Obama's Rise to Glory!

So it's finally official... Obama is president and not a minute to soon! After watching the Inauguration yesterday I couldn't help but admire the amazing images of history! To see him standing at the Capitol addressing millions in the audience and millions around the world was awe-inspiring! The day made for all sorts of striking images, such as people crying tears of happiness! I'll be posting my favorite ones, throughout the next few days! What a joyful, historic day it was!

But it also made me reflect on how Obama got to this historic moment. Starting with his speech at the 2004 DNC, Obama quickly arose to public attention. Within a couple years, he went from an unheard of Senator, to the biggest Political Celebrity this country has ever known. He brings the total package to the presidency; charisma, intelligence, confidence, appeal, firmness, and culture! He has once again made it cool to be patriotic... So anyway, here's a quick glimpse of Obama's exciting campaign through the year, and the memorable gatherings he has brought! These numbers are all record-breaking, and capture his significant impact on the country!


Rally in Portland, Oregon

May 18, 2008

Attendance: 75,000









The Democratic National Convention

INVESCO Field, Colorado, Denver

August 28, 2008

Attendence: 84,000









Rally in St. Louis, MO

October 18, 2008

Attendance: 100,000









Victory Speech

Grant Park, Chicago, Illinois

November 4, 2008

Attendance: 250,000

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Inaugural Address

Washington DC

January 20, 2009

Attendance: 2,000,000




It's been a very long 8 years, and it's nice to finally have a new face in the White House. Obama has already made history, and the real story has yet to even begin! So what happens from here? Only time will tell.... Though I know one thing for sure after seeing these incredible pictures... People are ready for change and Barack Obama is their man to do it!!!

Tribute: Martin Luther King Jr

I feel with today being Martin Luther King day, it is fitting to start a new series of blogs; Tributes to Great Revolutionaries... A revolutionary is someone who has impacted history with a major social change.. whether it's the way we look at race, religion, science, war, art, politics, etc! these people are inspirations in the advancement of peace and humanity! so who better to start with than the voice of the Civil Rights Movement, Martin Luther King!


As a kid, I thought of him merely as a potential day off of school... As a smart, preaching, doctor who marched on Washington DC, and gave his famous "I Have a Dream" speech... Sure, I recognized his significance in the African-American community, yet never thought of him as a real historical figure, in the likes of Abraham Lincoln, Ben Franklin, or George Washington... Well now I have completely changed that perspective, and believe that MLK's significance is just as important if not more than the American presidents and leaders we studied in school.

To understand MLK and what he stood for, one must really grab a sense of the time... Following the abolition of slavery, blacks were still harshly treated due to the Jim Crow laws, which basically regulated racial discrimination. These laws kept strict segregations of the races... These segregations continued all the way until the 1950s and 1960s... until MLK, along with other big names such as Rosa Parks and Malcolm X, spoke out and challenged the established system! MLK became the leader of the Civil Rights Movement, with it's soul purpose to end racial discrimination! After years of protest and marching he led the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom where he delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. This marked a pivotal moment in not only the history of African-Americans yet the history of America as a country. It led to the signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which outlawed racial segregation. Even after this important event, MLK continued to work as an activist in hopes that one day people could look beyond color and instead at the content of their character. His assassination in 1968 marked for a terrible loss to the progression of humanity. Yet his voice of change has been long remembered and continues to echo through history!



Martin Luther King Jr, "I have a dream" August 28, 1963 at Lincoln Memorial

"And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the Old Negro spiritual: Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!"

Random Notes

Well I'm back in FW, living here for who knows how long, and I have to say it hasn't really set in yet... the last few days have been very hectic due to my mom's birthday... every year, she likes to turn her birthday into a week-long thing, and this year has been the craziest ever, full of many restaurants and parties... which is why i haven't really had time to get situated much less unpack... hopefully tomorrow though, i'll finally get some time to myself to get things organized!

I've been getting in touch with Sergio lately, which is good, and hopefully he and I can really start working on some things together! we both seem to have similar ideas... I still want to get in touch with many other old FW friends also, and build up somewhat of a network here...

I recently realized that I may need to purchase a car soon, because my brother Gabriel will be getting his liscence soon... This means there no longer will be an extra car floating around, which is not good for my job hunting/social life! I definitely dont want to buy a car, because i feel that it is serious baggage that I don't quite need yet, but i may not have an option... we shall see though... more on this in the future!

I've been falling back into Obama-fever these last few days with the inauguration coming up. I'm happy that I will be able to watch and record the entire thing on Tuesday... It's too bad I can't be there in DC, but i say to myself at least i was there for the historical rally at Grant Park!!

Me and Jackie watched alot of football today... first time in a while! The Arizona Cardinals are going to the Superbowl!? I still can't quite fathom it... McNabb was just a total disappointment today for the Eagles... I can't help but feel sorry for him, and think that maybe he's just washed up! He always comes so close and yet always fails... so anyway it'll be the Cardinals vs. the Steelers for the SuperBowl... I have my money on a Pittsburgh Steelers Blowout!

I had to trim my beard today... :(
after getting a haircut, it just did not go well with the long beard... so after nearly a month of growing it out, the scruffiness is gone! this was by far the longest id ever grown it... someday it will be back!

Saw the movie "Benjamin Button" few days ago with Lauren and I gotta say i walked out with mixed feelings... I had very high expectations for this movie, thinking it was going to be the next "Forest Gump" yet was somewhat let down... The special effects were amazing, and there were some parts that really had my attention, like the tugboat scenes... the length of the movie didn't bother me too much, but i think the sheer strangeness of it all did... the story was interesting, unlike anything I'd ever seen, yet it just made for an all out weird environment... the best example i can think of is at the end, when an old Cate Blanchett holds her true love in her arms; an infant Brad Pitt... awkward!

-coming soon: a Tribute to Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy; two Revolutionists who paved the way for President Barack Obama!!

Greatest Villain of All Time

Well folks... it's all been, "a part of the plan"....... Although I must admit it was not easy making this final decision, I think nobody deserves it more than The Joker. As recent as the performance may be, I still feel that it is fitting to have him at the top, and that his legacy will continue to grow through time... So here's to Heath Ledger as "The Joker", the greatest villain in cinema history!

1. The Joker

Movie: The Dark Knight
Year: 2008
Actor: Heath Ledger

Why: The Joker was taken to a new and darker level with this masterful performance by Heath Ledger. Here we get to see a more psychotic and deranged villain instead of the clown he is known for. His character is still very humorous with many practical jokes yet mixed with a heavy dose of insanity. The Joker feels that Gotham City deserves a better villain and he's the guy to give it to them. He is an agent of chaos who believes the only sensible way to live is without rules, pure anarchy! As mad as The Joker may be, he is also very sensible and is a brilliant, mastermind schemer. Throughout the story he unleashes his master-plans of chaos and havoc in the streets, which not even Batman can fully handle. After all he knew he would not have a chance in a fist-to-fist fight with Batman so why not hit him where it really hurts... The future of Gotham.

Key Line: "Do you know why I use a knife? Guns are too quick. You can't savor all the... little emotions. In... you see, in their last moments, people show you who they really are. So in a way, I know your friends better than you ever did. Would you like to know which of them were cowards?"


Quick ReCap

50. Captain Barbossa (Pirates of the Caribbean)
49. Colonel Stryker (X-Men 2)
48. Marcellus Wallace (Pulp Fiction)
47. Crowned Prince Leopold (The Illusionist)
46. Terry Benedict (Ocean's Eleven)
45. The White Witch (Chronicles of Narnia)
44. Percy Whitmore (The Green Mile)
43. Vincent Vega (Pulp Fiction)
42. Cyrus Grissom (Con-Air)
41. Darth Maul (Star Wars Phantom Menace)
40. Severus Snape (Harry Potter)
39. Coach Bud Kilmer (Varsity Blues)
38. Tommy DeVito (Goodfellas)
37. Frank Costello (The Departed)
36. King Agamemnon (Troy)
35. Sweeney Todd (Sweeney Todd: Demon Barber of Fleet Street)
34. Derek Vineyard (American History X)
33. Jules Winnfield (Pulp Fiction)
32. Antonio Salieri (Amadeus)
31. Mola Ran (Indiana Jones & Temple of Doom)
30. Bill the Butcher (Gangs of New York)
29. Mr. Creedy (V for Vendetta)
28. Colonel Frank Fitts (American Beauty)
27. Magneto (X-Men)
26. O-Ren Ishii & the Crazy 88 (Kill Bill Vol 1)
25. King Edward Longshanks (Braveheart)
24. Saruman (Lord of the Rings)
23. Capitan Vidal (Pans Labyrinth)
22. Boba Fett (Star Wars)
21. Sgt. Bob Barnes (Platoon)
20. Wicked Witch of the West (Wizard of Oz)
19. Colonel Kurtz (Apocalypse Now)
18. Hannibal Lecter (Silence of the Lambs)
17. Keyser Soze (The Usual Suspects)
16. Sauron (Lord of the Rings)
15. Colonel William Tavington (The Patriot)
14. Jango Fett (Star Wars)
13. Lord Voldermott (Harry Potter)
12. Agent Smith (Matrix)
11. Gollum (Lord of the Rings)
10. Alonzo Harris (Training Day)
9. Warden Samuel Norton (Shawshank Redemption)
8. Michael Corleone (Godfather II)
7. Tyler Durden (Fight Club)
6. Darth Vader (Star Wars)
5. Amon Goeth (Schindler's List)
4. Tony Montana (Scarface)
3. Commodus (Gladiator)
2. Emperor Palpatine (Star Wars)
1. The Joker (The Dark Knight)


Honorable Mention:

-The Deacon (Waterworld) Dennis Hopper
-Nurse Ratched (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest) Louis Fletcher
-Mr. Blonde (Reservoir Dogs) Michael Madsen
-Clubber Lang (Rocky III) Mr. T
-Howard Payne (Speed) Dennis Hopper

Pending Potentials to see:

- Anton Chigurh (No Country for Old Men) Javier Bardem
-Hans Gruber (Diehard) Alan Rickman
-Travis Bickle (Taxi Driver) Robert de Niro
-Norman Bates (American Psycho) Christian Bale
-T1000 (Terminator 2) Robert Patrick

Interesting Notes:

Of the list, 5 were from "Star Wars", and 3 from "Lord of the Rings" and "Pulp Fiction".
Also major kudos goes to Al Pacino, Ralph Fiennes, and Brian Cox for appearing twice as two different characters... these guys just make for good villains!

Final Word:

As usual it has been fun compiling this list, and i hope you enjoy it as I much as I enjoyed creating it! I know I have way too much time on my hands, but this stuff is just way too fun! Once again, I know this list is likely to change over the years, as I watch newer or older movies, yet for now, I feel pretty good with it... Let me know if you would add anyone else?
You may notice there aren't any slasher/horror villains on this list, and I can tell you why... as creepy and horrific as they may be, i see no skill or real draw in the performance of their characters... its nothing but gruesome disturbing gore! so you might have to find another list to see Freddy Kruger, Jason, or Leatherface...

Top 50 Villains: 10-2

10. Alonzo Harris

Movie: Training Day
Year: 1999
Actor: Denzell Washington

Why: Alonzo Harris is a man who understands the streets and system of L.A. He is an extremely corrupt narcotics detective who is hated yet respected by everyone. He is a man that knows nobody can mess with him so he does whatever he wants to do. Throughout the movie he devises a master plan to frame and kill his trainee.

Key Line: "Aww, you motherfuckers. Okay. Alright. I'm putting cases on all you bitches. Huh. You think you can do this shit... Jake. You think you can do this to me? You motherfuckers will be playing basketball in Pelican Bay when I get finished with you. SHU program, nigga. 23 hour lockdown. I'm the man up in this piece. You'll never see the light of... who the fuck do you think you're fucking with. I'm the police, I run shit around here. You just live here. Yeah, thats right, you better walk away. Go on and walk away... cause I'm gonna burn this motherfucker down... King Kong aint got shit on me!"

9. Warden Samuel Norton

Movie: Shawshank Redemption
Year: 1994
Actor: Bob Gunton

Why: As warden of Shawshank, Samuel Norton believes there are two things that can save a man's soul; discipline and the bible. He starts off as a strict disiplinary yet his crookedness begins to unveil further on in the story. The warden takes full advantage of Andy Dufrense's bank knolwedge, by exploiting the prisoner's free labor to make his own personal profit. He treats Dufrense like total vermin and constantly sends him to confinement. He even goes as far as killing a prisoner that happens to be Andy's ticket out of Shawshank. Seems this hardcore Christian had misinterpreted the bible, when he realized his judgment had cometh.

Key Line: "Nothing stops. Nothing... or you will do the hardest time there is. No more protection from the guards. I'll pull you out of that one-bunk Hilton and cast you down with the Sodomites. You'll think you've been fucked by a train! And the library? Gone... sealed off, brick-by-brick. We'll have us a little book barbecue in the yard. They'll see the flames for miles. We'll dance around it like wild Injuns! You understand me? Catching my drift?... Or am I being to obtuse?... Give him another month to think about it"

8. Michael Corleone

Movie: Godfather II
Year: 1974
Actor: Al Pacino

Why: Michael Corleone extends his complex character in this masterful sequel where he falls deeper into the family mafia business. This time Michael is at the controls of the Corleone family, having to make all sorts of important decisions. Decisions that end up ruining his marriage and driving him mad. Decisions such as framing, killing, and weeding out possible traitors. The epitome of his evilness comes in the end when he kills his own brother...

Key Line: "Fredo, you're nothing to me now. You're not a brother, you're not a friend. I don't want to know you or what you do. I don't want to see you at the hotels, I don't want you near my house. When you see mother, I want to know a day in advance, so I won't be there. You understand?"

7. Tyler Durden

Movie: Fight Club
Year: 1999
Actor: Brad Pitt

Why: Tyler Durden is a free-spirited soap salesman, who lives in a run-down house, and likes to fight on his free time... or is he? It is not found out until the end of the movie that Tyler is actually an alter-ego that the protagonist has created. He is a complex character who defies the norms, and is strongly against the system of capitalism. The club itself is only a means to start up the real project, "Project Mayhem".

Key Line: "Man, I see in fight club the strongest and smartest men who've ever lived. I see all this potential, and i see squandering. God damn it, an entire generation pumping gas, waiting tables; slaves with white collars. Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy shit we don't need. We're the middle children of history, man. No purpose or place. We have no Great War. No Great Depression. Our Great War's a spiritual war... our great Depression is our lives. We've all been raised on television to believe that one day we'd all be millionaires, and movie gods, and rock stars. But we wont. And we're slowly learning that fact. And we're very, very pissed off."

6. Darth Vader

Movie: Star Wars
Year: 1977
Actor: Hayden Christianson, David Prowse, James Earl Jones

Why: Darth Vader is the epitome of bad guys. He is a Sith lord of the dark side clouded with evil. Dressed in his black metallic armor he is mostly machine. Adding to his intimidating character is his large stature and very deep voice. His story starts back as a child where he quickly excelled to become one of the greatest Jedi's. He was eventually subdued by his fear and anger, and gave in to the emperor. He thus became an agent of evil, and one of the most feared men in the galaxy. Lord Vader was an ultimate villain in the galaxy, yet always remained loyal to his master, Emperor Palpatine. His finest display of strength was when he was able to defy his master and sacrifice his life to save his son.

Key Line: "You have failed me for the last time, Admiral!"

5. Amon Goeth

Movie: Schindler's List
Year: 1993
Actor: Ralph Fiennes

Why: In this masterpiece you are truly awakened by the evilness of Amon Goeth. This German commander and Hitler-devotee, is the definition of real evil. He served as the commander of a concentration camp, overseeing the imprisonment and execution of thousands of Jews. He was a heavy alcoholic, and proud fascist. He honestly despised and disgusted Jewish so much that he felt it was his duty to rid them from the world. He is a character that sends chills down your spine.

Key Line: "This is very cruel, Oskar. You're giving them hope. You shouldn't do that. That's cruel."
4. Tony Montana

Movie: Scarface
Year: 1983
Actor: Al Pacino

Why: He is a hot-tempered Cuban refugee who considers himself a political prisoner of Communism. He starts of small as a drug dealer and eventually finds himself as a right-hand man to the drug boss. Once he gets a taste of the wealth, he begins to want more and lets his greed take over him. He is a man who believes the world is his. He becomes the richest man in Miami with an international drug empire. He soon finds his biggest problem is not the police or competition, yet what to do with all his money. He puts his money above everything and does not trust anyone, not even his best friend. In the end he completely loses his composure and unleashes hell on those who oppose him.

Key Line: "What you lookin' at? You all a bunch of fuckin' assholes. You know why? You don't have the guts to be what you wanna be. You need people like me. You need people like me so you can point your fuckin' fingers and say, 'That's the bad guy.' So... what that make you? Good? You're not good. You just know how to hide, how to lie. Me, I don't have that problem. Me, I always tell the truth. Even when I lie. So say goodnight to the bad guy! Come on. The last time you gonna see a bad guy like this again, let me tell you."
3. Commodus

Movie: Gladiator
Year: 2000
Actor: Joaquin Phoenix

Why: He was the weakling son of the great Marcus Auerlius, trying to earn his father's respect. Yet it wasn't until the emperor refused to give Commodus the throne, claiming he was nothing but a failed son, that he really lost it. After killing his own father, Commodus began a new vision for Rome; to bring the spectacle of death upon the people. Thus began his conflict with Maximus, the general who refused to swear loyalty to the new emperor. Commodus punished Maximus by having the general and his family killed. Although Maximus was able to escape his family became the victims of a terrible crucifixion. This general became a slave who became a gladiator, and thus became the voice of defiance within the arena, which drove Commodus to further madness. Finally in the end Commodus is able to concoct a trap to lure in all his conspirators and dish out fierce punishments. His sickness is best displayed when he mocks Maximus with his dead family, or threatens his sister to provide him an heir. He is a wicked, insecure, immoral emperor on a ruthless quest for respect.

Key Line: "Lucius will stay with me now. And if his mother so much as looks at me in a manner that displeases me, he will die. If she decides to be noble and take her own life, he will die. And as for you, you will love me as I loved you. You will provide me with an heir of pure blood, so that Commodus and his progeny will rule for a thousand years. Am I not merciful? AM I NOT MERCIFUL!"

2. Emperor Palpatine

Movie: Star Wars
Year: 1983
Actor: Ian McDiarmid

Why: This master of the Sith, is the ultimate villain of Star Wars. With his wrinkly skin, shaky voice, and hooded figure he makes for the utmost example of evil. He begins with a complex plan to dismantle the Senate, and establish a Galactic Empire, where he can rule as emperor. He uses others as scapegoats and sacrifices in his master plan. He wipes out the Jedi, and wages a full scale war to establish himself as emperor. With the Jedi gone, Palpatine not only sits in the ultimate seat of power yet also becomes the ultimate power, with none left to challenge him. With the entire galaxy under his control, including Darth Vader, Palpatine is like a satanic god. He would destroy an entire planet without a moment's notice. He would even let his own apprentice die, if it meant finding a stronger one. He is the darkest of villains, who puts power above everything!

Key Line: "POWER!!! UNLIMITED, POWER!!"