Posted on 12/08/2006 7:40:22 PM PST by goldstategop
This Russel Simmions guy? Is he Richard Simmions dad?
Heard this today and it was very funny and so right on.
Nope, he's the brother of Rev. Run of Run DMC. Got into Hip-Hop early, made some big bucks from it.
I read an article a while ago about how scared DeBeers is of artificial diamonds. I'd be more impressed with something whipped up in a lab than something that sat underground for a million years.
Not necessarily traditional full-length mink coats, but lots of fur trim on wool coats, parkas, leather jackets, and capes/ponchos. Also fur vests.
(I always have to laugh at women who would never wear fur, but wear leather jackets and shoes, and carry the latest expensive leather handbag...)
And so yummy!
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." -Manuel II Paleologus
ping
I heard that, too. What bothered me the most was something Rush overlooked. The assumption behind "conflict-free" diamonds is that all conflict is bad. True, often, especially in Africa, conflict takes the form of one group of thieves overthrowing another group of thieves. In that case, the problem is not so much that there is conflict, the problem is that both sides are fighting over who will rob the population. If conflict involved overthrowing a tyrant and replacing the tyrant with something better, then conflict would be a very good thing. I think the point of "conflict-free" diamonds is to defund any group that might overthrow a UN-approved communist or Islamist dictatorship.
Critics are greeting Blood Diamond, a film that tells how the diamond trade supported brutal civil wars in Africa during the late '90s, with an unexpected backlash. Manohla Dargis in the New York Times, for example, writes: "If films were judged solely by their good intentions, this one would be best in show. Instead, gilded in money and dripping with sanctimony, confused and mindlessly contradictory, the film is a textbook example of how easily commercialism can trump do-goodism, particularly in Hollywood." Kyle Smith, who at times flaunts his conservative leanings in his reviews, goes all-out with his appraisal of Blood Diamond, calling it "Lefty voodoo: the belief that anytime anyone in the world is hurting, America must be sticking a pin in a doll." Likewise Eleanor Ringel Gillespie in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution comments that the movie "often does itself in with its own bleeding-heart liberalism." Still, the movie does find much favor among some critics who apparently share the filmmakers' viewpoint that "conflict diamonds" have been responsible for untold misery in Africa. Ann Hornaday in the Washington Post describes it as "an extraordinary achievement in American cinema, one that combines visceral thrills, high production values and morally serious ideas." (She does find fault with its ending.) Claudia Puig in USA Today calls the film simply "a gem" and says that Leonardo DiCaprio's performance as a South African mercenary "is his finest role in an impressive career." And Amy Biancolli in the Houston Chronicle writes that it is "powerful, well-acted and undeniably persuasive."
Did you read what Rush said about him? I'm sure he speaks from first hand knowledge! Yes, he is a fine actor. You knew it from WHAT'S EATING GILBERT GRAPE...a performance that was nothing short of incredible.
Ended up at 59% on Rottentomatoes. I still plan to see it. Movies don't really hold a lot of sway over how I feel about things. And generally like Leo and Djimon Honsou. Plus it is supposed to be really violent which usually helps.
OH, I see, they are *both* into music and preaching.....
Thanks, one can never *really* stay ahead of the entertainment scene.
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