The Writer's Life 2/14 - Troubles

I try to keep a positive outlook, despite the divisiveness roiling the country, but some days it's hard. When I turned on the radio this morning, I heard of the death of Supreme Court Justice and conservative icon Antonin Scalia, 79. Of course, one's view of him depends on one's politics. To me, he was a pillar of common sense whose presence will be greatly missed. His passing will lead to even more divisiveness, as the President will nominate a liberal to replace him and Republicans will fight it, hoping the next leader of the free world will be one of theirs and nominate a conservative. Usually, I begrudge the president's prerogative in this matter, even when I disagree with the choice. Is it legitimate to claim the choice should be left up to the next man/woman? I'm not sure. What are the precedents in a final term appointment? Then again, unless Rubio or Cruz or a dark horse conservative is elected, the next justice is likely to be a liberal. Sanders, Hillary or Bloomberg would name a leftist. I sense Trump would too. RIP, Justice Scalia. Well done, sir.

There were a lot of troubling items in today's NY Post. The world's largest container company by capacity, Maersk, reported an 84% decline in profits in 2015, attributed not only to falling oil prices but to slower trade... JP Morgan's CEO, Jamie Dimon, according to Jonathon Trugman, "was willing to run into the fire and buy $24 million dollars worth of his bank's stock on Thursday." Will others have to do that to prevent a complete market meltdown? Will it prevent it? It's scary... In the past five years, $8 billion worth of Manhattan apartments valued at $5 million or more have been paid for in cash by persons unknown. Real estate brokers and lawyers are not required to disclose a client's identity. It is believed a lot of the money is dirty. Legislation is being proposed to change this. NYC's revenues are flush with the taxes on these sales. Would a change in the law prevent future sales and harm the city's bottom line?

And on the the innocuous: 29% of Americans have a tattoo. Surprisingly, more women do, 31%, than men, 27%. Even more surprising, the divide among Republicans, Democrats and Independents is almost equal.

For some reason, Netflix sent me two discs this week. Last night I watched No Escape (2015), an effective thriller. The plot is simple: an American engineer moves his family to an unnamed Southeast Asia country that shares a border with Vietnam. He has been hired to work on a water project. The next day rebellion breaks out, and foreigners are executed. Although there is little doubt of the outcome, there is a lot of tension, suspense and exhilarating action. Only once is credulity strained, but overall the film is more grounded than most action fare produced these days. It falters badly when it makes its only segue into politics, blaming corporations for the slaughter they have brought upon themselves. Leftists, of course, would agree, but the injection of a brief, blanket statement is ridiculous. The screenplay should have gone into more depth or not mentioned it at all. Other than that egregious slip, the flick is thoroughly enjoyable and contains several scenes of visceral satisfaction. Owen Wilson and Lake Bell are fine as the loving parents, and the two little girls, as usual in modern cinema, are brilliant. Pierce Brosnan adds quirky charm as a mysterious stranger the family crosses paths with several times. John Erick Dowdle directed and collaborated with Drew Dowdle on the screenplay. I am unfamiliar with their previous work. I was also a stranger to Bell, who has extensive credits, including five as a writer and five as a director. Nearly 38,000 users at IMDb have rated No Escape, forging to a consensus of 6.8 of ten, which is right on the money by me. It runs only 103 minutes, another plus.

It was three degrees when I left the house this morning just after six AM. The real feel was a lot worse, given the strong wind. My morning walk was restricted to the newsstand and back. I had a laugh while inside. I said: "One more day and the worst is over." And the clerk replied: "But it's a long day." He works a twelve hour shift.

Vic's Short Works: http://tinyurl.com/jy55pzc

Vic's 5th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/okxkwh5Vic's 4th novel: tinyurl.com/bszwlxh

Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3

Vic's Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx
Vic's Short Story Collection: http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tiny.cc/0iHLb Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kx3d3uf
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tinyurl.com/l84h63j

Website: http://vicfortezzaauthor.my-free.website/