S.A.D. & Stats

I suffer from mild to moderate Seasonal Affective Disorder. What that basically means is that when it's cold, rainy, snowy, otherwise shitty and looks like it does in the picture outside, I feel like crap both emotionally and physically. I feel like I'm trapped in a box, can't move, and like the cold will never cease. Fortunately I take anti-depressants so life is ok.






National Mental Health Association, 2001

• Young people and women are at the highest risk for the disorder, but it can affect anyone.
• An estimated 25 percent of the population suffers from mild winter SAD, and about 5 percent suffer from a more severe form of the disorder.

National Mental Health Association, 2005.

• Three out of four SAD sufferers are women.
• The main age of onset of SAD is between 18 and 30 years of age.
• Seasonal affective disorder is estimated to affect 10 million Americans.

To anyone else reading this who feels this way, fear not; Thanks to global warming, our winters are getting shorter and shorter every year.

Torturous 24

There's been a lot being said lately about all the scenes of torture on 24 lately, so I thought I'd weigh in.

Yes, I think the majority of those who chose to join the military (esp to aide the current administration's agenda) are idiots. At the same time I know the military is a necessary evil and we need defense; but the amount of defense we've fooled ourselves into believing we need is ridiculous. Those idiots apparently are watching 24 and getting stupid ideas about torture. That it's acceptable, effective, and perhaps even needed. Groups against all the torture on the series are saying that it's hurting this country's image (as if it needed help). They're probably right.

So there's those reasons against it. As an avid fan of the show, here are my reasons against it. It's getting old. It's getting tired. It's become a convenient plot device to move the story forward. It's become a crutch used by the writers (by their own admission). I think there needs to be a scene where jack or someone else isn't rewarded by torturing someone, but that it back-fires and sets the tone for thinking about torture in the future.

There's also the perspective that it's turning a lot of people off just because of the gruesome value of it. Just a few weeks ago a terrorist put a drill in Morris's back to get him to build a bomb arming device. Though I personally don't have an aversion to on-screen violence, I could see how that could be a problem for some people's stomachs.

The show creators have already said they're going to ease up on that (for creative story reasons, of course). I just hope they don't get backed into a plot corner later this season and just use torture as an out again.

Still Lost, In a Good Way

Well, Lost finally returned and I have to say that this wasn't my favorite episode of the 7 that have aired so far this season. However, it was without a doubt my favorite flashback. You get to see into Juliette's past and how she came to work with the Others on the island. Turns out Juliette is even more emotionally damaged than we first imagined and perhaps even a little bit sick and misguided. She was apparently performing fertility experiments on her dying sister, which ended up being successful. Meanwhile, back on the island, Jack held good on his threat to let Ben die on the operating table if the Others didn't let Kate and Sawyer go. Juliette only helps helps them escape only after Ben wakes up from the surgery and tells her that he will let Juliette leave the island if she cooperates and allows Jack to save his life. This is the first indication we've gotten that Juliette isn't staying there willingly. So, Kate and Sawyer are free to go back to the main island and Jack tells them never to come back for him.

Over on 24, Jack Bauer has met up with a man from last season that we now learn is his evil brother. His dad kills him to silence some sort of dastardly plan that he's up to. And Wayne Palmer is still not a believable president. I'd say the writers should kill him off, but I'm tired of the rotating door to the presidency on the show. I just wish they had picked someone else this season. James Hellar would have been a better choice. The terrorist still have 4 more suitcase nukes in LA. Chloe's Ex-Husband/Current boyfriend Morris was drawn out of CTU and kidnapped in order to rewire the nukes. All in all it was a pretty good episode this week, and it's turning into a good season; I've just got to get past baby brother Palmer.

Unforgiven

Unforgiven is one badass movie.