First, a little background information: I’ve been a fan of monster movies since my days watching “Monster Week” on ABC’s “The 4:30 Movie,” which, I believe, was a community service offering by the television network designed to keep disgruntled children from setting fires and slashing tires. When I was old enough to sneak into “R” rated movies, I was immediately drawn to films like “A Nightmare on Elm Street” and “The Exorcist.” As I “matured” (a decades long process that is far from over), I learned to draw cartoons. Many of these ink and paper creations feature monsters, aliens and assorted psychopaths (also categorized as monsters). So, devising a list of my own seems to be a worthwhile exercise – I like to think of it as a journey of self-exploration.

Before I share my list with you, I would like you to see a few top 10 lists that I discovered on the web. The first, which includes an entertaining video, comes from Cinemassacre. The second is the work of Mark Monahan, of the U.K’s Telegraph, and the third comes from a poll conducted by Media Psychology Lab at California State in Los Angeles.

Cinemassacre’s Top 10 Giant Movie Monsters (WARNING: Contains a sprinkling of foul language):

10.Tadpole Thing (The Host – 2006)
9. The Kraken (Clash of the Titans – 1981)
8. Brontosaurus (From the Lost World – 1925)
7. Reptilicus (Reptilicus – 1961)
6. Stay Puff (Ghostbusters – 1984)
5. The Beast (The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms – 1953)
4. Gamera (Series 1965-2006)
3. Godzilla (Series 1954-2004)
2. King Kong (1933)
1. The Giant Claw (1957)

“The top ten movie monsters,” from Mark Monahan:

10. Sil (Species, 1995)
9. Nomak (Blade II, 2002)
8. The Tyrannosaurus Rex (Jurassic Park, 1996)
7. The id-monster (Forbidden Planet, 1956)
6. The Rabbit (Monty Python and the Holy Grail, 1975)
5. The Werewolf (An American Werewolf in London, 1981)
4. The Thing (The Thing, 1982)
3. King Kong (King Kong, 1933, 2005)
2. Medusa (Clash of the Titans, 1981)
1. The Alien (Alien, 1979)

Media Psychology Lab’s 2001 poll:

10. The Alien (Alien – 1979)
9. Jason (Friday the 13th – 1980)
8. Hannibal Lector (The Silence of the Lambs – 1991)
7. Michael Meyers (Halloween – 1978)
6. Chucky (Child’s Play – 1988)
5. King Kong (King Kong (1933)
4. Godzilla (Godzilla King of the Monsters – 1954)
3. Frankenstein (Frankenstein – 1931)
2. Freddy Krueger (A Nightmare on Elm Street – 1984)
1. Dracula (Dracula – 1933)

My Top 10 movie monsters:

10. Medusa (Clash of the Titans, 1981)
9. The Kraken (Clash of the Titans – 1981)
8. The Tyrannosaurus Rex (Jurassic Park, 1996)
7. Godzilla (Series 1954-2004)
6. The id-monster (Forbidden Planet, 1956)
5. The Werewolf (An American Werewolf in London, 1981)
4. The Predator (Predator, 1987)
3. The Thing (The Thing, 1982)
2. The Alien (Alien, 1979)
1. Freddy Krueger (A Nightmare on Elm Street – 1984)

As you may notice, my list focuses on the truly creepy creations dreamed up by those with more disturbing childhoods than mine. As for my top pick, Freddie scared the crap out of me; I couldn’t sleep for days after being scarred by that film (the ending was truly nightmarish). And, some of you may question why I have so few giant monsters on my list. I can explain this by the fact that you can run and hide from them. Godzilla made it for his ability to breath fire, the Tyrannosaurus Rex for his intelligence and persistence, and the Kraken for his (its?) overall ghoulish appearance. Please leave lists of your own in the comment section.

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Making Joe McCarthy’s ghost proud by accusing the Democratic presidential nominee of harboring anti-American views has very expensive consequences. (Videos after jump.) This is the hard lesson that Republican Michele Bachmann, who represents Minnesota’s Sixth Congressional District, learned after she unleashed a torrent of absurdities aimed at discrediting Barack Obama, Democrats, and liberals. (But, I’m sure McCarthy’s doing back flips on Satan’s love seat.) It’s quite apparent that the barrel of bad behavior for the 2008 election has no bottom.

Last Friday afternoon, Bachmann told MSNBC’s Chris Matthews that Obama “may have anti-American views,” due to past association with domestic terrorist Bill Ayers, and his love affair with “socialist” policy solutions. As a result of her remarks, the Republican National Committee pulled ads slated for Bachmann’s district, and her opponent, Elwyn Tinklenberg, was flooded with over a million dollars in fresh donations from outraged voters across the country.

Bachmann swiped a page straight from Sarah Palin’s playbook. The Armani-clad, former sweatpants-wearing Hockey-Mom used character assassination to fire up a culture war, drawing a line separating the policies of Democratic Presidential nominee Barack Obama and what is good, just and fair for America. According to the sisters of no mercy, Obama, if elected, will send his evil minions to steal what’s left of your possessions – including your collection of assault weapons; make abortions not only mandatory, but readily available at former Starbucks locations; set your church ablaze to roast veggie burgers; and replace your Bible with a federally-funded copy of the Koran – signed by Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Representative Bachmann actually busted the loony scale that was designed to gauge Palin’s campaign tactics, saying the press should investigate members of Congress to see exactly who in that august chamber stand for pure American values, and who wants to smoke pot, snack on acid-laced Arugula and dance naked to Barbra Streisand’s Greatest Hits around a mountain of burning American flags.

Once caught in the headlights of national press scrutiny, Bachmann blamed Chris Matthews – a member of the liberal media elite – for setting her up and twisting her words. Sarah Palin did the same thing last night, denying that she was implying that some parts of America are just not patriotic – contradicting what she actually said. For Michele Bachmann, fomenting a culture war cost her campaign money and support. Hopefully, in two weeks the voters will make her pay with her congressional seat.

(Check with the Star Tribune and the LA Times for more details on how Michele Bachmann’s sad performance helped her rival, Democrat Elwyn Tinklenberg.)

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It was 11pm, time to put my Mac to sleep and my butt on the couch for the Daily Show with Jon Stewart. I was in the mood for a hearty chuckle, but WOW! is all I can say after watching the first ten minutes. (Two videos follow the jump.) Apparently, Mr. Stewart has had enough of Republican Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin and her attempts to draw a new American map that separates the patriotic rural lands from the “haters” and abortionists who dwell in the urban areas, located mainly on the coasts. I’ve seen Stewart rant before – but never like this. It’s apparent that 2008 election is creating great comedy as it tears the nation apart at the seams.

Stewart was ripping on Palin in front of college students in Boston on Friday night, responding to her comments before faithful followers in North Carolina the day before. I doubt Stewart or any of the Daily Show crew slept over the weekend. (Please view both Stewart’s performance in Boston and CNN’s coverage of Palin’s campaign remarks.)

They loaded their acerbic stun guns with enough juice to put Palin and a 1,000 pound moose into deep comas. Daily Show correspondent Jason Jones went to Wasilla, the small Alaskan town where Palin served as mayor. He interviewed white rural folks in scary bars, roamed the WalMarts and Lowe’s superstores and interviewed the town’s current under-worked mayor.

I empathize with Stewart and his crew. I am disgusted at John McCain and Sarah Palin’s loathsome efforts to divide Americans in order to shift the focus away from their total lack of substance. I think all the writers at the Daily Show erupted, letting everything fly last night – making the folks from a small Alaskan town look like superstitious bigots. But, it’s a left-leaning comedy show – they weren’t producing a documentary for the History Channel. Their intense reaction to Palin’s vile attempts to turn Americans against each other shows that this campaign tactic is creating fault lines that will last well beyond the 2008 election.

I found posts from The Weekly Standard Blog and NewsBusters on Technorati that focus on Jon Stewart’s rant against Sarah Palin. Both are considered respectable conservative websites. I’ve pulled quotes from each post, but please click the links to read the complete texts.

From NewsBusters:

“Don’t you love how liberals in the same breath they’re complaining about the divisiveness in America spew some of the worst hatred you can imagine towards those they disagree with?”

And, from The Weekly Standard Blog:

“During the same routine… he seemed to write off Palin’s rural swath of the country, referring to the governor’s home not as Alaska, Wasilla, or Juneau, but as ‘the woods.’”

They’ve both criticized Stewart for engaging in the same divisiveness that has marked every Palin campaign rally. They don’t seem to take issue with what set Jon Stewart off in the first place. He may have gone a little overboard – but he’s a freakin’ comedian for God the Wonderful and Glorious Almighty’s sake! What the hell are these two conservative sites doing? How do their writers sleep at night? Did Barack Obama or Joe Biden say this? No, they did not – a late night comedian did. I’m off to blast these clowns right in their patriotic pie holes. Let me know what you think about the videos of Palin and Stewart, and the posts from the two sites listed above. (Click here to see the Al Jazeera video from a Palin rally in eastern Ohio earlier this month.)

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I just saw a two minute video called “Misconceptions of Obama fuel Republican campaign,” filmed by Al Jazeera, the Middle Eastern news network. (Video after the jump.) What an eye-opener. Conventional U.S. news outlets are all abuzz talking about radical nutballs who shouted “terrorist” and allegedly, “kill him” at Sarah Palin’s rallies. To find out what some people at her rallies really think, Al Jazeera sent a reporter to eastern Ohio to let the people say for themselves what they thought. The clip show the reporter talking to “ordinary” folks who attended a Palin rally – not the rowdy lunatics hopped-up on Red Bull. These are the people at PTA meetings, garage sales – they’re scattered throughout rural and suburban towns all over America. I found what they had to say about Barack Obama alarming, to say the very least.

Please read on…

From “Misconceptions of Obama fuel Republican campaign” – 13 Oct 08

As the US presidential campaign enters its final weeks, both the Republican and Democratic candidates are hitting the … As the US presidential campaign enters its final weeks, both the Republican and Democratic candidates are hitting the swing states. But misconceptions and rumors abound and many voters have their facts about the candidates all wrong. Some believe that Democrat Barack Obama is a Muslim, for instance. Casey Kauffman talked to some Republican supporters after a rally by Sarah Palin, the Republican vice-presidential candidate, in Ohio.

Here’s a little information about Al Jazeera from Wikipedia:

History:

The original Al Jazeera channel was started in 1996 with a $150 million grant from the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa.

In April 1996, the BBC World Service’s Saudi-co-owned Arabic language TV station, faced with censorship demands by the Saudi Arabian government, shut down after two years of operation. Many former BBC World Service staff members joined Al Jazeera, which at the time was not yet on air. The channel began broadcasting in late 1996.

About:

Al Jazeera, meaning “The Island,” referring to their status as the only independent Middle Eastern news station is a network headquartered in Doha, Qatar. Initially launched as an Arabic news and current affairs satellite TV channel with the same name, Al Jazeera has since expanded into a network with several outlets, including the Internet and specialty TV channels in multiple languages, and in several regions of the world.

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