Below is a video I made for my channel, Jack’s World. It’s based on an article I wrote a few years back by the same name. It tried to expand it in a few key areas, but the spirit of the piece is still there. I also added in a few visuals that I hope supplement my points. Enjoy!
A close relative of mine once said that every romantic evening begins with a delicious meal. The nature of that meal varied, but when it was the middle of summer, good barbecue often set the mood. I trust that relative’s advice. I won’t get into specifics. I’ll just say that the success they had in their personal life did plenty to prove that point.
Some foods work better during certain times of the year. I know it’s mostly a psychological quirk, but a good meal involves more than just taste. Like eggnog during the holidays, barbecue during the summer just feels right. Whether it’s burgers on the grill or my dad’s famous flank steaks, it just makes summer feel complete.
It also helps that, unlike other traditional summer activities, a global pandemic can’t cancel the joys of barbecue. You just need a grill, a heat source, and some meat. If you need to wear a mask, you can. It doesn’t make the food taste any less delicious when it’s done cooking. If I can do it in my kitchen with a grill pan, then anyone can enjoy its succulent fruits.
It helps even more when you can find someone special to share these meaty meals with. Good food inspires quality loving on all levels. That’s another lesson my relatives have impressed upon me. A good summer barbecue can make everyone feel fulfilled, among other things. In that spirit, here are some Sexy Sunday Thoughts to help work up an appetite. Enjoy!
“You know you’ve become a powerful man when sex is offered rather than requested.”
“The intensity of orgasms is only matched by the desire to achieve them.”
“When you think about it, sex in front of a mirror is the most primitive form of interactive porn.”
“Women either grossly underestimate or exceedingly overstate how much porn is on their lover’s computer.”
“We’ll never truly know the identity of the greatest faker of orgasms.”
“If love is a battlefield, then ex-lovers are the double agents.”
“When our toilet is clogged, we all have a plumber fetish on some levels.”
This summer has been a bummer in so many ways. I freely admit that. That’s exactly why we need to cling to the things that 2020 hasn’t ruined for us. We don’t have movies, baseball, water parks, or restaurants this summer, but we still have barbecue. If ever there was a year when we deserved some extra sauce on our ribs, it’s this one.
Filed under Sexy Sunday Thoughts
The internet can be a sick, twisted place. Depending on where you go, you’ll lose your lunch, your innocence, or your faith in humanity and not necessarily in that order. However, every once in a while, it gives us something that reminds us just how awesome the world can be.
Ladies, gentlemen, and those of unspecified gender, I give you Henry Cavill assembling a gaming PC in a tank top, set to Barry White music. Trust me, it’s as awesome as it sounds and the rest of the internet agrees. Don’t believe me? See for yourself.
You’re welcome.
Filed under sex in media, sex in society, sexuality, technology, Uplifting Stories
Every now and then, you come across a headline that just makes your blood boil. It’s so frustrating that you want to punch your computer screen, kick the nearest brick wall, and bury your face in the thickest pillow you can find. In general, I try to avoid those headlines. There’s enough awful news in the world. Unfortunately, those headlines sometimes find me.
That happened once again this past week. I was just scrolling through the AP news headline while drinking my morning coffee. I almost choked on it when I saw this little gem.
AP: Catholic Church lobbied for taxpayer funds, got $1.4B
The U.S. Roman Catholic Church used a special and unprecedented exemption from federal rules to amass at least $1.4 billion in taxpayer-backed coronavirus aid, with many millions going to dioceses that have paid huge settlements or sought bankruptcy protection because of clergy sexual abuse cover-ups.
The church’s haul may have reached — or even exceeded — $3.5 billion, making a global religious institution with more than a billion followers among the biggest winners in the U.S. government’s pandemic relief efforts, an Associated Press analysis of federal data released this week found.
Now, whenever I talk about religion, which happens quite often, I always try to make a disclaimer. I respect peoples’ religious beliefs. I have people in my family who are devoutly religious. They’re wonderful, caring people who are enriched by their faith. I do not wish to disparage them in any way.
That said, I can’t say anything nice about the Catholic Church these days.
Never mind the fact that their history, as an organization, is wrought with absurdities and atrocities.
Never mind the fact that they’ve covered up and evaded responsibility for the systematic abuse of children.
This is an organization that has no business being bailed out of anything. They’re one of the largest, most powerful religious organizations in the world. They have their own sovereign country, for crying out loud. They pay no taxes and constantly seek exemptions from the law under the guise of “religious freedom.”
On top of that, this is the same organization that has blatantly and unapologetically opposed basic medical provisions for preventing the spread of AIDS in Africa. Even if they changed their minds, they refused to apologize for all the death and suffering that this wholly damaging policy had caused.
Now, they’re getting $1.4 billion in taxpayer money? Money that will likely go to paying off the millions they incurred by covering up scandals that involved the horrendous abuse of children?
Are you fucking kidding me?
Again, if you’re a devout Catholic, this is not directed at you. This is directed at the organization that simply uses your faith to make money, evade taxes, and avoid any kind of responsibility for the atrocities they commit or facilitate.
I know there are two sides to every story, but sometimes something is just plain wrong. This definitely qualifies. I could say more about this, but for the sake of my computer screen, I’ll end this by calling this an unholy justice of the worst kind.
Filed under Current Events, politics, rants, religion
It’s really happening.
I doubt anyone expected it to happen in their lifetimes, but after years of protesting and pushing, it’s finally happening. The Washington Redskins are changing their name. As someone who has followed NFL football his entire life and knows way too much about the history of every team, I am genuinely shocked. I really didn’t think this was going to happen, especially with how stubborn the owner of the team has been.
Shocked or not, it’s happening. The Washington Post announced it and the team made it official. They are changing their name.
Washington Post: Redskins To Retire Team Name
In an interview July 4, Coach Ron Rivera – who is working with owner Daniel Snyder to choose a name – said he hoped the new name would be in place by the start of the 2020 NFL season. Others have said it will be revealed as soon as within two weeks.
Two people with knowledge of the team’s plans said Sunday that the preferred replacement name is tied up in a trademark fight, which is why the team can’t announce the new name Monday.
Many are already celebrating this victory. In the battle against offensive sports mascots, this was the equivalent of Goliath. It’s one thing to get a publicly funded college to change their name. It’s quite another to get a private multibillion dollar sports franchise with an 80-plus years history. It’s a huge feat. Let’s not deny that.
Granted, it’s a feat that only happened once money became a factor. This was not done for moral reasons or because someone made an impassioned plea. This was a business decision done for the sake of doing future business. If there’s any lesson to be drawn from this endeavor, it’s that. Moral arguments do nothing. Money does all the talking.
It’s because of that, I suspect this is one of those issues that will still divide people. No matter what the new name is, people are still going to see them as “that team that used to be called the Redskins” or “that team that used to have a racist moniker.” Even though the team eventually did what some saw as the right thing, they’ll still be scorned because they didn’t do it soon enough.
That’s just the world we live in. The people who protested the name aren’t going to say “thank you.” They’re more likely to say, “It’s about damn time you racist piece of shit. Now, suffer for the rest of your life while we shame you, your children, and everyone you ever associate with and take it with a goddamn smile.”
That might be hyperbole, but that’s the power of outrage. It’s kind of addictive. The idea of turning anger into kindness, friendship, and harmony just feels like a bridge too far. People do get bored with outrage eventually, but only because they find something else to direct it towards.
That being said, I have a question to all those who are celebrating this feat. I want to ask that same question to everyone who passionately protested this name for years, protesting its racist connotations and use of caricatures. It’s a sincere, simple question that I hope people seriously contemplate.
What real, tangible benefit will changing the name of a football team accomplish for Native Americans communities in the long run?
The key word in that question is tangible. I’m aware of the various studies regarding the psychological impact of Native American mascots and caricatures. I’m willing to give them the benefit of the doubt on this. However, psychological impacts don’t always translate into tangible impacts. You can feel and think all you want. If you don’t do anything with it, then the impact never goes beyond brain chemicals.
As I write this, nearly a quarter of Native Americans live in poverty and the unemployment rate on many reservations is around 40 percent. That’s a trend that has not improved substantially in recent years, regardless of how many or how few mascots a sports team uses. The Native American community has a host of other critical issues to deal with that include, but are not limited to:
These are complex issues. I’m certainly not equipped to discuss them in detail. Some are more urgent than others, but plenty involve real, tangible impacts on a community. A lack of adequate health care, decent housing, and good education all incur tangible impacts. That’s beyond dispute. How will changing the name of a football team affect any of these issues?
I’m not being facetious. I genuinely want to know how much or how little that changing the name of an NFL football team will impact Native American communities in a tangible way. I don’t doubt that some will feel better about not having a football team with a racially insensitive name, but is that the only extent of the impact? Does that impact justify all the time, energy, and resources that went into this effort?
Please don’t answer that question now. Preferably, I’d like someone who is in touch with the Native American community to answer at least four years from now. By then, there will have been enough time for the impact of this event to play out. Whether it’s a decrease in poverty or an improvement in life expectancy, it should be clear by then. If it isn’t, then that poses another question.
Was all that effort to change the name of a football team a quality use of time and resources?
Again, that’s not a facetious question. I ask this as someone who really wants to know just how much a football team’s name actually impacts a large number of people within a minority community. I don’t expect to get clear answers now, but I hope they become clearer in the next few years. I also expect those answers to raise even more distressing questions.
Filed under censorship, NFL, political correctness, politics, rants, sports
For lifelong comic book fans, like myself, there’s usually one Wednesday in every month where all the major comic publishers drop a glut of high-profile comics. It’s not always predictable. You rarely know when a week like that will drop. Sometimes, you’ll just have weeks that dump a large amount of comics on the market. Those are fun, but like many things, quality counts more than quantity.
Without going too deep into spoilers on this beautiful Wednesday morning, I can safely say that this is one of those weeks. It’s a week where quality, and quantity in terms of new titles, achieves a harmonious balance that would make Thanos himself smile. There’s no need for an Infinity Gauntlet or a snap that wipes out half of all life in the universe. It just happened, thanks to the tireless work of this colorful industry.
It’s another sign that the comics industry, as a whole, is emerging from the many delays and cancellations caused by the global pandemic over the past several months. There will still be effects here and there. I doubt we’ll know the full extent of those effects for another year. For now, though, the comic book world is hitting its first grand slam in months.
We all need good, encouraging news more than usual these days. For comic fans, this might as well be a trip back to the middle of 2019 before we heard of N95 masks and social distancing. I encourage everyone to savor this rare, yet precious iteration New Comic Book Days. We don’t know whether the world will go to shit again before we get another.
As always, here is my pull list and pick of the week.
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #51
Filed under Jack's Quick Pick Comic
The following is a new video from my YouTube Channel, Jack’s World. It’s a trailer for an old, but epic fan fiction project I worked on several years back. Enjoy!
Filed under Jack's World, X-men, YouTube
In general, I try not to comment on “cancel culture.” It’s not because I don’t have an opinion. I just think it’s a waste of time, for the most part. I’ve never seen it lead to a productive conversation on anything. Most of the time, it just amounts to people publicly whining about something they find offensive to a point where others cave, if only to stop the whining.
I am not a fan of this, to put it mildly.
Every time I see it trend, I want to bash my head on my computer screen while telling some of these people to grow thicker skin.
The world is a chaotic, ugly, offensive place. We can only do so much to change it. No matter how much change we manage to implement, it won’t change the past or the context in which it transpired. That’s especially true if the people others are trying to cancel are long dead.
Now, as much as I despite the term and what it represents, I also understand that it’s not as simple as its critics make it out to be. At times, I find the people who whine about cancel culture to be just as insufferable. Their whining can basically be boiled down to, “Other people want to cancel the stuff I like and it hurts my feelings!” That’s just as pathetic as wanting to blackball a celebrity for old tweets from 2009.
Both efforts are equally absurd.
Both efforts do nothing to make the world a safer, more tolerant, more inclusive place.
Most of the time, I find the effects of “cancel culture” to be inconsistent, at best. People will complain about the lack of diversity in media, politics, business, and certain industries, but those same people can’t be bothered to vote or support the things that reflect those preferences. They always revert to whining.
People on both sides of the political spectrum will do this. The same people who laugh at those who complain about a video game character being too sexy while whine just as much because Brie Larson said something that hurt their feelings. They’ll claim their efforts are not contributing to cancel culture, but it’s the same damn concept.
Unfortunately, despite the best efforts of decent human beings with thick skin and a good sense of humor, cancel culture is still a thing. People are going to condemn celebrities and public figures for things they said or did years ago. We saw it with Kevin Hart, which cost him a chance to host the Oscars. We’re seeing that now with celebrities like Jimmy Kimmel and Sarah Silverman, who once did skits involving blackface.
All this is happening as statues of historical figures who did deplorable things are coming down. Never mind the context or bigger picture of why they’re historical in the first place. They did something awful. Any image that exists that may glorify them in any way is just too much for our tender sensibilities.
In addition to people, the urge to cancel all things offensive has extended to art. Movies like “Gone With The Wind,” which definitely had some offensive imagery, was removed from streaming recently. Shows like “Paw Patrol,” which is geared towards children, was seen as too offensive at a time when police brutality is a hot topic.
Now, I’m not going to justify old tweets or outrage about movies from a different era. I know there’s nothing I can say to change the minds of those who are so offended by statutes, celebrities, or the names of football teams that they want them all canceled. There’s also nothing I can say to change the minds who think it’s part of some elaborate censorship effort meant to destroy freedom.
Instead, I’d like to ask a few simple questions for both sides to consider.
What exactly does canceling something achieve in the long run?
At what point does canceling something amount to censorship?
Why is canceling something more viable than simply growing thicker skin?
At what point does context stop mattering for something that’s offensive?
How does condemning the ugly history of the past make the present or future any better?
What right do you have to be offended by the feelings and preferences of someone else?
I won’t claim these are easy questions to answer, but to those who are behind or protesting certain cancel-this hashtags, I hope they offer perspective. Like it or not, cancel culture isn’t going away anytime soon. People are always going to be offended by something or someone.
In years past, it was uptight religious zealots who were aghast at anything that didn’t reflect or promote the values of a 1950s sitcom. Now, it’s uptight activists who are aghast at anything that doesn’t reflect their utopian fever dream that just happens to align with their politics. The passion is real, but the motivations are misguided.
You can tear down every monument.
You can censor every byte of media.
You can rewrite every textbook or novel that ever reflected outdated attitudes.
It won’t change what happened in the past. It won’t prevent people from being assholes in the future. If anything, it sends the message that people are too weak, stupid, or traumatized to handle certain ideas. That, in my opinion, is the most offensive thing of all.
As I write these words, it’s over 93 degrees out and it’s not even noon. It’s also the third day and a row we’ve had that kind of heat. In my book, that qualifies as a full-blown heat wave. That, in and of itself, isn’t too shocking. It’s July. It’s the middle of summer. It’s going to get hot out. Most people in my area expected that.
However, most people didn’t expect to endure a heat wave in the middle of a goddamn pandemic. That does change things considerably in terms of how we handle it.
In the past, a heat wave was no big deal. It was just a valid reason for me to grab a stack of comics, put on my swim trunks, and hang out by the pool for an afternoon. If the pool was too crowded, I sometimes caught up with some friends, went to a movie, and ate ice cream while watching the latest summer blockbuster. Those were good times. They made you forget about the heat.
Now, very little of that is an option. Every pool in my area is either closed or operating at a limited capacity. Every movie theater is still closed. Most of the restaurants I go to are either closed, only doing delivery, or operating at partial capacity. I’m not saying there are no ways of beating the heat, but it is a lot harder now.
It’s just one of the many things that the pandemic has killed. At the very least, nobody has a right to judge you for walking around your home in your underwear or naked. If ever there was a time to give someone a pass, it’s now. Beating the heat is harder in 2020, but here are some Sexy Sunday Thoughts to help inspire that effort. Enjoy!
“High risks for high rewards tend to inspire the kinkiest kinks.”
“Thrill sex is basically a pop quiz for your genitals.”
“Unattractive people who aren’t rich, but still get laid are more talented than any professional athlete.”
“Any technology that makes sex safer is going to make couples kinkier by default.”
“The fact that idiots often have kids is proof that our genitals are more cunning than our brains.”
“A couple that regularly works on their oral sex skills is a couple who truly love each other.”
“Not wearing a mask during a pandemic is like wearing a mini-skirt without panties.”
Heat waves are a pain to deal with, even when you have air conditioning. There are still ways to manage. I’ve grown fond of getting a cooler full of beer, sitting out on my porch, and reading comics on my iPad. I encourage everyone to get just as creative. This heat wave will pace. This pandemic will pass. When it does, it helps us appreciate the simpler things in life that much more.
Filed under Sexy Sunday Thoughts
We all say, do, or write things that don’t age well and it’s not just because of cancel culture. Sometimes, you just do things that turn out to be dead wrong. It happens. It’s distressing, uncomfortable, and frustrating. It’s also unavoidable. We’re all fallible humans. We’re going to be wrong every now and then. It’s just a matter of degree.
To that end, I’d like to admit my own major error. I probably could’ve just casually ignored this, but I think it’s better that I confront this now rather than later. Back in late February, I wrote something about the coronavirus. Without getting into every detail on that piece, I’ll just say this. I was wrong. I was very, very wrong and I apologize.
For the full story and context, here’s a link and an excerpt.
A (Hopeful) Perspective On The Coronavirus
There’s another perspective worth considering when following the news of the coronavirus. Unlike the devastating plagues of the past, humanity has developed a decent infrastructure for medicine, technology, and research. Granted, it took us centuries of trial, error, and mass death and there’s still plenty of room for improvement, but that system is there. It’s better than nothing. Just ask Medieval Europe.
That system is already doing its job in combating the virus. Already, researchers at the University of Texas in Austin have mapped out critical portions of the virus. That sort of thing couldn’t have been done this quickly or at all just 30 years ago. This data is critical for the development of treatments and, ultimately, a vaccine.
The fact that this happened so quickly after the outbreak is something the news hasn’t reported on. Even if treatments develop and the virus is contained, as we’ve seen with other recent outbreaks, it probably won’t be a huge story within the ever-changing news cycle.
It almost seems quaint. I come off as so hopeful that this isn’t going to be a major issue. This isn’t going to utterly break the world and turn 2020 into a devolving mess of frustration, misery, and outrage. Usually, my optimism helps me navigate tough times, but optimism doesn’t do squat against a global pandemic.
This isn’t a renegade hashtag.
This isn’t some juicy celebrity scandal.
This isn’t even some horrific terrorist attack that brings out the best and worst and people.
Global pandemics are different. They don’t give a damn about politics, economic trends, social trends, or when baseball season is supposed to start. It’s a mindless disease and it’s killing us. Even at my most cynical, I never imagined it could cause this much suffering and death. Now, as a fresh spike in cases is starting to take hold, what I wrote in February only seems more foolish.
As such, I sincerely apologize. I was wrong. I had no idea it was going to get this bad. If you read that article and took comfort in it at the time, I’m very sorry.
I’m still trying to cling to some semblance of optimism. I do believe that this crisis, like many others before it, will pass. It’s just going to get a lot worse before it gets better.
Filed under Current Events, Jack Fisher's Insights, media issues, technology
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