Acrassicauda

Hailing from Baghdad, this Heavy metal band were the first (and currently only) Iraqi metal band to prosper. "A lot of heavy metal bands talk and sing about war and death and destruction, but they haven't experienced it; We have." said bass player Firas al-Lateef. After the invasion of The middle east by the US and the end of Saddam Husein's reign, bomb shots and cross fire filled the air on a daily basis. "We didn't expect to survive," Talal, the guitarist and lead vocalist for the band said. "During war, it's stay home, lock your door and stay indoors as much as you can. Missiles and bullets were coming down from the sky." "We spent nights when we didn't know if we would wake up the next morning," drummer Marwan Riyadh adds on.The band received several threats of death if they did not stop playing. "It said, `You better quit this. It doesn't fit with the Iraqi traditions or religion. Stop it or you will die,'" al-Lateef recalled. "We were afraid, but we figured we could die soon anyway, so the hell with it." Then, in 2005, their rehearsal space, along with amps, guitar, and bass fell victim to rocket fire, getting destroyed in the process. Aziz and Riyadh, soon followed by the others made their way to Syria. A year latter, they moved to turkey after their visas expired. Two years later, the band finally got their dream and made it to America, where they are today. "We're still in the process of figuring it all out," said drummer Marwan Riyadh, 24. "But we feel real optimistic about things. We're trying to fit in with a new culture and a new society and absorbing what's all around us. Our heads are spinning."

Largely taken from:
Parry, Wayne. "After Saddam and bombs, Iraqi band rockin' in USA." MSNBC 8 March 2009. AP

Anyways, that's a little teaser of this bands history. There is a excellent documentary (if you don't mind bad language)called "heavy metal in Baghdad." go check it out
here

से एस तो एस मन

As you can probably tell, this is a review for yes man. Let's get to it!

5 stars
Jim Carry has forged himself a personality over the years, and it sometimes it doesn't work out; Ever once in a while, however, it works. Yes man is one of those films. In his big comeback film, he masters yet again the role of a sane/maniac character. The film itself outside of his acting has good twang to it. Besides having the best use for "separate ways (worlds apart)" besides Journey themselves, it asks the moral question of what would happen if you decided to let control go, or if you ever met a person that had. It also has wonderful written by Eels. Amazingly written, great acting by all, and great moral; it is overall a great Carry film.

न्यू स्टार ट्रेक मूवी

रेविएव्स फॉर थे holidays

hey, just some reviews before finishing your Christmas shopping
WII MUSIC: 3.5 stars
You can play over 60 instruments, jam with your friends, and stuff like that, but the game is really a piece of crap. the songs you play are horribly re-done for the instruments, and you cant select the notes you play. like a bad version of GH or RB.
AC/DC Black ice: 6 stars
AMAZING! ten years after their time, AC/DC is still hitting. "Rock n' Roll Train is an amazing song, as well as the others. Also, the singer sounds the same! You gotta have vocal cords of iron or numbed vocal cord after what he's been through!
BOLT: 5 stars
I was mildly surprised at this film! usually, I saw only Pixar makes good movies, but bolt was funny, witty, made by Disney, and sweet all at the same time. It was not even overly dorky!

so ya, here they are!

happy Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Christmas, new year, and any-other-holiday-traditions/holidays-are-out-there!

गुइतर गमेस एंड Pinguins

It's almost as big as politics or religion: Guitar Hero WT or rock band II? this is my assessment, having played both?


GRAPHICS: Guitar hero
It was close, but guitar hero won with less pixily, yet more unrealistic look.
CUSTOMIZATION: Rock band
With everything already laid out in the store, easily assessable new instruments, Rock band beat out GH.
PREMISE: RB
rock band's premise of a WT is much different then guitar hero. You get managers, get fans, get cash, all while touring and getting challenges. GH's is just playing songs in cities for a cut of money.

Song Choice: RB
Oh, my! I was suppppprised by number of songs on rock band over guitar hero! In the first ten minutes, I was singing along to a number of songs I knew. With GH, I only knew 2% of the songs I played. Most were modern songs from groups I HATED! The only thing they had over RB were Hotel California and Beat It. Usually it was RB that had the newer selection.

So overall, GO RBII!


on an unrelated note, the image up top shows the end of a comic and artist we should all give a standing ovation, Opus and Berkeley Breathed! I wuved dat penguin from his beginning in the arctic to his time in the shelter. So, a standing ovation or a moment of silence for Opus, and as the wise man say "let the sleeping penguin lay!"

goodnight Opus!

पलीं इस होर्रिड!

I hate McCain's VP pick. She is, excuse my french, but a PRIC! Going against everything her party stands for!

1. immoral
So, as you have heard, Sarah Palin's daughter, age 17, is PREGNANT! For one, what does that have to with this race except for go against her? My opinion is if you can't even control your 17 year old, how can you control a whole country?! She is acting like it a great thing, how she is going to be a grandmother and all. Last time I checked, it was bad to have a baby at 17!

2. Giving republican's a bad name
I'm a blue-blooded democrat (or are they red?), but I also believe in a fair election, and Palins is not helping! Early, the republicans kicked Obama for appealing to crowds such as holly wood and so on, and (surprise, surprise) The most recent US magazine has Palin on the cover, promoting underage sex and baby having! The reason i'm not pinning this on the republicans is that they can't stop her from doing stints like this! It is her conscious choice! Hypocritical pie, anyone?


so, from apart from her, I'm not fond of McCain or Biden Either, but she just presses my buttons way too much! This Palin-McCain Campaign is a disgrace!

So, now that this is off my chest, I can move on.
Google just got way more awesome, like they can get cooler (Google is the only copany i'd let take over the world, and be fine with) , by releasing Google Chrome, there own browser! After they fix a few gliches, It is going to be awesome!

In movie news, summers over! top movies:

Dark Knight.....
Iron Man .....
Speed Racer .....
WALL-E .....
Meet Dave
Hulk .....
Prince Caspian ....

And finally, Youtube Star this time is Whatthebuck show. He is an awesome commentator for hollywood and amusing to just listen to. Soo...
http://www.youtube.com/user/WHATTHEBUCKSHOW


and that's it!

Poll:
McCain or Obama?
Do you like Palin?

thegoodgreatandjustplaininsulting

sorry bout the title... I'm having a problem where every time I enter punctuation or a space, it puts text in a different language... any suggestions why?

all right... Recently, I have seen two movies, and played one game that's worth noting.


1. Indian Jones and the Crystal skull
5 stars

Steven has done it again! This was a thrilling movie full of action, anti-communist, and butt kicking from Harrison Ford, who surprised me on how tough he can still be at that age! Another great performance was given by the amazing Shea LeBuf (pardon spelling) who mastered the role and pulled off the best James dean scince the legend himself was alive! But, putting all the special effects, acting, and majic of the film away, it came off as the best tribute I think one could give to Indy. All throught, little bits and peaces from past fils where their; Marrian, the lost arc, and on and on! This movie made me laugh, cry, and keep me at the edge of my seat.

3. WALL-E
5 stars

This film, though simple, really touched me deep on man levels. It's animation was amazing (as PIXAR always gives), the humor was amazing, the romance between robots was good, but it wet more than that. I saw a theological treat in it, from the life on the ship to earths condition itself. It even tells what could happen if (like Warmechines) we entrust robots with our lives.

and the final

Wii FIT
3 stars

Uh! what an insulting peace of software! the entrance exam, par say, is enough to depress fat people! nevertheless, if you look past that, it is a smart, helpful piece of software that can help you get FIT.


daily questions:
I am starting this to see how many people look at this little peace of cyber real estate called From the Mind of Ni.
todays topic, copyright!
1. What is you views on copyright infringment?
2. the most recent Utube vs. Viacom case, whos side are you on?
3. Do yyou use internet radio?
if yes, what service? (Pandora, shoutcast, etc.)

Review: summer movies!! |P!

OK, so, I know there are reviews for movies all over for these, but I am going to rate me favorite films coming out this summer:
let the countdown begin:

10. Indiana Jones and the crystal skull

to understand this, you have to understand my philosophy.

Philosophy time! A movie has either a "closed", "open", or "new" plot line. closed means it is closed, no more can be done or said about it. The best example of this was Shrek. I liked the first movie, the second was fine, but the third made me puke! It should have ended at the first, but the movie makers decided to open the door again and slip out two more films, which was a bad move. unfortunately, the movie goers didn't think so. "open" means there's more to be done with it. The best way to achieve this is base your movie on a series (spider man, Chronicles of Narnia, so on) , where the movie goers EXPECT more, because they know what happens next. Finally, the "new". This means that they've totally created a new thing. Star wars is a great example, containing new ideas, characters, and new universes. All movies start this way, except for sequels, and develop into either closed or open plots.

now, onto indy. Indiana Jones, like a lot of George Lucas things, is a "closed plot." It ended at the lost arch. There is nothing new, and even the plot is to predictable!

9. The hulk

This is another go since 2001's Hulk. Thew whole idea, I think, is bad. I wouldn't call hulk a hero, because really he is neutral. If anything gets him angry, good or evil, he will try ad destroy it! and that what this movie is!

8. Hancock

This movie will be good in my opinion, but not the best. The whole idea sounds cool, but A. Will Smith?! Come on! he has a filmography as thick as the bible! and B. Hancock is a new hero. He dosen't have comic books written about him, and he will have a lot to live up to. But I will be excited if it does score big.

7. WALLE

Disney. that is the only word I can say. IT is Pixar, one of the only partners that make classic Disney films. But I can only say, Disney!

6. Love guru

This film will be amazingly funny, but slapstick all the same. The plot I could care less for, but I must say that critics will hate it. They have never appreciated slapstic humor, and they won't start!

5. Don't mess with the Zohan

YES! Tis will be an awsome film! inapropriate, but Very funny!

4. batman begins

This film, I don't agree with some of it, but it will be entertaining as a whole. I say I I don't agree with it because Joker is not a balding, homicide clown! His story is he was known as the "Red mask" till he fell into a vat of chemicals and became the Joker!

3. Speed Racer

I call this movie "matrix on wheels." It combines the amazing CGI of the Matrix with the classic speed racer, making a very entertaining show.

2. Prince Caspian

This is going to be one of the best films. A little dark, it will not capture the full heart and sole of CS Lewis, but It still looks awesome!

1. IRON MAN |P

In one of the most explosive, exciting, and amazing adaptation ever, the filmmakers and Robert Downey JR captured the full spectrum of Iron man's origin! and with a record of topping the chart two weekends in a row, it will be crowned king of 2008 summer movies!

there they are, the shiny stars of today.

live long and prosper,
me

robots, philosophy, and more!

Ever since January, I have been participating in a robotic competition called FIRST. Basically, a team has 6 weeks to build a robot from scratch that performs a certain game, starting from a uniform kit of parts. Then, that team competes in the game using the robot as well as making a website, funding, programing, making shirts, and other things to keep the team happy and healthy.

Now, the main focus of FIRST is not who wins or loses, but the value of "gracious professionalism," or treating your opponents as friends as well as helping them out. In fact, the highest award, the Chairman's Award, celebrates that as well as outreaching to the community. But the whole reason FIRST was started was to show the coolness of engineering over those forces of entertainment and sports. The two highest awards, the Rookie All-Star and Chairman's Award celebrate those two points.


So, how am I involved in this? I am a proud member of Team 2449, Out of Orbit! It is made up of Marcos de Niza High School and James Madison Preparatory School. With the help of our sponsors, Orbital and the Arizona Science Foundation, we built a robot competing. As I mentioned before, there are two major awards, one of them which we got. We won Rookie of the Year at the AZ regionals, and got invited to Atlanta, Georgia to participate in the finals. That is what we did this weekend, but came home empty handed :(.

This is where the whole philosophy part comes in. The reason I joined FIRST was I agreed with the beliefs of FIRST. In my eyes, The worlds of entertainment and sports destroy the youth of today, forgetting other countries and "nerdy" concepts, such as engineering. If we have a chance, we need to take the chance and help our future, and that's what FIRST is all about. The process was hard and demanding, but overall it was a fun experience, and it gave me pride to think of my accomplishments. Also, FIRST offers over $100,000 dollars in scholarships. for more info, check out these

links:
FIRST's site:http://www.usfirst.org
Team 2449's site:http://www.team2449.com/
A tribute video (for more about the team):http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJz4W1cd7SA





In other news, I want to start a new tradition of a section called Youtube spotlights. Basically, I talk about a user I really like on Youtube. So, here I go...

YOUTUBE SUPERSTAR THIS POST: animated93!

This user is responsible for such amazing feats such as making a animated version of Spamalot, Hairspray, Wicked, and other great modern musicals. His most recent project right now is Across the Universe, another Modern classic. What I like about him is he not only chooses musicals I like, he sets them brilliantly to movies such as loony Toons, Anime, Disney, and other animated hits. So, for his creativity, he is my first YOUTUBE SUPERSTAR!

Here is his channel:


So, to end my post, I wanted to leave you with dome quotes I picked up:

"FIRST is like the WWF, but for smart people!"
-George Bush senior
"The world is just awesome."
-Discovery channel
"I reject your reality, and substitute my own."
-Adam Savage from Mythbusters

Live long and prosper,
me