Mare of Easttown (TV 2021)

Rotten Tomatoes

Mare of Easttown (TV 2021): Outstanding whodunit. Plenty of suspects, all kept in the game until the last episode. But more, it's a story of unresolved grief that comes between Mare (Kate Winslet) and her ex-husband, her daughter, her daughter-in-law and her job. Emmy worthy. A-

Random Thoughts: Look Beyond Dallas County to Know Who Won

Tweets from May, 2021:

• 2021-05-02: Look beyond the Dallas County vote to know who won the election (or made the run-off anyway). Daniel Burdette beat Marilyn Frederick in Dallas County, but it was the reverse in Collin County, so Frederick will face Arefin Shamsul in a run-off for Richardson City Council.
• 2021-05-03: There's something deeply wrong with an American political party that tolerates collusion with Russian interference in US elections, but wants nothing to do with vaccination against a pandemic disease.
• 2021-05-04: Trying to shoehorn English into the rules of Latin makes no more sense than the Star Wars nerds who try to speak English with the speech patterns of Yoda of Dagobah: "Backward run sentences 'til reels the mind."

After the jump, more random thoughts.

POTD: A Perfect Fit

From 2019 11 21 Kom Ombo and Edfu

If the shoe fits, wear it. For two thousand years. Today's photo-of-the-day is from the Temple of Kom Ombo on the Nile River in Egypt.

The Nevers (TV 2021)

Rotten Tomatoes

The Nevers (TV 2021): In Victorian London, Amalia runs a home for women, each "touched" with unique powers. Who or what is behind it all is the mystery. While Joss Whedon takes his time telling us, he pads with a large cast of villains, violence, sci-fi, and special effects. C-

POTD: Ancient Egypt in Color

From 2019 11 21 Kom Ombo and Edfu

Today's photo-of-the-day is from the Temple of Kom Ombo on the Nile River in Egypt. It shows what's left of a ceiling. What makes it striking to me are the colors. Although paintings in the ancient tombs often still show their original colors, it's rare to see colors this vivid on outdoor parts of temples. This ceiling was probably originally indoors, and I have no idea how many centuries ago the walls came down, but still, I find the 2,000 year-old colors stunning.

POTD: Literacy Lost and Found

From 2019 11 21 Kom Ombo and Edfu

Today's photo-of-the-day is from the Temple of Kom Ombo on the Nile River in Egypt. It shows a panel of hieroglyphs. It's unsettling to me to think that a great civilization once lost its ability to read and write. Its records were indecipherable for over a thousand years until modern linguists figured out the system. If a global calamity wiped out today's civilizations, what would archaeologists of the future (of whatever species or planetary origin) have to go on to decipher our written wisdom?

POTD: A Standard Place in Richardson

Somewhere in Richardson. You tell me where.

The Wheel's 2021 Election Runoff Voters Guide

Early voting is open for both the City of Richardson and the Richardson ISD's runoff elections. Early voting runs from May 24 - June 1. Election Day is June 5.

CoR has one place on the ballot, Place 6. RISD has one place on the ballot, At Large Place 7. All registered voters in CoR and RISD can vote in these elections, whether or not you voted in the May 1 election. (But you do have to be registered already. You can't register at the polls. That would be too easy. And, in Texas, making it too easy to vote is verboten.)

Here is how I'm voting.

POTD: Vanishing Point in the Nile

From 2019 11 21 Kom Ombo and Edfu

Today's photo-of-the-day is from the Temple of Kom Ombo on the Nile River in Egypt. The perspective is down a roofless hallway in the 2,100 year-old temple. In the distance, beyond the palm tree, is the Nile River.

WandaVision (TV 2021)

Rotten Tomatoes

WandaVision (TV 2021): Mashup of Marvel comics, the Dick Van Dyke Show, Bewitched, and more. At heart is a woman learning to deal with grief. A refreshingly novel superhero movie that takes a while just to figure out it's a superhero movie. Novel, clever and captivating. B+

It's All About Housing

Real Housing Prices: LA vs Dallas

Texans are always comparing the state to California. I know because I live in Texas. I don't know if Californians compare their state to anyone else. One claim Texans always make is about how many Californians are moving to Texas. There's no doubt that the two states are on different trend lines. Texas is set to gain three Congressional seats in the 2020 census. California, for the first time ever, is set to lose one. What's behind this? Texans usually credit the lack of a state income tax or the light regulation on business. Paul Krugman, in his latest newsletter, points to another cause.

POTD: Ancient Temple of Jenga?

From 2019 11 21 Kom Ombo and Edfu

Today's photo-of-the-day is from the Temple of Kom Ombo on the Nile River in Egypt. Or maybe it's a giant's game of Jenga, just as it was left as it was being played 2,100 years ago.

Bonus photo after the jump.

This Is a Robbery (TV 2021)

Rotten Tomatoes

This Is a Robbery (TV 2021): 4-part doc about $500 million art heist from Boston museum. Biggest problem is lack of resolution, even 30 years on. Lots of repetition. Should have focused less on one robbery and more on inadequacies of museum security and police detective work. C+

Marilyn Frederick Will "Fight Back Against the Radical Left's Agenda"

Marilyn Frederick will "fight back against the radical left's agenda." Those aren't my words. Those are the words from an endorsement that Marilyn Frederick herself posted to her campaign's Facebook page. The quote is from the Chairman of the Republican Party of Texas, Allen West.

Hamilton (2020)

Rotten Tomatoes

Hamilton (2020): Original Broadway production, with a live theatre feel. The mostly black cast uses hip-hop music to teach history. Innovative storytelling that works brilliantly. Every high school American history class should see it. Do Lincoln next, Lin-Manuel Miranda. A+

Based on the Ron Chernow biography, previously reviewed in The Wheel.

POTD: Portrait of an Egyptian Man

From 2019 11 20 Abu Simbel

Today's photo-of-the-day is of an unidentified Egyptian, taken on the ferry from the Temple of Philae on Agilkia Island back to the marina at Aswan.

"Cruelty is the Greater Compassion"

Chico, California, is not Richardson, Texas. But recent events there have a lesson for us here. The story is in The Intercept. In 2018 the Camp Fire burned the neighboring town of Paradise to the ground. Residents of Chico welcomed thousands of evacuees, opening their homes and shelters and turning parks and even a Walmart parking lot into campgrounds, with the Chico residents donating tents and sleeping bags. But...there always has to be a but.

Tenet (2020)

Rotten Tomatoes

Tenet (2020): Action thriller. Our hero stops WW III by keeping evil arms dealer from getting plutonium, but the threat isn't nuclear war, it's inverted time. Bad guys use, not time travel, but reverse time. Events happen backwards. Maybe it all makes sense, but I doubt it. C+

RPD is Eager to Move On

The Richardson Police Department is eager to move on. Not everyone. The rank and file still have a complaint they want investigated. Let's just say the City Manager, to whom the department reports, wants to move on. From what, you ask? Pull up a chair. This will take a while.

The nominal need to move on is that long-time Police Chief Jim Spivey is retiring at the end of May. So, in a Friday news dump, the City named Assistant Chief Gary Tittle as the new Police Chief effective June 1. But before we get distracted by the new chef, we have some other pots simmering on the stove to deal with.

Single-Member Districts in RISD are a Winner

The recent election for two Richardson ISD trustees completes the transition to a new election system that consists of five single-member districts and two at-large places. Or rather, the run-off election June 5 for the at-large Place 7 will complete the transition. And if there's anything that demonstrates the need for single-member districts it's the voting map for that at-large Place 7 election.

Dallas County Elections

Exterminate All the Brutes (TV 2021)

Rotten Tomatoes

Exterminate All the Brutes (TV 2021): 1,000 years of genocide, colonialism, slavery, extermination of indigenous peoples, and, yes, the Holocaust, told as a personal narrative by Raoul Peck. Sure to drive MAGA crowd crazy, but there's a lot of history that cannot be defended. B-

POTD: Trajan's Kiosk

From 2019 11 20 Abu Simbel

Today's photo-of-the-day is of Trajan's Kiosk on the island of Agilkia on the Nile River in southern Egypt. Its history is convoluted, as is much ancient history. It's attributed to the Roman Emperor Trajan (98-117 CE) because of his appearance on some reliefs, but the building is believed to be even older. It was built elsewhere, on the island of Philae, and served as the entrance to the Temple of Philae, which is nearby. The whole complex was moved to its current site to escape rising waters in the Nile River due to the construction of the Aswan High Dam in the 1960s. Even if history is not your thing, it's a beautiful work of architecture in any case.

The Mitchells vs. the Machines (2021)

Rotten Tomatoes

The Mitchells vs. the Machines (2021): Girl leaves for film school, glad to be away from embarrassing dad. On the way the family is attacked by army of robots. Lots of noise and violence, but it's robots getting blasted so I guess it's OK. Zero dead family, so happy ending. C-

Reaction to Local Elections

The City of Richardson's City Council elections are over (except for the run-offs). The Richardson ISD school board elections are over (except for the run-offs). The RISD bond approval elections are over. Some of the elections were over early in the evening. Some dragged late into the night. Some went as expected. Some offered surprises. After the jump, my verbose reactions to all of them.

Random Thoughts: Close to the End of the Pandemic

Tweets from April, 2021:

• 2021-04-02: Using my metric, "we're getting close to the end of the pandemic." (link)
• 2021-04-02: The Father (2020): Woman deals with her aging father. Characters come and go, scenes repeat, each time slightly differently, until you aren't sure if you are seeing reality or the world through the father's dementia. Deserved Oscar noms for Olivia Coleman and Anthony Hopkins. B+
• 2021-04-02: It seems only right. Georgians are taking the state back to a time when baseball didn't yet exist.
• 2021-04-03: Now 65+, another step closer to the end of the pandemic, by my metric. (link)
• 2021-04-03: Great quote about Richardson Pearce's Drew Timme:

After the jump, more random thoughts.

Genius: Einstein (TV 2017)

Rotten Tomatoes

Genius: Einstein (TV 2017): Drama of life of Einstein, emphasizing his family, including his two wives and many affairs (for a genius, he was dumb in love). His science gets shorted. So too his political run-ins with both Nazis and the FBI. Too much material for one series. B-

#VeryTardyReview

TIL: "A Nation of Immigrants"

"A Nation of Immigrants." What country am I talking about? The United States, right? It's what I learned growing up in the 1950s. That, and the myth of the melting pot. I learned about how the English and the Irish and the Germans (like my grandfather in 1892) and the Italians all came to the United States in different waves of immigration, where they all learned English and intermarried and melted into one glorious people and nation. E Pluribus Unum and all that. But there was always a nagging problem for young me. The story didn't include the Chinese or the Negroes. Young me puzzled over such things, but I didn't find the answers in the patriotic school books. Now, decades later, I have to admit defeat on the melting pot myth. I have come to question the "nation of immigrants" myth altogether.

POTD: Saigon, Ahead of the World

From 2015 03 21 Saigon

Today's photo-of-the-day is from the streets of Saigon. There are motorbikes. Lots of motorbikes. Lots. Lots. Lots. Almost everyone on a motorbike wears a helmet. They also wear masks. But not for COVID-19, or at least not originally for that. Because this photo is a rerun of a POTD from 2015. Facemasks were everywhere even before the world had ever heard of COVID-19. When we visited in 2015, our assumption was that the motorcyclists were trying to keep from breathing exhaust fumes in the polluted air of the city. Maybe the habit of wearing facemasks had a beneficial side effect. Vietnam kept coronavirus deaths to just 35, and grew its economy in 2020.

POTD: Somewhere in Richardson

You tell me where.

Another Round (2020)

Rotten Tomatoes

Another Round (2020): Denmark. Four drinking buddies decide to test a theory that human performance is maximized with a constant blood alcohol content of 0.05%. The movie isn't about the test, or even alcohol, but the mid-life crisis that leads to it all. It's complicated. B+

United States vs. Billie Holiday (2020)

Rotten Tomatoes

United States vs. Billie Holiday (2020): A black singer is persecuted by the law. America has too many similar stories. She's also a victim of drug use, greedy friends, and her own personality. Andra Day deserves her Oscar nom as the mixed-up, messed up, electrifying Billie. B+

The Wheel Award for Excellence in Motion Pictures

The Academy Awards will be given out Sunday, April 25, 2021. I've seen all the nominees for Best Picture. That means my opinion means something. Right?

2020 was a strange year for movies. More movies were released by streaming services this year compared to past years. Some so-called major releases were postponed until 2021. All that resulted in, in my opinion, a decent selection of Oscar candidates, but inferior to the selections of previous years. If I expanded the field of nominees, I would include two or three movies that I considered snubs.

My ranking of the Oscar nominees is based on the grades I gave the movies immediately after seeing them. In case of ties, I ordered them by my considered judgment today. Note this is not my prediction of which movie will win, but which I would vote for, had I a vote.

The envelope please. The winner of "The Wheel Award for Excellence in Motion Pictures" goes to...

Richardson Police Officer Reveals Ticket Quotas

The open mike at Richardson City Council meetings is usually uneventful, but Monday night's Visitors Section was different. A 13-year veteran of the Richardson Police charged supervisors in the department of illegally using quotas to evaluate and discipline officers. "Illegally" was her word, not mine.

POTD: Camel Pants

From 2019 11 20 Abu Simbel

Today's photo-of-the-day is from the Temple of Philae in Aswan, Egypt. It shows a well-dressed tourist wearing "camel pants" (Egypt's version of "elephant pants"), the perfect choice for a hot dry climate like Egypt's.

Soul (2020)

Rotten Tomatoes

Soul (2020): Music teacher dies as he gets a big career break. After experience with the Great Beyond and Great Before, he gets a 2nd chance at life. A novel look at cosmic life and death. Good music (not enough of it). Somehow the whole has no spark. Will young kids get it? C+

The Wheel's 2021 Voters Guide

Fact

The City of Richardson's City Council elections are here. The Richardson ISD school board elections are here. The RISD is asking voters for approval on an important bond package as well, the first since 2016. I've watched some forums. I've read the questionnaires. Now it's time to decide how to vote. That's what I'm here for. Early voting begins Monday, April 19. Election Day is May 1. Here is all you need to know.

POTD: Temple of Philae

From 2019 11 20 Abu Simbel

Today's photo-of-the-day is from the Temple of Philae. It's built on an island in the Nile River at Aswan. It was relocated (like the temples of Abu Simbel) to save it from Nile River floods.

Bonus photos after the jump.

Oscar Snubs

The 2021 Oscar nominations, as always, snub some worthy movies. Before these movies unloved by Oscar are forgotten forever, here are some, in no particular order, that The Wheel recommends catching wherever they are streaming. These movies received an "A-" grade by The Wheel.

The snubs are after the jump.

Richardson's Uncomfortable Truth

Last week we saw how Richardson City Council member Kyle Kepner endorsed two other candidates for no other reason than they are Republicans, in possible violation of the City of Richardson's Code of Ethics, which calls for a policy of maintaining a nonpartisan city council. Kepner also endorsed four candidates for Plano ISD school board because they were endorsed by the Collin County Republican Party. That leads us to an uncomfortable truth about our city that voters must confront. The truth was spelled out by none other than Kyle Kepner himself, in an answer to a candidate questionaire from The Dallas Morning News when he first ran for Richardson City Council in 2019.

Readin', Ritin', and Republican

Richardson City Council member Kyle Kepner injected party politics into the nonpartisan city council race. That was bad enough, but then he compounded his error. I don't know which is more annoying to me, people making endorsements based on political party affiliation, or city council members endorsing in school board races (or vice versa). Today we examine Kyle Kepner's twofer.

City Council Member Again. Gullible? Reckless?

Yesterday, I charged Richardson City Council member Kyle Kepner with violating the city's Code of Ethics by failing to maintain the city council as a nonpartisan body, when he endorsed two other council candidates for the sole reason that they are Republicans. He has since apologized...with a lot of extraneous word salad to go along with the meat and potatoes. To loosely paraphrase the original statement and the apology:

The sky is blue.
[...]
It was not my intention to give the impression that I believe the sky is any particular color. Besides, I'm the real victim here. They ganged up on me in 2019.

Eventually he gets to the meat of his apology. I accept him at his word when he says, "I made a mistake, and I am sorry...Please accept my apologies. I promise to learn from this and do better."

So let's take him at his word and accept the apology. Besides, there's another social media comment Kyle Kepner made on another subject altogether that needs attention. The subject is the mass shooting in Boulder, Colorado. Kepner's response raises the question, "Is Kyle Kepner too gullible or too reckless to serve on City Council?"

Upping the Charges against a City Council Member

Yesterday, I charged a Richardson City Council member with violating the norms and customs of remaining nonpartisan in city council elections. Current council member Kyle Kepner endorsed two other council candidates for the sole reason that they are Republicans. Today, I up the charge.

Partisan NonPartisan Elections, 2021 Edition

The Richardson City Council elections are officially nonpartisan, meaning no political party affiliation appears on the ballots. Traditionally, political parties steered clear of endorsements and campaigning. Those traditions are breaking down. Here's what I said about it in 2019.

The Richardson City Council elections in 2019 laid a muddy trail along the same lines, only with Democratic state representative Ana-Maria Ramos and Democratic Party affiliated groups working (and failing) to elect an unofficial slate of candidates for Richardson City Council. I won't be surprised if that trend continues in 2021 and my own appeals to keep local elections nonpartisan look even more like a cry in the wilderness than they did then.

Source: The Wheel.

Billions - Season 1 (TV 2016)

Rotten Tomatoes

Billions - Season 1 (TV 2016): US attorney goes after hedge fund billionaire. Flips old adage on its head: it's not business, it's strictly personal. Manipulating both is a woman, a smart woman (and sexy for the gratuitous kinky sex scenes). Shallow plot slowly deepens, a bit. B-

Four more seasons queued up to watch.

#VeryTardyReview

Godzilla vs Kong (2021)

Rotten Tomatoes

Godzilla vs Kong (2021): Hollow Earth. Gravity inversion. Super energy. We came for the brawl, not this yada, yada. And why, when you have two heavyweight titans, would you introduce a third titan to the fight? Too long. Little dramatic buildup to a nothing climax. Who won? C-

POTD: Resting Place of Kings

From 2019 11 24 Egyptian Museum

Thuya's outer coffin, 18th Dynasty, ca 1375 BCE

Today's photo-of-the-day is from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. Or perhaps I should call it the old Egyptian Museum. According to a story in Saturday's Washington Post, "It was a parade unlike any other this city has seen. A procession of 22 ancient Egyptian royal mummies streamed Saturday from downtown Cairo...to a new museum three miles away that represents Egypt’s future as much as its past."

Today's photo-of-the-day was taken in the old museum. It shows one of many, many ancient royal coffins on display in the crowded, old museum, along many other artifacts. There is a separate room with the royal mummies themselves (photographs not allowed). The mummified kings are jammed side by side and head to toe. The new museum will have room to more respectfully present these ancient kings, but I'll regret their departure from the 19th century museum. It had the look and feel that an old, haunted museum has in my imagination. We drove by the new museum, under construction at the time, and I fear visiting it will be more like a Disney experience. Long live the old.

Small Axe: Education (TV 2020)

Rotten Tomatoes

Small Axe: Education (TV 2020): West Indian boy in London in 1980s, getting substandard education, is reassigned to a "special" school where education is even worse. Racism at work. Vicious cycle until members of the community begin a Saturday school. Frustrating but hopeful. B-

See my review of the previous movie in this limited series: "Small Axe: Alex Wheatle".

The Father (2020)

Rotten Tomatoes

The Father (2020): Woman deals with her aging father. Characters come and go, scenes repeat, each time slightly differently, until you aren't sure if you are seeing reality or the world through the father's dementia. Deserved Oscar noms for Olivia Coleman and Anthony Hopkins. B+

Random Thoughts: 43,909. A Stake in the Ground.

Tweets from March, 2021:

• 2021-03-02: 516,346. In Texas, 43,909. Might as well put a stake in the ground to mark where we were when Abbott declared the pandemic was over in Texas.
• 2021-03-02: With this action, Texas GOP forfeits any claim to be pro-life.
• 2021-03-03: GOP cancel culture strikes a blow against mean tweets, unironically.
• 2021-03-03: North Texas GOP didn't want her for Texas House. Now north Texas GOP doesn't want her for US House. Katrina Pierson is failing at a higher level now.

After the jump, more random thoughts.

Made You Look (2021)

Rotten Tomatoes

Made You Look (2021): Documentary about art dealer who sold fakes for millions of dollars. Despite all the red flags, she says she believed the works were genuine. Collectors trusted her. Scary how gullible everyone was. Even after the con collapsed, few people seem upset. B-