Fishing at Costco

[Update July 6, 2010: I think I should add comment from foodchange based on a new Greenpeace Report this to this post. I've also done a new post on this. I realize that Costco may have something to say about this, so I urge you to check into this:

And while most U.S. supermarkets could stand to improve their sustainable seafood policies, Costco reigns as the biggest offender. Everything at Costco is huge—the same is true of the store's environmental footprint. Of the 22 IUCN Red List species, Costco sells 15: Alaskan pollock, Atlantic cod, Atlantic salmon, Atlantic sea scallops, Chilean sea bass, grouper, monkfish, ocean quahog, orange roughy, red snapper, redfish, South Atlantic albacore tuna, swordfish, tropical shrimp, and yellowfin tuna. The store's fish coolers really serve as a one-stop shop for oceanic destruction.]

While my blogging colleagues have been out dip netting and snagging on the Copper River and the Kenai, my wife and I had the more common Anchorage fishing adventure at Costco yesterday.












We passed on the crab legs and took home a bag of razor clams, since we'd never seen them packed like that before.







I ate way too much clam chowder last night.

More on AGIA - Responding to Trip1050

A little over a week ago, Trip1050 responded to my post AGIA (Alaska Gasline Incentive Inducement Act)- The Cliff Notes.

I responded to his comments and then he wrote back. Here's a link to the three comments.
Many Alaskans live in very separate worlds. I thought his second comment might be a serious attempt at dialogue. I didn't respond right away because I wanted to think about it, and then other things got in the way. Now, I think this is worthy of a whole new post, not just a comment on a post most people won't ever read again. I hope I haven't waited so long that Trip1050 doesn't see this response. Here's Trip's second comment before I give my response.

Trip1050 said...

It appeared to me that the tone of the article was very much against "Big Oil". However, If I have misinterpreted your context I apologize. I am, in fact, an employee of a major producer here in Alaska. I withheld that information because, in today’s society especially, I do not want to create a situation where my company is held liable for my opinions or statements. Its not that I am trying to be cagey, I just am trying to avoid any legal conflicts in the future.

Several comments you made seemed to imply that companies involved with the Denali project cannot be trusted. That is a very bold statement to make about major corporations that have invested billions of dollars in the state of Alaska to set the standard of environmental practices, safe operating, and community assistance. At no point have any of the companies tried to “hide who is behind the project”. When you are dealing with a joint venture of this size, a very smart business move is to spin the project off into its own entity in order to ensure it gets the resources and focus it deserves. I don’t believe that its intent was to hide anything at all.

As to your analogy about the house, how would you feel about the deal if the attorney and real estate expert told you that the final price of the house could be plus or minus $50,000; but you won’t know until you sign the deal? I wouldn’t sign that. With no tax structure in place, the oil companies have no idea what to expect once they access the reserves. The government could raise the tax at any point, ruining the economics of the project. As with any business venture, you need to fully understand your costs before you embark on a project. My final comment, business is business, these companies exist to turn a profit. However, not at the expense of the community they operate in. These companies have formed great relationships with cities around the world and have operated respectfully for many, many years. I would caution you in your trust of the government, maybe I am a cynic, but I feel that this administration will try to do what makes them look best, not necessarily what is best.

To you sir..

Fri Jun 20, 03:50:00 PM AKDT

Trip, sorry it's taken so long to respond. I wanted to wait a bit, and then other things got in the way. We come to this topic from very different places and it’s easy to have knee jerk reactions. You read my tone, perhaps, more than my words the first time. The second time it sounded like you had engaged what I said more. I’m trying to do the same.

As I read your words I hear, “why are you so suspicious of the big oil companies?” with a hint that I’m naively trustful of government. You tell me

That is a very bold statement [oil companies can’t be trusted] to make about major corporations that have invested billions of dollars in the state of Alaska to set the standard of environmental practices, safe operating, and community assistance.

At this point some of my blogger friends would laugh and say that you are in the pocket of the oil companies, how could you be so naive? I’m trying to understand your position. I see two possibilities:

1. This is a totally cynical piece of oil company propaganda and you aren't here to seriously engage me; or
2. You really believe this.
   

I’m going to assume the second option and try to respond

• first why
  
• a) I don’t trust the oil companies and
  
• b) why I’m skeptical about what good citizens the oil companies are;
• second, to your response to my comments about the oil companies hiding behind the name Denali; (this really is a minor topic, but I don't want you to think I'm dodging);
  
• third, your comments on my faith in government and your high praise of oil companies;
• fourth, your response to the house buying analogy.
  

First, Trusting Oil Companies
a) My skepticism about oil companies' altruism - or any large company - comes from reading about business, history, and personal experience.

Starting with The Prize a Pulitzer Prize winning book that is an incredibly detailed history of oil starting about 1850, and going through a slew of books and articles including Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, there is a lot of evidence that oil companies (and other multinationals) have a lot of power and they use it primarily to their own benefit. And they’ve been led by men who had had their countries start wars if necessary to protect their interests.

And I know that oil companies take very good care of their employees - as long as the employees follow the written and unwritten rules and until they are no longer needed. Sohio employees were rudely shown this when Sohio made quick and paltry (by oil standards) severances before leaving. I've also watched friends of mine get their salaries doubled and tripled when they moved from government positions into oil industry related positions. I see it this way:

1. Oil companies pay so much above the local market that it is hard for their employees to match their income and corporate life style in other jobs except in other similar large multi-national corporations.
   
2. So it is in the employees’ best interests to be good corporate employees and good for their consciences to believe that their companies are wonderful and benign.
   
3. Now, it’s in every organization’s best interests to have loyal employees who identify strongly with them.
   
4. But oil companies have the money, unlike government agencies, to be more effective at this.
   (I know that this could push your buttons, but tell me specifically what is untrue in what I’ve said. Go sentence by sentence (1-4 above) and tell me why it is false.)

I also listened carefully to the oil company threats last year that the window was closing on the gas pipeline if we didn't go with the deal that Murkowski had worked out. And now, suddenly, that window seems to be wide open again. Explain to me once more why you think the oil companies have the welfare of the people of Alaska in mind? Actually, you asserted it as if it were an undisputed given, but you didn't explain why they are or demonstrate it.

I sat through the political corruption trials last year - all three of them - and listened to the tapes, watched the videos, and heard the witnesses. It was made very clear that Bill Allen was doing everything he could to impact the legislature - through means legal and illegal - to vote in ways that would be in the best interest of the oil companies. There is no reason for Allen and Smith to have made guilty pleas if they were not guilty. Each received $500,000 for legal fees as part of the sale of VECO. And each has many millions on their own. It was equally clear from those trials that the oil company executives were either aware of what he was doing specifically, or knew generally and were careful not to know specifically.

b) You write, "major corporations that have invested billions of dollars in the state of Alaska to set the standard of environmental practices, safe operating, and community assistance.",

Yes, oil companies make billion dollar investments because their projects bring them even more billions in return. And they make what appear to be large contributions to the community. But these are not out of the goodness of their hearts. I'm sure the various executives who decide where to give the money are happy to be able to help the opera or the university. And I'm sure the organizations treat them very well. But it isn't their money. And the gifts always come with the company’s name prominently attached.

These are corporations whose purpose is to make profits for their shareholders. Their job is NOT to give away money, UNLESS that charity is an investment in greater profits for their shareholders. It pays to make people in a community feel that the company is a generous, responsible corporate citizen. But a $10,000 donation to the Anchorage Opera by Exxon (based on their 2007 profits) would be the same as if a person earning $100,000 before taxes donated two and half cents! So these can sound like staggering amounts of charity, but they really are nothing in Exxon’s big picture. If I sent the Opera three cents, they would laugh at me. When Exxon does the equivalent the Opera publicly salutes them. You can say, but Exxon gives money to different organizations. So do I, but not three cents per organization. I won’t get into the oil spill settlement because I really don’t believe that punitive damages should go to the plaintiffs or their attorneys anyway; they already should have gotten compensated in the original payments. (Though I’m not sure they were, simply because proving much of the damage was not necessarily easy.)

The oil companies fought hard against the environmental standards that the environmental lobby forced on them before the pipeline could be built. Now they embrace them and write about protecting the environment in their ads as if they invented the environment. But despite, BP's green logo and environmental ads, we’ve now been told that BP refused requests for money to protect their pipes from corrosion leading to a significant spill not long ago.

And what oil companies are doing in Nigeria, Burma, or Central Asia where they haven’t been forced to maintain US level environmental or social standards seems to me to be in stark contrast to your statement that

These companies have formed great relationships with cities around the world and have operated respectfully for many, many years.

Well, I'm sure that the organizations that receive the oil companies largesse have good things to say. I'm sure the leaders of Burma and Nigeria have high praise for their international oil partners. But few in Alaska today think that Exxon was respectful of the community.


Second, your response to my comments about oil companies hiding behind the name Denali.
You write

At no point have any of the companies tried to “hide who is behind the [Denali] project

OK, I can see how you read this. That was part of my response to the oil companies taking an Alaskan icon - Denali - and making it the name of their plan AND then trademarking that name. By calling it Denali, it sounds like an Alaskan plan, not the plan of companies headquartered in Texas and London.

I wasn't trying to say that they literally were concealing who was behind the plan. Anyone who pays attention should be expected to know who is promoting this. But most Alaskans, or other US citizens, are not keeping close track of what’s happening. When they see “Denali Plan” they don’t instantly go, “Oh yes, that’s the Conoco-Phillips/BP plan.” It would have been more honest to call it the CP/BP plan. That was the sense I intended when I said they were hiding. (And I've heard critics of the Trans Canada Alaska proposal who said that by referring to it as TC Alaska, the State wasn't simply trying to make it easier to write and say, but trying to hide the Canadian link. That may be true, but it's not nearly as blatant as taking the name Denali.)

This may seem trivial to someone like you who would not for a moment mistake the supporters of the Denali plan, but for people who aren't close to this project, it isn't nearly that obvious. And I can't imagine that the people who named the plan Denali didn't think it through very carefully. I would be surprised if they didn't test it in focus groups even.

Third, my faith in government.
You write:

I would caution you in your trust of the government, maybe I am a cynic, but I feel that this administration will try to do what makes them look best, not necessarily what is best.

If you've read other parts of this blog, you'd know I don't blindly put my faith in government. Whether Republican or Democrat, the politicians have many interests to balance and I have to look closely to determine to what extent one option looks better than another. I look at the people who are doing particular things and evaluate who is likely to be most trustworthy.

Sometimes the choices are pretty grim. But in this case, the State team has offered us an enormous amount of data they’ve developed with the help of hired experts. The history that I know of the State people tells me that their honesty and dedication to the people of Alaska are as good as the oil companies’ executives dedication to their shareholders’ interests. In fact, the original post had a fairly long section on that.

While there are things the Palin administration has done that raise giant question marks in my mind, there is nothing to point out that the Governor would sell out the people of Alaska to maker herself look good. Whether she's making the right judgment is another issue. But my leaning toward TC Alaska is based on Tom Irwin's staff and experts, not on the governor's judgment of this.

I can't help but find it ironic that you question MY faith in government at the end of a paragraph that basically says the oil companies would do absolutely no harm.

My final comment, business is business, these companies exist to turn a profit. However, not at the expense of the community they operate in. These companies have formed great relationships with cities around the world and have operated respectfully for many, many years.

I've addressed my reasons for not buying that in that in the first point above.

Fourth, the house buying analogy.

You write:

As to your analogy about the house, how would you feel about the deal if the attorney and real estate expert told you that the final price of the house could be plus or minus $50,000; but you won’t know until you sign the deal? I wouldn’t sign that. With no tax structure in place, the oil companies have no idea what to expect once they access the reserves. The government could raise the tax at any point, ruining the economics of the project. As with any business venture, you need to fully understand your costs before you embark on a project.

My response:

• When we buy a house, we know the exact price because this is a relatively simple exchange - a house for a sum of money. The parties agree, and you make the exchange. But few brokers are able to foretell the political, natural, or economic events ahead. They won’t tell me whether future zoning changes, or highway construction, or mortgage scandals are going to lower my future property value. Nor will they likely tell me a wetland nearby is going to flood my basement. We go into all business deals with a certain level or risk.

• Like most metaphors, my house buying one, works at one level, but not at all levels. The issue of whether I should trust my broker or the seller’s broker has relevance in both the house buying situation and the public policy decision. Sure, I have to consider that the more I pay, the more commission my broker gets. And I have to be sure that my government representatives aren't taking bribes, and that they are smart and powerful enough to make the best deal.
  
  But comparing the uncertainty one faces in buying a house and the uncertainty faced in building a multi-billion, multi-year, international pipeline is not a good analogy. The political, economic, and technical uncertainties in such a pipeline are infinitely greater than those in buying a house.
  
  And because of the many uncertainties, the larger and longer term the project, the less likely a company can “fully understand your costs before you embark on a project.” But they do make best and worst case forecasts and decide the probability of each, and then decide whether to take the risk.

• But you also change the actor in the same line. In answer to the question of whether I would take a deal with a $100,000 (plus or minus $50,000) uncertainty, you write

  I wouldn’t sign that. With no tax structure in place, the oil companies have no idea what to expect once they access the reserves.

  “I wouldn’t sign” that, relates to what you were saying about trusting MY experts with that much uncertainty. But then you go on to say the oil companies shouldn’t sign an uncertain agreement either. But in this case, the people they would have to trust are the other party. Of course, they should listen to their own counselors. If they don't like the conditions the State is offering, well, they don’t have to sign on.
  
  As I understand it, Conoco and BP haven't signed. They are proposing to build their own pipeline. Trans Canada decided the state's deal was worth the risk. All the producers really have to do is decide whether to put gas into the pipeline. They don't have to build a pipeline. If they need to transport the gas one day, well then TC is going to build a pipeline. While there is economic risk still there, I see this more as a power play. If it were economically infeasible to use the gas, then why offer the Denali Plan? It sounds to me that when they didn’t submit a proposal, they really didn’t expect anyone else would submit a credible proposal. But TC Alaska did. And now they are trying to get back into the game. There are lots of reasons that owning the pipeline, on their own terms, would give the producers lots of benefits.
  

At least that's how I understand things. The point of posting this on the blog is NOT to convince others, but to have others point out where my reasoning and/or facts are flawed.

I don’t have a vested interest in either TC Alaska or the oil producers. I never heard of TC Alaska until a few weeks ago. I’m just an Alaskan who is trying to figure out what the best deal is for the state. I could be totally wrong, but this is my way of seeing it.

I’m sure, Trip, that nothing I’ve written here has changed your mind in any way. But I’ve addressed your questions in detail. Tell me where my facts and/or assumptions are wrong. And give me your evidence and reasoning to support your contentions.

Or anyone else out there.

Almost Midnight Sun, Blue Sky Building, Permanent Moose

These pictures were going to be part of the last post, but Blogger kept having internal problems with the pictures. But they work on this new post window.

When I posted some pictures of new buildings last week, I didn't know that the ADN was posting pictures of this new one on Northern Lights and C that same day. I found the article yesterday looking for something else. They don't have a name for the building either, but they did know a little more information. As we walked home from dinner at the Tofu House last night we saw the building from a different angle.

While we love the days of increasing light each year, we do tend to take the late sunsets for granted after a while. But sometimes the light shines in a way that we can't help notice that, oh yeah, it's not staying light as long, the sun's setting and it's only 11:07 pm.

And I often pass these moose on one of my regular running routes, but I don't usually have my camera when I run.

Glass Maker John Vincent and Summer Palace

We went with friends to see the Chinese movie at the Anchorage Museum of History and Art yesterday evening. It wasn't totally clear why it was called Summer Palace - though there were some scenes in a boat on a lake that could well have been at the Summer Palace in Beijing. This was an interesting movie because the year we spent in Hong Kong began a couple months after Tiananmen, a key event in this movie. Plus, much of the movie takes place at Beijing University and I've taught at nearby People's University and visited the Beijing University campus. But it was long (almost 2 1/2 hours) and I had trouble keeping track of who was who.

But before the movie, we talked to some of the artists in the atrium, including this glass maker, John Vincent.

Protests in Thailand - Did You Even Know This Was Happening?

A Thai teacher friend sent an email answering someone's questions about the protests going on in Thailand against the current government.

Thanks so much for concerning on Thai Politics, it has been our big problem for 8 yrs. Do you know Thai former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra ? He is very clever, but his cleverness is dangerous for Thailand and Thai people . During 5 yrs of his government, many projects were corrupted. Some policies damaged Thai people , economic development and Thailand etc. He could do everything for his power, earning much more money without getting worried or caring about the bad effect . The anti-government People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) has been protested since 2006. Finally , his party was punished by the the court in 2007 to be canceled. He gave a lot of money to covetous officers and someone who are greedy . This present government is his nominee. Mr Samak Sundaravej , the priminister announced by himself before the election . We can't let his system be longer anymore . The more this government adminsteres, the more bad effect damages our country . This government works only 4 months, but he tried to revise the Constitution of Thailand made in 2007. Just only want to help his Boss ( Mr. Thaksin Shinawatra and his staff ) . He doesn't mind or concerns on the other problem based on Thai people life and tried to do some projects mainly benefit to himself and his staff .

I'd like to attach you some events confirmed my telling .

( I'm quite Sorry that my English is not good enough to tell you completely. )

Stay Well,

Thai Pundit blogged the June 20th protests live.


My teacher friend also added this, though I'm not sure where it's from:

By Thinida Tansubhapol

The embattled Foreign Affairs Ministry may seek to appeal against an injunction granted by the Administrative Court against its support for Cambodia's proposal to list Preah Vihear temple as a World Heritage site.

The court decision came after the anti-government People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) asked it last week to rule on the matter, alleging that the support for Cambodia's bid is in return for business concessions in the neighbouring country for former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra who was ousted in a 2006 coup. Mr Thaksin and both the Thai and Cambodian governments deny the claims.

The court order could affect a joint declaration Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama signed with Cambodia. In the joint communique, Thailand expressed ''active support'' for Cambodia's plan to unilaterally list the the 900-year-old Khmer ruins at a Unesco meeting in Quebec which begins on Wednesday. Yet it remains unclear how the order will affect the heritage push by Vientiane.

Mr Noppadon, who is to head a Thai delegation to the Quebec meeting, called an urgent meeting with officials at the Foreign Ministry yesterday to discuss the ministry's response after the court issued the injunction.

However, the minister cancelled a press conference and refused to answer reporters' questions in a show of respect for the court decision.

Permanent secretary for Foreign Affairs Virasakdi Futrakul said Mr Noppadon would ask for a cabinet decision on Tuesday to see if it would appeal against the court order.

Mr Virasakdi said a change could be made to the delegation's composition, apparently a reference to Mr Noppadon as delegation head.

The opposition and other government critics yesterday hailed the Administrative Court's injunction.

Opposition and Democrat leader Abhisit Vejjajiva said he would lodge a petition tomorrow with 21 country members of the World Heritage Site Committee.

He said the petition is aimed at stopping Cambodia's bid to unilaterally list the Preah Vihear temple and averting any possible damage to Thailand.

He said removal of the foreign minister from office is not now a priority.

Mr Abhisit yesterday lodged a petition objecting to the minister's signing of the joint declaration, which had bypassed parliament.

The petition was submitted to the Constitution Court via the parliament president. The petition was also signed by Democrat MPs and some senators.

Pikulkaew Krairiksh, chairwoman of the Senate committee on foreign affairs, said the injunction must be presented to Unesco.

She said the court order was a blessing for the government as it was likely to deter people who had considered joining the PAD-led anti-government campaign.

Chart Thai's Somsak Prisanananthakul agreed that the court order would ease political tension, saying the Foreign Ministry should use this opportunity to clarify the matter with the public.

Academic Preecha Suwannathat called on the government to resign as a show of responsibility.

Mr Preecha, former dean of Thammasat University's law faculty, said the government must review or cancel the joint declaration which it signed with Phnom Penh, or it would be violating the constitution and breaching the Criminal Code.

Historian Nidhi Eowseewong urged the government to forward the court injunction to Unesco.

He also called on Mr Noppadon to step down and warned that Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej will face pressure if he allows Mr Noppadon to stay on.

He said he believed Cambodia's unilateral bid to list Preah Vihear temple would be rejected.

''It is not easy. Normally, surrounding areas should also be listed.

''I think they will not approve it,'' he said.

He suggested Thailand should seek the listing of Prasat Phanom Rung and Prasat Hin Phimai historical parks as World Heritage sites along with Preah Vihear temple if possible.

Before I Forget - Avant que j'oublie

I walked out of the theater in something of a daze. If Eleven Minutes played at 78 rpm, then Whirlwind was 45, and Before I Forget was 33. Things moved very slowly. The director (and lead actor) Jacques Nolot probed deeply into one man's life. A man, who at 60, faces the uncertainty of old age as the inheritance he expected slips away and his body is no longer young, beautiful, or healthy.

I was a little squirmy during the movie, it really was moving at a speed unknown in American films. Not for those with attention deficit disorder. But it was powerful and unrelenting. This was not light entertainment, this was a harsh contemplation of the meaning of life for this one individual and those of us watching.

Elliott Stein at the Village Voice writes:

Why is it that nearly all the best recent gay-themed movies are French, while most American gay flicks these days turn out to be empty wastes of time?

Of the three features we saw this week at Out North, this was the only one that took a central human question and dealt with it with enough universal depth that it will have meaning in 10 or 50 years. Eleven Minutes dealt with a relatively trivial question in a technically snappy and entertaining picture. Whirlwind took on issues that were closer to Before I Forget's issues, but was a high school level essay compared to Forget's polished, professorial treatment of the subject. It was complex, deep, subtle, an ambiguous in its examination of a life.

Warning: This was one of those movies where my tastes probably differ greatly from most people's. It's slow, has subtitles, digs deep, and has no answers.


And again, Anchorage gets to see the newest of the new. It plays tomorrow afternoon in New York. For more specifics on what the movie is about, you can go read Drier than dry, 26 October 2007 7/10 by Chris Knipp from Berkeley, California on IMDB.

Thanks Rob. This goes so much faster without video to edit.

Oil Companies S(p)end Their Messages Through ADN

The AGIA plan had its mini
state tour with stops in Anchorage, Juneau, Barrow, Fairbanks, Kenai, Matsu, and Ketchikan. Since it doubled as a legislative information session as well and legislators traveled around the state to be present, the costs of presenting the state's findings to the people of Alaska were pretty high. Wesley Loy wrote in the Anchorage Daily News

Nobody has an overall cost estimate for the trip.
Legislators and legislative support staffers say they won't know the full tally until after all the travelers file for payment of their expenses.

The most expensive destination is Barrow, a predominantly Inupiat village of more than 4,000 people about 725 miles north of Anchorage.

As of Tuesday, 37 lawmakers had signed up to go to Barrow for a hearing on July 1. At about $800 for a round-trip ticket, airfare alone for the group will total some $30,000.

[Double click any picture to enlarge it.]





And now the various oil companies and oil support groups are paying to give their side of the story. But while the State provided days and days of information all backed up on the internet, the advertising campaign by the oil companies - at least what is covered in the ADN ads - is long on pictures and feel good text and short on information.
















Only one of the ads offered a website address - www.allalaskapipeline.com was on the Alaska Gasline LNG ads. But if you link to it, you'll see it is just a bunch of oil industry related links. Even the link to gasline map has no map.
So, the most popular links on the AllAlaskaPipeline.com site are for computer notebooks, music downloads, and online dating? This is a serious attempt to educate the public on the gasline issues I see.




























All of you who have heard of Udelhoven raise your hands.











Here's how I figured the costs from the ADN's NAA quick fact sheet.

2 The information and statistics contained in this document are intended to provide a general overview of our products, their market and their readers. These rates only represent an overview of rates and ad units this newspaper accepts. Please contact a sales representative (or refer to the Media Kit) for a complete listing of all category rates, ad units and other specifications. While the data is correct overall, a salesrepresentative should be contacted for further details and/or clarification.

As footnote 2 suggests, there are lots of contingencies for determining the cost of ADN ads. The ones I could calculate directly were: weekday v. Sunday; color or black and white; and size. Well, there are prices for full page ads, but less than full page ads I had to approximate with square inch comparisons. Other contingenices that I had no way to figure were related to discounts for multiple ads. There are other pages with tables and numbers that I can't figure out at all. I'm sure if you're in advertising you've learned the code, but there is not enough information on the web to make sense out of it. And footnote 2 seems to acknowledge that the numbers in the chart are just general numbers.

Whirlwind - the Movie

I liked this movie. It was an entertaining 99 minutes. It took me into a different world that turned out not that different at all. And all of the characters were likable, even the villain, though they all had their issues. It's not a great movie and I'm going to explain why I think that, but I did want to say it is well worth seeing.

This was another feature in the Anchorage Pride Fest Film Festival at Out North. (The link shows the current scheduled events, so if you look at this after June 28, you probably won't get anything about the film festival.) No one's competing for awards, but rather it's a chance for people in Anchorage to see films that wouldn't normally be shown here, or we wouldn't see until years from now. This film, for example, was first shown in New York and L.A. this month.

I enjoyed watching Whirlwind. It's not a great film. It's not even a good film, as films go. OK, I'm picky. With a good film, I get so caught up in the film that I forget I'm watching a movie. The actors ARE the characters. The music helps tell the story, but it never calls attention to itself. The same with the camera work. It moves the story along, but not in ways that pull you out of the story to think, "Wow wasn't that a cool shot?"

But, I enjoyed this one. I like the look of not as polished independent films. You don't need $100 million to tell a good story. If we rate movies on a scale of product per dollar spent making it, this would be much better than most Hollywood movies.

The acting was good most of the time, but there were a few times when I felt the actor and the character separated. words were being recited rather than spoken naturally.

That the story follows a formula, by itself, isn't a problem. But it shouldn't be quite so close to the surface. And the explanation for Drake's behavior, and his one-night stand counterpart in the group (he's the one character whose name escapes me - Desmond is in my mind, but I'd remember that if it were really Desmond), were the opposite of subtle.

Here we have a group that appears to be working well. Then something comes in to disturb and test them. They face the challenge and overcome it. It made me think of the tv show Friends. And The Big Chill. There the friends had scattered and it's the death of one of the group that brings them back together and tests them. Whirlwind's group is five gay men and a couple of women who sometimes hang out with them. They're planning a 25th Anniversary party for a gay couple they know, when sexy Drake slips into their circle and attempts to destroy it by exploiting each of their weaknesses. (I'm not giving anything away that wasn't on the blurb in the brochure, and that you can't figure out pretty quickly.)

I knew exactly where things were going. But it was ok. I wanted to see how it got there. I cared about the characters. I think that was the strength of the movie. They were all real people with a real mix of strengths and weaknesses trying to be happy. We can all identify. Not every movie has to end badly. It's just when that happy ending is totally improbable that there's a problem. Here there is no reason why these folks shouldn't get back together and shouldn't be stronger for the challenge.

This is NOT a gay movie. It's a movie about human beings who just happen to be gay. One could change the script slightly and film it over again with completely straight characters.





I had my Canon Powershot with me at the movie, but after emailing back and forth with Rob Tate, one of the directors of Eleven Minutes [see added comments under the YouTube trailer that replaces the video I posted], I've decided to try out just sticking with the trailers I can find online rather than using my own video. I think the video is useful in conveying the feel of the movie. While I understand Rob's concern that the quality of the video I post is terrible and doesn't reflect what he worked so hard to create, I think mine gives the feel of being in the theater watching the movie and the readers here understand that. And as I look at the trailer for Whirlwind (and this is no different from other movies) it also distorts the movie in a different way.

I don't know how television movie reviewers select the video they show in their reviews, or if they just take what is given to them. But it seems to me that if you are going to review a movie, you should be picking out the shots you want to talk about. Of course, if you have a whole movie to choose from, it could take a while to pick exactly the right shots. Fortunately, my memory disk doesn't hold too much video so I have to make do with the shots I get by trying to anticipate what might be good. An iffy proposition at best. Anyway, I don't know that my clips are more of a distortion than the trailer. Each just distorts the film in different ways.

The Film Panel Note Taker has an interview with Director Richard LeMay & Screenwriter Jason Brown. The Rob Tate link above goes to a brief YouTube video of the two directors and Jay McCarroll.

[Update: In my review of Before I Forget (Avant Que Joublie), a couple days after seeing Whirlwind, I was able to explain why my review of Whirlwind was just lukewarm. "Before I Forgot" was a much more penetrating look at the human condition.]

Church of Cod

A friend shot this while on a short business trip to Seldovia.

Etaoin Shrdlu - Thai Keyboard Update

Etaoin Shrdlu is:

A place for McClatchy editors and others to talk about the changing news media landscape.

I stumbled onto this blog while I was posting about McClatchy and the Anchorage Daily News. I knew the title had to have some meaning, but I couldn't figure out the code. Fortunately, they have a link to Wikipedia explaining the letters:

Etaoin Shrdlu is the approximate order of frequency of the twelve most commonly used letters in the English language

Back in Thailand I did a post about finding stick on letters so I could have a Thai letters on my keyboard without getting a new keyboard. Well, time has not been kind to my Thai key labels. But we can use the keyboard to test Etaoin Shrdlu

Pretty close.

Someone told me I could get stick on letters with a plastic coating. I guess that's what I'll have to do next time