The Decade List: Awards (2005)

For the sake of not going on a tirade about you-kn0w-what, I'll just leave the awards section without any commentary. So here it is.

Cannes, held 11-22 May 2005

Palme d'Or: L'enfant [d. Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne]
Grand Prix: Broken Flowers [d. Jim Jarmusch]
Prix du jury: Shanghai Dreams [d. Wang Xiaoshuai]
Best Director: Michael Haneke - Caché
Best Actor: Tommy Lee Jones - The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada
Best Actress: Hana Laszlo - Free Zone
Best Screenplay: Guillaume Arriaga - The Three Burials of Mesquiades Estrada
Technical Grand Prize: (tie) Leslie Shatz - Last Days (for the sound design); Robert Rodriguez - Sin City (for the visual shaping)
Camera d'Or: (tie) Me and You and Everyone We Know [d. Miranda July], The Forsaken Land [d. Vimukthi Jayasundara]


Venice, held 31 August-10 September 2005

Golden Lion: Brokeback Mountain [d. Ang Lee]
Grand Special Jury Prize: Mary [d. Abel Ferrara]
Best Director: Philippe Garrel - Les amants réguliers (Regular Lovers)
Best Actor: David Strathairn - Good Night, and Good Luck.
Best Actress: Giovanna Mezzogiorno - La bestia nel cuore (Don't Tell)
Best Screenplay: George Clooney, Grant Heslov - Good Night, and Good Luck.
Career Golden Lion: Manoel de Oliveira, Stanley Donen


Toronto, held 8-17 September 2005

People's Choice Award: Tsotsi [d. Gavin Hood]
Discovery Award: Look Both Ways [d. Sarah Watt]
Best Canadian Feature: C.R.A.Z.Y. [d. Jean-Marc Vallée]


Berlin, held 10-20 February 2005

Golden Bear: U-Carmen [d. Mark Dornford-May]
Best Director: Marc Rothermund - Sophie Scholl: Die letzten Tage (Sophie Scholl: The Last Days)
Best Actor: Lou Taylor Pucci - Thumbsucker
Best Actress: Julie Jentsch - Sophie Scholl: Die letzten Tage
Jury Grand Prix: Peacock [d. Gu Changwei]
Outstanding Artistic Achievment: The Wayward Cloud [d. Tsai Ming-liang]
Honorary Golden Bear: Fernando Fernán Gómez, Im Kwon-taek
Teddy (Feature): Un año sin amor (A Year Without Love) [d. Anahí Berneri]
Teddy (Documentary): Katzenball [d. Veronika Minder]


Sundance, held 20-30 January 2005

Grand Jury Prize (Dramatic): Forty Shades of Blue [d. Ira Sachs]
Grand Jury Prize (World Cinema): O Herói (The Hero) [d. Zézé Gamboa]
Grand Jury Prize (Documentary): Why We Fight [d. Eugene Jarecki]
Grand Jury Prize (World Cinema Documentary): Shape of the Moon [d. Leonard Retel Helmrich]
Director (Dramatic): Noah Baumbach - The Squid and the Whale
Director (Documentary): Jeff Feuerzeig - The Devil and Daniel Johnston
Special Jury Prize (Dramatic): (tie) Rian Johnson - Brick; Miranda July - Me and You and Everyone We Know (for originality of vision); Amy Adams - Junebug; Lou Taylor Pucci - Thumbsucker (for their performances)
Special Jury Prize (World Cinema): (tie) Jorge Gaggero - Cama adentro (Live-In Maid); Maren Ade - Der Wald vor Iauter Bäumen (The Forest for the Trees)
Special Jury Prize (Documentary): (tie) Jessica Sanders - After Innocence; Geoffrey Richman, Conor O'Neill - Murderball (for the editing)
Special Jury Prize (World Cinema Documentary): (tie) Simone Bitton - Mur (Wall); Sean McAllister - The Liberace of Baghdad
Cinematography (Dramatic): Amy Vincent - Hustle & Flow
Cinematography (Documentary): Gary Griffin - The Education of Shelby Knox
Audience Award (Dramatic): Hustle & Flow [d. Craig Brewer]
Audience Award (Documentary): Murderball [d. Henry Alex Rubin, Dana Adam Shapiro]
Audience Award (World Cinema): Brødre (Brothers) [d. Susanne Bier]
Audience Award (World Cinema Documentary): Shake Hands with the Devil: The Journey of Roméo Dallaire [d. Peter Raymont]


Academy Awards, held 5 March 2006

Best Picture: Crash [d. Paul Haggis]
Best Director: Ang Lee - Brokeback Mountain
Best Actor: Philip Seymour Hoffman - Capote
Best Actress: Reese Witherspoon - Walk the Line
Best Supporting Actor: George Clooney - Syriana
Best Supporting Actress: Rachel Weisz - The Constant Gardener
Best Original Screenplay: Paul Haggis, Robert Moresco - Crash
Best Adapted Screenplay: Larry McMurtry, Diana Ossana - Brokeback Mountain
Best Cinematography: Dion Beebe - Memoirs of a Geisha
Best Documentary: La marche de l'empereur (March of the Penguins) [d. Luc Jacquet]
Best Foreign Film: Tsotsi [d. Gavin Hood]
Animated Feature: Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit [d. Steve Box, Nick Park]
Honorary Award: Robert Altman


BAFTAs, held 19 February 2006

Best Film: Brokeback Mountain [d. Ang Lee]
Best Director: Ang Lee - Brokeback Mountain
Best British Film: Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit [d. Steve Box, Nick Park]
Best Actor: Philip Seymour Hoffman - Capote
Best Actress: Reese Witherspoon - Walk the Line
Best Supporting Actor: Jake Gyllenhaal - Brokeback Mountain
Best Supporting Actress: Thandie Newton - Crash
Best Original Screenplay: Paul Haggis, Robert Moresco - Crash
Best Adapted Screenplay: Larry McMurtry, Diana Ossana - Brokeback Mountain
Best Cinematography: Dion Beebe - Memoirs of a Geisha
Film Not in the English Language: De battre mon coeur s'est arrêté (The Beat That My Heart Skipped) [d. Jacques Audiard]


European Film Awards, held 3 December 2005

Best Film: Caché [d. Michael Haneke]
Best Director: Michael Haneke - Caché
Best Actor: Daniel Auteuil - Caché
Best Actress: Julia Jentsch - Sophie Scholl: Die letzten Tage (Sophie Scholl: The Last Days)
Best Cinematography: Franz Lustig - Don't Come Knocking
Best Screenplay: Hany Abu-Assad, Bero Beyer - Paradise Now
Best Documentary: Un dragon dans les eaux pures du Caucase (The Pipeline Next Door) [d. Nino Kirtadze]
Discovery: Anklaget (Accused) [d. Jacob Thuesen]
Screen International: Good Night, and Good Luck. [d. George Clooney]
Audience Award (Actor): Orlando Bloom - Kingdom of Heaven
Audience Award (Actress): Julia Jentsch - Sophie Scholl: Die letzten Tage
Audience Award (Director): Marc Rothemund - Sophie Scholl: Die letzten Tage
Life Achievement Award: Sean Connery


Independent Spirit, held 4 March 2006

Best Feature: Brokeback Mountain [d. Ang Lee]
Best First Feature: Crash [d. Paul Haggis]
Best Director: Ang Lee - Brokeback Mountain
Best Male Lead: Philip Seymour Hoffman - Capote
Best Female Lead: Felicity Huffman - Transamerica
Best Supporting Male: Matt Dillon - Crash
Best Supporting Female: Amy Adams - Junebug
Best Screenplay: Dan Futterman - Capote
Best First Screenplay: Duncan Tucker - Transamerica
Best Cinematography: Robert Elswit - Good Night, and Good Luck.
Best Documentary: Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room [d. Alex Gibney]
Best Foreign Film: Paradise Now [d. Hany Abu-Assad]
John Cassavetes Award (for features made for under $500,000): Conventioneers [d. Mora Stephens]
Someone to Watch Award: Neill Dela Llana, Ian Gamazon - Cavite


Golden Globes, held 16 January 2006

Picture (Drama): Brokeback Mountain [d. Ang Lee]
Picture (Comedy/Musical): Walk the Line [d. James Mangold]
Director: Ang Lee - Brokeback Mountain
Actor (D): Philip Seymour Hoffman - Capote
Actress (D): Felicity Huffman - Transamerica
Actor (M/C): Joaquin Phoenix - Walk the Line
Actress (M/C): Reese Witherspoon - Walk the Line
Supporting Actor: George Clooney - Syriana
Supporting Actress: Rachel Weisz - The Constant Gardener
Screenplay: Larry McMurtry, Diana Ossana - Brokeback Mountain
Foreign Film: Paradise Now [d. Hany Abu-Assad]
Cecil B. DeMille Award: Anthony Hopkins


Césars Awards, held 25 February 2006

Best Film (Meilleur film): De battre mon coeur s'est arrêté (The Beat That My Heart Skipped) [d. Jacques Audiard]
Best Director (Meilleur réalisateur): Jacques Audiard - De battre mon coeur s'est arrêté
Best Actor (Meilleur acteur): Michel Bouquet - Le promeneur du champ de Mars (The Last Mitterrand)
Best Actress (Meilleure actrice): Nathalie Baye - Le petit lieutenant
Best Supporting Actor (Meilleur acteur dans un second rôle): Niels Arestrup - De battre mon coeur s'est arrêté
Best Supporting Actress (Meilleure actrice dans un second rôle): Cécile De France - Les poupées russes (Russian Dolls)
Most Promising Actor (Meilleur espoir masculin): Louis Garrel - Les amants réguliers (Regular Lovers)
Most Promising Actress (Meilleur espoir féminin): Linh Dan Pham - De battre mon coeur s'est arrêté
Best Original Screenplay (Meilleur scénario original): Radu Mihăileanu, Alain-Michel Blanc - Va, vis et deviens (Live and Become)
Best Adapted Screenplay (Meilleur scénario adaptation): Jacques Audiard, Tonino Benacquista - De battre mon coeur s'est arrêté
Best Cinematography (Meilleure photographie): Stéphane Fontaine - De battre mon coeur s'est arrêté
Best Foreign Film (Meilleur film étranger): Million Dollar Baby [d. Clint Eastwood]
Best First Film (Meilleur premier film): Darwin's Nightmare [d. Hubert Sauper]
Honorary César: Hugh Grant, Pierre Richard


Razzies, given 4 March 2006

Worst Film: Dirty Love [d. John Mallory Asher]
Worst Director: John Mallory Asher - Dirty Love
Worst Actor: Rob Schneider - Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo
Worst Actress: Jenny McCarthy - Dirty Love
Worst Supporting Actor: Hayden Christensen - Star Wars: Episode III - The Revenge of the Sith
Worst Supporting Actress: Paris Hilton - House of Wax
Worst Screenplay: Jenny McCarthy - Dirty Love
Worst Remake/Sequel: Son of the Mask [d. Lawrence Guterman]

Carlos, Trains and the RH Bill

Loving Carlos in Toronto this summer. I just adored him.

Carlos is on the ball with this one and I love his devotion to this VERY important Bill.
I pray that the RHB is passed.

http://celdrantours.blogspot.com/2009/08/pass-rh-bill-now.html

I LOVED this entry Carlos because of how much you care about everything having to do with this issue. No one has trumpeted louder than you.

Progress is fantastic especially with new infrastructure AND new trains which are much needed. Cool pictures as well.
I really enjoy Carlos's blog because I learn so much every time I click on.

http://celdrantours.blogspot.com/2009/08/ladies-and-gentlemen.html

These trains are awesome.
I LOVE them.

Keep it up Carlos.
You're a fantastic mate and your blog is cool.

OMG!!! There's Going To Be A Riot Next Week

This news is from one of Belfast's paper, and its totally terrifying.

‘Psycho fans’ looking to kill Northern Ireland supporters during Poland clash

Polish football hooligans have threatened to attack and even kill Northern Ireland fans during the Poland game next weekend. The notorious hooligan firm, which is one of the most violent in Europe, is based in the town of Chorzow — where Northern Ireland play Poland in a crucial World Cup qualifier on Saturday.

They want to repeat the violent scenes witnessed in Belfast last March when Polish hooligans attacked Northern Ireland fans. Some locals retaliated by targeting the homes of Eastern Europeans living near Windsor Park. This has made the Polish hooligans’ blood boil and they are determined to get revenge. Before and after the game, which Northern Ireland won 3-2, serious rioting broke out involving dozens of fans. Eleven police officers were injured and nine people, mainly Polish, were arrested. The trouble led to racist attacks across Belfast.

And holy shit, KFC (the place where I'm currently working) is located near to the football station and bloody hell who knows what's gonna happen on Saturday. I mean, yeah, the shop is gonna be busy, but its the safetiness of Belfast that I am worried about. And Windsor Park is near my house. Oh my, after reading this, I am so worried. Maybe I should bring an umbrella everywhere I go?? But what effect does it has in warding off thugs with knife/gun???

T____T

Niccolo Cosme for the WIN!

Some of Niccolo's cheer squad during the taping of the crazy show.

Dear Readers,

I was fortunate to become friends with Niccolo when I lived in the Philippines.
He's an awesome guy and he needs our votes so he can walk away with a sweet victory this year when he competes on Fame Celebrity Duets Season 3 which is already underway. (who are you supporting?)

Please watch the show and vote for my mate Niccolo if you like his performances.
(I hope they don't make him wear a dog costume.......like Yap
Maintain your dignity man!
Set the bar high!)

Rock it out mate.

Good luck Nic!

Tragic Tim

Is this queer for reals?
What a complete freak lost in some strange world.
Is this all Manila and the Philippines has to offer the world?
Tim Yap?
It's so sad.

On the Mend

Thank you to the many people who have been writing asking about my operations.
I am healing BEAUTIFULLY and my scars are HOT HOT HOT!!!!!
As you can see, I have bounced back already and feel better than ever.
My niece took this picture today.

I feel amazing, healthy and happy after many weeks of pain and bed rest torture.

I love my friends, fans and supporters sooooo much.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Parting Of A Friend

May you be lucky and successful in Malaysia/Taiwan/Singapore/future UK. Gonna miss you remember you. Its been a pleasure getting to know you for 2 years.

Ashley Browne: Was he pushed or was he sacked?

Can anyone make head or tail of this?

Nice to see that the Sunday Age is now following the blog.

Michael Barnett, JCCV and AJN Watch

Further to our post re Michael Barnett's letter http://tinyurl.com/kvpjue , here's a short response to his childish bleatings, with the hope that this reaches those to whom he addressed his letter.



From Barnett's letter:

Ten years ago, in 1999, Aleph Melbourne applied to the JCCV for membership. This was an extremely bitter time for the group and as a result of the failed application I was exposed to a level of hate and intolerance that would shock most people.

The attempt by Aleph to become a constituent member of the JCCV always was and still is one of sheer arrogance and provocation. Why on earth should a miniscule group (if it indeed there is such a group) of insignificant nobodies, whose sole aim is to promote and publicize abnormal sexual behaviour, be admitted to an organization representing Victorian Jewry?



(Yes, whether Barnett likes it or not homosexuality is not normal. Until recently EVERONE accepted this. The advent of ‘political correctness’ meant that saying so is limited to honest private conversations by people, who are not interested in bitchy responses and “hate and intolerance’ accusations.



The first sign of your abnormality is the fact that heterosexuals don’t go around advertising and publicizing what they do privately. THAT is normal. Your desperate need for constant publicity (even disgusting parades) announcing and showing off to the world your sexual proclivities – proves this is not normal behaviour.)



Despite all this, Mr Barnett, we don’t hate you. Really. We just simply are not interested in you and your activities. We really don’t care how you live your life and what you get up to - with whom or how. Most people, knowingly or unknowingly, have homosexual acquaintances socially or professionally. And they get along fine. Why? Because they don’t bore us with their personal stories.



Go ahead and do whatever you like. But please SHUT UP about it and stop shoving your lifestyle down our throats.



As for you personally, it is obvious that aside from your homosexuality you have nothing to offer or indeed talk about. How sad.



So don't be so surprised when decent, normal and respectable (religious and irreligious) organizations don’t welcome you to their forum.



Most of the world is sickened by homosexuality. That's just human nature and no legislation will help with their attitude. As for those who follow the Torah and Halacha - which categorically bans it - they cannot ever see it as an acceptable lifestyle. They can’t. The Torah is not theirs to alter, modify or modernize.



All that still does not mean we ‘hate’ you and your type. Observant Jews don’t hate. We don’t hate Shabbat-desecrators and we don’t hate non-Kosher consumers and we don’t hate homosexuals. We get along fine with all types of irreligious Jews – as long as they don’t try to attack our Jewishness and propagate their anti-Torah lifestyles.



Have you ever considered that if the JCCV deemed you as worthy for membership, why not other offensive groups, eg:

“Melbourne Jewish Idol-worshippers”

“Jewish Adulterers Society”

“Jewish Lesbian Hindu Society”

“Australian Jewish Chazir-fressers Club”

“The Shabbat-desecrators Association”

“Jews for Jesus”

“The Ladies Yom Kippur & Tisha B’av Lunchers Guild”

"Melbourne Jewish Car Thieves/Drunk-Drivers/Coke-sniffers"

Funny, no? But no funnier than accepting your Aleph club.

The issue dominated the Jewish media for weeks leading up to the vote and many more thereafter. During this time there was no shortage of homphobic attacks and

expressions of intolerance from all manner of community leaders at Aleph Melbourne's membership application.

We have no idea what attacks you refer to, but as long as there was nothing physical (and I am sure that there wasn’t) big deal. You asked for it by repeatedly opening your mouth and provoking most of the Jewish community. Don’t be so precious. You knew all along what you were going into, so don’t bleat when someone replies. Did you really expect no one to respond?

When you start with an entire community, you cannot afford to be so sensitive.

Wind forward to 2009, now ten years along. On July 10 this year, Rabbi Chaim Ingram,Honorary Secretary of the Rabbinical Council of NSW, wrote a letter to the AustralianJewish News where he unapologetically and unsympathetically lumped homosexuals alongside people who committed adultery, bestiality and incest and later went on to defend his stance, hiding behind the cover of Jewish law.

Here is part of the “offending” letter” :



Judaism teaches that while only Jews need uphold the 613 mitzvot of the Torah, human society as a whole must also adhere to a moral and ethical code comprising seven statutes known as the Noachide Laws. Five of these laws correspond to five of the 10 Commandments. One of them is a prohibition against gross sexual immorality comprising adultery, bestiality, incest and homosexual intercourse. A second is the establishment of legislation that will maintain morality in accordance with the Noachide code. Therefore, no Torah-abiding Jew can ever make peace with the concept of legalising or validating homosexual “marriage” in any society in which he or she lives.



Does Barnett, who demands ‘tolerance’ for his mob, expect religious Jews (and indeed non-Jews) be banned from quoting the Torah?



Rabbi Ingram isn't “hiding’ behind Jewish law. He is quoting it “unapologetically and unsympathetically”. That law is what has guided us for thousands of years and will continue to do so - long after Barnett has been forgotten.

On August 1 in Tel Aviv there was the horrific shooting in the gay community centre

where two people were killed and 15 people injured. The Australian Jewish News

covered this event comprehensively. As a direct result of this coverage an anonymous Melbourne Orthodox Jewish blogger posted on AJNWatch some of the most hurtful language directed at gay people that I have ever read.

“The most hurtful language directed at gay people that I have ever read”. What a load of nonsense. You obviously are convinced readers of your letter will not bother to investigate such disgusting libel. Otherwise you wouldn’t dare to lie so barefacedly.

This prohibition forms a tenet of Orthodox Jewish dogma and is more fervently upheld than just about any other biblical commandment.

More lies and nonsense.

The prohibition against homosexual intercourse (and effectively anything relating to any expression of homosexuality) permeates the teachings of Orthodox Judaism at all levels, through schools, colleges, synagogues and every other aspect of Orthdox Jewish life.

Utter garbage. How insulting to think that Orthodox Jews have nothing else to study and be concerned about other than homosexuality.

I challenge you to find an Orthodox Rabbi in Australia who will not denounce practicing homosexuals as sinners and who will not refer to us alongside people who have committed sins of the gravity as murder, adultery, incest or bestiality.

Repeat. It is not the rabbis who denounce. It is the Torah.



Finally, here's some free advice for you. If you are really seeking to find a place where your type of ‘Judaism’ is acceptable, why not visit a friendly Reform/Liberal temple, where the rabbis and rabbiesses have unlimited freedom and leeway and (as they already disregard most of the Torah) will have no problems in making you feel at home. And who knows? Maybe at some time in the future, they will invite you to become their representative on the JCCV.



********



Talking about tolerance and intolerance, someone sent us an exchange on Barnett's Facebook page which shows how much 'tolerance' he and his mates have for other views.

Comments



Dayenu Sydney:

By the way, did you report the blog to Google? Sounds like it might contravene their terms of service.



Michael Barnett:

Of course, but it I feel it's better it stays up for the moment as it adds weight to the argument.

Also there this garbage:

The ugly side of Jewish extremism that the JCCV wants us to ignore ...

This blog appeared on the "AJN Watch" web site on August 7 2009. This has got to be one of the ugliest pieces of homophobic hate I have ever read.



This blog was one of the catalysts for me writing this letter.

I brought this blog up in a meeting with John Searle, President of the Jewish Community Council of Victoria (JCCV) on August 19 2009. The official word of "The voice of Victorian Jewry" was to ignore it, not to give it any oxygen and it will go away. Some example of responsible leadership Mr Searle.

Just imagine what would have happened if the world buried its head about the Nazis and The Holocaust.

"Just imagine what would have happened if the world buried its head about the Nazis and The Holocaust."

Yep. According to Barnett the AJN Watch blog is comparable to the Nazi Holocaust! The author of such an idiotic comment, wants to sit on the Jewish community's foremost representative council.

AIDS Memorial Quilt Philippines

Dear Readers,

Here are two incredible events taking place in September.

The AIDS Memorial Quilt Philippines display is taking place on September 4, Friday, 8PM in Bed Bar.

The AIDS Memorial Quilt Philippines: Patterns of Life, Patchworks of Love

Host:	Benedict Bernabe
Type:	Causes - Fundraiser
Network:	Global
Price:	PHP 500.00

Date:	Friday, September 4, 2009
Time:	8:00pm - 11:00pm
Location:	Bed Bar + Club Malate
Street:	M. Orosa cor. J. Nakpil Courtyard, Malate
City/Town:	Manila, Philippines

Phone:	639178266169
Email:	benedict.bernabe@gmail.com

AND























The other fantastic event is the Philippine Red Party happening the next day at San Miguel by the Bay, SM Mall of Asia.

The Red Party Rationale
Medical students across Australia have rallied as part of a nation-wide effort to increase awareness of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired

Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), a devastating spectrum of disease afflicting an estimated 33 million people across the globe.

To raise awareness, Australian medical students have hosted several fundraising and educational events all around the country. Themed with the color red, the

international color for HIV and AIDS, the events have affectionately become known as 'Red Parties'.

Two of these Australian medical students, Patrick Aouad and Zabrina Abdool, from the Australian National University visited the Philippines recently. They

saw the plight of our fellowmen, especially those seeking consult at the Philippine General Hospital.

They returned to Australia and proposed that the Adult Infectious Disease section of the Philippine General Hospital be the Red Party’s recipient of a CD4

machine, an indispensable diagnostic tool for people living with HIV/AIDS. Fortunately for us, they were granted this request.

Thus the PHILIPPINE RED PARTY came to be.

We are medical specialists, HIV positive patients, and HIV awareness advocates.

The Philippine Red Party Project will hold a photo exhibit on August 25, 2009 and a benefit rock concert on September 5, 2009, simultaneous

with Australia’s Red Party.

Funds raised from these events will enable us to acquire an RT-PCR machine for doing HIV viral loads, to complement the CD4 machine from Australia.

Again- Proceeds from both events will be used to procure a viral load count machine for

the PGH. This will help take the burden away from the two centers in Manila (San Lazaro and RITM) servicing HIV patients.

ABS and GMA Drug Dealer Caught!

Dear Brian,

A good friend of mine is best friends with the suspect.
I'm not going to get into more detail as everything is mentioned in that article.
Audie is/was the number 1 E dealer to the stars!
I think he might squeal to get a deal.
He's being held at PDEA right now while he waits for his lawyer to figure out how he can get out of it.
He might squeal but I'm not sure he will
His friends want him to if it means he gets a better deal
His clients were mostly the young stars from both ABS CBN and GMA
The funny thing is Option 1 is to have him escape to America

Rich kids are just too lucky.

Ecstasy dealer nabbed By: Alfred P. Dalizon

A SUSPECTED big-time dealer of the designer drug called “Ecstasy” was arrested by agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency in an entrapment operation in Quezon City last Friday, PDEA chair, Senior Undersecretary Dionisio R. Santiago announced yesterday.

Audie Lawrence D. Co,30, a resident of no. 17 V. Kalaw Street, Tierra Pura Homes in Tandang Sora, Q.C. was arrested weeks after he was placed on surveillance by PDEA operatives amid reports he was involved in the sale of the designer drug known “Ecstasy” or “party” drug in high-end clubs in Metro Manila, said Santiago.

Santiago said Co was arrested along the vicinity of City Lifestyle, Timog Avenue corner Tomas Morato, Q.C. 2 p.m. last Friday just shortly after he sold 400 tablets of Ecstasy to a poseur-buyer for P200,000.

The suspect was also found in possession of another 100 tablets of the same designer drug and was charged with sale and possession of dangerous drugs under Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.

The arrest of Co came after two high-profile anti-narcotics operations by the PDEA which resulted in the killing of a notorious member of the Canadian Hell’s Angels Gang, Antonio Kcompt, on Giraffe Street. Green Meadows, Bgy. Ugong Norte in Q.C., and dismissed Senior Insp. Nathaniel Capitanea.

The 37-year-old Kcompt was tagged as an exclusive distributor of Ecstasy capsules in Metro Manila who is also wanted by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police for fraud and theft, Santiago said.

Santiago said Kcompt, a Canadian citizen of Chinese descent, has been identified by the RCMP as being involved in the trafficking of cocaine and Ecstasy particularly those in capsule form in Canada and even in Manila.

He reportedly is an “asset” of the National Bureau of Investigation, the PDEA chair added.

Last Saturday morning, combined PDEA and Makati City police agents shot dead Capitanea in a firefight in a posh condominium in Rockwell Makati.

sourced-http://www.journal.com.ph/index.php?issue=2009-08-25&sec=5&aid=101413

These Videos Makes Me Wanna Have A Funky Wedding

Wedding Thriller




Brian & Katie's Evolution of Wedding Dance




JK Wedding Entrance Dance



Its a pity that I'm not Christian and my Chinese Wedding Ceremony doesn't include any Walking Down The Aisle and 1st Husband And Wife Dance. Well, I guess a quiet one will do too...

Outfit Of The Day

I really should try putting on makeup while showing you my outfit, I look awfully tired and naked. But I just hate cleansing my face after makeup as I'm quite impatient and would tend to tug and pull my skin while removing my mascara and eyeliner.

Blouse: Zara, Black dress: Zara, Necklace: Topshop, Boots: Priceless, Hairband: Ness Scotland

Magid: "Thanks for a wonderful job, Ashley. Now bu***r off..."

AJN Watch on 'Australian Conservative' website

We see that some of our posts are featured on the Australian Conservatives site. (No, not Nitzan...)
See: http://tinyurl.com/l45ggd

R.I.P. Dominick Dunne

Though his contributions to cinema fell second to his journalistic accomplishments, Dominick Dunne acted as producer on three significant films from the 70s: adaptations of his sister-in-law Joan Didion's novels Panic in Needle Park and Play It As It Lays, as well as William Friedkin's The Boys in the Band. His daughter Dominique was the victim of a notorious murder scandal shortly after completing her work in the mythically cursed Poltergeist. He was 83.

A Special Winning Experience

Muahahaha, my boyfriend is so clever he won me a £7 mascara from Rimmel London. Umm, I had tried it out, honestly speaking, I don't get the "wow, what a wonderful mascara" feeling. All I got is "I think Loreal does a better job". Really, so far after using 3 mascaras, Loreal Telescopic mascara, Benefit Bad Gal mascara and Rimmel Sexy Curve mascara, I would rate A for Loreal as it did the best job every single time without clumping my lashes and it easily coats my lashes too.

********************************************************************************

Ooohhh, by the way, there's another mascara, Lancome Hynose mascara which I haven't test it out yet. Hhhmmmmm, maybe I should do a review on all of them 4 mascaras and compare them, I bet it would be fun. And yes, I am vain like that to have 4 mascaras (which I only trully bought 1 and pay for 1 while the other 3 are free gifts).

********************************************************************************

"Burying bad news is no answer"

AJN Editorial (July 31, 2009)

Burying bad news is no answer

NEWS that rabbis were among 44 individuals arrested in the United States on charges of political corruption, money-laundering and even trafficking in human organs triggered some reflection at The AJN on how to cover the story. Closer to home, the imminent committal hearing in Adelaide of Rabbi Yossi Engel, facing charges over a school-funding application, focuses attention on our role as a newspaper for the Jewish community.
When Rabbi Engel was charged last month, our front cover drew criticism from those who believe the role of a Jewish newspaper is to run public relations for the community to the wider Australian community and beyond. They believe we should turn a blind eye to Jewish figures, and rabbis in particular, who are facing court, or who have been convicted, even while mainstream newspapers freely report these events. We disagree. SNIP
Yet to ask Jewish newspapers to censor themselves is no remedy. It might keep negative news away from the newsagent shelves, but what we would lose in the process is far greater. It is akin to expecting Jewish figures to be given a free pass. Burying bad news does our community no favours. It would create an unhealthy culture, encouraging some to do as they wish, free of public scrutiny. It is not how newspapers in a democracy should conduct themselves.

We, like many others who follow happenings in the Jewish media, have been wondering when the Jewish News' website - and in particluar its soon to be departed/deported editor Ashley Browne on his blog - will give us the full details of his sudden untimely demise. But until the time of writing, there has not been a single word about this on either location.

Does this mean that sometimes "burying bad news" IS the answer?

The answer is obviously "Yes". When the bad news is about AJN staff, publishers or their families - the Jewish News certainly believes in burying it.

Cinema Guild to Release L.A. Without a Map, Plus Other DVD/Blu-ray Announcements

Cinema Guild has announced Mika Kaurismäki's L.A. Without a Map, their first non-theatrical DVD release since the re-formation of their home video branch after New Yorker's closure, for 10 November. Based on the novel by Richard Rayner, the film, which premiered at the 1998 Toronto International Film Festival, boasts a huge cast which includes Vincent Gallo, Julie Delpy, David Tennant, Vinessa Shaw, Saskia Reeves, Jean-Pierre Kalfon, Monte Hellman, Joe Dallesandro, Amanda Plummer, the Leningrad Cowboys, Andre Royo, Jerzy Skolimowski, James LeGros, Robert Davi, Anouk Aimée and Johnny Depp in an uncredited role. Also note that Cinema Guild and Project X's release of Christian Petzold's Ghosts [Gespenster] has been pushed to 3 November.

I went back through the previous DVD release updates to check the status on a couple of films and noticed a few cancellations and a number of date changed. Warner took their Blu-ray release of The Exorcist off their release slate, and Paramount postponed the Centennial Collection of (surprise) The African Queen and Anatole Litvak's Sorry, Wrong Number indefinitely. All of the other date changes, for both DVD and Blu-ray, are listed below the newly announced titles of their respective format.

DVD

- Homicide: Life on the Street, The Complete Series, 1993-2000, A&E, 29 September
- Children of the Corn, 2009, d. Donald P. Borchers, Anchor Bay, 6 October
- The Sunchaser, 1996, d. Michael Cimino, Warner, 13 October, w. Woody Harrelson, Jon Seda, Anne Bancroft
- Orphan, 2009, d. Jaume Collet-Serra, Warner, also on Blu-ray, 27 October
- Enlighten Up!, 2008, d. Kate Churchill, New Video, 10 November
- L.A. Without a Map, 1998, d. Mika Kaurismäki, Cinema Guild, 10 November
- Spread, 2009, d. David Mackenzie, Anchor Bay, also on Blu-ray, 10 November
- Moon, 2009, d. Duncan Jones, Sony Pictures, also on Blu-ray, 17 November
- The Open Road, 2009, d. Michael Meredith, Anchor Bay, also on Blu-ray, 17 November, w. Jeff Bridges, Justin Timberlake, Harry Dean Stanton, Mary Steenburgen, Lyle Lovett
- The Rebirth, 2007, d. Masahiro Kobayashi, Facets, 24 November
- Superstar, 2009, d. Tahmineh Milani, Facets, 24 November

DVD Date Changes

- Valentino: The Last Emperor, Phase 4 Films, 8 September
- Chinatown, Centennial Collection, Paramount, 6 October
- The New Hollywood Box Set, Sony, 20 October
- Night of the Creeps, Sony, 27 October (also on Blu-ray, which wasn't initially announced)
- Rashevski's Tango [Le tango des Rashevski], Menemsha Films, 27 October
- The Sam Fuller Collection, Sony, 27 October
- Ghosts [Gespenster], Project X/Cinema Guild, 3 November

Blu-ray

- Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas, 1966, d. Chuck Jones, Ben Washam, Warner, 6 October
- Galaxy Quest, 1999, d. Dean Parisot, DreamWorks, 17 November
- The Way of the Gun, 2000, d. Christopher McQuarrie, Lionsgate, 24 November

Blu-ray Date Changes

- Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Sony, 6 October
- Wolf, Sony, 6 October
- Easy Rider, Sony, 20 October
- Ichi the Killer, Tokyo Shock, 20 October
- National Lampoon's Christmas Vacaction, Ultimate Collectors Edition, Warner, 3 November
- Chasing Amy, Miramax, 17 November
- Clerks, Miramax, 17 November
- Fight Club, 20th Century Fox, 17 November

Pick Your Favorite Siren: More Great Moments in Bad Cover Art

Since I know a number of you already traded in your month-old Criterion discs of Repulsion in favor of Koch's exquisitely packaged "Cinema Sirens" edition, I thought you might like to collect some of your other favorite silver screen ladies, crudely photoshopped into always-appropriate beach attire. My personal favorite you can find above. Vittorio De Sica's Two Women [La ciociara] was a landmark film, introducing American audiences to the imitable Sophia Loren, who became the first actor to win a Best Actress Oscar for a performance not in the English-language with this film. A devastating WWII-era drama about a mother's attempts to keep her daughter safe from the bombings in Rome deserves some classy artwork. So what better than the beautiful Loren in fishnet stockings and clown make-up looking like she's ready to lay an egg? Wasn't there a horrific rape scene in Two Women? I guess that's really beside the point.

All of these ladies know a good bikini is only as good as the high heels you pair with them... which is why Ava Gardner on the cover of The Snows of Kilimanjaro is by far the weakest. Those ankle-strapped low heels are not what I expect out of a Cinema Siren... and why did Koch choose Gardner over the film's star, Miss Susan Hayward? She doesn't even get a mention on the box, and you know mauve is her color! I could complain about the choice of Jayne Mansfield over Phyllis Diller on the box for The Fat Spy, but they didn't even bother to ask Phyllis how she prefers to spell her name. I think I like the extra S; the extra hiss sounds more appropriate for her. Mansfield and Brigitte Bardot must have both asked for the Blondie comic strip hue at the salon. That color is always à la mode. Sadly, I couldn't find a decent-looking cover for a belly-dancing Gina Lollobrigida in Bambole, but you can get a glimpse of it here. The cover touts "Three Italian Bombshells in Four Comedic Vignettes; Also Starring Elke Sommer and Verna Lisi;" I guess that means Monica Vitti isn't a bombshell, Virna Lisi changed her name and Elke Sommer is no longer German. So which siren will you be taking home with you??

Attention Saint Louis Area Cine- and/or Francophiles

Cinema St. Louis and Washington University's Program in Film and Media Studies are presenting their first French Film Festival this coming weekend, 28-30 August. Screening this year are Rialto's restored prints of Jean-Luc Godard's Made in U.S.A. and Max Ophüls' Lola Montès, as well as a trio of contemporary films: Phlippe Ramos' Captain Ahab [Capitaine Achab], with Denis Lavant, Jacques Bonnaffé, Dominique Blanc, Jean-François Stévenin and Lou Castel; Serge Bozon's La France, with Sylvie Testud and Pascal Greggory; and Pascal Thomas' Towards Zero [L'heure zéro], with François Morel, Danielle Darrieux, Chiara Mastroianni, Melvil Poupaud and Laura Smet. For full descriptions of the films, as well as screening times (they will all play at Washington University's Brown Hall Auditorium), check out Cinema St. Louis' website.

Blogging Is Dangerous

The virtual world isn't dangerous, its the user/writer that makes it a lethal weapon.

As secrets are no more secrets, the user had chosen to reveal every single private thing, hurting those loved ones, that's when the 2D world had become a fatal ax, causing destress among the user and the people around.

Next time, I'll choose my word wisely and think carefully before starting a topic.

Words can kill. And this is no longer my blog. Its the whole world's blog.

Michael Barnett's latest kvetch

A reader has brought to our attention the whiny, kvetchy letter sent by Michael Barnett (of the Jewish homosexual one-man-band ‘Aleph’) to his local member, Bob Stensholt MP for Burwood, (with ccs to Rob Hulls, Attorney General, Michael Danby, MP for Melbourne Ports, Scott Davis, Victoria Police Gay & Lesbian Advisory Unit and John Searle, president, JCCV).

(Read it here:
http://aleph.org.au/docs/20090822_Letter_to_Bob_Stensholt_and_Rob_Hulls.pdf )

Poor discriminated-against Michael is still upset about being refused membership to the JCCV 10 years ago and that orthodox rabbis still quote the Torah’s harsh views about homosexuality.
Into the mix he brings our blog as additional proof of the community’s ‘intolerance’ to those of his persuasion.

On August 1 in Tel Aviv there was the horrific shooting in the gay community centre where two people were killed and 15 people injured. The Australian Jewish News covered this event comprehensively. As a direct result of this coverage an anonymous Melbourne Orthodox Jewish blogger posted on AJNWatch some of the most hurtful language directed at gay people that I have ever read.

His letter goes on:

As a man with a Catholic upbringing you will be fully aware of the sections of the Old Testament in the book of Leviticus that describe the prohibition against men having intercourse with other men and the penalties they must face if they transgress this prohibition. This prohibition forms a tenet of Orthodox Jewish dogma and is more fervently upheld than just about any other biblical commandment. The prohibition against homosexual intercourse (and effectively anything relating to any expression of homosexuality) permeates the teachings of Orthodox Judaism at all levels, through schools, colleges, synagogues and every other aspect of Orthdox Jewish life. I challenge you to find an Orthodox Rabbi in Australia who will not denounce practicing homosexuals as sinners and who will not refer to us alongside people who have committed sins of the gravity as murder, adultery, incest or bestiality.

I am not sure what Barnett wants. Should orthodox Shuls be banned from reading those parts of the Torah that describe the sin of this perversion and its punishment?
We have no idea if he belongs to a synagogue or not, but if he feels the need his type of welcoming religion, who is stopping him from joining one of the Reform/Progressive/ Conservative temples where the prohibition on homosexuality and indeed most of the Torah’s tenets – have long been discarded?
In those circles Michael may even be lucky enough to find a clergyman with similar tendencies to himself.

Get Well Mojo Jojo

Our poor Mojo Jojo is in the hospital with a shocking case of dengue fever.
He's not doing very well so please say a prayer for his recovery.
Please be careful everyone and take all the necessary precautions.
And KILL those dreadful mosquitoes.

Get better Mojo.
We love you.

HIV... to Cut or Not to Cut

Dear Readers,

Please read this fantastic article.
I'm writing a paper on the subject and I found this article fascinating.
I hope you do as well.

By RONI CARYN RABIN

Published: August 23, 2009

Public health officials are considering promoting routine circumcision for all baby boys born in the United States to reduce the spread of H.I.V., the virus that causes AIDS.

The topic is a delicate one that has already generated controversy, even though a formal draft of the proposed recommendations, due out from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention by the end of the year, has yet to be released.

Experts are also considering whether the surgery should be offered to adult heterosexual men whose sexual practices put them at high risk of infection. But they acknowledge that a circumcision drive in the United States would be unlikely to have a drastic impact: the procedure does not seem to protect those at greatest risk here, men who have sex with men.

Recently, studies showed that in African countries hit hard by AIDS, men who were circumcised reduced their infection risk by half. But the clinical trials in Africa focused on heterosexual men who are at risk of getting H.I.V. from infected female partners.

For now, the focus of public health officials in this country appears to be on making recommendations for newborns, a prevention strategy that would only pay off many years from now. Critics say it subjects baby boys to medically unnecessary surgery without their consent.

But Dr. Peter Kilmarx, chief of epidemiology for the division of H.I.V./AIDS prevention at the C.D.C., said that any step that could thwart the spread of H.I.V. must be given serious consideration.

“We have a significant H.I.V. epidemic in this country, and we really need to look carefully at any potential intervention that could be another tool in the toolbox we use to address the epidemic,” Dr. Kilmarx said. “What we’ve heard from our consultants is that there would be a benefit for infants from infant circumcision, and that the benefits outweigh the risks.”

He and other experts acknowledged that although the clinical trials of circumcision in Africa had dramatic results, the effects of circumcision in the United States were likely to be more muted because the disease is less prevalent here, because it spreads through different routes and because the health systems are so disparate as to be incomparable.

Clinical trials in Kenya, South Africa and Uganda found that heterosexual men who were circumcised were up to 60 percent less likely to become infected with H.I.V. over the course of the trials than those who were not circumcised.

There is little to no evidence that circumcision protects men who have sex with men from infection.

Another reason circumcision would have less of an impact in the United States is that some 79 percent of adult American men are already circumcised, public health officials say.

But newborn circumcision rates have dropped in recent decades, to about 65 percent of newborns in 1999 from a high of about 80 percent after World War II, according to C.D.C. figures. And blacks and Hispanics, who have been affected disproportionately by AIDS, are less likely than whites to circumcise their baby boys, according to the agency.

Circumcision rates have fallen in part because the American Academy of Pediatrics, which sets the guidelines for infant care, does not endorse routine circumcision. Its policy says that circumcision is “not essential to the child’s current well-being,” and as a result, many state Medicaid programs do not cover the operation.

The academy is revising its guidelines, however, and is likely to do away with the neutral tone in favor of a more encouraging policy stating that circumcision has health benefits even beyond H.I.V. prevention, like reducing urinary tract infections for baby boys, said Dr. Michael Brady, a consultant to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

He said the academy would probably stop short of recommending routine surgery, however. “We do have evidence to suggest there are health benefits, and families should be given an opportunity to know what they are,” he said. But, he said, the value of circumcision for H.I.V. protection in the United States is difficult to assess, adding, “Our biggest struggle is trying to figure out how to understand the true value for Americans.”

Circumcision will be discussed this week at the C.D.C.’s National H.I.V. Prevention Conference in Atlanta, which will be attended by thousands of health professionals and H.I.V. service providers.

Among the speakers is a physician from Operation Abraham, an organization based in Israel and named after the biblical figure who was circumcised at an advanced age, according to the book of Genesis. The group trains doctors in Africa to perform circumcisions on adult men to reduce the spread of H.I.V.

Members of Intact America, a group that opposes newborn circumcision, have rented mobile billboards that will drive around Atlanta carrying their message that “circumcising babies doesn’t prevent H.I.V.,” said Georganne Chapin, who leads the organization.

Although the group’s members oppose circumcision on broad philosophical and medical grounds, Ms. Chapin argued that the studies in Africa found only that circumcision reduces H.I.V. infection risk, not that it prevents infection. “Men still need to use condoms,” Ms. Chapin said.

In fact, while the clinical trials in Africa found that circumcision reduced the risk of a man’s acquiring H.I.V., it was not clear whether it would reduce the risk to women from an infected man, several experts said.

“There’s mixed data on that,” Dr. Kilmarx said. But, he said, “If we have a partially successful intervention for men, it will ultimately lower the prevalence of H.I.V. in the population, and ultimately lower the risk to women.”

Circumcision is believed to protect men from infection with H.I.V. because the mucosal tissue of the foreskin is more susceptible to H.I.V. and can be an entry portal for the virus. Observational studies have found that uncircumcised men have higher rates of other sexually transmitted diseases like herpes and syphilis, and a recent study in Baltimore found that heterosexual men were less likely to have become infected with H.I.V. from infected partners if they were circumcised.