I recently wrote this snarky comment to Amtrak:

Message:
Why take the train when flying is the same price? 1 Passenger: Passenger 1: AAA Adult Rail Fare: $225.00 Accommodations Price: $72.00 Total: $297.00 This certainly does not make me want to take the train.

To which they responded:

Dear Anthony,

Thank you for contacting us.

We are sorry that you feel our fares are too high. We firmly believe, that our prices accurately reflect the value of the services we provide. Nevertheless, we have not ignored the need to remain reasonably competitive with other carriers, and we have responded to this need by establishing several carefully constructed discount fare programs. Customers who have been able to plan their trips in accordance with the restrictions of these reduced fares have benefited from exceptional travel bargains. 

We also have promotional discounts advertised nationally throughout the year. We are confident that you will be able to find affordable fares and look forward to the privilege of serving you soon.

Sincerely,

 Taryn
Amtrak Customer Service

This leads me to wonder:

Is Amtrak truly that cluess?  Rail is certainly viable in the EU.  In my experience, a trip of the same distance, round trip, cost me less than half the price of that fair!

A quick search for flights from where I live, to the same destination cost 188+ tax, meaning that for about 350 dollars, I can make the same trip in 1/3rd the time.  I've checked Amtrak before and, to be honest, it is never competitively cheaper!  As expected. Amtrak just makes excuses.  

Amtrak should close shop and let someone else step in to fill those shoes and run the trains... for less.  I'll be sure to think of them as I board the plane!

I tried Cuil for the very first time today and I must say... as much as I wanted to be impressed, I really was not.   Cuil isn't, como se dice.... "Cool".

I really like the name, intellectually, as it is slightly esoteric in that the word is Gaelic for "knowledge" and is pronounced "kewl" or "cool"... so it's hip, it's happening... it's forgettable.  Unfortunately, for Cuil, it just doesn't have the same venacular inducing ring that Google or Yahoo! have... and well... Ask is pretty straight forward... doesn't top that.

Cuil claims to index 3x more pages than Google and 10x more pages than Microsoft... yet, when running searches on Cuil, I was unable to return relevant information.   I read somewhere that Cuil collected about 33 million in startup... and I think part of that is due to investors trying to catch lightning in a bottle twice.  It really seems that Google's alumni are really superior at being able to raise money... and sure, rightfully so on some fronts.  Google is the standard bearer of success these days.  Working for Google is the professional equivalent of going to Harvard.

I don't like the columns.  Sure, it LOOKS like you get more on one page, but it isn't intuitive browsing... Up... down.... left... up...down... left...up... down... click next page.  'Eh eh!! Not gonna do it! Read my lips...' it's painful. 

I do like the tabs on the top, the search by category could be useful if they were a little more inclusive and diverse and the rollover isn't bad when it actually works... but that is about where it ends.

Some of you might LOVE Cuil and want to say "What chu talkin' 'bout, Anthony?"  Well Arnold, let's do a few searches for fun... starting with something we ALL know and love... AbleNET IRC Network.   Try it a few times, you might not get it.  Also, see how it isn't on the categories?  Yet, our site is 100% SEO optimized (Seriously, check it) and it has keywords out The Great Gazoo.

When searching for AbleNET IRC, I had to look on the second page for results.  When searching for AbleNET.org I was then told there were no results, when I resubmitted my search, I was returned results with logo images from OTHER sites.




For giggles, I also decided to do a search on their domain, cuil.com... They couldn't find relevant data http://www.cuil.com/search?q=cuil.com&sl=long



Ok, so let me try to be a little more fair... let's search the Cuil search engine for "cuil search engine" I mean come on... they've GOT  to get THAT ONE right... yeah? Nope.




Oh well... I did a search for Google and well... That works!  Thank goodness for that!! 

As much as I love competition for the betterment of the industry, Cuil doesn't have what it takes at this time to shake things up enough to change the way we think about searching the internet.  Cuil reminds me of the 'Internet 1.0'.  A couple pals hanging out, getting together and trying to recreate a new flavor for a tried formula of success.  If I had to predict the future, my guess is that Cuil does a holding pattern and hopes that with any luck, some other media company like Microsoft or News Corp. will come along and make them an offer for 3x their investment, in an effort to make up for the ground they've lost pursuing Yahoo! and get a better piece of the market, thusly  making a alot of people very rich.

 So never fear, my dear Google... at the moment you are still the Masters of the Universe as far as Internet searching is concerned... The battle at this point is very likely yours to lose and Cuil is a dish best served cold.

Why we should ALL vote Republican this November!

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As some of you know, Prince did a cover of Creep by Radiohead at Coachella and subsequently forced Google/YouTube to pull the video down for copyright infringement (of a song he doesn't own). Well some video sites still have balls, so here it is on Dailymotion:

http://www.dailymotion.com/related/8946133/video/x58nz5_creep-a-coachella_creation

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull introduces Shia LaBeouf to the Indiana Jones world and is completely predictable.  

This installment goes the Area 51 route and ties it to South American alien conspiracies.  While not ground breaking (if you expected that) or even as good as the first three, it is entertaining and is does a good job of wrapping up the Indy Franchise, while giving nods to the characters and films that came before it (Keep an eye out for the Ark in the first 20 minutes).

Indy is not quite the action hero he once was but Ford does a good job of portraying  Jones as an archaeologist who realizes his best days are behind him.  I didn't quite get the whole "Colonel Henry Jones" international spy angle that they alluded to but it was more or less inconsequential to the overall story. 

The film teases you at some point about the potential continuation of the franchise, but I think everyone realized this was the end and quite frankly it needed to be. 

The movie was fun and it was an Indy worship fest, bringing everything full circle and adding closure to some loose ends. It wasn't the best Indy movie or even the best movie but Indy fans will be entertained.  The sad thing is, there isn't much to say about this film.  Cate Blanchette comes off as very Boris and Natasha ("Look, Moose and Squirrel!") but the film overall is just a sensory pleaser and does have the same "it" factor of the priors.  The action lacked at times and the character development was non-existant.  LaBeouf was a caricature of the era's greaser movement and all of the other characters and story angles seemed to fit into neat little cubby holes.

One thing I do fear is that if Indiana Jones does not end here, it is in severe danger of having jumped the shark.  I enjoyed the movie and if you suspend belief, certain historical accuracies and accept the cheese factor you will too.

This movie is about as good as this review.  Despite of inner Indy fan wanting to rate this movie higher than I am going to... I give it 2 1/2 out of 5 bullwhips. 

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, the long awaited sequel to The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe does not disappoint; however, it fails to satisfy as well.  Not wasting time to develop the story, with the assumption that the viewers are familiar with the first film, the plot line sets up relatively quickly.

Prince Caspian, heir to the throne, is chased out of the kingdom by his jealous uncle with his own aspirations to the throne upon the birth of his first male heir.  Caspian unknowingly summons the 4 heroes to Narnia.  Peter, Edumund, Susan and Lucy suddenly find themselves back in a land drastically different than the one they left... 1300 years into the future.

The kids gear up for war and set about returning the throne to the rightful Prince Caspian and the land to the Narnians.  Unfortunately, the movie kind of middles for awhile and doesn't quite live up to the quick start.  The climax comes somewhat late and finds itself rushing along to the finish, not giving the final battle and the subsequent resolution adequate time to play out.  Nor does it explore the tension between Prince Caspian and the Pevensie children. 

This movie while entertaining, was not as good as the original.  For fans of the books and/or the movie, the nostaligia factor combined with the continuance of the story make it well worthwhile.  For those unfamiliar, I suggest staying away until you've come to speed. 

I gave this movie 3 out of 5 Narnians.

Speed Racer is another Wachowski movie this time starring Emile Hirsch and Christina Ricci.

This movie is not good.  That being said, it isn't exactly bad either.  It remains mostly true to the original with a few specific nods to the cartoon we all grew up loving.  It did not suck nearly as much as I thought it would.  I had actually gone to see it merely to see how my childhood was being treated!

Give up on expecting the world and you will not be disappointed.  I found myself chuckling and the movie did manage to be visually stunning while keeping the 'camp' to the expected minimums without taking itself too seriously.  Paulie Litt as 'Spritle' and the monkey 'Chim Chim' steal this movie entirely!  He looks like a tiny Andy Richter (Litt, not the monkey).  John Goodman delivers a respectable performance and teamed with Susan Sarandon make a good pairing as 'movie parents', delivering the moral values and tender moments of the storyline.  One thing I didn't quite understand is that he drives a Mach 6 during the races and the Mach 5 as his day to day car, save for the rally scenes. 

The movie may not be worth the price of full admission and popcorn but if you're looking for something easy on the brain with some entertainment value, I would definitely recommend it for a Sunday afternoon matinee. 

I give this movie 3 out of 5 checkered flags.  "Go Speed Racer Go"

Iron Man starring Robert Downey Jr. is, as of the moment, the movie of the summer by far. 

Downey Jr. is a perfect casting of Tony Stark, millionaire playboy without the darkness, agony or scruples of Bruce Wayne, merely a man who profitted on war and sees the error of his ways while coming to terms with his own ego and sense of mortality. 

Every role was played perfectly, with Gweneth Paltrow playing the part of Pepper Potts perfectly. (Try saying that 3 times real fast!).  The movie remains true to the characters, their stories and concludes very cleanly while setting itself up perfectly for possible sequels. 

If you loved Spider-Man and hated Hulk (2003) as directed by Ang Lee, you will LOVE Iron man.  Marvel's movie arm has done it again!  As a bit of an Easter Egg, I advise you to stay until the end of the credits.  You will not be disappointed.

I give this movie 4 1/2 out of 5 iron suits! "Iron Man lives again!"

The Forbidden Kingdom stars Jet Li and Jackie Chan in a martial arts junkie's dream matchup.  The dream ends there.  If you're looking for a hardcore Martial Arts flick - or even a Jackie Chan buddy film - this is not it.

This is a family oriented martial arts film with a premise that is not unique nor is it entirely unfamiliar.  What results is an enjoyable, family oriented, action film.  Li and Chan fill their roles admirably, playing up to the audience and staying true to the light hearted, coming of age nature of the film.  Michael Angarano does a fairly decent Ralph Macchio impersonation as Jason, a Boston area boy who is obsessed with Kung Fu films and apparently unable to make his way in a world of mean girls and bullies.

The real disappointment was that the Chan - Li showdown happened way too soon and was unmatched again for the rest of the film.  With a moderate set of expectations you will enjoy this movie - as long as you understand that there are no trophies or awards in its future.

If you're looking to suspend reality, immerse yourself in the movie with the purpose of enjoying it for the sake of entertainment, you will like it.  If you're expecting vintage Jackie Chan and Jet Li, you will surely be disappointed. 

I give this movie a 3 out of 5 nunchuks.  "Those kicks were fast as lightning."

As some of you may know, and many of you don't, AbleNET has a couple javachat options. The one I am about to show you can be reached, if you have channels of your own and your IRC account linked to the website, by logging into your account, clicking 'User Center' and then 'My Channels' followed by clicking the 'Java Chat' tab. If you don't have a channel, you can use it with the 'Chat Now' box on the left. It will look something like this:

Provided by AbleNET IRC Network