Blog Updates

I've made some minor updates to the site. All the better to serve you!

You'll note that I've added a list of blogs I've found instructive, useful, or just plain entertaining. I'll add to it as I find more.

Apparently, I had a "Follower." This is someone who has subscribed to the blog and is notified when there are updates. I have no idea who this person is; but if any others of you would like to "follow" me please sign up. (Sorry, that's just the most hilarious notion. The notion that I'm some kind martial arts master and spiritual guru is absolutely ridiculous.)

I am considering some other upgrades, so stay tuned!

It doesn't like that name...

I've seen a lot of television series conclude. The best so far was probably Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Oh, I know, some of you who have been hanging around here lately are probably having a good laugh. Tough. It was a great show. Go back and watch a few episodes: it had substance. Behind all the make-up and martial arts and geeky mythology was a story about real human beings.

Its contemporary, The Sopranos, got a lot of press, and just about all the prestige. Don't get me wrong, that was a great show too.

But I really felt like I was saying good-bye to friends when Buffy ended. I was emotionally invested in each of them.

I've just watched the end of the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica. I can't let the moment pass without saying something. This was a very literate show. It was about all the big ideas: life, death, morality, God, good, evil, free will...

It's easy to flub the ending to a big story like that. So I was nervous when the show drew to a close.

They hit it perfectly.

Blogs

So, I've been reading some of my fellow bloggers and found a few you might be interested in...

The first two are pretty straight forward martial arts blogs.

Bujutsu Blogger

Tales of a Budo Bum

Hey... I know I have a chapter of the Anshu Christa Jacobson Fan Club reading, so here's her blog.

And a buddy of mine pointed this one out. I don't know what's going on, but I'm amused.

Circumstances

Gene Simmons (No Relation);

First, you did not offend me. You offered a "teachable" moment.

Second, I thank you for reading and contributing in your creative manner. I get the joke -- at least, I think I do... In any event, I enjoy your slightly weird comments, and even look forward to them.

You are touching upon the subject of an ongoing discussion I have with my good friend, SkyNinja. On the subject of what will keep me alive, I defer to SkyNinja's practical expertise. His advice on knife defense -- based on his training and experience -- is not to use a fancy knife disarm. Instead, you should use a "ballistic" defense. Basically, it's what you described: hit the guy as often as possible to overwhelm him -- avoid the knife -- escape from the area. These three actions should be accomplished in whatever order best allows you to survive with the least injury. Oh, and it sounds like you should do the actual hitting with the best weapon available to you.

I trust you will find this advice to be practical. I'm feeling practical and tactical today; I'm wearing my jeans today, not my jammies.

On the (theoretical) other hand... "Fancy" knife disarms exist in many different martial arts. And many of them come from eras and cultures with a great deal of experience with blades. It's hard for me to dismiss them outright.

This may be a situation in which the circumstances that gave rise to a martial art play a role in understanding the techniques. For example, a knife defense from Japan may have been developed assuming an overt attack on a battlefield and an armored defender. That's a very different -- probably more survivable -- situation than a prison shanking.

Also, there may be a faulty assumption at work with knife defenses: just because the technique exists doesn't mean it will work 100% of the time. We don't have that expectation of any other martial art technique. Even the most basic punch fails to land a percentage of the time. We don't say the Guard doesn't work just because it can be passed. We may have to acknowledge that a knife disarm may only work... what 1% or 5% of the time. It's still better than having no technique at all.

There may also be a viscious circle. If the technique is low percentage, you might not train it often. Then, if you don't train it often, its effectiveness is probably reduced.

But your other question; what should you train for? That's a good question. It's going to depend on your circumstances. If you're in a risky environment and constant danger then my advice would be to practice basic techniques with a high percentage of success and seek out teachers with practical experience. If you're interested in martial arts for their own sake and aren't worried about your day-to-day survival, then I think you'll get more mileage out of a "traditional" martial art -- jammies and all. If you want to compete, then you need to find a fight gym and prepare to spend a lot of time boxing and wrestling.

I hope that doesn't sound too mystical, grasshopper. Martial arts isn't a one-size fits all activity -- no matter how many folks insist it is. There is no single way of doing things best.

Col. Rex Applegate

"Mr. Applegate contradicts a lot of what I've seen..." Really? Are you sure we're reading the same Rex Applegate? I'd like to deal with this seriously -- though I know it's at my own peril.

Okay, Rex Applegate was the close combat (armed and unarmed) expert assigned to the Office of Strategic Services during World War II. His job was to develop the course of instruction for special commandos, spies, saboteurs, and other special operatives of the United States. His work was originally based on the work William Fairbairn performed for the United Kingdom to teach the Special Operations Executive and the British Commandos.

In a sense, Applegate is the grandfather of the reality-based martial arts. You know, the guys who often claim to re-invent the wheel, or is that invent a better mouse-trap? I don't know... I can't tell them all apart in those street clothes...

Applegate's curriculum does NOT contradict good martial arts technique. I've got the three books authored or co-authored by Col. Applegate -- pictured at the top. I've taken a few interior photos to demonstrate what I mean. Immediately above is Applegate's "Japanese Strangle." It probably looks very familiar to the BJJ and Judo crowd. It's the basic Rear Naked Choke, sometimes called a triangle choke or Mata Leao.

Oh, look here: a basic outside wrist throw. Actually, this photograph indicates to me that Applegate and his team weren't especially advanced martial artists. It doesn't utilize several of the principles of martial arts as laid out in Pearlman's Book of Martial Power. (The spines aren't aligned, for one...) But while this is crude, it will work.

Here's something Applegate labeled the Cross-Arm Choke...

...and here, in Kyuzo Mifune's book The Canon of Judo, is pretty much the same front choke. Mifune was one of Jigoro Kano's original students, and the last Judan in Judo. The Canon of Judo was writen in the late '50's -- it was the summation of the art he had been learning since the earliest part of the 20th Century. Once again, Applegate has nothing new; although he has chosen a particularly effective technique. That was his real talent.

Now, it might seem as if Applegate was cherrypicking from Judo. Not really. This is a good time to point out that all martial arts exhibit a sort of convergent evolution. Despite the cosmetic and cultural differences people see at first, all good martial arts have more in common than they don't.

This, for example, is a sequence from the book I have on Medieval and Renaissance Dagger techniques. Pay special attention to the key lock illustrated in the lower left hand corner...

... Because it reappears on this page from Applegate's Kill or Be Killed. The arm key lock itself is nothing special. It appears in Taijutsu (as onikudaki), Aikido and Judo as variations of ude garami, and BJJ as the Americana. Incidentally, BJJ calls this the "Americana" because it was "borrowed" from Catch Wrestling as practiced in the US, which has its roots in folk wrestling from England... You get the drift.

Two more knife defenses, first from Applegate on the left, and from the Rennaisance on the right. Again, the relative sophistication of Applegate's team is evident in comparison to the experienced Western Martial Artists on the right. Note how Applegate's man is still square and close to the opponent. The other defender has utilized his space to create distance, and has bladed his body to present a smaller target.

I'm not digging against Applegate and his team. Given the situation, their product is actually pretty good. They learned and adapted quickly.

Oh, Applegate's curriculum even included pressure points; something many (but not all) modern reality based martial artists don't put much stock into.

The point of all this -- and there is a point -- is one we've seen a million times before: there is nothing new under the sun. All martial arts lead to the same destination.

Kyra Gracie: The Face of Ladie's BJJ

Books

Given my injury, I haven't been training much over the past few months. This lack of training to fuel my thoughts has contributed to the lack of blog posts. This doesn't mean I haven't been thinking about stuff worthy of blogging -- only that my thoughts have been meandering through some of the thickets of the Bujinkan, and martial arts history, theory and philosophy.

In other words, I've been reading. No, you can't learn martial arts from a book, but that doesn't mean books can't help a martial artist (especially an injured one) develop. Here are some of my five favorite martial arts books:

1. The Book of Martial Power, by Steven Pearlman


2. Living the Martial Way, by Forrest E. Morgan


3. Anything by Dave Lowry


4. Understand, Good, Play, by Masaaki Hatsumi


5. The Secrets of Judo, by Jiichi Watanabe and Lindy Avakian

You'll notice that only one of these a Bujinkan book, and more importantly none of them are catalogs of technique.

You might also note that none of the typical philosophical texts are mentioned: The Art of War, The Book of Five Rings, Hagajure, The Unfettered Mind... I've read those too. Obviously those have their place too. Generations have read them. I can't claim to fully understand the traditional philosophical texts. Even so, I think the Hagakure is over-rated and often misunderstood. The Unfettered Mind is more about Zen than martial arts. The Book of Five Rings is good; but it must be read and re-read, and then the reader needs to find ways to experience what Musashi described. It's a workbook. By the way, the book may be fine, but it is likely that Musashi is over-rated and misunderstood (at least in the West). Among these usual suspects, The Art of War is the most clear and concise. Again, though, be prepared to revisit this again and again.

There are a number of other traditional texts worth looking at, for example: The 36 Strategies, The Demon's Sermon on the Martial Arts, The Life-Giving Sword, The Bubushi... But these were are not to be read without some grounding in the history and culture of Japan, in addition to some extensive training in Budo.

LARPs and LRRPs

This is true, but it's a bit of a fable...

The Bujinkan gets a lot of heat for the ninja connection. The detractors like to throw the insulting label "LARPers" around. "LARP" stands for "live action role play." If you're not familiar with the term, it's like crossing Dungeons and Dragons with a Renaissance Festival and taking it all to another level. The Society for Creative Anachronism is one kind of LARP.

Obviously, the allegation is that Bujinkan folks are dressing up like 16th Century Japanese assasins and pretending.

"We" tend to resent this. Though many of "us" don't help our cause.

And let me briefly mention at this point that our "unbroken" lineage to 34 generations of ninja masters is disputed by many historians, and not all of them have an axe to grind regarding the issue. The fact seems to be that the paperwork isn't there. "We" tend to argue that there are lots of reasons why the paperwork doesn't match-up: some are good reasons, and some are bad reasons. I've become somewhat agnostic on this particular point. Intellectual honesty demands that I admit the paperwork isn't all together for an independent verification. On the other hand, practice of the techniques identified as ninjutsu leads me to believe something had to be there for Takamatsu. I'll leave it to more qualified minds to prove or disprove whether or not he collected the techniques, expanded on the techniques, or invented the techniques out of thin air.

While there are kata associated with Togakure Ryu, there are also techniques for silent walking. Now these are not described in kata -- at least as they have been taught to me. Silent walking is usually passed on as a series of suggestions or guidance on how to move by subtly shifting your weight and minimizing sound. In order to really master these methods, you have to practice them.

I once taught the silent walking methods to a Vietnam veteran. Back in the day, he was a LRRP. Now "LRRP" should most definitely not be confused with "LARP." LRRP stands for Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol. Soldiers volunteering for LRRP units snuck into enemy-held territory and searched for enemy units. Then they would radio in for artillery, or air strikes, or more conventional infantry. Silence and stealth was their trade. Since they usually deployed in very small teams and specifically sought out much larger bodies of troops, they tried to avoid being found at all costs.

So this old LRRP listened carefully as I briefed him on the "ninja" walking methods. I explained to him that practice was essential, and that I did not claim to have them mastered. He told me the methods were very similar to what he'd been trained to do, or learned by trial and error, in the jungles of Vietnam. Of course, this makes sense, since the human body moves only so many different ways. Not long after this quick training, he was silently sneaking across the mat. Despite the years and mileage, his body quickly relearned the old habits and he was the quietest of any of us.

Learning to walk quietly does not make a person a ninja, any more than it makes them a LRRP. Nor is it an essential martial arts skill -- though I'd suggest it has certain benefits. But if I go out to the park to practice walking silently through the grass, am I LARPing? Or is it only if I put on my AWMA-supplied Shinobi Shozoku (with two piece mask) and hide in the woods?

What about if I throw around blinding powder? Who can deny that learning to blind an opponent is not a useful combative skill? But I'm not denying that I'm LARPing if I play dress up at the same time.

There's a really thin line here. And I think it is all too easy to cross.

Update

Hey!

I had my ACL reconstruction surgery last Friday afternoon. The surgical team was phenomenal, and except for the part where they cut into my flesh, poked around a major joint, and drilled holes in my bones to attach a bit of some cadaver's tendon, I really couldn't have asked for a better experience.

I've been recovering very nicely. I'm able to bend my knee on my own to about 90 degrees, I can put weight on my leg, and I have no serious pain. In fact, the worst part seems to be the itching I have from keeping my stitches covered.

I was even able to hobble a couple of blocks up to a Shorin Ryu karate dojo in my neighborhood and watch classes yesterday. They were working on kihon, and watching the punches, kicking, stances, and walking was very interesting. I've been working on my martial arts notes, and correalating several interesting sources on some of the most basic principles of fighting. The karate school demonstrated many of the essential principles very clearly in their movements, and I was also able to watch several different levels of practitioners to see the different qualities in their movements.

I'm hobbling around on crutches, although I think I'll be able to graduate to a cane after my post-op follow-up next week. I spent some time making a Jo last week: a 4-foot long stick. I expect to use it in the dojo when I get back onto the mat. As soon as I feel up to avoiding rolling students, I'm going to get back into my own dojo to teach. I wanted a stick for extra support, and also to make me highly visible to the students so they it's easier for them to avoid bumping into me. A hanbo would work, but an extra foot of length will be somewhat easier for me to handle. Plus, I haven't really worked with a Jo...

Here are some YouTube videos of different styles of stick and staff work. As always, I make no guarantees about the quality...

Great Moments in Ninja (Pop) History

Here... at 5:08.

I know, it really doesn't seem like much now, but this was the early 80's. And it was one of the first mainstream appearances of a ninja in American pop culture.

The Sons of Dorn: The Fifth Company of the Imperial Fists Space Marines

A few months back, I posted pictures of my White Scars Space Marines. They seemed to be a hit. If you google image "White Scars Space Marines," pictures of my models show up near the top! I like to think of my blog as being more about martial arts, but it's great to be known for something! At the time, I mentioned that my next project would be the entire Fifth Company of the Imperial Fists. This project has progressed to the point where sharing some photos might be worthwhile. So here they are...
So far I have the following units finished: the 1st and 2d Tactical Squads, the 9th Devastator Squad with attached Razorback, and the Company Chaplain. I also have elements attached from the 1st Company: Captain Lysander, a Librarian in Terminator armor, a Terminator Squad, and a 1st Company Dreadnought.

A shot of Lysander, surrounded by his bodyguard of 1st Company Terminators. Eventually, these guys will have a Land Raider to transport them.

A group shot showing the Forge World Dreadnought.

Another group shot.

The Terminator squad, with Forge World Imperial Fist shoulder pads and other conversions.

This is a Forge World Mark IV Dreadnought. I used the siege drill left arm and assault cannon arms. If this model ever sees a game, I will probably count the siege drill as a normal Dreadnought CCW and heavy flamer. The back banner is brass rod and thin sheet plastic. The rod is capped with fists cut from space marine arms in my bit box.

In a Battle Company, the 9th and 10th Squads are Devastator squads carrying heavy weapons. This is the 9th Squad, lead by an archive Vet Sergeant model. I plan for both Devastator squads to have Razorback transports for added punch. The army is themed for a siege, and I figure in that instance, the company would deploy as much punch as possible.

Here's the Terminator Librarian.

The 1st Tactical Squad, lead by another archive Vet Sergeant, armed with bolter and power axe. The squad gets a little extra punch from a plasma gun. It does not have a heavy weapon. I envision the first and second squads as manuever squads that will be supported from the vehicles and Devastator squads. Eventually, all the Tac squads will have their own Rhino transport.

This is the 2d Tactical Squad. The Vet Sergeant is armed with a power sword and bolt pistol, and the squad also has a plasma gun. I've tried a couple of subtle things to emphasize my theme of a Siege-based Imperial Fists force. The Fists are a first Founding Chapter, one of the oldest in the Imperium, so I've used archive metal models to show older marks of armor. The Fists are the parent chapter for the Black Templars, so I've mixed in a few Black Templar parts. There's some disagreement about what quirks and traits characterize the Imperial Fists. Some players believe the Fists have a mild tendency towards knightly imagery. I fall into this camp, especially since they are the parent chapter for the Black Templars. They also seem to like swords, so I've used power swords where I could. I used the small shields from the Bretonnian knights box on the arms, playing up the knightly imagery, and adding some extra armor that would be useful for a siege force.

This is the 5th Company Chaplain. I'm not 100% convinced that a power weapon and power fist combo is useful, but I really think this model screams out to be included in an Imperial Fists force.

These are the Vet Sergeants for the 3rd and 4th Tactical Squads. I have another box of Tactical marines ready to go, but I was ready for a break after painting all this yellow. I still have plenty of Imperial Fists and vehicles to paint before the whole company is finished. I'm going slow, because I'm still deciding how to paint-up the two squads of Assault Marines... But they should look good.

In the meantime, I've backtracked to add to my White Scars army. I'm midway through painting a command bike squad. I'll post pictures of those when I'm finished. I'm ripping through these projects while I'm on the injured list for this ACL problem.

Why vote for the lesser evil?

I wait no longer...

Vote Cthulhu.
He believes in an Army of One...
He has the ultimate heath care plan...
And he has plans to solve poverty and world hunger in one fell swoop.

Why not? After all most of America will be voting for Nyrlathotep...

News Update

I want to post this once so I don't have to recount the story in untold numbers of emails.

In late August I was attending a Monday night class at the dojo. We were warming up and doing wind sprints across the mats. On the last length of the mat, I turned on my right leg and my knee gave out. I dropped like a sack of wet gi. It took all my determination to get up and hobble off the mat to get out of the way.

This was not the first time I'd hurt this knee. My first injury was nearly two years ago. I was working a throwing drill. Most throwing drills -- for better or worse -- involve a cooperative partner. This is done for safety's sake. Judo and MMA sometimes use antagonistic throwing drills -- and the injuries do mount up. This is the main reason why BJJ sparring usually starts on the ground -- hence the term: "rolling."

During this drill I went to throw my partner with Osoto Gake, a rear sweep. I made the cardinal mistake of not taking his balance at the head first; and instead he shifted and threw me. Most of my body went one way, but my right leg was stopped in place for the throw. I felt a pop in my knee. It hurt for a couple of days, but went away. I decided to be a tough guy and didn't go to a doctor.

Between these two events, I could feel shifting in my knee. Some of these shifts were minor, and some were more... impressive.

After my last injury, I had an MRI done. It should a torn Anterior Cruciate ligament, or ACL, and a couple of tears in the meniscus. I went to an orthopedist two weeks ago, but I wasn't pleased with the visit. I won't give too much detail, but I didn't like that the doctor kept hinting I should find a different hobby. Maybe something safe, like golf.

So I got a second opinion this week. I went to see a doctor a little further away, but he was in my high school graduating class, and I hoped he'd be more sympathetic. He was.

He believes my ACL probably tore during the first injury. The things I felt were pivotal shifts in the joint the ACL is suppossed to prevent. The twist during the last wind sprint was a time bomb waiting to happen. Fortunately, he can reconstruct the ACL very easily, and its a surgery he performs all the time. He recommended the surgery if I intend to keep the same level of activity up and said it is what he'd do if it was his knee.

So I'll be getting the surgery done in November. We haven't set the date just yet. The recovery is fairly long, but he was optimistic about the progress. I'd be down initially about two weeks. Then I'd go for physical therapy. The doc said I could be reintroduced gradually into martial arts as part of my PT. I'll probably be running again, short distances, in about three months, and possibly back to nearly normal class participation at 7 to 9 months. I'd be fully cleared in a year. The first doctor had said I'd be off the mat completely for a year.

So is this what's kept me from blogging all this time? No, not really. But my mind has been on many other things lately. Not to mention that I've been executing my master plan for world domination by destabilizing the US economy.

This is...

SPARTA!

Cheesecake returns

I'm a fan of the artist Bawidamann. Maybe you can tell why in this side-by-side shot of the art and the artist's inspiration.

Dark Secrets

Somewhere on the Bullshido.com server lurks an especially vigorous attack on the first ninjutsu dojo I ever belonged to. Now, I'll be the first to say that there was plenty worth attacking about this dojo, but somehow this young man missed all the shenanigans and instead complained for several paragraphs that the dojo didn't teach him to fight correctly.

Based on some clues within the post, I was able to do some rough calculations and determine that when this young man left the dojo he was between 12 and 14 years old. Now in his mid-to-late twenties, he's discovered the ultimate secret to fighting by training in MMA with adult men. Ok, tough guy.

I haven't seen any martial arts school teach the Under-14 crowd the secrets of brutal close quarters hand-to-hand combat. Maybe one is out there, But I'd be nervous about what they're doing to the kids' psyches.

This isn't to say what's taught to kids is some watered down version of martial arts. Rather, what's taught is how to punch, how to kick, how to throw, how to stand, how to move correctly -- but without focusing on the effects. And even while we're talking about a proper strike or throw, the kids themselves are happily ignoring the ultimate point of the strike or throw: to hurt another human being.

This isn't necessarily a bad thing. I don't want a ten-year-old assassin ready to kill the playground bully with a flick of his wrist. Most kids, up through high school, are in a martial arts class struggling to learn how to coordinate their bodies. The most effective self-defense for them is the inner strength instilled by the discipline of class, the respect for self and others, and the confidence that grows out of practice. I'm sure a few of them will get into physical scuffles, but (at least with the kids I deal with) the greatest danger is probably a minor injury, a bloody nose or a broken arm. I'm confident the skills we teach -- and they learn, which is the most important part -- will carry them through that level of danger.

These days it seems most kids go through a martial arts class as part of the parade of sports they try. Most won't stick with it, so while you have them, you try to show them the best and brightest side of martial arts. This is the part that makes the human spirit shine. You don't drill them in the ugliness of assault.

But as a teacher, it's important to realize that you're not teaching the physical movement differently. I've never modified a technique or kata. I've never not taught proper distancing and angling. I've never not shown how to properly transfer power through a punch to a target. And I've never taught flashy weapons handling over practicality. (Of course, this is all within the limits of my understanding at the time.) It's all there. So the foundations are being laid in every student.

But a time does come when you show the truth.

J, for example, has been with us since he was very small. Now he's about to go off to college on a ROTC scholarship. I remember scolding him in class as a kid. But he's pretty talented. As an aside, J's another one of those guys who think MMA holds the truth about real fighting. I hear hm talking about all the various, cool grappling moves he's practicing. I don't know if he's really cross training or messing around in his backyard.

J's even thinking about the Army's Top Fighter, an MMA-type competition fed by the Army Combative training.

I was working with J one recent Saturday. He asked if there was anything I was working on. Actually, I'm working on the first couple of Kukishinden Ryu taijutsu kata, so I showed him Seion. As we worked through it, I realized Seion had a couple of secrets worth mentioning to J.

So I explained how Kukishinden Ryu taijutsu is based on fighting in full armor against a similarly armed opponent. The idea in the first section is to use the armored opponent's top heaviness against him, and throw using the force of your legs. After a couple more tries, I explained how grabbing in kumiuchi allowed the right hand to latch onto the chest plate like a handle -- and more importantly for a future Army officer; that soft body armor had a similar opening that could be used. I could tell that got his attention. Then I showed how you should dump the opponent onto his head. And also how I believe, though it's not in the kata, that given the situation the proper "ending" of the kata is not a flurry of strikes before backing away. (Which is the self-defense response we usually teach.) Rather, stabbing the opponent in the neck, or using his helmet for leverage in breaking the neck.

"The point is," I told him, "kill the guy standing up, or no later than as he hits the ground; and use a weapon if you can."

I don't care how you get there. You can use Judo, BJJ, MMA, Taijutsu, TKD, Tai Chi, etc. As handed down to me by many different people whom I have every reason to trust, that statement is the only secret to combat as it really matters. Train any art with a deep understanding of this concept, and you are on your way to becoming dangerous.

It's a brutal, ugly truth. It's not something I see myself getting a class of 10-year-olds to chant like I'm Sensei Kreese running CobraKai. But I don't have to: I only need to teach the movement correctly. When the time is right, when the student is right, you can share the little secrets about the dark side. Those ideas that clarify the movement and make it all matter.

Olympic level Martial Arts

Although all the attention has understandably been on the swimming, and traditional sports, there is no shortage of exciting martial arts action at the Olympics: Judo, Tae Kwon Do, several forms of wrestling, boxing, fencing...

I think you'll find the Judo competition especially interesting. MSNBC has highlights available on line. One of the fascinating things about this competition is the talent from all over the world. Japan dominates this sport, but plenty of other countries have sent impressive athletes. One highlight features a spectacular throw from a Kazakhstan judoka.

It's possible there will be some coverage this week of Tae Kwon Do, because of the human interest story about the Lopez family, which is sending two brothers and a sister to compete: three family members in one Olympic event.

I'm no expert on the Olympic sports martial arts, but I am one of those guys who gets all geeky about the Olympics when they come on. I find them compulsive watching.

Bigfoot sighted!

I can't make this stuff up...

Of course, with DNA test results like: human OR opossum, it's no wonder OJ was acquited.

Generation Kill

I highly recommend the HBO mini series: Generation Kill. It's based on a non-fiction book of the same about a Marine Recon company during the initial invasion of Iraq.

Sideshow Collectibles presents: Snakes Eyes 12"action figure

Sideshow Collectibles have announced they will produce a line of GI Joe toys under license to Hasbro. These are pictures of the first figure they will release sometime next Spring: Snake Eyes. They brought prototypes to the recent San Diego ComicCon 2008.

The really scary thing is... This ain't that far off from my gear suite.

Yeah, I have one on pre-order...