The Power and the Money

Godspeed to Houston and some urban policy questions about the flood

I like Houston. I always have. It is a hideous city, way too car-dependent, and has a climate designed to get me to hate it. But I have friends there and I like Texans. I really like Texans. Which is weird, when you think about it. I am from Brooklyn, and somebody just released a (sadly terrible, I can report) movie in which Texas quite literally invades Brooklyn.

Please help, either with your money or your time.

Remember, Texans are American, sometimes despite themselves. I have two very good friends in Houston and many others in greater Austin. One them told me, to my honest shock, that his kids have to say a pledge of allegiance to the State of Texas at school every day. Really, they do, although ironically that only dates back to 2003. Honor the Texas flag; I pledge allegiance to thee, Texas, one state under God, one and indivisible. Should I ever wind up moving to Houston (which I would do if my wife were not utterly opposed) I have to admit that I would insist that my children not say the Texas pledge. 

The U.S. is a republic worth allegiance. Any given state, not so much. Plus, America might be better off if Texas were split up. 

Self-referential intro over, there are two important policy questions about this storm.

The first, of course, is how much it is due to global warming. Right now, it appears as if the flooding has exceeded the 500-year-watermark. 

That implies the storm was unlikely. But it does not tell us how much less unlikely such storms have become as temperatures have risen. Heavy precipitation is up in the United States, but that is circumstantial evidence. What do climate scientists have to say?

The second is whether urban policies have contributed to the disaster. As Market Urbanism has pointed out, there is some very stupid commentary trying to link the disaster to Houston’s lack of zoning. That is dumb. Inasmuch as zoning has anything to do with anything, the lack thereof has allowed for taller structures to be built, which right now is saving lives and property.

But even though Houston is unzoned, American and Texan policies contribute to sprawl and the paving over of open space that might have otherwise absorbed rainfall. For example:

1. Minimum parking requirements;
2. State subsidies for roads and sewer hookups;
3. Property taxes that tax land values and structures at equal rates, discouraging intensive use of land.

And that in addition to the problem that floodplains are a classic example of a public good. Leaving the land open reduces the impact of floods on developed land, but the owner bears the cost while other property owners reap the benefits.

That said, what I do not know is how much policies have contributed to sprawl. Nor do I know how much sprawl has contributed to the damage from flooding. Sure, both have made the storm worse, but significantly worse? I do not know. But if such storms are becoming more common, then there is a lot riding on the answer to those questions.

Does anyone have any evidence?

But for now, while I wait for the internet to point me in the direction of answers (hah) Godspeed to the people of East Texas on their path through this storm. Again, please help, with money or time.

The year 2049 in a parallel universe

President Trump fired James Comey today. Comey did engage in malpractice over the Clinton investigation and he did misrepresent what was on the Weiner laptop to Congress. But we all know that is not why he was fired. So as America slips a little further into dystopia, we can take some solace in that fact that things are better than they were in 1919. For now. 

But I come to discuss the year 2049, not 1919. Here is the new Blade Runner trailer:

There is a lot going on. But stop on second 48 and note that the holographic ballet dancers are above a rotating chyron that reads: “Soviet Happy: Product of CCCP.” Add that to the Atari logo, and it is clear that the movie is not set in our universe or our future. Kudos to the writers and producers for not trying.

Still, you gotta wonder. What would turn the suburbs of L.A. into a desert with broken freeways but leave the USSR around to make, uh, Soviet Happy?

I miss pointless discussions. Never thought that I would, but I do.

Escapism: A 19th-Century science fiction novel and a 21st-Century science fiction TV series

 First, this is the weirdest thing that I have ever read. It’s a science fiction novel from 1889. It’s badly-written. (I mean, it’s badly-written for 1889. For comparison, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court was published around the same time.) The technological extrapolations are weird and wrong and barely affect the plot, which concerns bizarre machinations around the succession to the British Empire and some weird-ass scheme where the President of the United States is trying to marry off her daughter to the Emperor. It ends with Canada beating the U.S. in a war.

Anyway. Why did I read it? Well, besides insomnia most of the major characters are women, and women who were not trying to impress a man. That is pathetically rare, even today, let alone 1889. Plus the author went out of his way to point out all the awesome people in the book who just also happened to be Jewish. For something so old-fashioned, it was also strikingly modern.

Second, I finished watching Occupied on Netflix. I recommend it! The main scenario is improbable, but slightly significantly less so than before November 8th. An energy-independent U.S. has pulled out of NATO and established a valued relationship with the Russian Federation. In the midst of a massive surge in energy prices prompted by wars in the Middle East, a Green government in Norway decides to shut down the country’s oil and gas production in order to combat climate change. Panicky Europeans green-light a Russian seizure of the Norwegian fields to restart production. The Norwegian prime minister reluctantly allows this in order to avoid a war, but his county finds itself entrapped in a slow-motion conquest as the Russians slowly assume more-and-more authority. 

It is quite well done. My only quibble? Well, whoever plays the American ambassador to Norway has a Canadian accent. You know, with that weird caught=cot sound you can hear from Justin Trudeau. Given that a pretty massive plurality of Canadians don’t have a recognizable Canadian accent, it’s an impressive bit of miscasting. (If somebody finds out that the actor who plays the ambassador is actually from Massachusetts, I will be embarrassed.)

The accent screw-up is all the more inexplicable considering how good British and Australian actors have gotten at mimicking spot-on American accents, even American regional accents.

But not Russell Crowe. See minute 1:12 in this clip from an otherwise great movie. Points to the person who guesses the word he screws up in the context of getting everything else right. The mess-up is all the more pronounced considering as he is in a scene with Denzel Washington, who has a perfect New York accent considering as that is how he naturally talks.

Actually, a television show about a Russian occupation of Norway might not be all that escapist these days, considering. 

Pulling “The Interview” is bullshit

 I will add my own small voice to those decrying Sony’s decision to pull The Interview in the face of North Korean threats. The threats were bullshit. Had North Korea followed through, they would have been at war with the United States the next day. Better the bluff be called than we cave in to thuggery. 

For those of you who don’t know, Sony won’t even be releasing the movie electronically. They’re trying to bury it.

I want to call out the theater chains that folded up in the face of an anonymous threat.

I also want to call out Larry O’Donnell for abetting the forces of fear when he bullied the man on his show who had the temerity to point out that the threats were bullshit. I has kept it up; watch him try to defend himself at minute 5:35. His interviewees are deferential but refuse to engage with his fears that movie theaters might actually explode. 

The President of United States has said that people should go to movies.

You’re from Dorchester, Larry. You should be ashamed of yourself, but I bet you aren’t.

But in good news, the U.S. reopened relations with the Republic of Cuba!

Why is MSNBC fearmongering about North Korea?

 I am watching Larry O’Donnell fearmonger about threats to bomb theaters showing The Interview. A security expert pointed out that the North Koreans did not have capacity to organize a bomb attack inside the United States. O’Donnell’s counterargument? Timothy McVeigh could blow up a building, so doing so is easy.

What the fuck? (Pardon my language; in this case it’s deserved.) It was brow-beating. O’Donnell then conspicuously ignored the security expert for the rest of the interview in favor of some entertainment guy.

It is hard to get up enough explosive to blow up a movie theater without being detected. O’Donnell is being idiotic and irresponsible to suggest otherwise.

In fact, a more likely way to cause mass causalties at in a movie theater would to have an agent walk in and shoot the place up with an automatic weapon. 

The rub? It would be near impossible to organize a mass shooting (let alone a bombing) without evidence tying it back to North Korea.

This American will tell you that I would support war with North Korea if they were tied to an assault on an American movie theater. And I am a squishy liberal Democratic college professor. What do you think the Obama administration would do after evidence surfaced tying the DPRK to a mass shooting in the United States? Oh, the President might take his time for the evidence to come in. But when it did ... I would not want to be in Pyongyang. (Or Seoul, for that matter.)

So yeah, maybe the man in Pyongyang will roll those dice. But somehow I doubt it. 

I am disgusted, Mr. O’Donnell. WTF were you thinking?

Animascope: or, what my father did after the wars and before the other wars

 My father, Leon Maurer, was a serial entrepreneur. One his cooler companies made this:

What is so cool about it, besides it being a cartoon featuring the Senate Appropriations Committee, manpower problems in the armed forces, overtired officers, and a coolly professional female space pilot confronting sexism with grace and aplomb? Well, three things. First, it was made in 1962. Second, it was made by my father. Third, it was made by Animascope (aka Colormation or rotoscopic animation) an automated process by which live actors could be used as templates for animation. Yessir, that’s exactly the process used in most CGI flicks today.

They used it to make Yellow Submarine and a cartoon version of The Lord of the Rings. I’m not sure why it faded after that. But I’m here to say that Animascope was my pop’s invention, and give him a loud shout-out, close enough to his 86th birthday for government work. Mazeltov, papito!

Tarantino, decoded

 Courtesy of my good friend Helena Lellis, this is one of the most brilliant things I have seen in a long while. Highly entertaining, and almost enough to fill the vasty gap left in my life now that the World Cup is over. Give the two Brazilian guys who came up with it a major movie contract right now.

This plus the Yankees beating Tampa 5-4 on the day the Bleacher Creatures hold off on making the roll call in honor of the death of George Steinbrenner makes for a pretty good weekend. Not last weekend, no, but not bad.

As for the death of the Steinbrenner, see here. It makes being a fan easier. I predict more Yankees dominance in the coming decade. Not that it would be hard to outdo the last one.

Aliens attack Montevideo!

  I always said that if you were piloting a spaceship to Earth and had to choose a place to settle, you'd pick the River Plate.  Fertile soil, easily extractable oil, great climate, nearby resources when you'll need them.  So it makes sense that's where the giant alien robots would invade!

Man, I hope Sam Raimi makes that movie.  Won't the Argentines be annoyed that the aliens didn't go for Buenos Aires first!

Hat tip:  Will Baird.  It sent me right into a coughing fit that still hasn't abated, so maybe I should be annoyed.

Red Dawn

  It is coming.

 
It is gonna be great.  Even if it's terrible, it's gonna be great.

 
They are here to help.  Between this and 2012, I'm all set.  Eat your heart out, William Baird!

This movie looks really bad

  Well, I guess I'm not really all that much of a lefty, all things considered.  This movie looks really really bad.  Although what Raúl Castro says in the below clip is true.

Caray.  I am not sure that Stone is doing Lula or Lugo any favors with this film.  And I find it sort of amusing that he lumps President Fernández in as a Venezuelan ally.  Very ironic portrayal, considering her government's reaction to Venezuela's nationalization of Argentine-owned assets. 

Revolutionary comrades-in-arms they are not.

Where none of my friends has gone before

  Somebody has to say it.  Star Trek just isn't all that good.

Oh, it gets off to a fine start.  (Although why did they dig that big ditch in the middle of Iowa?)  And it is, as always, awesome to watch stuff blow up.  After all, I'm the guy who really enjoyed Transformers.  I wanted to like this movie.  And I did.  But not as much as I expected to.  Why?  Three reasons, really.  In order of importance:

(1)  Product placements.  Actually, no, that didn't bother me.  That was a plus.  The first one, though, was super boring.  The second, a bit more clever.  “Classic,” indeed.

Restart.  Why?  Two reasons, really.  In order of importance:

(1)  Except for the uniforms (sort of) they missed a lot of chances to riff on the old sets and props.  Modernize them, of course, so they don't look stupid.  You'd want better materials and maybe have the screens be screens instead of flashing lights.  But they changed everything.  Hell, they even altered the ship's exterior.  Still, that's penny ante stuff.  The real problem is that ...

(2)  ... it made no sense.  I don't mean the physics and all; you don't expect that to make any sense.  I mean everything else.  Including ... SPOILER ALERT ...

Dog Day Afternoon blogging

   So I’m at home, cleaning the apartment, missing my wife, thinking about working, and idly watching Dog Day Afternoon on the teevee. 

And about five minutes ago there’s that scene where the cops set up shop outside the bank and the police helicopter waves off a news chopper, and I’m getting this sense of déjà vu. Like, didn’t the actual robbery happen in Midwood or Gravesend or one of those two-family home places? Y’know, like, that street is not in that part of Brooklyn. Actually, it looks familiar. Don’t recognize the stores, but isn’t that Bishop Ford? And that's the Prospect Expressway, no? Dude! That sign says 17th Street! That’s Ninth Avenue! They filmed Dog Day Afternoon in Windsor Terrace!!

Pretty cool.

And that scene where his wife hears what’s happening over a transistor radio in a McDonald’s? That was Queens. Black-on-white street signs, instead of white-on-black, or black-on-yellow, the way God intended.  (Don’t talk to me about this white-on-green thing.) The things you can get nostalgic about.

“He’s one of them Spanish kids.” I love that line.

UPDATE:  This movie could have been made yesterday. I don’t mean in a zeitgeisty sort of way, not at all. And I don’t mean the clothes or cars, of course. But these little things, a discussion of cigarettes and cancer, a newscaster mentioning “the gay community,” Al Pacino’s body language. It seems more recent than 1972.   

The Wild East

  The history of the Chinese northeast settlement frontier, like that of the American southwest, is long and complicated.  This movie seems to be neither.  But I really really want to see it.

What? Already???

  This is not a political post.

As some of you know, I like zombie movies.  One of my favorite genres.  Don't ask me to explain it.  Dawn of the Dead got into my head when I was a kid, scared me to death, and I suppose I never got it out. 

I also have no problem with remakes.  Some, like Cape Fear, beat cold the original. 

But a remake of a movie that only came out last year?  What??  And a Spanish movie at that.  It doesn't even qualify as a foreign-language film.

So go rent Rec.  Don't see Quarantine. 

That's filmmaking.

Clever fake movie trailers

I really liked 28 Days Later, dumb as the concept was.  (I give all horror/thriller/sci-fi movies one silly Macguffin.  I give action flicks several.)  I seriously hated 28 Weeks Later.  The latter fell into not one but two traps of the bad horror movies:  not only one but several characters suffered sudden attack of the stupids, and not only one but umpty-scrump random events had to go wrong for the horror to unfold correctly.  That kind of killed the last half for me:  the aerial shots of fuel-air explosives devastating London didn't make up for it.

So I really didn't care that Danny Boyle had dropped hints that he was going to make 28 Months Later and set it in Russia.  Until the following utterly-unofficial fake trailer came to my attention:

Yes, it's silly, but I like this kind of silliness.  And, who knows?  Maybe it will be set in Russia, and maybe Boyle will get the Russia setting right.  The chances of me seeing 28 Months Later just jumped from zero to something, well, greater than zero.