As we approach January 20, we know that the people who will miss GWB the most is clearly the comedians, particularly when he’s the source of endless quality quotes - here’s a choice list of a few as collected by the AP: “I know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully.” - September 2000 “Rarely is the question asked, is our children learning?” - January 2000 “There’s no doubt in my mind, not one doubt in my mind, that we will fail.” - Oct. 4, 2001 “There’s an old saying in Tennessee - I know it’s in Texas, probably in Tennessee - that says, fool me once, shame on… shame on you. Fool me… you can’t get fooled again.” - Sept. 17, 2002 “Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we.” - Aug. 5, 2004 “We look forward to hearing your vision, so we can more better do our job.” - Sept. 20, 2005 “It was not always a given that the United States and America would have a close relationship. After all, 60 years we were at war 60 years ago we were at war.” - June 29, 2006, speaking with Japanese PM Junichiro Koizumi “Make no mistake about it, I understand how tough it is, sir. I talk to families who die.” - Dec. 7, 2006 “Thank you, Your Holiness. Awesome speech.” - April 16, 2008, to the Pope “I remember meeting a mother of a child who was abducted by the North Koreans right here in the Oval Office.” - June 26, 2008 “This thaw… took a while to thaw, it’s going to take a while to unthaw.” - Oct. 20, 2008, talking about the frozen credit market. Here’s hoping some other character appears to make up for the lack of Bush or Palin on the world stage. ...

Happy New Year, everyone! It’s scary to think it’s now been 9 years since the tick of the clock to 2000. To think, I had so many plans back then… that… er… mostly involved… ok, so I can’t remember a single one of those plans for the life of me, but I think they mostly involved getting through school and having a car. That’s me, ambitious as all heck. So, er, here’s to more plans! Or plain ol’ spontaneity, as the case may well be. ...

Slumdog Millionaire: Jamal, a slum kid done good, is just trying to get back with his girl. The universe seems to have other plans for him, and it involves appearing on the Indian Who Wants to be a Millionaire? - where, despite his slum upbringing, he knows a streak of answers. This however makes the host suspicious, and he calls the cops to take him away for a shake-down. A film adaptation of a novel, Q & A by Vikas Swarup, Slumdog Millionaire is up for serious Oscar contention. Directed by Danny Boyle (Trainspotting), it’s little wonder a story like this is being considered a dark horse for Best Picture. Timelines are interspersed, but each subtly clear and distinct, though it does like to meander. Told mostly in English, the plot manages to keep its thread, though there are moments of credulity that the suspension of disbelief is required to overcome. Scenes of the slums can be confronting, and occasionally it appears to be exaggerated to make the point, but it’s all in there, and then some. ...

Tropic Thunder: The line between action movie and spoof action flick blurs wildly in this, though it pulls out just ahead in the spoof column. I suppose it’s only a commentary of our times when you wonder whether the product placement in this is intentional or whether it’s there to be parodied. While there aren’t any stand-out performances, the movie does chug along nicely enough, and it’s worth a few laughs. ★★★ ...

Whatever you’ve done to your car, you will be outdone by these Japanese cars. My favourite? The exhausts that empty directly into the ozone layer. (via kahiti)