Can’t you smell it?

Don’t you want it?

Well…I don’t. The thing looks no different from the one I have (the 3G version) except for the camera in the front (and come on, how much is anyone going to iChat on their iPhone).

Now if it was a flying car.

But we all know how that promise worked out. (I’m still bitter I don’t have one)

I am a huge Apple fan but unless they do something really different I just won’t get too excited.

Sorry.

Hurt Locker wasn’t my cup of tea…and I’m in the Army.

Slumdog Millionare was…okay.

The list goes on.

Recently I had the opportunity to see Diana Lee Inosanto’s (yup, daughter of Martial Arts legend…and my longtime hero, Guro Dan Inosanto) movie The Sensei.

At first when I read the reviews and what the film was about I was thinking “man, maybe I shouldn’t watch this because I’m just going to be disappointed” or more to the point, Avatar was my favourite movie last year and I really love the cheesy 80s flick The Last Dragon. Heavy meaning and so called powerful movies normally aren’t my thing. I like to be entertained.

Thing is, I was wrong.

The Sensei not only shows how great an actress Ms. Inosanto is but how meaningful a movie can be.

You can tell that the film was made with a great deal of thought, of love and the dream to try to get a message out that the world could be a better place if we all just put hatred and stupidity aside.

I’m not going to go into the plot and all the rest…find out for yourself or better yet, don’t bother. Just get a copy of The Sensei and watch it. I think it is something we all should do, just as important a film as American History X or Schindler’s List.

The Sensei is a movie that can change lives and if nothing else, can make you think.

And honestly, if a movie can make this Army dude tear up like The Sensei did to me, it can’t be all bad.

Watch it NOW!!!

Find out more at (http://www.thesenseimovie.com/)

The French who own a couple tiny islands in the area said it wasn’t them.

Canada says it wasn’t them.

Police say no rocket maker wannabes have admitted to the launch.

Not to mention that the rockets were said to be about the size of a transport truck.

Weird.

Read it here: http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/100129/koddities/nl_object_in_sky_7

Then the iPad comes out.

Don’t get me wrong, I think it is awesome and the price, wow!

But ‘why’ is the question that keeps coming to mind now.

Do I need what really amounts to a giant sized iPhone?

And why is it missing the fabled camera so you can use iChat?

Just some thoughts.

Truth.

Dan Woolley is the guy’s name and after surviving, thanks to the iPhone and using the alarm function to go off every 20 minutes or so, 66 hours later he was dug out of the rubble by French rescuers.

Woolley was in Haiti doing work on a documentary on poverty and it is my bet that when he bought the iPhone and likely got addicted to it like all the rest of us he would never have imagined that the thing would literally save his life.

Apple should use this guy for their commercials.

Not to mention that now that iPhone and the app producer have gotten all this attention they are getting, they should give some of that run-off coin they are bound to get to help in Haiti.

Too cool!

Basically, a military course taught by military lawyers about how military action is governed.

Yahoo! Exciting.

Not.

It is, however, interesting.

Interesting as in how the hell can we really expect anyone to follow these laws.

It blew me away to find out that under international law governing such things, a terrorist is technically an ‘unlawful combatant’ which means not really someone you, as a soldier, can just whack simply because they are a bad guy. Not that I would condone the ‘whacking’ of anyone but to think that if our government knew where Osama Bin Laden was we couldn’t just rid the world of him.

Well, not legally at least.

Same thing if we see a whole bunch of terrorist hanging out together but with no weapons or intent other than being a bunch of goons we can’t do what we would, say to a Nazi Death Squad.

Or, again, not legally.

Another weird thing is how the U.S. doesn’t want to be part of such international rules and laws. The long and short being that if you are part of the laws you are also accountable to them.

Nobody wants to see the President of the United States of America tried for war crimes. Well, not Obama at least, maybe that last guy would be seen a little differently.

Today being the first day of the course I’m sure I’ll have more to write about so bear with me.

Law and war. To me all they have in common is that they are three letter words that share an ‘a’ in the middle.

For those who might not know, or care, I have been training in the martial arts for going on 30 years now and the one constant in my sometimes scattered journey in the world of martial arts has been Guro Dan Inosanto.  Inosanto, if you don’t know, was the late Bruce Lee’s choice as the person to teach his style or way of martial arts. Since then, Inosanto has expanded his own way of doing things and has become one of, if not the most, respected and sought-after teachers (I’d say Master but Guro Dan says there is only one Master…and he isn’t talking about Bruce Lee) in the world today.

I have had the blessing to have been able to have trained with him a few times (not enough to my liking by any stretch) and currently train under one of his students (Rob Doley).

So when I heard that Guro Inosanto was involved in the movie The Book of Eli and heard Denzel Washington mentioning him (and his student Jeff Imada who was also involved with the movie) I knew I had to see it.

Not to mention that Denzel Washington is one of the best actors around (in my books at least).

Well, I went to the theatre last night a good hour ahead to get a good seat (after buying my ticket hours before) and honestly, I’m amazed by how great this movie was.

The movie keeps being compared to a Western. I can see that but at the same time, honestly it is so much more.

Filmed in stark colours that make the thing seem almost black and white at times, the movie takes the viewer on a journey into a future 30 years from now that doesn’t seem too hard to believe where one man, as humble as he is, is on a mission to bring balance and peace back into the world — to set things right — or at least do what needs to be done.

The thing I loved is that Denzel, while playing a prophet of sorts isn’t some flake, more like a King David sort of holy warrior who kicks ass but realizes he answers to a higher power all the while being simply a man with all the torment and problems that we all have.

He’s the kind of hero that realizes he is a man and can only do so much — a man who is trying to do something and in accepting that role knows full well that sometimes he has to make some hard choices that would torment anyone.

There are already whispers that this movie might lead to a sequel. I’m not sure how that could work out or why they’d want to (other than the obvious) as this movie is a great stand-alone itself.

And yes, the fight scenes were amazing and exactly what I wanted to see but more, the movie was something greater.

Its message was about the true meaning of faith with Denzel’s character being a futuristic Moses who had some great knife-fighting skills.

Would I recommend this film? YES!!! Do I think everyone will ‘get’ the message? Probably not.

Most people like the carrot to just dangle there and know that it is in fact what they think it is. People don’t like, for the most part, to think too much. But for those who do, for those who want more, for those who are looking for messages in the pavement of life — this movie is something you just have to see.

I’m sure of one thing. The Book of Eli is destined to be a cult classic of nothing more. Like Blade Runner, people will be looking at this movie for decades to come and that is a great thing.

Pat Robertson believes that the people of Haiti have made a pact with the devil and that is the reason they have had a killer earthquake.

In a video that is flying around the airwaves and the Internet you can watch this old man who I am really hoping is senile and not responsible for the crap that comes out of his mouth saying that Haiti has a “curse”.

A curse?

Come. On.

We are talking about setting up a base on the Moon, travelling to Mars, and countless other things that make us seem somewhat evolved and this supposed Christian leader says that a nation of around 9 million people have a curse?

Why do we give these people the ability to pass on this kind of garbage.

I obviously believe in free speech but this is just beyond understanding of how or why anyone would think this guy should be given the time of day.

Get rid of him and his venom once and for all.

And if you take the time to find out more you’ll see that this isn’t the first time this guy has opened his mouth only to let loose garbage. He blamed the September 11 attacks on his belief in the sins of Americans and the list goes on and on.

Nutcase.

Maybe he is a good guy deep down.

Maybe he is completely out of his gourd.

Either way, stop. Please. Stop. Enough.

The people of Haiti need our help. We should focus on that.

Crazy.

On the list of places that seem perpetually getting punched in the gut, Haiti has suffered a major earthquake — the worst in over 200 years — and UN predictions are that thousands are likely dead.

Question is, will the place recover?

It is already on the brink and has been since their independence from France was gained in the 1800s.

The average person there makes less than $600 a year. A dollar a day.

Imagine that.

And now throw into the mix dealing with your life being devastated by this quake.

In a country of around 9 million the Red Cross says 3 million people have been affected by the quake.

So what now?

Hopefully the world will rally behind Haiti and help them not only get past this disaster but take it as a good time to do what needs to be done to put the tiny country on its feet to a bright new future.

What can you do?

Well, a start would be to look here (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34835478/ns/world_news-haiti_earthquake/) where there are a list of places that plan on helping. Do what you can.

Hopefully some good can come from this terrible thing.