Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Eddie Izzard - First Thanksgiving



But in America, it was different. The founding fathers landed in ... (Mumbles) They left from Plymouth and landed in Plymouth. How lucky is that? "Is this Plymouth? We've just come from Plymouth. "We've gone round in a circle, lads, back on the boats." They said, "This is where our God has brought us to. "We can practice our religion, raise a family. "There's nobody here. Excuse me. "Nobody here. Yes, a land empty of human existence.

"Who the fuck are these guys? "What's all this, please? "No, we don't want any of your food, thank you very much. "Just put some clothes on."Meanwhile, that winter... "Excuse me, do you have any food? "I love all this, lovely idea." "I'm sorry we were a bit brusque when we first arrived. We didn't realize you owned the entire country. "But you have no system of ownership? Mm. lnteresting. "That'll be useful later. Food, thank you very much. "There's more of us coming but we'll keep our promises."

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Eddie Izzard - Plane Safety



If you've been in a big aeroplane, no one's listening to the security announcements. Everyone's going, "Yeah, yeah. There, there. "Lights flash. Put the thing on. Pull the thing " and death." It's a kind of, "Yeah, all right." 

So the pilots have been told to kick up the importance of these speeches.They go, "Please do listen to the safety announcements "because we've changed things around. "You don't know. We're putting the life jacket on back to front. "Some of the safety exits are false. They're not true. "And I've got a bad feeling about this flight. I don't think we're going to make it." After that everyone's going, "Show me everything!"Private showing. I'm putting it on now. Fuck it. "Yes, I'll have coffee, thanks."

They have these life jackets and you pull it and... Thbpth! You've got a pipe here for top-up. I don't want top-up. I want stays-up. Top-up implies hole in. Implies having to... I want fucking stays-up, no hole in the first place, thank you. Bloody top-up! It's all a bit tea and crumpets with the vicar. Top-up. Crashed in the Atlantic, bobbing around. "Oh, you survived as well. Well done. Care for a top-up? "Couldn't top me up, could you?" "I didn't need it. I'm just trying to break the ice. "Hey, float over here. "Look. Two pipes. Panpipes." It's miles to Europe, miles to America. You've got your whistle.A little light going beep, beep.

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Sunday, November 6, 2011

How Did Guy Fawkes Become a Symbol of the May 15 Movement around the world?


   ... In the lead-up to today, a Guy Fawkes mask spawned by the 2006 movie “V for Vendetta” has become the accessory of choice at Occupy Wall Street and similar protests around the world.


So who was Guy Fawkes, and how did he become a symbol of protesters more than 400 years after his death?


Guy Fawkes was a Catholic who, spurred by religious persecution, led a plot to blow up the Houses of Parliament and bring down England’s Protestant monarchy. He was caught, imprisoned in the Tower of London, and tortured for four days under personal orders from King James I.


He refused to name his co-conspirators, but they were caught anyway. The plotters were tried, found guilty and sentenced to death by being hanged, drawn and quartered.


Annual commemorations of the foiled plot began soon after, as reminders to defend England from other traitors, especially disloyal Catholics. Over time they became a day and night of fun and pranks, with bonfires, fireworks and the burning of children’s effigies of Fawkes. Today kids have swapped effigies for Halloween, leaving just Bonfire Night and its fireworks, according to The Guardian.


In Britain in the early 1980s, artist David Lloyd and writer Alan Moore created the graphic novel “V for Vendetta,” about a masked rebel named V who fights a fascist future British government. Lloyd suggested having the rebel wear a Guy Fawkes costume.


“We shouldn’t burn the chap every 5 November but celebrate his attempt to blow up Parliament!” Lloyd wrote in a 1983 essay titled “Behind the Painted Smile.”


This inverted Fawkes’ image — from traitor to hero fighting an unjust state. It also separated it from religion. The movie adaptation of “V for Vendetta” concocted a finale in which a whole movement of discontents wearing Guy Fawkes costumes watch the Houses of Parliament burn.


The Fawkes mask resembles the man only in having dark hair and a moustache. The mask adds the soul patch, rosy cheeks and charismatic-trickster look.


In 2008 the Fawkes mask was appropriated by the hacker group Anonymous as its public face for a protest against Scientology, according to the BBC. Forbes.com has reported that Anonymous has said it would execute a computer attack on the Mexican drug cartel Zetas today, a date picked for its echo of Guy Fawkes Day...
(From  http://abcnews.go.com/)


V for Vendetta - People Should Not Be Afraid of Their Government - Awesome video clips here


From the movie V for Vendetta (2006)

E: Can I ask about what you said on the telly?
V: Yes.
E: Did you mean it?
V: Every word.
E: You really think that blowing up the parliament is going to make this country a better place.
V: There is no certainty only opportunity.
E: I think that you can be pretty certain that if anyone does show up Creedy will black bag every one of them.
V: People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people.
Evey: And you're going to make that happen by blowing up a building?
V: The building is a symbol, as is the act of destroying it. Symbols are given power by people. Alone, a symbol is meaningless, but with enough people, blowing up a building can change the world.
Evey: I wish I could believe that was possible."

Thursday, November 3, 2011