Captain Digital

Random musings on politics, society, and pop culture from the Internet's marketing curmudgeon.

The ‘Coz’ Lets Me Down, Once Again.

I’ve long been a fan of Bill Cosby. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but he’s black, and I’m white. Funny, that – when someone is talented and funny, race makes no difference. I grew up in a household where our mindset was Talent Über Alles. And make no mistake, Bill Cosby is a talented guy. He’s also someone who’s ‘made it,’ in a time where there was a glass ceiling on TV and in the movies for black men. No matter. He’s so good that glass ceilings proved no match for him. (Even a mega-turkey like Leonard Number 6 couldn’t sink his career.) But Cosby the Comic, Cosby the Actor, Cosby the Pitchman – they are all to be admired. But what of Cosby the man himself? Like most of the rest of us, he has feet of clay. But for the most part, I’ve really admired him. But this week, he put a rather large ding in his coat of shining armor, at least as far as I’m concerned. He seems to think the Trayvon Martin incident happened because of our “gun culture.” Sorry Coz. You’re wrong.  [Read more…] about The ‘Coz’ Lets Me Down, Once Again.

Now, It Gets Ugly.

At left is a 2005 booking photo of George Zimmerman. provided by the Orange County Jail via The Miami Herald, and at right is an undated but recent photo of Zimmerman taken from the Orlando Sentinel's website.

If you thought things were getting ugly in Florida over the Trayvon Martin shooting already, think again. CNN reports that special prosecutor Angela Corey has decided NOT to send the Zimmerman case to a Grand Jury. For those of you who fell asleep in civics class, a quick review: When someone is suspected of a crime, the police turn the evidence over to the District Attorney’s office. In cases where there’s a preponderance of evidence, they can file charges, or they can send the case to a Grand Jury for them to decide. The Grand Jury then reviews the evidence to see if they believe there’s enough to charge the suspect with a crime and bind them over for trial. In high-profile cases, or in situations where the local authorities are suspected of favoring one side over another, the case may get kicked upstairs to a special prosecutor, who takes a presumably unbiased look at the evidence to determine if the case merits prosecution. If the prosecutor decides that the evidence would not lead to a conviction, they drop it. And that’s usually the end of the story, unless new witnesses, evidence, or other details emerge. Only in this case, I really doubt this will be the end of it.  Technically, a special prosecutor can file charges without a Grand Jury. And Corey says “the investigation is continuing.” This can mean but two things: either she already knows if they should/will prosecute, and she’s willing to take responsibility for that decision on her own, without empaneling a Grand Jury. Good for her.  [Read more…] about Now, It Gets Ugly.

R.I.P. Thomas Kincaid, 1957-2012

I just heard that Thomas Kincaid died suddenly today. It’s estimated that one in every twenty homes in America have one of his mass-produced masterpieces in it. Not ring a bell? Okay, how about this: Go to virtually any mall in America and look for the shop that sells paintings. Odds are the sign outside the door reads “Thomas Kincaid, Painter of Light.” Ahhhh. Now you get the connection. Now being an artist myself, you might think I’m all about mocking Kincaid. But I come not to bury him, but to praise him.  [Read more…] about R.I.P. Thomas Kincaid, 1957-2012

The Country Gets Lei’d for Christmas

The President of the United States is more than just the head of the Executive Branch, the Commander-in-Chief, and the most powerful individual in the world. He’s also a figurehead – someone who is supposed to lead by example. Presidents are usually mindful of appearances, and of the needs of their staff. For instance most Presidents have traditionally either spent the Christmas Holidays at the White House or at Camp David. They do this because, while a President can pretty much do whatever they want (at the taxpayer expense), they are mindful of appearances. The idea of a President not jet-setting off to some exotic, expensive locale for the Christmas holidays somehow makes them seem more human, more “of the people.” So with that in mind, let’s take a look at recent Presidents and where they’ve spent their holidays: [Read more…] about The Country Gets Lei’d for Christmas

The Racists of the DMV.

I never knew a driver’s license could be racist. I mean, it’s just a laminated piece of paper, right? It has no will of it’s own. No sentient thoughts. No opinions. But to hear the Democrats tell it, ANY Photo ID is a racist thing. Well, that’s not entirely accurate. Apparently forcing you to show a photo ID to vote is racist. Um…I’m confused. Why is this, exactly?  [Read more…] about The Racists of the DMV.

Power Grab.

Back before alcohol ads were regulated to death by the federal government, one beer maker, Schlitz, used the tag line “You only go around once in life, so you’ve got to grab for all the gusto you can get.” The message was clear: you get one shot at things, so don’t waste time with half-measures – don’t ask permission, at worst, beg forgiveness. Evidently, The Chosen One has taken these words to heart in more ways than one, and has decided to implement this slogan as his modus operandi for the rest of his term in office. Hence, his comments yesterday regarding the Supreme Court. [Read more…] about Power Grab.

Whither (Miss?) Canada?

Okay. I’m gonna wade right into the middle of this minefield, fully aware that I’m liable to tick a lot of people off. If you haven’t heard, the Donald Trump-owned Miss Universe organization learned that Miss Canada, one Jenna Talackova, was barred from competing for the Miss Universe title by virtue of having been born a man instead of a woman.

Ahem.

Okay, there are so many ways to go with this story, I hardly know where to begin. First of all, lemme say that it is a sick, sad sign of our times when a pageant has to include in its rulebook that contestants must meet the legal requirements of being an actual, you know… WOMAN. Things were so simple when I was a kid. We turned on the TV, and if someone was in a dress and had breasts, they were a woman. (Okay, they could have been Milton Berle, but I don’t think he fooled anybody.) Sure there were drag acts way back when, but I don’t recall a case where a guy decided to switch operating systems, as it were, and then decide to enter a beauty pageant contest as a woman. Now I understand “Jenna” entered an earlier contest for “transgendered” individuals, so it’s not like this should have come as a big surprise to our neighbors in the Great White North. And looking at pics of Talakova, I can understand the confusion. She looks like a woman. But I can’t blame the pageant officials either. I mean, who in the Hell would think to run DNA tests on contestants to make sure they’re really women. (Okay, I know, I know. East Germany women’s weight lifters. But still…) [Read more…] about Whither (Miss?) Canada?

Healthcare. Up close, and personal.

My daughter woke up today running a fever. 101.1º. Worrisome, I suppose, but not Earth-shaking. I kept her home, and gave her the doctor-recommended Tylenol/Motrin cocktail. An hour later, her fever spiked up to 104.5º. NOW I was worried. Of course, when you’re dealing with your child, part of being SuperDad is not letting on that it’s time to hit the panic button. So from her perspective, no big deal. I made two calls first. One to my ex-wife, to keep her in the loop. The other, to my girlfriend, Brenda, who’s a nurse. As I’m not a doctor, nor do I play one on TV, I like to get some “expert counsel” to make sure I’m neither overlooking something, nor going overboard. My medical brain trustees both advised a visit to the pediatrician. So, off we went. [Read more…] about Healthcare. Up close, and personal.

Thanks to our friends who’ve “liked” us on Facebook.

As of this evening, I’m pleased to report we’ve reached 25 fans, which is not too shabby for around 24 hours. And this is no April Fool’s joke. Because of hitting that magic number, our FB page now has a shiny, new URL: www.facebook.com/captaindigitalspeaks. So, if you want to keep up with the doings here, you now have two easy ways to get there – www.captaindigital.net is the source, and if you prefer following us on Facebook, then use the www.facebook.com/captaindigitalspeaks. Same content. Different URL.

Scattershootin’ Fridays…

NEWS ITEM: Keith Olbermann was fired today from his gig with CurrentTV. Yep. AlGore fired the Keithanator. Never heard of CurrentTV? Neither has anybody else other than the half-dozen left-wingnuts that watch it. But don’t feel too badly for them. Gore’s hired Former N.Y. Gov. Elliot Spitzer as his replacement. Rumored first guest: Former U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY). Lord knows what they’ll talk about…

NEWS ITEM: This week, the Little Rock Airport Authority announced plans to rename their airport to “The Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport.” The media immediately nicknamed the airport the “Hill-Billy National.” In other news, the airport announced plans for a walk-in humidor, which is curious, since the airport is a designated no-smoking area.

NEWS ITEM: Vice President Joe Biden today called for a “Global Tax,” since he believes the world just doesn’t pay enough in taxes. In a related item, the stock price of pharmaceutical companies that manufacture anti-psychotic drugs fell today, on reports of lower earnings.