I love internet videos, especially ones that make me laugh or lift me to some sort of emotional epiphany. There is nothing like being a first-mover on something... therefore, I will be a first mover, or at least a late-week mover. 'Look at me!' I cry. I thought I would start a Sunday column giving you ten videos that I particularly thought were awesome this week. I will try to keep them recent, as to not mine the annuls of the internet for some long-forgotten treasure. Anyway, keep up with me on Google+ account as I find a brilliant piece of awesomeness daily.
1. Call Me Maybe Chatroullete Dancer
From the scum of Chatroulette comes what appears to be humanity. Their faces as they realize that dude is a dude, well, it's priceless. I do feel bad for some of them though. That guy without a shirt on was clearly getting ready to ... well. And the creepy man in the bathrobe was a little too into it. But this made me happy. Seriously, you can get severely disillusioned with your fellow man after surfing through Omegle for a few minutes. But these people were awesome, and let's face it, the girls were attractive. Anyway, good job, guys. Your faces were great.
2. Raaarrrgg!
A short but sweet one. Time to celebrate the Olympics with a good ol' Godzilla scream.
3. Taking a dinosaur on a walk in Australia
I was wondering why they didn't try to hide the person's legs more. I mean, as a viewer you do forget about them, but still, it slightly takes you out of the illusion. Several reddit users gave reasons. One was that dark blue was a neutral color (to me they looked like stone-washed jeans). Another was that if they blended in more it would appear to have four legs and not two. The best reason, though, was that without them, people would freak out and try to shoot it with their concealed carry. That honestly makes the most sense to me.
4. and 5. Onion News on the 2012 Summer Olympics
Since I started doing this near the middle of the week, I'll give you two Onion videos making fun of the Olympics. It's over people, the Olympics I mean. America got the most medals in every category: gold, silver, bronze, and obviously the total tally. The Who and the Spice Girls are set to perform at the closing ceremony, while the Queen takes a nap. But America did it. After all the talk of coming in second to the Chinese, or possibly even third. The Olympics actually makes me proud to be an American. I love that we are a diverse group of people, a people who can see past our differences when it matters and rally to victory. America is like a giant USS Enterprise. We come from tons of different cultures, and that makes us stronger.
Anyway, Jack Nicholson, Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks, Denzel Washington, and Daniel Day Lewis came out as gay, didn't you know?
6. The Art of the Glitch
This is a little piece by PBS which shows off the Art of the Glitch. I've never heard of this before, but I am impressed with the improvisational nature of it. Here is the PBSoffbook sypnosis of the video:
Glitches are the frustrating byproduct of technology gone awry. Wildly scrambled images, frozen blue screens, and garbled sounds signify moments where we want to throw our expensive computer products out the window. Many artists and programmers, however, have embraced these crisis moments and discovered beauty in the glitch. By hacking familiar systems, they intentionally cause glitches, and manipulate them to create art. Enjoying the aesthetics of technological mistakes defies the notion that technology and entertainment has to be a seamless experience. Most importantly, glitch artists reveal a certain soulfulness that emerges when complex streams of information, visual media, and our own lives converge in the chaos of the glitch.
7. Trailer for 2012's "Red Dawn"
This is a film that had its release date shuffled around by its parent studio, its enemy changed from China to North Korea, and this despite the big name actors which star in it. I, for one, am excited for it. It plays off real fears I think a lot of Americans have going into these next few decades. Could the US be invaded by an outside force? Our infrastructure is not what it used to be. Our economy is in the pits. Our number one status is fading away. That's why the 2012 Olympics was so important. It made us proud again. Even our economy seems to be doing relatively well compared to everyone else. (Yeah, I know this is frankly an illusion, but it's what we need.) Anyway, I hope this one does gangbusters.
8. The Fine Bros get a bunch of kids to look at "Where the Hell is Matt?"
For some reason this made me happy. We are indeed a global community. After returning home from a small island in the Pacific Ocean, I know that more than ever.
"Kinda makes me feel like I could do anything like flyyyyy!"
9. NDT taking on RD
I think my best response to this comes from a comment I made to another poster.
[In response to another commenter] I don't think so. It's not a terrible approach, but when you take this approach, all it does is add credence to what they are saying. As if the 2 sides are equal, or even somewhat equal. Why would you treat such outlandish and retarded nonsense with the same respect as you treat other issues which aren't so one sided. If a guy says he is an ET and that he and his group come from the planet ZARGOONO, I don't really feel you should pander to him and treat his ideas with any sort of respect. --sihTdaeRtnaCuoYMy reply to him:
Still, if someone said they were from planet ZARGOONO or whatever, wouldn't it be easier to convince him by treating him with some sort of respect, if not his beliefs? I mean, religion may be completely outlandish in your opinion, but you are not going to get any converts by treating its adherents like idiots. It's just not going to happen. --DegausserNOWHis reply back:
Perhaps it might be more effective in converting people, so if that was your sole goal no matter the cost, then I would have to agree with Tyson. While I would like people to "convert" to atheism, I don't think it's more important than being honest. Dawkins cares for the truth more than anything, I personally agree and feel it's more important to be honest about what you think than to convert people. He treats religious views as any other, and still treats the PEOPLE with respect and kindness. --sihTdaeRtnaCuoY
10. Justin Bieber gets beat up
I am not a Justin Bieber fan. I was only convinced to watch this by my far-distant cousin, Ria. But the song isn't that bad, and if your intention is to keep on pop culture, here is his latest music video, "As Long As You Love Me". Bieber can't act, but Michael Madsen, Bill's brother in "Kill Bill", is awesome. Plus he beats the tar out of the Canadian in this.
And that was my first week of doing this. I love pop culture, internet culture, media, blah, blah, blah. This stuff gets me off... figuratively. So yeah, hope you liked my first try.
