To me this matters

Current events ....

Super Bowl: I guess the commercials are okay

March Madness: That's something to do with basketball, right?

Sanjaya: WhatEVER

Now *THIS* I do care about ...

Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson to Reprise Roles in the Final Two Installments of Warner Bros. Pictures' ''Harry Potter'' Film Franchise

WHEW!!!!! Lays to rest

1) the Hasta la vista Hermione rumors.

2) the Dan will be too old camp

I actually had this discussion with Crem. He pointed out that he thought (or that others thought) that Dan might to "too old" to play Harry when the final movie comes out. NOW --at most by the time the final movie comes out it will be 2011 -- which is ten years after Sorcerer's Stone was first released so he'd have aged an extra three years in the 7 years of school.

Here's my thought ... I need to suspend my belief for the following

some orphan kid finds out he's not an ordinary orphan -- but the child of wizards?

speaking of which, his parents didn't die in an auto accident - but were murdered by the most evil wizard that ever lived ...

now it happens that this evil wizard has a name that nobody will ever say, and he lived (at least in the first book/movie) on the back of some other guys head.

(And we haven't touched on the ghosts, house elves, platform 9-3/4 and the Knight bus and the flying soccer games).

I *think* I can wrap my mind around an "AGED" Harry, Hermoine, and Ron.

I'm looking forward to reading the final book and seeing movies 5, 6, and 7. (However, I am *NOT* looking forward to the series ending. I'll sort of miss speculating what will happen to Harry and Co.)

BURBANK, CALIF., March 23 /CNW/ - Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson will reprise the roles they have made their own: teen wizards Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, respectively, in Warner Bros. Pictures' "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" and "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," the final two motion picture adaptations of J.K. Rowling's best-selling book series. The announcement was made today by Jeff Robinov, President of Production, Warner Bros. Pictures.

In making the announcement, Robinov said, "When Daniel, Rupert and Emma were first cast as Harry, Ron and Hermione, we knew they were not only talented, but had a very special chemistry. Through the years, and in each of the 'Harry Potter' films, we have watched them grow into extraordinary young adults, as well as remarkable actors. It would be inconceivable to imagine anyone else in the roles with which they have become so identified, so we are thrilled and proud that Daniel, Rupert and Emma have chosen to complete the arc of their characters in the final two films."

Both "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" and "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" are being produced by David Heyman, who has produced all of the Harry Potter films to date and was instrumental in bringing the franchise to the screen, beginning with the first blockbuster, "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone." David Barron, who served as an executive producer on "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" and "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" and is a producer on the upcoming "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," will also be producing the final two installments of the franchise.

Producer David Heyman said, "One of the highlights of this journey has been to witness Dan, Rupert and Emma blossom from children into young adults. They have emerged as consummate professionals who are dedicated to honing their craft and striving for excellence. And yet, throughout, they have retained their enthusiasm and spirit, and they remain, to this day, the same wonderful, kind and generous individuals I met all those years ago."

Daniel Radcliffe remarked, "Playing the role of Harry Potter has been an immense privilege, and I look forward to completing the series. I feel a huge sense of loyalty to the character of Harry and the fans who have supported these films over the years. During filming, I have learnt so much, made lots of friends and met people who have changed my life. I am indebted to J K Rowling, Warner Bros. and David Heyman for giving me this fantastic opportunity."

Emma Watson stated, "I could never let Hermione go--she is my hero! I love her too much and love what playing her has meant to me. I am excited and honoured to be finishing what I started and playing her in all seven of the films."

Rupert Grint offered, "Ron Weasley has become a big part of my life and not just because we've both got ginger hair! I've been so proud to play him and loved every second of being part of this world. I'm really looking forward to filming the last two films and being back with my 'Weasley family' and, of course, to seeing my good friends Emma and Dan. Thank you to everyone for being so supportive over the years; we couldn't have done it without you."

Warner Bros. Pictures' fifth film in the series, "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," is slated for release in the U.S. on July 13, 07.

Dan, Emma, and Rupert will go down in history with other famous threesomes.

It must be true -- I took a test.

Your results:
You are Deanna Troi

Deanna Troi 75% Chekov 70% An Expendable Character (Redshirt) 55% James T. Kirk (Captain) 50% Uhura 50% Will Riker 50% Leonard McCoy (Bones) 45% Geordi LaForge 45% Beverly Crusher 40% Worf 40% Spock 37% Data 30% Jean-Luc Picard 25% Mr. Scott 20% Mr. Sulu 0%

You are a caring and loving individual. You understand people's emotions and you are able to comfort and counsel them.

Click here to take the Star Trek Personality Quiz

More testing

You Are 28% Evil

A bit of evil lurks in your heart, but you hide it well. In some ways, you are the most dangerous kind of evil.

How Evil Are You?

It's not easy being green

I'm not sure exactly what this means

Your results:
You are Green Lantern

Green Lantern 90% Spider-Man 80% Superman 70% Catwoman 70% Robin 65% Hulk 65% Supergirl 55% The Flash 55% Batman 45% Wonder Woman 45% Iron Man 25%

Hot-headed. You have strong will power and a good imagination.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Quiz

If you know the answer -- please explain it to me?????

According to recent news, the U.S. military is having trouble finding enough people to send over to the desert to get killed, so they have lowered their standards and started accepting soldiers that are former convicts.

Check out this article from the Chicago Tribune. I'll pull some quotes below. But a few comments first.

Over the *many* years I've been on Spaceship Earth, I've known quite a few gays, and quite a few lesbians. To the best of my recollection I haven't had any issues with any of them (and quite a few really run times to boot - ever gone square dancing with a bunch of gay boys???) I suppose if I did have any issues there was nothing that big, as I've forgotten about it. OH YEAH -- there was one time -- you'll have to go to the end of this posting to find out.

Over the years, to my knowledge, I've had one close encounter with a former convict. Surgery was needed to mend broken bones, and we took to calling the look I wore for the next few weeks "variations on a raccoon." Really I never knew there were so very many shades of purple.

So really -- who would you rather be "in the trenches" with?? Someone that would rather crack your head open?? Or someone that helps pull you up by the bootstraps when your head has been cracked open??

`Don't ask' rule's serious tradeoffs

Published March 4, 2007

Thanks to the growing demands of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the U.S. military has had increasing trouble finding and keeping recruits. So it's had to lower its standards. How much? Since 2003, the number of convicted felons allowed to join has nearly doubled--to 1,605 last year. The military has also welcomed nearly 44,000 enlistees convicted of serious misdemeanors. Going from an orange jumpsuit to desert camo must be a refreshing change.

But the Pentagon hasn't eliminated its standards entirely. You still can't serve your country if you have a thing for people of your own sex. And if you are secretly gay, you can be kicked out if your sexual orientation becomes known. Since 1993, more than 11,000 troops have been discharged under President Bill Clinton's "don't ask, don't tell" policy. If you were in the Army, would you rather bunk next to a homosexual or an ex-con?

...

Many of those soldiers evicted under the existing policy have vital skills that are hard to replace, such as fluency in Arabic or Farsi. At the same time the military is discharging gays, it is compelled to embrace ex-cons. That's the weird tradeoff we've chosen with don't-ask-don't-tell.

If the policy were only detrimental to gays, it might be justified. But right now, it looks like a policy billed as preserving military effectiveness that actually does just the opposite.

----------

Steve Chapman is a member of the Tribune's editorial board. E-mail: schapman@tribune.com

As promised, I did once take issue with something that one of my gay friends said. He had just finished up his Master's and was going on to his Ph.D. At the time we were both living in a University town and completely surrounded by academic type people.

Since he had finished up his thesis shortly before graduation time, I asked if he was going to go through graduation and invite his family out and such. He said "it's ONLY a Master's." I really laid into him - told him that just because he is hanging around a bunch of Professors and Ph.D.s and such it doesn't mean that a Master's is worthless and how many people in his family have a Master's and how many people in the town he grew up in had a Master's or a Bachelor's or whatever. I laid into him for about 10 minutes letting him know that his recent *accomplishment* was not worthless.

I think I scared the poor boy.

Which just goes to show -- you *DO NOT* put down my friends when you're around me, even if you're putting down yourself.