Wednesday, November 28, 2007

The Writer's Strike

The Writer's Strike that's going on right now: what's the deal? Over the last couple of years, the networks have started hosting streaming episodes of shows on their websites. These streamed shows include ads that generate revenue for the networks, though at present, writers do not receive any compensation for streamed shows. However, the writers want to be paid for their work.

The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers claims that it's too difficult to determine a method of paying writers for the new media right now. They say it would cost them too much. These are the basic facts.

Strikes are bad for everyone. Analysts are saying that if this strike goes on for long, a lot of our favorite shows will be postponed. How is this going to affect viewers? Some may watch a few more movies until their shows are back on. Some will watch re-runs, or a different show they like less. A lot of people will change their viewing habits completely, meaning that once the shows come back on the air, viewers won't ever turn them on again. Ratings for late-night shows, sitcoms, and prime-time series will be very low once they come back.

How much money do the writers stand to make with lower ratings? What about when the shows cancel? And when they're out of work?

As mentioned, one of the reasons the writers are 'losing' money is because of the internet. Ironically, because of the strike, the GOP debate this month will be on YouTube. This huge event will draw thousands of viewers to the internet, many for the first time. 'Click and Play' is much more convenient than making sure you're home and free at nine o'clock every Monday night. Once more people discover the ease of viewing news, shows and movies online, TV will be seeing even less viewers than ever. How deep of a hole are the writers willing to dig?

Carson Daly is resuming his show in spite of the strike. He is calling upon non-guilded writers to help with material. The Writers Guild of America is very disappointed with his decision, though I applaud him. His move may be more of a publicity stunt (Carson Daly has a show?), but I admire him. He's telling the guilded writers that he doesn't need them.

There are plenty of fantastic writers out there who aren't associated with a guild. How many lower-paid writers would be willing the cross the lines and join successful shows? I know I would - in a second, union or not. Strike or not. Each and every one of those writers is choosing not to work, so I suggest hiring people who want to work.

Sunday, November 18, 2007

The Big Circle

Last week I submitted this blog to Google (according to spell check, I just spelled blog and Google incorrectly). Tonight I thought I'd Google my name to see if the blog came up. It did not. And for those who couldn't guess, I don't have a very common last name. On the second page of the Google results, something interesting came up. It was a burial plot listing with my name on it. Joseph Holod, 1935-1991. That makes me feel like I need to put things into perspective. He died just after I came to be. Was he anything like me, or, rather, am I anything like him? I would doubt that there is another Joseph Holod right now. Is there always just one Joseph Holod at a time? If that's the case, then I wonder what the ones before I were like. Holod is a Czech name, and Joseph is Biblical name. I suppose it wouldn't take someone being an American immigrant to have the first name Joseph - the name has been around for over 2,000 years before the United States was even colonized. Joseph Holod's could have been around now for millennia! It makes one wonder. It's strange to try and come to turns with the idea that in the circle of life, you really aren't the first or the last.

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Swimming 4-Wheelers and Frozen Berries

Today I taught my 4-wheeler how to swim. Her name is Sasha. Some may call that a girl's name, but not the French. So I was driving around today with Sasha checking out some potential dog trails when I came across this creek that I drove through. No problem. From there I couldn't really find a trail, but there was this dried up creek bed that I drove in. There was a small sheet of ice there, but just some air underneath.

I was driving along, going slowly, obeying all laws of physics, and then SAWOOOOSH! Broke through the ice into 2 1/2 feet of water! It was an OUTRAGE! Sasha was STUCK! I was soaked from the knees down, and that's something that doesn't mix well when it's 18 degrees outside (Fahrenheit - yeah, that's cold).

Lucky for me, Sasha offsets her lame 3-wheel drive with a nice winch. Twenty-five minutes of some Joe-magic and I had Sasha free and we were rolling home! That drive back to the cabin may have been the coldest part of the entire fiasco, especially since my Carharts had a blowout earlier in the ordeal.

Things could've been worse, though. I was 2 miles from the nearest road. After hours in from of the wood stove I can finally laugh about it!

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

1408, Sam Jackson Beer, Scrubs

So, 1408. Not too many scary movies have A-list actors in them. This one did. John Cusack was pretty good in it, too. I am personally not a fan of scary movies, AT ALL. I can't stand them. I actually hate them. There's usually no plot, they're usually very predictable, and usually lots of people die. Without ruining the movie for anyone, 1408 was not a typical scary movie. Plus, Samual L. Jackson was in there.

Have you seen the Chapelle Show where Dave does the pretend Samual Adams commercial? I keep imaging that in my head, the part when he's hollering "I'm Samual Jackson. This is how I talk!" Anyway, I thought it was pretty good.

And how about Scrubs? This is a show that walked into my life very recently. I had a friend loan me the first 5 seasons on the DVD. What a funny show. Probably my full time favorite is Dr. Cox. He's pretty much my hero. Favorite episodes would include: S05E09 'My Half Acre', the episode when Turk dances to Poison. This was a most excellent episode. Also, S03E04 'My Lucky Day' was incredibly funny due to my part time favorite, Janitor. JD plays a joke on Janitor by telling him a riddle, but it backfires with "It's a riddle. Two guys destroyed your bike with a crobar and a bat. One of em wasn't me." Also, the DVD commentary between John C. McGinley and Neil Flynn is pretty good.

Maybe more later.