Monday, 19 May 2008

Beijing Olympic plot?


The blurb under this pic from monstersandcritics.com is as follows:

"A policeman stands next to 'Jingjing', one of the mascots for the Olympic Games, at the Auto China 2008 auto show in Beijing, China, 21 April 2008. An estimated 900 cars are to be on display at the exhibition which will officially open to the public from 24 to 28 April and organizers expect to attract over half a million prospective buyers."
So, I'm wondering why one of the mascots for the Olympic Games, is holding a gun?
Are the Chinese planning to repel violent riots, or are they planning to kidnap the world's athletes, hold them for ransom and force the rest of the world to submit to their leadership?
Maybe we should be worried, very worried...

Robbie's music finally finds a use in China


Take a note from Robbie Willaims' book: if your music doesn't sell, recycle it!
No, I'm not talking about paying some DJ to take your failed single and remix a dance version, hoping that it'll at least be an underground hit in dance clubs across the world.
I'm talking about taking the estimated 1 million copies of Robbie Williams' Rudebox album, crushing up the cd and selling the material to China, to be used in road-resurfacing and street light manufacturing. How noble of Robbie to sacrifice all those copies sitting in the EMI warehouse.
Now, for all those failed artists out there, wondering what to do with those albums in the garage, think about recycling them. They'd certainly be more useful as road surfacing than anything you ever hoped for.

Happy Birthday Chewbacca



Peter Mayhew is 64 today. Happy Birthday!
He's the actor who's donned the Chewbacca suit since the beginning.

Monday, 12 May 2008

Of friends and acquaintances

The life of a SuperVillain is often a lonely one. There are stages where one acquires friends and associates, flitting from social engagement to social engagement.
And there are other times, where one is left with a handful of acquaintances, wondering where all the good people have gone... (I don't mean "good" in the superhero sense of the word. More like "good quality" or people of a similar mind)
At the moment, I find myself pondering Frank Lloyd Wright's statement: "Less is more" and wholeheartedly agreeing. Why?
Because every one of my friends/associates/acquaintances is either having a birthday/wedding/occasion/party, or any general excuse to cause me to spend my hard-earned money and ruin my World Domination budget!!!!
What is it with these people? Have they no consideration for my wallet and my plans?!?!?!
I think I need a new set of friends. Cheap ones that will be enamoured with a chocolate bar for a 30th birthday present!

Monday, 5 May 2008

Even Supervillains need a Super Holiday!

Tofo is a tiny little place north of Inhambane, in Mozambique. It's got beaches, palm trees, coconuts, little umbrellas in your cocktails at the beach bar... What more could you ask for?
Unfortunately the locals weren't minion material. Neither were any of the foreigners crowding the handful of cafes & restaurants.
It was, however, rather relaxing to laze on a deck chair, musing over my World Domination plans, surrounded by the oblivious plebeians as they sucked flavoured ice through little straws.
Mozambique is green, sandy, hot and full of begging children and stray dogs, though not necessarily in that order.
The thought of mobilising the thousands of stray dogs, did occur to me, but the moment was brief. The dogs are too busy, roaming wide in their daily search for food.
The locals expect money, if you take any photographs, and they get quite agitated if you don't comply to their demands. Buckets of salty fish water are gestured threateningly at cameras.
This habit of expecting money for nothing from foreigners, is obviously honed from a young age, evident in the groups of children that appear at every corner, begging for money or 'sweets'. Some will even ask for dollars or euros.
And taking their cue from their older counterparts, a rock is thrown at your vehicle, if you ignore their requests.
As a Supervillain, my mind automatically goes into 'Evil Mode' in response to such actions, and so it is a good thing that nothing violent came of the griping directed at my camera.
Mozambique is still a desperately poor African country and yet often the locals seem to scorn the presence of foreigners.
Yet it is the foreigners who are bringing their hard-earned money into the country, supporting tiny pockets of the tourism industry scattered around the country.
If not for the tourists, places like Tofo, Ponta do Ouro and Bazaruto would be insignificant struggling villages, whose people eke out a living without the benefit of foreign money coming into their town.
Perhaps the Mozambique government should consider educating their people as to the benefits of actually having tourists in their country!
Just across the border in Zimbabwe, the tourism industry is in serious trouble. Foreigners are wary of the political situation in the country, but those that do venture in, are greeted warmly by grateful locals who have realised the true value of visiting foreigners. The locals living around the tourist spots in Zimbabwe, are friendly and helpful, all too eager to please and ensure that people return to their country.
In that respect, the people of rural Mozambique have a lesson to learn from their Zimbabwean counterparts.