Intravenous dope - A marijuana experiment

The above video is a clip from BBC’s documentary Should I Smoke Dope? Through intravenous injection, this journalist is pumped with the two active ingredients found in marijuana: THC and Cannabidiol. The findings of the experiment show that when both are combined it produces a happy, pleasant and giggly high. THC alone produced psychosis inducing effects such as paranoia.

Should I Smoke Dope? documents BBC reporter Nicky Taylor’s experimental trip to the pot smokers’ European paradise; Amsterdam. The film details her 30 day cheeba toking investigation of the science, culture and legal aspects surrounding marijuana.

Watch the full documentary on YouTube (6 parts): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Thanks to Amy for the tip!

(Via MindHack)

How to stay informed on the RNC police raids

Is it just me or is there a lack of mainstream media coverage of the controversial RNC police raids? Activist groups gathering in Minneapolis and St. Paul have been targets of preemptive attacks in a effort to suppress potential protests, rallies and marches at this years Republican National Convention. At the forefront of these raids is Sheriff Bob Fletcher, a former Republican city council member. According to many first hand accounts, armored police raided homes and designated gathering spots in full gear, bearing machine guns and bullet proof vests.

[Read more]

The Democrats doin’ their thang!

Barack Obama is beyond psyched he got the nomination. Hillary’s got no complaints after her well received speech. Michelle is in the back doin’ her thang like it’s nobody’s business. Joe Biden is just going along for the ride!

If this is supposed to be a Republican smear tactic attempting to portray the first ever African American presidential candidate as some sort of Starbucks, gas guzzling, Jeep Wrangler driving elitist then I’m sorry. There’s nothing more I would like to see than the Obama clan and the rest of the Democrats out celebrating the historical feats they have achieved over the past 18 or so months!

(Via Gawker)

David Duchovny checks into rehab for sex addiction?

I never would have guessed that David Duchovny was a method actor, but apparently playing the role of Hank Moody in Californication has gotten to his head. According to his lawyer Stanton “Larry” Stein, the former X-Files star recently checked into rehab for sex addiction.

I absolutely hated Duchovny during his X-Files days, but I’ve been a huge fan since I started watching Californication last year. His character, Hank Moody, is a smooth talker and best-selling author who struggles with a sex addiction, strange sexual triangles and a broken relationship with the the love of his life/mother of his daughter.

Does Duchovny really think that he’s Hank Moody? Is this all some sort of publicity stunt for the season premiere? Call my a conspiracy theorist, but I smell something fishy.

BREAKING ARTIST: Who is Bryn Christopher?

No I didn’t forget the the letter “A”… His name is Bryn not Bryan and if you don’t know him know then you will within the next couple of weeks. From across the Atlantic in Birmingham, England, Bryn puts back soul into popular music. Known for his powerful and soulful voice, Bryn opened as a supporting act for paparazzi soul sensation Amy Winehouse during the end of her 2007 tour. Will this fellow Brit follow in the footsteps of Winehouse’s shortcomings and misfortunes?

My guess is no, but with rave reviews from the UK, Bryn Christopher has a sure shot at good ol’ American tabloid loving stardom. Look out for the digital release of his EP on September 16th and his full-length, My World, slotted for a January 13, 2009 release on Interscope Records.

Get a sneak peak of his single “The Quest” below:

Audio Stream: The Quest - Bryn Christopher

US Live Performance Dates

September 22, 2008 - Los Angeles - Viper Room - 8:00pm
September 24, 2008 - New York - Joes Pub - 7:30pm

More dates to come soon!

REVIEW: The Wailin’ Jennys Live

The Wailin’ Jennys performed at Joe’s Pub in NYC on Sunday night. They are an acoustic folk group consisting of Ruth Moody, Nicky Mehta, Heather Masse and the “boy Jenny” Jeremy Penner. They filled the intimate setting with folk, bluegrass and spiritual songs. Their unique sound is like a soul soothing mix of The Indigo Girls, Nanci Griffith and Norah Jones. The ladies sang haunting three part harmonies either a capella or while they played a variety of instruments. They masterfully played the stand up bass, banjo, accordion and ukulele among other instruments, which added to the distinction of their music. Penner accompanied them on violin and mandolin. [Read more]

Meet my new girlfriend Emily; She’s picture perfect… Literally

The lady featured in the above video is Emily, the latest development in CGI animation from Image Metrics. Utilizing this technological advancement in facial animations, boundaries of reality are blurred. Many are saying that with the perfection of CGI animated characters like Emily, we may soon see the rebirth of long lost great actors and actresses like Marilyn Monroe co-starring in films with today’s greatest like Johnny Depp. Pretty awesome.

Doesn’t Emily kinda resemble Natalie Portman???

Margaret Cho Fans Rejoice!

“The Cho Show” debuted on VHI Thursday night. It has the same structure as Kathy Griffin’s My Life on the D-List where it shows Margaret at home, doing stand-up and out with her friends. The show features Selene Luna, her assistant, her parents and her glam squad consisting of her stylist, make-up artist and hairstylist. It is very amusing to see Mr. and Mrs. Cho instead of only seeing Margaret’s impression of them. You can see that she is not exaggerating. She says, “I keep them around because old people are a really good source of prescription medication.”Margaret’s assistant Selene is more like her funny sidekick than her employee. Her humor compliments Margaret well.

The first episode is about Margaret wining the Korean of the Year award. Her make-up artist and stylist have a competition to come up with an outfit for her to wear to the awards. The choices are not would you would typically see on the red carpet!

If you are a Margaret Cho fan you will love this show! If you have not experienced her comedy you should check out the show. Then rent her stand up movie “I’m the One That I Want”. VH1 has video extras on the VSPOT .

The Cho Show airs on VH1 Thursdays at 11 PM EST.

Attention Through Guerrilla Marketing

The TV-Industrial complex is dead, as proven by marketing-whiz Seth Godin. Companies used to be able to buy their potential customers’ attention with TV commercials, but since (especially young) people do not spend as much time in front of their TV sets as they used to, TV commercials have lost their efficacy. Today, marketing people need to come up with more aggressive ads, campaigns, or some other way to gain the attention of potential customers. Guerrilla marketing is one way to spread the word and it has become easier and more effective thanks to the Internet.

Wikipedia explains, “Guerrilla Marketing was coined by Jay Conrad Levinson in his popular 1984 book Guerrilla Marketing, as an unconventional system of promotions on a very low budget, by relying on time, energy and imagination instead of big marketing budgets. The term has since entered the popular vocabulary to also describe aggressive, unconventional marketing methods generically.” Read more here.

Some tactics are great and others are rather shocking. The quintessence is that people talk about it and spread the word. I suggest to actually creating a remarkable product or service instead of a remarkable marketing campaign. You will be better off in the long run.

The following video shows examples of guerrilla marketing. Enjoy and let me know if you can think of other guerrilla marketing campaigns.

Bloguerrilla - Guerrilla Marketing

Study Indicates Body Modification Trend Related to Parental Affection

Report by Thaddeus Stanley, Army of Epiphenomenon

A new study by the University of Phoenix claims to have discovered an inverse relationship between a father’s love and his daughter’s propensity to engage in body modification. The study, which compared 5000 young women who had modified their appearance with multiple piercings, tattoos, cuttings, and/or breast reductions, with a like number who had no more than a simple pair of earrings, found that as paternal affection levels dropped, the likelihood of body modification increased. Jan Gould, Senior Research Fellow at the University of Phoenix called the findings “a breakthrough for modern pop psychology,” and said, “this should put an end to crappy fathers bitchin’ about their daughters coming home looking like … like … well, whatever they come home looking like.”

[Read more]

What makes or breaks a viral video???

I stumbled upon AariKabari’s videos the other night while searching YouTube for undiscovered treasures regarding my hometown and high school. I was surprised that this girl hasn’t received a ton of views.

So here’s the million dollar question? What makes or breaks a viral video? I think the video above has the potential to go “viral” but what is the deciding factor? Perhaps it takes the influence of one blog post to help kick start word of mouth?

Let’s find out. Check out this video and if you find it the least bit entertaining then blog about it on your blog or spread the link around to your friends. We’ll know when it’s viral when video views go up up up.

What are some of your undiscovered “viral” video treasures?

Slow Your Roll with “Drank” - The first ANTI-Energy drink?

I never fully understood the whole energy drink craze but with today’s NYC launch of anti-energy beverage, Drank, market leaders like RedBull and Sparks might have to make room for this mass-produced version of “purple drank.”

Most of us up north are virgins to “purple drank” which is described as “a recreational drug popular in the hip-hop community of the southern United States. Its main ingredient is prescription-strength cough syrup containing codeine and promethazine.”

However, this commercialized counterpart dropped the robo-tripping ingredients to concoct Drank, a non-alcoholic, grape flavored drink containing melatonin, valerian root and rose hips. Of course it’s packaged in a purple theme colored can. This newest addition to the beverage industry is “the first EXTREME RELAXATION drink to hit the market” and is “designed to calm and relax you.”

Store availablity listings are unavailable so it’s hit or miss if you’re looking for a new downer to calm your nerves. I wonder if Drank awaits the same fate as that red canned upper Cocaine?

(Via Gothamist)

This is why you don’t kite surf during a tropical storm…

Watch this Miami Beach kite surfer at the mercy of Mother Nature and tropical storm Fay. While much of the state is evacuating, this guy hits the beach. Literally.

Update 08/21/08:

According to CNN, the 28-year old kite-surfer’s condition has been lowered from critical to serious but is still suffering from “spinal fractures, brain swelling, a broken rib and a broken ankle, among other injuries.” The injured kite-surfer has no recollection of what happened nor has he seen the footage. Good vibes to Kevin Kearney.

Physician is guilty of bicyclist hate crime

An angry road raged physician pulled in front of two Los Angeles bicyclists, Ron Peterson and Christian Stoehr, and slammed on the brakes sending both men flying into the back of his car. Both cyclists were hospitalized. Peterson lost multiple teeth and almost had his entire nose torn off. Stoehr ended up with a dislocated shoulder.

I think we can all agree that it’s annoying when bikers break the single file rule, but I’m pretty sure trying to force them to smash into your vehicle is considered attempted murder. For someone who is respected for their intelligence as a physician, this is simply stupid. Talk about moral failings!

Watch the CNN report about bicycle road rage below:

Is America Obsessed with Beauty?

When filmmaker Darryl Roberts asked 200 American women if they felt attractive, only two said yes. The effects that mainstream media has on our women AND men are clear yet controversial. Not skinny enough. Too short. Hips are too wide. Lips aren’t full enough. Breasts are too small. The list goes on.

Robert’s award winning documentary, America the Beautiful, takes a closer look at how the media shapes our perception of beauty and the unfortunate consequences of succumbing to this media fueled obsession.

America the Beautiful is now playing at the Cinema Village Theater in NYC (22E. 12th Street). More dates open up throughout the rest of August and September. Find a theater listing near you after the jump!

http://www.americathebeautifuldoc.com

[Read more]

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