Coming Clean

I am perhaps best known to my friends as the guy who listens bands whose members stab each other to death and consume the victim's brains. As kvlt as I am, I did not grow up hermetically sealed within the northern darkness of a Scandinavian forest. I am a product of the suburbs. So it is only natural that I have a strong, though often repressed, proclivity towards pop-punk.

Allow me to clarify that I'm not talking about socially acceptable bands like The Movielife (who bring the ruckus). It's time to come clean. I am an NFG fan. There's no use lying about it. During my adolescent years their self-titled release received heavy rotation in my discman. Subsequent releases were more inconsistent in terms of quality, but nevertheless enjoyable.

Below is a video for a new NFG song. Jordan's vocals are as sackless as ever. But maybe they're easier to stomach on account of the Madball shirt he's wearing. And I'm down with that. I refuse to further hide my affection. I am fucking into this.

Doubt

Directed by John Patrick Shanley
(2008)

Upon watching the trailer, the audience's understanding of what this film is about has already solidified. A pastor, a boy, a church, controversy, outrage - of course it's child molestation. Well maybe. We see all the incriminating evidence attributed to Philip Seymour Hoffman's character, Father Flynn: the progressive outlook on the church, a sermon on "doubt," long fingernails, his perhaps excessive warmth towards the boy in question, etc. As he digs in his heels to oppose multiple accusations, so grows our fervor for justice, while our vision for truth narrows exponentially.

We, the audience, align ourselves with Sister Aloysius (Meryl Streep), whose crusade against Flynn begins long before any rumors of pedophilia; his sermon on "doubt" raises her suspicions, and the word of a possible relationship with a student merely gives her an occasion to begin the witch hunt. While the mystery surrounding the offense fuels the plot, figuring out whether or not Father Flynn did what he has been charged with doing is beside the point. Flynn was guilty before we stepped into the theatre; it was just a matter of figuring out the trivial how he gets caught.

This incessant need to peg the pastor as a child molester morphs the screen into a mirror. When the ambiguity of the facts sets in (it might take a bit), we are left with nothing but our own preconceived notions and the means taken to ensure that these notions are correct - which includes domineering and fabricating, as demonstrated by Sister Aloysius. Instead of reveling in the apprehension of the supposed criminal, reflection upon inner turmoil is necessary: when passing judgement on a situation, can the truth of the matter actually be found? Hence the last line of the film by a tearful Sister Aloysius: "I have doubts. I have such doubts."

Quite the assumption has been made in believing that the majority of viewers will find Hoffman's character to be guilty for most - if not all - of the duration of Doubt. I do not feel it is unfounded to do so. General tendencies exist. And as Father Flynn says, "Doubt can be a bond as powerful and sustaining as certainty. When you are lost, you are not alone."

NCAA Basketball Championship

That wasn't even close. You have to hand it the Tar Heels for straight-up whooping tons of ass. I'm glad that bug-eyed white kid Hansbrough got his redemption. I wouldn't want to see him cry tears of sadness over something as arbitrary as throwing a ball through a hoop.

To the players from both teams who don't go on to the NBA, I'd just like to say that I hope you enjoyed your short time as mini-celebrities. Perhaps you'll be able reclaim that status playing over in Kazakhstan. If not, better rethink that General Studies degree you're currently going for...

Time-tested

I don't want to come off like some Converge fanboy or groupie, but I felt compelled to post this. Below is recent footage of them playing "The Saddest Day," which is perhaps the most epic hardcore song ever written - running almost eight minutes long. It was originally released on Petitioning the Empty Sky in 1997, meaning it's 12 years old and still doesn't sound dated. I hope they continue to mix in a lot of this older material into their future sets.