en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/806116 Comments by ern http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/09/23/watch-bristol-palin-confront-verbally-abusive-heckler/#IDComment197583609 Actually, the ratings prove that some people want to see her. You don't, certainly, but then your problem is thinking that everyone who doesn't agree with you is a "whore." So, that tells us quite a bit about your rationality. Or lack thereof. Being willing to accept the hurled insults is one thing. Encouraging people to engage in that sort of base, ignorant behavior is quite another. I don't think she was surprised at all. Sad that we expect nothing more than sexist insults from the left these days. No surprise *at all* that you're encouraging more of the same. Fri, 23 Sep 2011 19:09:35 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/09/23/watch-bristol-palin-confront-verbally-abusive-heckler/#IDComment197583609 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/09/23/watch-bristol-palin-confront-verbally-abusive-heckler/#IDComment197582208 Ah, there's that wonderful liberal tolerance and compassion we keep hearing about. Fri, 23 Sep 2011 19:05:51 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/09/23/watch-bristol-palin-confront-verbally-abusive-heckler/#IDComment197582208 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/awrhawkins/2011/09/22/sons-of-guns-love-of-america-firearms-and-our-troops-equals-a-hit-show/#IDComment197528023 It's a good show. I watch it every week, and love it. I'm not sure that I get the comments about Will being a dick. He's a hardass, and like many people who build their own business, he has a rough-edged attitude about it. He wants things done his way. The dedication of his employees seems to confirm that they understand him in a way that we, as viewers, probably don't. Some of the gun concepts are a bit ... well, I don't want to say useless, but definitely niche. The AK sniper rifle, for instance, certainly has a place. A more accurate AK that retains the durability of the original weapon? Sure, there's a place for it. Suppressed shotgun? Niche. But damned cool. And very difficult to pull off. They specialize in niche products, so it's no real surprise. Fri, 23 Sep 2011 17:08:50 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/awrhawkins/2011/09/22/sons-of-guns-love-of-america-firearms-and-our-troops-equals-a-hit-show/#IDComment197528023 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/09/15/will-star-wars-online-video-game-ask-your-child-to-engage-in-same-sex-relationships/#IDComment194045210 Indeed. Mass Effect 2 is an amazing game. Fri, 16 Sep 2011 10:09:45 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/09/15/will-star-wars-online-video-game-ask-your-child-to-engage-in-same-sex-relationships/#IDComment194045210 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/09/15/will-star-wars-online-video-game-ask-your-child-to-engage-in-same-sex-relationships/#IDComment193892406 Given the success (or, more accurately, lack thereof) of Star Wars Galaxies, I suspect that The Old Republic might fetch a few million subscribers AT BEST. BioWare's a decent RPG maker, though, so you never know. More likely, it'll get a half million and fizzle out in three years. Fri, 16 Sep 2011 00:30:54 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/09/15/will-star-wars-online-video-game-ask-your-child-to-engage-in-same-sex-relationships/#IDComment193892406 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/09/15/will-star-wars-online-video-game-ask-your-child-to-engage-in-same-sex-relationships/#IDComment193890260 I'm sorry, but anyone who knows about games realizes how knee-jerk this reaction was. There's absolutely nothing at all controversial about this game. The description Nolte gives is designed to provoke a reaction, and it would have been corrected by any of us if he'd bothered to check with someone who knew something about the game. This post was based on the worst possible reading of misleading and incorrect information. And if Nolte had been more diligent in checking his facts, he would have avoided the ridicule. Fri, 16 Sep 2011 00:25:19 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/09/15/will-star-wars-online-video-game-ask-your-child-to-engage-in-same-sex-relationships/#IDComment193890260 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/09/15/will-star-wars-online-video-game-ask-your-child-to-engage-in-same-sex-relationships/#IDComment193888844 I've seen suggestions that it's going to be M-rated, not T-rated, but either way you're right that the content is listed right on the box. This suggestion that they're somehow hiding something is just silly. Fri, 16 Sep 2011 00:21:41 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/09/15/will-star-wars-online-video-game-ask-your-child-to-engage-in-same-sex-relationships/#IDComment193888844 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/09/15/will-star-wars-online-video-game-ask-your-child-to-engage-in-same-sex-relationships/#IDComment193888193 The problem is that if Nolte had done even some basic research, he would have realized a few things: the game is M-rated; it's a massively-multiplayer online game (that is, it has a monthly fee in addition to the purchase price of the game, which means few parents would pre-order it for their teenage kids); and that it's from a developer known for including same-sex relationship options in the game. It's like buying a ticket for an R-rated movie, giving it to a ten-year-old, and then complaining that it has nudity in it. You don't blame the company that made the game. It's not their fault. Worse, he posts an email from someone else who similarly doesn't know anything about the game or gaming in general. Nolte's not asking questions. He's jumping to conclusions. He completely deserves to be picked on for this post. Next time he needs to get his information from someone who actually knows something about gaming. He clearly doesn't, and his "additional information" source doesn't either. Fri, 16 Sep 2011 00:20:06 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/09/15/will-star-wars-online-video-game-ask-your-child-to-engage-in-same-sex-relationships/#IDComment193888193 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/09/15/will-star-wars-online-video-game-ask-your-child-to-engage-in-same-sex-relationships/#IDComment193730975 It's an M-rated game for god's sake. If people could get it through their heads that video games aren't toys designed for little kids, they'd maybe understand this. And it's an MMO. It's not for kids. The relationships are simply options that you have to choose to engage in. NPC's aren't going to come up to you and say, "Please have gay sex with me." The player needs to initiate the relationship with a clearly marked dialogue option. That's how it's been in Mass Effect and Dragon Age, and there's no reason to think it's any different in The Old Republic. The whining over the budget is amusing as well. Yes, $150 million is a lot for a game, but GTAIV had a $100 million+ budget, and that was a few years ago. It's actually not a lot for an MMO. It will reach "millions of children" -- baloney. The average age of a World of Warcraft player is around 30. The average video game player's age today is 35. For some reason the older generation of people who don't play games have this idea stuck in their head that video games are only played by little kids. It hasn't been true for nearly twenty years now. Nolte: before you start spouting off about games, find someone to email you about them who actually knows what they're talking about. Email me. Run it by me. I mostly agree with your cultural perspective on things. But run it by someone first before you make yourself look like an idiot again. I usually expect better than this from you and this site. Thu, 15 Sep 2011 16:32:15 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/09/15/will-star-wars-online-video-game-ask-your-child-to-engage-in-same-sex-relationships/#IDComment193730975 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/aprice/2011/09/11/ten-years-where-is-the-definitive-911-movie/#IDComment192513211 I agree with you there. I always found Wall Street to be a silly, unserious movie. As for First Blood, it catches a lot of flak because of its sequels, but the original movie really did strike a nerve. By the time Platoon came around in '86, the conversation was already changing. Giving Stone credit for that change in conversation is crazy. Stone is a decent filmmaker, but he always seems a bit behind the ball on these things. Mon, 12 Sep 2011 11:27:00 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/aprice/2011/09/11/ten-years-where-is-the-definitive-911-movie/#IDComment192513211 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/aprice/2011/09/11/ten-years-where-is-the-definitive-911-movie/#IDComment192512319 We should all know what is going on here. Hollywood is waiting for some distance before it makes its big 9/11 movie. It will be made eventually. We all know this. But when they make it, they want enough time to have passed that they can quietly go about a complete historical revision of events. They do this all the time. With 9/11, though, the historical events are still ripe in our minds. Eventually they'll s**t on our memories just like they've s**t all over President Bush who, despite his flaws, did the best he could in the situation. Mon, 12 Sep 2011 11:23:07 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/aprice/2011/09/11/ten-years-where-is-the-definitive-911-movie/#IDComment192512319 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/mmoriarty/2011/09/09/christopher-hitchens-an-atheists-gift-to-sarah-palin/#IDComment191696023 I'm in the same boat. Hitchens *is* thought provoking in a certain kind of way, and I have a certain amount of respect for him that I certainly *don't* have for Maher. And yes, his arguments about religion are mostly unconvincing. What is great and respectable about Hitchens is that he doesn't bother to dissemble. Anyone who has spent time in a debate with dishonest people will know exactly what I mean about the breath of fresh air an honest man is. For that alone, he earns my respect. I actually *enjoy* disagreeing with him. And when I do agree with him, there are few men I'd rather have in my corner. Fri, 9 Sep 2011 23:36:52 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/mmoriarty/2011/09/09/christopher-hitchens-an-atheists-gift-to-sarah-palin/#IDComment191696023 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/dcommandatore/2011/08/30/one-nation-under-god-a-book-for-little-patriots-review-clever-safe-childrens-book/#IDComment188981376 There is a difference between propaganda put out by the Chinese government and books written by Americans about America. The idea that it would even "remind" you of the same thing is very strange indeed. No one here is blind to the problems in America. Our problem is schools that don't bother teaching the positive things, only focusing on the negative. America's history is not one of changing fundamental principles. The principles haven't changed. Our history has been one of deeper fidelity to those principles than was possible in those days. Many would have us believe that because of American failures over the years, that the founding principles are suspect. Thus, they don't teach them. That is why it is important to instill those founding values in our children. That way, when they read American history (which they will inevitably do later in schooling), they won't need to be *told* what the mistakes were. They will be obvious to them. From slavery to suffrage to the treatment of native tribes, anyone who honors the values of the American founding will know exactly what went wrong and why. There's no lack of learning about America's mistakes. The lack is in the other direction. Fri, 2 Sep 2011 11:34:56 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/dcommandatore/2011/08/30/one-nation-under-god-a-book-for-little-patriots-review-clever-safe-childrens-book/#IDComment188981376 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/awrhawkins/2011/08/26/aaron-lewis-a-patriot-with-a-guitar-and-gun/#IDComment186796405 He's got an entire country EP. I've liked Lewis for awhile, and have seen Staind in concert a few times. He's a good performer, and as good as Staind is for the kind of music it is, I always wondered if he'd do better with something different. It doesn't sound quite like country, but the sentiment is there in its own way. Maybe a bit heavy-handed, but it certainly sounds authentic coming from him. His vocals are very stripped down, very simple, very American. Fri, 26 Aug 2011 13:40:45 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/awrhawkins/2011/08/26/aaron-lewis-a-patriot-with-a-guitar-and-gun/#IDComment186796405 http://biggovernment.com/chorner/2011/08/19/wapo-gets-its-pinocchio-on-for-dishonest-warming-attack-on-perry/#IDComment184901921 Offer something other than an ad hominem, and I'll take you seriously. Offer substantial arguments against the data. Otherwise, you're just a mud-thrower. Data is data. Sat, 20 Aug 2011 13:00:36 +0000 http://biggovernment.com/chorner/2011/08/19/wapo-gets-its-pinocchio-on-for-dishonest-warming-attack-on-perry/#IDComment184901921 http://biggovernment.com/chorner/2011/08/19/wapo-gets-its-pinocchio-on-for-dishonest-warming-attack-on-perry/#IDComment184901399 "Consensus" is a political word, it has little to do with real science. As you say, consensus is not fact. There was a huge weight of history against Einstein's theories about gravity. Scientists thought they knew what needed to be known about it. Newton's equations are remarkably accurate. But no, Einstein made a correction. It implied some ludicrous things about the universe. Data trumped history and consensus, as it should. "Consensus" tells us little other than what the predominate prejudices are. In general, where I see consensus I see an opportunity for revolution. We "know" so many things that are simply not true. "Consensus" means laziness. People resting on comfortable truths. I'm all for challenging it. That's what science does. Science should welcome those challenges. And let the data lead us where they will. Sat, 20 Aug 2011 12:59:15 +0000 http://biggovernment.com/chorner/2011/08/19/wapo-gets-its-pinocchio-on-for-dishonest-warming-attack-on-perry/#IDComment184901399 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/hippocritico/2011/08/18/reader-poll-thoughts-on-just-released-man-of-steel-synopsis/#IDComment184281346 The synopsis reads as every vague superhero backstory ever. It doesn't tell us anything at all about the movie. I'm fine with a little angst and internal conflict (without it, heroes tend to be a bit two-dimensional), but I'd rather have a character who is unapologetic about doing the right thing when it's done. I can't stand the whining, the unwillingness to just *kill the bad guy who is threatening thousands of lives.* But instead we get wah-wah-wah, "killing one bad guy makes me just like the mass-murderer" BS. I'd rather have the angst about bearing the burden rather than making the decision to act (which is, in most of these stories, *not a difficult decision to make*). It's not the hero who has a hard time recognizing who the bad guy is. It's everyone else. He knows best. Society hates him for it. The Dark Knight had this right. It's looking like this Man of Steel movie will get it wrong. Thu, 18 Aug 2011 14:05:41 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/hippocritico/2011/08/18/reader-poll-thoughts-on-just-released-man-of-steel-synopsis/#IDComment184281346 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/hollywoodland/2011/08/17/christian-toto-why-dont-conservatives-support-conservative-films/#IDComment184242124 This assumes that conservatives want the same thing out of political movies that liberal activists do. Generally, they don't. Conservatives are generally happy with entertaining movies that champion specific American values, but in an apolitical way. Conservatives making political movies is like liberals trying to do talk radio. The markets are too different. I think it's nearly impossible. For liberal activists, politics is an end-all be-all. It's not that way for conservatives. It's the individualist vs. communitarian thing again. Liberals need their ideological egos stroked by popular culture. Conservatives don't. Conservatives generally don't go to movies for political points. They go to be entertained. I'm not convinced that it would be *good* for conservatives to mix entertainment with politics. We don't need a conservative version of Jon Stewart, or Michael Moore. It doesn't serve a need. I think the distinction between C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien is a good one. Tolkien wrote a good story. His faith showed through it to anyone who was paying attention. Lewis wrote direct allegories. Tolkien wasn't writing about faith, but because faith was important to him, it was still there. Lewis was being heavy handed. You'll find that more people are sympathetic to the former approach than the latter, especially if they aren't already believers. Too many conservatives in Hollywood put the message before the story. It's used as marketing rather than authentic expression. "Come see my movie! It's conservative!" Build a reputation for good storytelling first, then we'll come see your movies. Thu, 18 Aug 2011 11:03:51 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/hollywoodland/2011/08/17/christian-toto-why-dont-conservatives-support-conservative-films/#IDComment184242124 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/08/02/scripted-showrunners-reality-tv-means-the-end-of-civilization/#IDComment179784095 Season 2 was on this spring, if I remember correctly. Season three starts next week. Wed, 3 Aug 2011 16:30:52 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/08/02/scripted-showrunners-reality-tv-means-the-end-of-civilization/#IDComment179784095 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/08/02/scripted-showrunners-reality-tv-means-the-end-of-civilization/#IDComment179782989 You know, there really are some good reality shows out there. The best ones highlight creative and hardworking men and women (often blue collar) doing amazing things on a daily basis but who are unknown to the rest of us. American Chopper, Deadliest Catch, Dirty Jobs, Ice Road Truckers, Sons of Guns, Face/Off, all of them show us average American men and women doing astounding things, and loving their jobs. They're rough around the edges. They're not all well educated and articulate, but they are amazing people. Watching these shows is like being introduced to a part of America you rarely get to see. It's not always pretty, but it's far more like "reality" than the other reality crap that producers put on TV. It's no surprise to me that these shows come off as more conservative than scripted TV. Writers in LA are liberals, and writers love to build narratives to reflect their political and cultural points of view. As much as I loved scripted series, I find a lot of the current crop of reality TV series to be quite compelling in their own way. Wed, 3 Aug 2011 16:26:39 +0000 http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2011/08/02/scripted-showrunners-reality-tv-means-the-end-of-civilization/#IDComment179782989