The Anchor Trailer

The Goon Test Footage

This footage just makes me smile:

Movie Trailers - Movies Blog

Another Drunken Woman Piece

“Why did you let me drink so much last night?”

“Um, why did I let you drink so much? Why did you keep making me drink last night when I was clearly done?”

“Lightweight. Don’t be such a pansy.”

“Pansy’s are not able to puke out all of their internal organs and keep on living.”

“That is just cause you are so well preserved internally.”

“So why did you punch that guy last night?”

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

“Large guy, you punched him and knocked him to the ground. I am wondering why, because I really don’t remember too much about it.”

“You are so full of shit and such a liar. How do you make this crap up when you are hungover? I can barely figure out how to function as a human.”

“Not lying at all. Bouncers wanted to toss you. I told them he tried to sexually assault you and they hauled him out of there with a quickness.”

“Oh god. I don’t believe you. I don’t remember it and it didn’t happen.”

“It so did.”

“Anything else?”

“You remember falling like a bag of rocks while just standing there?”

“Shut up. Quit lying.”

“Really. One minute you are standing in front of me and the next minute: BOOM! No one even touched you. You just dropped down. Very funny.”

“I hate you. You made all of that up and forced me to drink all that booze.”

“Yep.”

“I bet you have already started spreading these lies around.”

“It is the truth. And you betcha.”

“Yes, I hate you.”

Copyright 2010 by Casey Moore

Casanova is Back and In Color!

Long article in GQ with Matt Fraction.

Artists' blog.

Basketball Story Research - Logan Young

Wikipedia entry.

Basketball Story Research - Point Shaving

Point shaving:

The quickest way to corrupt an athlete is to help him run up a gambling tab he can't pay, says FBI special agent Jon Bunn, who briefs college men's and women's basketball teams during the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA basketball tournament. The jock then has a choice: Cough up cash he doesn't have or "provide a service," Bunn says.

"They come from behind on the court, so they can think they can come from behind in the gambling arena. But it doesn't end up that way. They wind up further in the hole," he says.

Manni, for example, would place wagers for the athletes with his cash, then pay them the profits if they won, according to an FBI affidavit. Electronic surveillance on Manni's phone captured McDougle asking the gambler to bet $2,000 for him on the GMAC Bowl between Toledo and the University of Texas-El Paso on Dec. 21, 2005.

"Gary informed McDougle that another player would be helping out," reads the affidavit.

Toledo won 45-13.

In a phone call in November 2005, according to the affidavit, the FBI heard Manni telling a Rockets basketball player, "Scooter had taken care of certain players on the team who would be helping (Manni) influence a game that day."

Wining and dining:

Gamblers seduce athletes with fancy dinners, booze and drugs and set up opportunities for sex. Manni invited the players he met in Toledo to join him in Detroit for free dinners and paid gambling sprees at the Greektown Casino downtown, the FBI affidavit says.

Similarly, when New York gangster Henry Hill first met two Boston College men's basketball players involved in that point-shaving scheme, he paid them $500 apiece just to have dinner with him. Hill says he also plied the players with free booze, cocaine and prostitutes.

Magic number:

A bribe of $10,000-plus will often persuade a reluctant athlete to cross over to the dark side, says Michael Franzese, a former Mafia soldier-turned-anti-gambling crusader.

Manni offered an unnamed football player "up to $10,000 to sit out particular games," according to the FBI affidavit. Nearly three decades ago, Hill says he paid three Boston College men's basketball players about $10,000 apiece to shave points in nine games during 1978-79.

"There's a certain number with these kids and it's $10,000," Franzese says. "You buy them a dinner, put a few bucks in their pocket, and you've got them."

--Michael McCarthy, USA TODAY

ATM Skimming

Research material found here:

ATMs are under siege more than ever from skimming. Skimming, where ATM thieves steal your PIN and account number using remote devices, is increasing dramatically. Often done by sophisticated crime rings from the Eastern bloc countries, ATM skimming is becoming a high-tech art that's hard to detect.

That's bad news for consumers. Experts say that losses from skimming are approaching $1 billion. Nearly one in five fraud victims reported having their credit card PIN or debit card ATM PIN information stolen in 2009, according to Javelin Strategy & Research. And Robert Vamosi, an analyst handling risk, fraud and security at Javelin, sees ATM skimming continuing to rise this year and next.

"Consumers aren't aware of ATM tampering," he says. "ATMs have 40 years of trust."

Skimming isn't new. It's been around for at least 10 years. What has changed is that the "technology of the bad guy is getting better and better every year," says Robert Siciliano, a security expert based in Boston. "It's up to consumers to watch their own backs."

Typically, ATM thieves use two devices to capture your PIN and card data. One device sits near where you swipe your card and reads the magnetic stripe on your card with your account number. Even more confusing, the device mimics the card slot. "The technology has evolved to a point where the molded plastic fits like it belongs there," says Siciliano. Devices are even readily available over the Internet for as little as $300.

A camera, hidden from view, captures the PIN. "You can get the data in real time," says Siciliano. "You can be in your car with a laptop remotely accessing the device."

Thieves then burn the data onto a blank card to access your money.

U.S. Secret Service spokesman Max Milien wants consumers to be warned. "The public is notified after an event," he says. And don't take bank security for granted. Fraud can occur at any bank in any part of the country. Thieves are even sending out false text alerts to get consumer data.

Banks, they say, are slow to adopt anti-skimming measures. When Javelin surveyed 25 banks, four stood out, though, for their anti-theft measures. They are Bank of America, Chase, Citibank and Wells Fargo.

Experts add that debit card users are most at risk. Typically, consumers must report fraudulent charges within two days, limiting your liability to $50. If you report ATM skimming fraud within 60 days, you're liable for the first $500 of any transaction. Siciliano adds that thieves carefully orchestrate ATM withdrawals, maxing out cash withdrawals one day and waiting until after midnight for the next stash, which quickly adds up.

Here are four tips to help you protect your account.
1. Cover your password with your hand
Hidden cameras are disguised so they can pick up your password. By protecting it, ATM thieves can't access your account.
2. Use familiar ATMs and limit your visits
ATMs in dimly lighted spots or used late at night could be more susceptible to fraud, while ATMs under video surveillance can be safer. Stay away from ATMs at retail stores or restaurants, adds Siciliano. Recently, skimming devices were found on ATMs in a popular grocery store in central Florida. Airports, convenience stores or kiosks are equally vulnerable to ATM thieves. Still, even highly trafficked ATMs outside a bank branch have been targeted by thieves.

Also, try to limit your visits to the ATM. "With frequency, there's risk," says Siciliano.
3. Check bank balances frequently

Given the two-day window for reporting fraud, it pays to check your account frequently. If you don't report fraud within 60 days, you have unlimited liability. "Sign up for alerts and notice unusual withdrawals," says Vamosi.

With credit cards there are more protections in place, and you can dispute charges."You have at least a billing cycle," says Siciliano.
4. Observe the ATM
Vamosi cautions consumers to look at an ATM to make sure a card slot is "legitimate and not tacked on." Look for things that strike you, he says. "Some people have felt that when they inserted their card, something went awry," he says. In that case, try another ATM.

When protecting your account against ATM thieves, "it's all about awareness, paying attention and understanding risks," says Sicilano. "There are 400,000 ATMs and every one of them is susceptible to fraud. The speed and convenience of technology has replaced the security of technology."

Tarkovsky Films

Found via Warren Ellis:

All of Tarkovsky's films online for free:

Andrei Tarkovsky (1932-1986) firmly positioned himself as the finest Soviet director of the post-War period. But his influence extended well beyond the Soviet Union. The Cahiers du cinéma consistently ranked his films on their top ten annual lists. Ingmar Bergman went so far as to say, “Tarkovsky for me is the greatest [director], the one who invented a new language, true to the nature of film, as it captures life as a reflection, life as a dream.” And Akira Kurosawa acknowledged his influence too, adding, “I love all of Tarkovsky’s films. I love his personality and all his works. Every cut from his films is a marvelous image in itself.”

Shot between 1962 and 1986, Tarkovsky’s seven feature films often grapple with metaphysical and spiritual themes, using a distinctive cinematic style. Long takes, slow pacing and metaphorical imagery – they all figure into the archetypical Tarkovsky film.

Wikipedia entry

I found the posters below here:

Topkapi

My Wallpaper- Big Trouble In Little China

Books in 2010

The Big Con
When the Shooting Stops ... The Cutting Begins
The Scarlet Ruse
The Turquoise Lament
A Voyage for Madmen
The Dreadful Lemon Sky
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
The Girl Who Played With Fire
The Empty Copper Sea
The Strain













The Strain Trilogy

My Superhero

My fish

Scott Pilgrim International Poster