go; most of these tweets were right before the start of the forum. Others are about politics or political views  in general:

1) Winthrop U: As Byrnes Auditorium filled up before the forum, attendees took time to document the special night with selfies.

2) Jim Bradley (A WSOC-TV reporter; ABC/Charlotte, NC): "Supporters outside Byrnes Auditorium. National spotlight on Rock Hill, SC. I'll let you know what the candidates say."

3) Bernie Sanders (from earlier in the day): Anybody who suppresses the vote, who intentionally tries to keep people people from voting, is a political coward. They are undermining democracy." (Ahhh, it's too bad Sanders didn't run against Pres. Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Turkey; we aren't a fan of his).

4) Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va., from earlier in the day): Effects of climate change in VA are real. Sea levels rise and recurrent flooding putting community of Hampton Roads at most serious risk."

5) Cong. Virginia Foxx (R-NC, from earlier): "The president's rejection of Keystone XL pipeline, which has strong bipartisan support, is shameful."

6) Anna Douglas (newspaper reporter for "The Rock Hill Herald"): "The stage seats are full now too. I see many Winthrop students. They look excited."

7) David Corn (liberal journalist with "Mother Jones" referring to the next GOP debate): "Chris Christie in the kiddie debate will be like Godzilla against the kittens."

8) Michael Clark (WBTV-TV; CBS/Charlotte, NC): A mix of Hillary Clinton and Sen. Sanders supporters outside forum.

9) Chris Cillizza (Washington Post blog "The Fix" discussing GOP contender Ben Carson): "Just to avoid future controversy; I applied to Stanford. They saw fit not to admit me."