Hitler’s final memo

One more from Antony Beevor’s great history, The Fall of Berlin 1945:

“Hitler took Traudl Junge (one of his secretaries) away to another room (in the bunker), where he dictated his political and personal testaments. She sat there in nervous excitement, expecting to hear at last a profound explanation of the great sacrifice’s true purpose. But instead a stream of political clichés, delusions and recriminations poured forth. He had never wanted war. It had been forced on him by international Jewish interests. The war, ‘in spite of all setbacks,’ he claimed, will one day go down in history as the most glorious and heroic manifestation of a people’s will to live’” (emphasis mine)

Best scenes from my favorite movies

I’ve been collecting these for 20+ years. One of the reasons I started blogging… to have a place to collect these. I could have linked each of these directly to the post/video but it’s better if you just browse.

  • 12 Monkeys (Consumerism)
  • Rambo III (Freedom speech)
  • Game Change (Concession speech)
  • Broadcast News (Keep it to yourself)
  • Alien (Breaking quarantine)
  • Mississippi Burning (Gene Hackman grabs deputy’s balls)
  • True Detective (Philosophy of Rust Cohle)
  • Time Bandits (understanding technology)
  • Inherit the Wind (creationism vs evolution)
  • Snowpiercer (axe battle)
  • The Deer Hunter (fuck it)
  • St. Vincent (Bill Murray sings Bob Dylan)
  • The Memory Expert (W.C. Fields)
  • Dave (budget cutting)
  • Rainmaker (“You must be stupid!”)
  • Brazil (Ministry of Information)
  • The Dentist (W.C.Fields)
  • Dave (Commerce Secretary)
  • The Deer Hunter (Russian roulette)
  • Deadwood (kidney stone)
  • Five Easy Pieces (diner scene)
  • Sorcerer (bridge scene)
  • Good Will Hunting (why not work for the NSA)
  • Network (Mad as hell)
  • Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (assorted)
  • Three Days of the Condor (final scene)
  • Boiler Room (Ben Affleck speech)
  • Glengarry Glen Ross (always be closing)
  • True Romance (White Boy Day)

Praise the Lord!


I’ve been watching the HBO series, Carnivàle. First aired (streamed?) in 2003 so nearly 20 years old but holds up well. The scene above is a great example of what I call the “after thought” shooting. A staple in action movies but not so much back then.

According to Fashion Stylist Rebekah Roy: “It cost $4 million US per episode; it was one of the most expensive shows to produce. There were an estimated 5,000 people costumed in the show’s first season!” The costumes were designed by Chrisi Karvonides-Dushenko.

Rambo III: Freedom Speech

We knew how Afghanistan was going to end way back in 2008. In this scene from Rambo III Richard Crenna warns the Russian commander how stupid it is to start a holy war in the middle east in the name of freedom.

And this from 2009. Matthew Hoh, a former marine saying Afghanistan is not worth U.S. lives.

“I feel that our strategies in Afghanistan are not pursing goals that are worthy of sacrificing our young men and women or spending the billions we’re doing there,” Hoh said. “I believe that the people we are fighting there are fighting us because we are occupying them — not for any ideological reasons, not because of any links to al Qaeda, not because of any fundamental hatred toward the West. The only reason they’re fighting us is because we are occupying them.”

It’s a mystery

The Universe knows what it’s doing. Barb hears me repeat this several times a day. I mostly find it true. My favorite cinematic example is from Shakespeare In Love.

For a real-life example, I submit the following story from Hackensack NJ:

“A Hackensack School Board member who made national headlines by opposing a LGBTC curriculum has resigned after an embarrassing incident during a Zoom meeting.”

“Frances Cogelja didn’t realize she’d left her laptop camera on when she took it with her while going to the bathroom during the public comments section of a board meeting Monday night.”

“Nearly 150 participants, including students, apparently saw Cogelja relieve herself.”

As for the shit storm raining down on us? It will work out in ways we can’t imagine. It’s a mystery.