PED-TV

SO, I read a news article from last week about a hugely successful TV show out of India that is about a 12 year old girl who is married off to an adult male and lives with him and his family portraying a "reality" type vision of true pedophilic marriages that occur in India where, according to UNICEF, they account for nearly 40% of all child marriages in the world. Ok, I know what you are thinking and that is exactly what my first thought was; Eat your heart out Benny Mardones.

In all seriousness, how does crap like this get the nod from the average couch pedo potato? I mean, I know why it gets the nod from the TV execs, but I find it kind of sad that this prime time perversion racked up 74 million viewers in July alone. But then again, due to the staggering number of these marriages, I'm guessing that at least a portion of its viewership is made up of strapping 20-30-something-year-old men and their prepubescent brides; thus making the show nothing more than a family friendly sitcom. Talk about gross.

I bet you are wondering if there are laws in place to stop these tween touchers from forcing poor innocent girls into these slavery marriages. Well, The article goes on to say that the "legal age for marriage in India is 18 for girls and 21 for boys, the law is often ignored." Oh...that explains it. There are laws, its just that no one follows them.

Its 2009 for crying out loud. How is savagery like this still common place in the world? When will the daughters of the world no longer be subjegated by the sons of misogynist fathers? I know not all cultures are the same and it is wrong for one to try to force their ideals on another, but anyone with a brain stem and a conscience can see...well, you know where I'm gong with this.

Special Thanx

I just wanted to write this post to say thank you to LadyTruth, Teacup, and JennyMac for shouting out my blog! Now...go follow these ladies. That is all

Ireland Trip Final Installment (day 5 and 6)

The fifth day of our trip was by far my favorite. We took a ferry to the Aran Islands which are simply beautiful.

On our way to the ferry, we saw this Hangman style 'Choose your own' Caution sign. As you can see, whoever was guessing letters to complete the puzzle sucked pretty badly getting no correct letters and leaving us only an arm and two legs worth of wrong guesses before this poor silhouetted sucker meets the looped end of a rope. Any guesses??

We chose the bike shop to the right...why? Because we laugh at danger, that's why.











































The Bronx Tale taught them that its ok to love whoever you want...The goat must have given the chihuahua the door test.

























The Aran Islands are magnificent from every angle!

















I've heard this is the best way to get a good look at a T-Bone.....but I'll take the butchers word for it


















The prettiest cottage in Ireland





















This beach appeared out of nowhere after bicylcing around a bend. It is one of the cleanest beaches in Europe




































On the 6th day, we went to Dublin to hang out. On our way there our GPS got screwed up and we found ourselves lost between Trim and Cock























When we finally got to Dublin we were greeted by a man dressed in traditional Irish garb

















This pretty house was smack in the middle of the city.

































Believe it or not, they're real


















...and so is this guy






















We got hungry, so we went to 'Nude' to get lunch. I had the roast beef sandwich with no cheese. Ironically everyone there had their clothes on.


















This prayer was at one of the pubs we hit while there.


























Later that night we went on a traditional Irish music pub crawl. It was really cool. These two guys sang songs and gave us history. They told us all about lock-ins where musicians sit in pubs after hours and continue playing songs all night. From what they told us, during these lock-ins random patrons of the pub can just singing a song from their region (kind of like an open mic) which then exposes everyone else to that music making everyone more well rounded.




After explaining all of this, they asked for a volunteer to sing a song from where they come from. After about 3 or 4 minutes of grueling silence...







I figured I could, when telling this story, talk about how noone got up there and sang; or I could say *** and give it a go. So, I raised my hand and gave the crowd some 'Brother Loves Traveling Salvation Show'.



















That about wraps up the Ireland trip. I'll be back with my regularly scheduled tirades before you know it.

Baby Blog Awards

Hello all,
Ok, a few weeks ago a really talented blogger friend, Lady Truth, from South Africa was kind enough to give me an "award" by shouting me out to her followers as a decent (loose term) blog that is less than 6 months old. So, in true bloggy fashion, I will do the same. Here are six blogs, under 6 months old that I follow:

1. Lets start with Lady Truth. A true wordsmith with an interesting day to day in South Africa. Check out her latest blog about her kick ass grandma.

2. Do you like viral videos? Offensive cartoons and instant message converstaions?Then check out the Blog Slob.

3. Once again, I'll shout out my friend, Lola. Get your taste of dating disasters and encounters with creepy creeps here.

4. In a twisted world of creepy erotica you'll find Proud Maisie . Explore your dark side here.

5. Want a dose of honest musings from a guy that pulls no cards? Try out Mr. Condescending. the name says it all.

6. Here is a different kind of blog from a very talented bead worker named Valarie . She's just about as talented as they come, and she even does celebrities.

There you have it. If any of these blogs tickle your...whatever, then make them smile by becoming a follwer. Thanx

Ireland Trip, Day 3 & 4

On Monday we took a guided bus tour to the Cliffs of Moher . Our tour guide, Paul, was about as good as they come. If you are ever in Galway and want to take a bus tour, contact Healy tours and ask for Paul. You won't be disappointed.

The Cliffs are ~214 meters straight down into the chilly drink below. Unfortunately, due to a few jumpers, a few pushers, and a few 'Oh-Shit-I-Slipped...ers', you aren't allowed close enough to the edge to trigger vertigo. regardless, the cliffs are wonderful. So wonderful in fact that they are in the running to become one of the new 7 wonders of the world. Yes, it is that spectacular. And again, pictures can't illustrate its beauty. Anyway, less blabbing and more pictures:

The Cliffs

Beware of falling rocks and 'Price is Right' yodellers...

CAUTION: Do NOT Walk On Fire Lest You Wish To Be Attacked By Seagulls

Are you lonely? Haven't met that special someone? Are you starting to get the feeling that while you're sitting at home in front of the computer searching for porn love, that there's a huge party, that you weren't invited to, full of willing and able singles looking for some good clean Irish-Catholic frolicking (hehe- fro' licking) in the pasture?...WELL, here is your official invite. All you have to to is hop on a plane and hit up Ireland's biggest singles event. The Lisdoonvarna Matchmaking Festival!

Ladies. Do you like guys with accents?

Fellas. Do you like boobs booze?

Well, Lisdoonvarna has plenty of both. What are you waiting for?

This cottage was on the way back from the Cliffs. Amazing!

This is called a 'Fairy Tree'. What you do is stand under it, make a wish, and then tie a string to it... the tree, not the wish. You may notice some empty soda cans tied to the tree as well. Were they wishes for more soda, an act of utter disregard for recycling, or clever product placement by some Coca-Cola reps? I wished I could one day learn the answer...Shit! I told you what I wished for. Now we'll never know.

Day 4 was spent touring Connemara (the town in which we stayed) and this castle named: Kylemore Abbey. It was a really cool place, however, there were very few rooms open to the public and a man, who I can only assume owned the place, kept sneaking up on us.

I took this picture for my homey, Homer Jay Simpson.

I found out that I really like Guinness :)

Stay tuned for more :)

Back Home/ Ireland Day 1&2 (Saturday and Sunday)

Hey everybody. So, I am back from Ireland. What an amazing place! It is more beautiful than any picture could possibly illustrate and the people are about as nice as they come. Most of my family's, as well as my wife's family's, ancestry is from Ireland so it was a great experience going there. I thought what I'd do over the next week is post pictures and captions from each day of the trip.

On Friday night, our flight was delayed 5 hours due to "extensive engine problems" so instead of a 9pm flight (where we'd land at ~10am) it was a 2am flight (putting us at ~3pm) kind of throwing a monkey wrench into our Saturday night plans because it is a 4 hour drive from Dublin to Connemara (where we stayed). Anyway, I'll just get into the pictures now and caption them as best I can. (Fair warning though, pictures don't come remotely close to illustrating the vivid colors and boundless beauty that stretch across Ireland. Oh, and I'm not quite ready to unmask so our faces are blotted out.)


When we arrived in Connemara. It was simply amazing. Our cottage was set into the side of the most beautiful hills I'd ever seen.

Our Cottage. It was called CORRIB


The view from our family room


Another view from the cottage




















We called it an early Saturday night in order to head out early to check out Galway City on Sunday. Galway was very fun. A touristy town with loads of Pubs, restaurants, and gift shops selling "authentic", "traditional" Irish gifts...you know like leprechauns, Giunness paraphernalia, and the ever so popular claddagh rings. (Note: there are truly authentic gifts to be had; just not in these shops). We spent most of our drinking time in the one pub in Eyre Square that seemed as true to Irelands traditions as we could figure. This particular pub had actual band sessions where random musicians, with their instruments, sat in a circle and played some tunes. The pub was called:

Tig Cóilí














Enjoying my first pint in Ireland with Mrs. CT's brother-in-law


















My traveling buddies enjoying their first pints.



















After many pints, I had to go about as bad as this guy:















There were many really good street performers in Galway. Most of them seemed to enjoy what they were doing. These poor kids, however, did not. It felt like they were playing with frowns while there mother (in nice designer clothes, no less) stood over them like a warden. At least they got the day off from sweeping chimneys:

















View of Eyre Square






















So many choices



















So, that was Sunday in Galway. Later that night, we stopped in a small town called Oughterard and picked up some snacks before heading back to the cottage. An interesting note: Cookies are called biscuits or digestives.

Even more interesting, and the inspiration for a silly lyrical poem and other fun times, are these cookies:




Ok, so the silly little poem was 1/2 inspired by these cookies and 1/2 inspired by (believe it or not) Tampons, which in Ireland, we learned are called 'Little Lets'.***[see below] (another funny thing is 'Let' means 'rent' so I suppose the logic there is that they rent out the V for a few days per month?

Anyway, I decided that a better name for these Lets is Damny Jammers, and so began the tale of:


Katie O'Toole

Katie O'Toole trembled with fret
3rd week of August she started to let
In keeping with manners
She bought Damny Jammers
And so she was no longer wet


So there you have days one and two of the trip. Stay tuned :)

***After posting this, I was informed by Proud Maisie that they are not called 'Little Lets' , but there is a brand of them called 'Lilets' and it was all just a misunderstanding. However, without this misunderstanding, the tale of Katie O'Toole and her Damny Jammers might have never been born. :)

Ireland Bound

Top of the mornin' to ya!

I know I was just away for a week, but the time has come again for me to take a trip. Mrs. Caped and I are going on a vacation to Ireland tomorrow night (the 7th). Yup, for the next week I'll be in the land of leprechauns, potatoes, and WHiskey. I am literraly jumping around with excitement. Fear not Tiraders. I will be back in a week's time and up to my old shenanigans. Mrs. Caped has wanted to go to her whole life so it should be a great time.

I am not the biggest fan of long flights and the only time I've ever been overseas is when I was in the military. I will counter my uneasiness by throwing back a drink and sleeping during as much of the flight as possible. Afterall, it was the sleeping passengers that survived the time shift in The Langoliers.

So, anyway, I'm sure to have a great time! What about you out there? What has been the best, worst, or most memorable vacation you've ever taken?
I look forward to hearing about it.

In The Face Of Tyranny

Every once in a while there is a News story featuring somthing positive. This is one such story.

Defending personal liberty against tyranny is essential to our species survival. This defense is not solely the responsibility of allied soldiers, but the responsibility of every individual. And, as everybody who knows Will Hunting or William Congreve can tell you, "Liberty is the souls right to breathe...Without liberty, man is a syncope." I often, in some way shape or form, give thanks and admiration to soldiers, but today I would like to give some praise to Aziz Royesh, the students of Marefat High School, and their parents.

Mr. Royesh is the Headmaster of Marefat High in Kabul, Afghanistan; and since opening his school he and his students have been victims of savage and primitive angry mobs out for blood. What did they do? You might ask. Well, Royesh allows girls to learn in the same school as boys. Yup, the nerve of that guy, huh?

The bravery of these families needs to be publicly applauded. Royesh appears to be a man who understands the importance of liberty.

These brave families live in a backwards land with truly corrupt political figureheads and many communities full of disgusting savages (Offensive-Oshmenshmive!) . A land where Shiite clerics act as "moral" police and pass twisted laws allowing horrific acts against their own people. Especailly women! For instance, the law that deems marital rape A-Okay.

This is a land where people have no qualms about murdering to protect these "moral laws". Mr. Royesh was told by people in his community "that the girls would be burned with acid if they did not trade in their school uniforms for traditional Islamic clothing."

BUT! Have these families retreated from liberty in the face of tyranny? Did Mr. Royesh close his school down. Hell no! And that is why he and these families should be commended.

It is stories such as this one that shout out how lucky people born in free, civil societies really are. Too many take that fact for granted. Let the actions of Royesh and his students be a reminder of the risks that people in countries full of turmoil are willing to take in defense of our most precious and basic right as human beings...Liberty.

POPCORN WORTHY

Hey Tiraders,
So, I don't typically ask, but a few buddies of mine created a great new movie review website that I would like everyone to please join. I know there are a lot of movie review sites out there, but the guys over at Popcorn Worthy have created a great system for moviegoers to find out the real scoop regarding what a movie truly has to offer. That system is one of creative Icons. Each review is stamped with icons (Alerts, Awards, & Warnings) that tell you various information about the movie you are looking for. Here are a few examples of each (click the link for a description).

ALERTS:

The BIG 80's Alert



The Gay for Pay Alert



The Red Shirt Alert


AWARDS:


The Killer 'Stache Award



The Training Bra Award




The Lorenzo's Oil Award



WARNINGS:



The Chowda-Head Warning




The Comedy Is Beneath Me Warning




The Book Was Better Warning



Ok, there you have it. Like I said, this is a buddy's website so thanks to anyone who checks it out and bigger thanks to anyone who joins.

-The CT