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Newt Defends the Catholic Church from Vicious Progressive Government Attacks

Jan 08
Posted by Kevin Tracy in 2012 Elections, Art, Christianity, Democrat, Film, Gingrich, History, Intolerance, New Hampshire, Politics, Presidential Race, Religious Intolerance, Republican, Romney, States, Theology

I think Newt Gingrich touched on something here that Catholics should probably be a lot more concerned about. While we’re hearing all this rhetoric about how Americans aren’t ready to accept a Mormon as President, our Church’s enormous charity groups are being attacked silently, but without mercy along with the Church itself. Newt only talked about what’s happening in New England, but this sort of thing is happening across the entire country, most recently in Illinois.

What’s really bad is that this really doesn’t hurt the Catholic Church. It hurts the millions of people who benefit from scores of Catholic service organizations. Coincidentally, those also happen to be some of the largest in the United States and the world.

These ads are running somewhat sporadically on television from what I’ve seen, but they’re pretty darn powerful when you see one. They also make you realize all the Catholic Church has done and is doing to better the world:

Now tell me, does it really make sense that the government should be trying to shut down this organization, especially when no other service organization or church, or combination thereof, is strong enough to take on the incredible service responsibilities the Catholic Church is eagerly taking on everyday?

Last night’s debate was by far the #WorstDebateEver as was mentioned during last night’s live-blog of the event. Although I still think Mitt Romney won the debate, Newt Gingrich walked away with the single most memorable and important response of the night. As Catholics, we should all be a little more aware of the attacks on our Church by progressives in government and in the courts.

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Ron Paul Bribing Iowa Officials

Dec 31
Posted by Kevin Tracy in 2012 Elections, Art, Bachmann, Bribery, Crime, Intolerance, Iowa, Libertarian, Paul, Politicians, Politics, Presidential Race, Racism, Religious Intolerance, Republican, Scandals, States

A few days ago, I questioned why Iowa State Senator Kent Sorenson would suddenly abandon his support for Michelle Bachmann and back a dumber candidate like Ron Paul just a week before the Iowa Primary. Well, as it turns out, Ron Paul bribed Sorenson with $30,000 and promised an additional $8,000 a month if he would defect. While the money has got to be nice, Sorenson is going to have to waste every dime of it if he has any chance of getting re-elected in 2014. The people of Iowa are no fools and they know when their public officials are being bought off.

With regards to Ron Paul, I can’t say that I’m surprised. This racist, antisemitic conspiracy clown is one of the biggest hypocrites the Washington Beltway has ever known. On one hand, he denounces pork-barrel spending, while on the other hand ensuring that millions of federal tax dollars go towards pork projects in his district. With one hand, Ron Paul and his un-showered supporters are pointing their fingers at corrupt “neo-cons” while the other hand is simultaneously giving bribes to politicians so they can get their way.

Some of their supporters like to claim that, “Things were like that before, but everything is great now! Nobody really has anything to fear!”

And they’re right, we have nothing to fear except more of the same from these libertarian ass-clowns.

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Netflix Caves to Consumer Pressure

Oct 10
Posted by Kevin Tracy in Art, Film, Internet, Netflix, Qwikster, Streaming Video, Video Games

You may remember a few days ago when I ranted about Netflix splitting into two separate companies, one to handle DVDs and another to handle streaming videos.

Well, I wasn’t the only ticked off Netflix customer. I got this e-mail from Netflix today:

Dear Kevin,

It is clear that for many of our members two websites would make things more difficult, so we are going to keep Netflix as one place to go for streaming and DVDs.

This means no change: one website, one account, one password…in other words, no Qwikster.

While the July price change was necessary, we are now done with price changes.

We’re constantly improving our streaming selection. We’ve recently added hundreds of movies from Paramount, Sony, Universal, Fox, Warner Bros., Lionsgate, MGM and Miramax. Plus, in the last couple of weeks alone, we’ve added over 3,500 TV episodes from ABC, NBC, FOX, CBS, USA, E!, Nickelodeon, Disney Channel, ABC Family, Discovery Channel, TLC, SyFy, A&E, History, and PBS.

We value you as a member, and we are committed to making Netflix the best place to get your movies & TV shows.

Respectfully,

The Netflix Team

 

I immediately clapped really loud and screamed, “YES!” That was followed by an epic air guitar you would have had to seen to believe.

Okay, I confess that I’m a dork.

Netflix must have finally realized that their streaming selection sucks so bad that it wasn’t a viable business by itself; especially with Amazon, Walmart, Hulu, Blockbuster, Comcast, Dish Network, and virtually every other company with an internet presence expanding into the market and seeking the content advantage over Netflix. Netflix’s market advantage is its combination of an unbeatable disc library and a streaming luxury for instant (though often brainless) entertainment.

If Netflix split, it would have been the death of them; and, even worse, it would be very difficult for another company to gather the kind of total selection Netflix currently has. In other words, it would be the end of the very service we’ve come to take for granted.

One question not answered in the e-mail was whether or not Netflix would expand into video game rentals, as they planned to do with Qwikster. Netflix has often tested the idea with subscribers in polls, but always concluded the service would be financially unsustainable. The logic they’ve used to reach that conclusion actually makes sense. When a game comes out on the market, it usually costs about $65, but within a year, the price plummets significantly (even as much as 80%). Plus, the demand for the games is always highest when it is first released, meaning Netflix would have to purchase a lot of expensive discs, and in one year, their investment would be sitting on warehouse shelves and drop significantly in value as used old games are worth even less than new old games. Films, on the other hand, don’t cost nearly as much at the point of the initial investment and they have a higher demand for a longer period of time. Plus, users are going to keep a new film for a much shorter period of time than a new game, which may take weeks or even months to beat.

Still, I wish I could rent games on Netflix. Maybe the wheels were turning long enough on Qwikster that Netflix won’t be able to back out of their game deals.

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Netflix splitting into two companies an enormous mistake

Sep 20
Posted by Kevin Tracy in Art, Economy, Film, Internet, Netflix, Qwikster, Streaming Video

I’ve been a Netflix subscriber since 2006. In the past, I’ve told my family and friends that Netflix and Vonage were the only bills I enjoyed paying every month because the services were well worth the price tag. In 2010, I sadly made the decision to cut my Vonage line. Then, earlier this year, I cut my 2x DVD and streaming account on Netflix to just a basic streaming account. I had planned on picking up the DVDs with Blu-Ray plan again once I got my financial situation a little more stable. Now, it looks like I won’t get that chance.

According to Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, the company will split into two in a few weeks. Netflix will be the company that handles online streaming; while the new company, Qwikster, will be the company that does the traditional mail delivery of DVDs. Qwikster will also reportedly offer video game rentals, something I thought Netflix should have tried to do a while ago.

Due to the economic recession, Netflix has lowered its expectations and recently predicted they would lose 1 million of their 25 million customers. They suspect 80% of those ditching Netflix would be DVD-only customers. In other words, they expect the number of DVD-only customers to drop over 26%.

Industry analysts expect the decision to split Netflix into two companies is designed to insulate the streaming video portion of Netflix from the struggling DVD portion of their industry.

There’s just one problem.  Take a look at the above graphic again… look close.  Perhaps you see it.  The graphic isn’t exactly proportional.  Looking at the image alone, you would think that the majority of their business would come from streaming-only customers; but that’s not accurate.  In fact, there are only 9.8 million Streaming-only customers.  Over 2 million fewer customers than are using BOTH DVD and streaming.  In other words, almost 60% of Netflix customers get DVD’s through the mail.

Now here’s the problem.  While I did drop my DVD service, I had every intention of getting it back when I had a bit more money to spend on entertainment.  While Netflix streaming is nice, the selection of films isn’t the greatest.  It’s not as bad as the selection of Free Movies OnDemand from Comcast, but it isn’t much better for the average person who is only interested in watching popular and famous blockbuster films (I watch a lot of foreign and silent films, but I’m also weird).  In other words, you can’t stream Avatar, Titanic, Harry Potter, Speed Racer, The Godfather, or anything Star Wars.  Even Citizen Kane, the greatest film ever made, is unavailable to stream.  Nor can you stream popular TV shows of the present or past, such as House, MD or The Sopranos.

You can, however, stream A Boy and His Dog staring Don Johnson (and a talking dog).

The 60% of Netflix customers who receive DVDs have chosen to get DVDs because the online streaming selection, more often than not, fails to have the show or movie you want to watch.

However, what the 14.2 million customers who get DVDs understand is that virtually every film put on DVD can be at their fingertips in two short days… or sooner if that film or show happens to be on streaming.    For the 12 million (half) of their customers who get both streaming and DVDs, the service will be RUINED when Netflix splits.

Two queues.  Two sets of reviews.  Two lists.  Two bills. One headache.

Look at that graphic again.  The most loyal Netflix customers are those that get both services.  They are projected to remain at 12 million when the individual service customers drop.  It’s the COMBINATION of DVDs and Streaming that has made Netflix such a success… something represented in this Hacking Netflix poll, in which 78% of the 2,640 respondents believe the splitting of Netflix is bad and/or dangerous.  An additional 4.85% wonder if Netflix can make the difficult transition.  14.32% believed the idea was smart or interesting because the new company would also offer video games (something many of us have wanted for a while).

With WalMart, Amazon, Apple, Xfinity, Dish Network, Blockbuster, and Google all trying to break into a market that Netflix has dominated for years, I have serious concerns about this move.

So, too, do investors.  Netflix stock has plummeted in value since the announcement has been made.

The worst thing about this is that the decision appears either way too short sighted or way too far sighted.

Short sighted because the number of DVD accounts is going to go up in a year or two when the economy finally improves.

Far sighted because we’re still at least a decade away from a time when every film and TV show can be offered for online streaming… assuming the legal rights could ever be obtained for something like that.  Until that time, there will always be a demand for the DVD (or Blu-Ray) service.

Either way, Netflix customers and investors both strongly dislike the decision, and every one of us has the right to feel betrayed by a service we have loyally subscribed to for years.

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Why am I not posting? … or why have I only posted this?

Sep 03
Posted by Kevin Tracy in 2012 Elections, Art, Barack Obama, International, Libya, Michigan, Notre Dame, Politicians, Politics, States, Syria, The MSPaint Comic

There’s been a lot of news lately that I’ve wanted to comment on.  The fall of Tripoli, the continued crackdowns in Syria, the Obama speech schedule snafu (totally Obama’s fault, by the way), and my problems with Rick Perry as the GOP’s candidate.  So, why haven’t I been writing?  Well, I’ve been insanely busy with a trip to Mackinac Island, family doings, looking for a line of stable work (being a portrait artist isn’t cutting it), and more.   Thankfully, I’m thrilled to say that my pixelated epic The MSPaint Comic: Institution is nearly complete.  In fact, I’ll be extremely disapointed if the first stage isn’t completed before the end of this month.

After stage one, I’ll begin work on formatting while the comic is being reviewed by a censor (you’ll understand why when you read it).  This editing process should be completed by the end of October; which means you’ll be able to purchase it for yourself and your friends by Christmas.  My goal is to begin work on an old-fashioned 3D comic book after that and have it completed before I take The MSPaint Comic back on the road to conventions in 2012.

By the end of the month, I hope to be resuming a regular blogging pace.  I also plan on having the art gallery working by then, too.  I’ve put together some very interesting drawings, paintings, and other things that I suspect some of my more artistically inclined readers might be interested in seeing.

In the meantime, I’ll try to post something here and there when the timing is right.

This weekend, I plan on posting pictures from today’s Notre Dame Football opener against USF.  My dad (a Notre Dame alumnus) and I have been going to the home openers and senior day games since 2008.  Unfortunately, I won’t be able to use Zannel to share pictures and videos live this year as they were bought out and the service terminated.  Instead, I’ll create a photo gallery of the pictures we take when I return from the game.  Those pictures should be online by Sunday night at the latest.

As some have observed, I’ve been slowly getting into politics again.  While I know that’s exciting for some and irritating for others, it’s being blown out of proportion by everyone who cares.  The truth is that while I am involving myself mildly, political activism is at the very bottom of my priority list.  If it was back at the top, I would be writing every day again.

Instead, I’m screwing around with MSPaint.  :)

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