Soundgarden is Back!

Soundgarden has gotten back together according to Chris Cornell's Twitter.

The 12 year break is over & school is back in session. Sign up now. Knights of the Soundtable ride again!

The band looks on path to have a reunion tour. However, Matt Cameron, their drummer, has full-time obligations with Pearl Jam who are touring in the Spring and Summer as well. I wonder if it's feasible for Cameron to play for both Pearl Jam and Soundgarden in a night. A joint tour with the two bands would easily be the biggest tour of the summer.

Shocker

Russia has set a minimum priced aimed to reducing the country's alcoholism:

From January 1, any 0.5l vodka bottle selling at below 89 rubles (almost $3) will be outlawed.
The price ban is one of the first government steps toward regulating the domestic alcohol market.

This is not the first time that Russia has attempted to reduce alcoholism with measures against alcohol sales:

Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev introduced prohibition in the Soviet Union in May 1985 in an attempt to put a halt to the rampant alcoholism that was already taking its toll on the nation's economy and health system. His efforts to steer the Soviets to abstinence were ultimately unsuccessful, however, and the illicit production of moonshine - 'samogon' - rocketed, not to mention a sudden rise in sales of medicinal and industrial spirit. The never-popular policy of prohibition was later quietly dropped.

I'm actually very interested in seeing how effective this measurement is. Prohibition already failed in Russia as it did in the US and I wonder whether the minimum price will lead to more unregulated distilleries/production of moonshine. I think it's highly unlikely that this measure works, though I hope it does.

Everlong Acoustic

This is a song that I've been listening to a lot recently. So good.

Best Sports Story Ever

Quote from the article:

NEW YORK -- Washington Wizards teammates Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton drew guns on each other during a Christmas Eve locker room argument over a gambling debt, according to the New York Post.

This might be the most awesome thing I've ever heard.

Darts

You assholes know that I've been following the PDC World Darts Championship. Today, we were treated to a magical performance by 14-time World Champion, Phil "The Power" Taylor. It was simply an amazing spectacle. A testament to Taylor's performance is that his opponent, Adrian Lewis, averaged a whopping 102.95. Even with that performance, The Power swept the leg and took all five sets. Taylor's intensity and concentration is incredible. Tiger Woods and Roger Federer aspire to be as dominant as Phil Taylor.

New Year's Resolutions

I think New Year's Resolutions are stupid. So instead of writing resolutions this year for myself, I'm going to write resolutions for other people.

Winter Classic

Today is the Winter Classic. It should be an exciting event.

My Favorite Picture

I've seen this around a few times and chuckled every single time. It's my favorite picture at the moment.

Happy New Years!

Disney Superheroes

Coming to a theater near you!

Disney Corp reached a deal to acquire Marvel Comics. Here's some of the biz from WSJ:

The announcement was expected, and followed a meeting Thursday morning at which Marvel shareholders approved the acquisition, first announced in September. Marvel investors are receiving $30 a share in cash plus about 0.745 Disney share for each Marvel share. When the deal was announced, it represented a 29% premium over Marvel's pre-announcement share price.

Disney will acquire a host of Marvel Superheroes:

Marvel's roster of 5,000 comic book characters, including Iron Man, Spider-Man, and the X-Men, promises to broaden Disney's portfolio of entertainment assets. Burbank, Calif.-based Disney historically has been stronger in appealing to girls than to boys, particularly as they enter their teenage years.

The tough and psychologically complex characters Marvel is known for could provide fodder for everything from theme park attractions to cable-television shows and, of course, movies.

Don't expect the superheroes to be apart of the Disney line up right away through:

But fully exploiting some of the best-known of Marvel's characters could be tricky for Disney, especially in the near term. That's because Marvel, based in New York, has over the years entered licensing deals that allow various Hollywood studios to make movies based on many of those characters. Generally those licenses expire after a set number of movies. But at least one such arrangement, Sony Corp.'s (SNE) right to make Spider-Man movies, essentially lasts in perpetuity, according to people familiar with its terms.

Disney, like Marvel, will receive a royalty on movies other studios make out of its new entertainment properties. But it could be some time before the full phalanx of macho Marvel heroes fully joins forces with Hannah Montana and Mickey Mouse.

And that's how you tell a story.

A Plea

This is the email sent out to West Ham season ticket holders who have not purchased tickets to see the Hammers take on my beloved Arsenal.



Arsenal have taken the maximum allocation of 5,200. It sucks for West Ham, but that's how this season has gone. Furthermore, the game is on ITV and with the economy the way it is, football fans aren't going to just shell out the money for tickets. It's unfortunate because at the very least, they will get to see tremendous football from Arsene Wenger's Red Army.

Who Knew?

That darts could be so exciting.

Over the last couple days, I've been watching the PDC World Darts Championship. If you have never watched Darts, it's not quite what you'd expect it to be. The competitors walk-on to the stage like prize fighters, the MC could give Bruce Buffer a run for his money, and the crowd. Don't get me started on the crowd. They make college football fans look like kindergardeners. The crowd is unbelievable and the people appear to be having to so much fun. When you think about it, you have to wonder because it's darts. It's something you might see at your local sports pub or whatever. It's not a party inducing sport. However, I've never seen such joy in an audience.

I've been learning a little bit about the competitors and "Barney," the Dutchmen Raymond van Barneveld, has caught my eye in particular. He's had two 9-dart finishes in the tournament already and look posed to make another deep run in the tournament:

"To hit a nine-darter was wonderful and the crowd really showed their appreciation," said Van Barneveld, who finished with double 12.

These guys are rockstars.

Why send more troops to Afghanistan?

Because all the ones in Afghanistan already are dying...

Worst year in Afghanistan ever.

Rush Limbaugh Hospitalized...

...in Hawaii.

I wish I was in Hawaii. I wouldn't mind being hospitalized. Here's the status of his condition:

The station, citing unnamed sources, said paramedics treated Mr. Limbaugh and took him to The Queen's Medical Center in serious condition.

He is, of course, the last crusader of the Republican Party.

MEGSON OUT!

Gary Megson has been fired from Bolton per Sky Sports News.