Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader is sitting in front of his computer. It is 12:58am. He is blogging.

You may be asking yourself, “Self. What could possibly compell my Maximum Leader (a man who likes his sleep) to break off his own little All-Star break and blog at one o’clock in the morning?”

Well, loyal minion. That something would be the fact that your Maxmium Leader just got back to the Villainschloss after seeing a 10pm showing of “The Dark Knight.”

Wow.

Your Maximum Leader has seen every Batman film. In the theatre. Within a few days of the movie opening. (Most of the time he’s gone opening night.) Yes… He even paid money (American dollars in fact) to see “Batman and Robin” on opening night in the cinema. (NB to loyal minions: Sweet Jebus… Paying money to see “Batman and Robin.” That was a mistake.) He knew that he was going to ditch his family and see “The Dark Knight” on opening night. He was going to see what all the fuss was about.

Now, allow your Maximum Leader to state on the record that while he thought that “Batman Begins” was pretty damned good, the 1989 “Batman” was a bit better. Perhaps it was the fact that Katie Holmes’ weird smirk annoyed him. Perhaps it is because he has a soft spot in his cold heart for Michael Keaton (an underrated actor). Perhaps it was just the sheer magnetism of Jack Nicholson… But the 1989 Batman has always been the best Batman film in your Maximum Leader’s opinion.

That was until about 30 minutes ago.

Not only is “The Dark Knight” the best Batman film of the collection; it is the best “comic book” movie ever. It may actually be a fantastic film when considered against any film in any oeuvre.

Yes… It is that good.

You should make every human effort you can to see this movie in the theatre.

It is not overhyped.

Go ahead and pay the exhorbitant charges to see the movie. Even if you live in New York, Chicago, or LA where movies might actually cost more than $10 per ticket. Pay. If you have to buy a ticket online and pay some $1-2 service fee to do so. Pay.

It is that good.

It is not just the performance of Heath Ledger that is superb. Every single actor - even the minor ones - are that good.

Let your Maximum Leader tell you how good Heath Ledger is as the Joker. Your Maximum Leader never once thought of Jack Nicholson’s portrayal during the movie. And even now your Maximum Leader is thinking to himself, “Damn. Ledger made that role his bitch. He owns the Joker role.” Your Maximum Leader doesn’t see how anyone else could even try the role in the future. Because no one else is going to be as good as Nicholson; and Nicholson wasn’t as good as Heath Ledger.

Frankly, Christian Bale’s portrayal of Batman is underappreciated. Your Maximum Leader has read reviews saying that the Joker is so much more interesting than Batman that the viewer “forgets” the “hero” as he is drawn into the villain. (NB: Your Maximum Leader thinks that this observation is true. We may not find Batman/Bruce Wayne as interesting as the Joker - or any villain. Because we know Batman’s motivation. We know what drives him. We also know that he is basically good (vigilantism aside) and that he operates with constraint. As the bad guys do not operate wtihin constraint, they are more unpredictable and fascinating.) But, Bale does a masterful job of bringing some nuance and real emotion to the role of Batman/Bruce Wayne. His performance is noteworthy, although overshadowed by Ledger.

Your Maximum Leader isn’t going to go into spoilers or deep plot review (although he may in a few days - to give you a chance to do the right thing and see the movie). But let him just say two more things in praise of this film. First, he will make every effort to see it a second time in the cinema. Second, if there was a place where he could sign up right now to reserve a prepaid copy of this movie on DVD he would ante up.

Do yourself a favor… Go see this movie.

Oh yeah… Do yourself a good parenting favor… It is not a movie for kids. Your Maximum Leader believes that no kid under 16 should see this movie. It isn’t just the violence - of which there is much. It is the story itself. It is an adult film with adult themes. Your Maximum Leader saw a few parents with kids around 10-13 at his showing. Unless those kids were intellectually sophisticated (and guessing from the parents your Maximum Leader would say they were not), this movie was just an action flick. Those people didn’t get it.

Carry on.

Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader is one tired guy. He’s been dog sitting and niece/nephew sitting recently. Five kids and two dogs in the ole Villainschloss. That is a handful of domestic responsibility.

To make matters more interesting… The Villainschloss sprang a small roof leak (which we believe was just fixed last night with some roofing caulk), the garbage disposal in the primary kitchen died, and the lovely Mrs Villain has decided to start painting the basement.

Oh… Did your Maximum Leader mention that the cable box/DVR apparently shorted out last night too?

So, your Maximum Leader is taking his own little All-star break. He may, or may not, blog further this week. Check this space for new posts.

Oh… Your Maximum Leader does have a second TV with basic cable - so he was able to watch the Home Run Derby last night. He was sure as Josh Hamilton was going on his first round tear that someone else was going to win the derby. Hamilton blew his wad too early and just didn’t have it in him at the end.

Another Home Run Derby observation… Your Maximum Leader knew all the National League players in the Derby, and most of the American League players as well (being a National League man that is no surprise). But he was disappointed in how many “stars” did not participate in the Derby. Has this All-Star ritual lost its luster? He would have liked to have seen Manny Ramirez, or Junior Griffey out there swinging for the fences…

Go National League! Show those American Leaguers who’s boss…

Carry on.

Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader has been enjoying some tv time with his kids during bad weather over the past few weeks. We’ve been watching the Star Wars movies (in numerical order - not film release order). They all love the films. It is fun for him to watch the movies with the kids. It is helping him recapture some of the magic they once held for him. The horrible dialogue and acting aren’t a big distraction to your Maximum Leader’s villainous offspring. In fact, they sorta dig it. (Which just goes to confirm that George Lucas probably never learned anything about writing dialogue after age 15.)

Anyhoo… Your Maximum Leader and the kids were looking on the interwebs for various Star Wars fan clips to view and get a chuckle out of. Your Maximum Leader happened to see this one and it made him laugh and laugh…

Funny.

Carry on.

Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader loves his baseball. Not only that, he has thrown himself - heart and soul - into his (reborn) hometown team, the Washington Nationals.

Your Maximum Leader lives about 50 miles from the Nats ballpark. The drive, coupled with the cost of tickets and time, limit the number of games to which your Maximum Leader can truck himself (and family). If he lived closer to a Metro station (as opposed to about 30 miles from one) he would likely buy cheap seats and see more games. Indeed, if that were the case, he’d likely buy a partial season ticket plan.

All that talk about going to games aside, your Maximum Leader does watch just about every Nats game on TV. In fact, Mrs Villain, Villainettes 1 & 2 and the Wee Villain also watch the games. (Okay, the Villainettes and Wee Villain don’t watch in rapt attention, but they drift in and out. Mrs Villain can’t just sit down and watch any tv - so she always has something else handy while watching.) That is a lot of baseball on TV. If you wanted to count ESPN games that would be even more baseball on TV.

Well imagine your Maximum Leader’s dismay when he read yesterday that on average about 9,000 households watch Nats games on TV. Out of a metropolitan area with 5.5 million people (5,500,000 for those of you who like numbers written out) a meagre 9,000 watch the Nats on TV.

Your Maximum Leader wonders how Nielsen gets their numbers. But he doesn’t doubt that the number is accurate. Other than Robbo, and one other friend, your Maximum Leader must admit that he doesn’t know anyone who watches the Nats on TV. (So now your Maximum Leader can account for three households - only 8,997 more households to go…)

Your Maximum Leader finds that he agrees with the dismay expressed so well by Thomas Boswell of the Washington Post. Your Maximum Leader believes you should click through and read Boswell’s piece if you are interested. Here is one bit with which your Maximum Leader particularly agrees:

Perhaps the Nats’ TV malady may impact the Lerner family as well. Will the Nats’ owners feel a warm fire being lit under their feet over the next three weeks as they consider whether to make trades that add, rather than subtract, talent and payroll from their major league roster before the Aug. 1 trade deadline.

If it’s true that you could fit every Nats TV viewer into the team’s upper deck — with room to spare — perhaps there’s a frightening future in that stark stat. Can the franchise risk alienating the affections of a city that, just three years ago, rejoiced when the Nats were in first place at the all-star break and the darlings of the entire sport? Washington actually tasted the summer joy that attends a mere wild-card race, even when you don’t make the playoffs. That whiff of success makes the current 102-loss pace more bitter.

Frightening indeed. Your Maximum Leader doesn’t want to regret dissing the Braves if Washington loses their franchise because it withered on the vine…

Carry on.

Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader has a case of the summer blehs. What are the summer blehs? They are that feeling that you would just rather sit and read a book, watch a baseball game on tv, play with the kids, or just sleep as opposed to turn on the computer and write a blog post.

So, your Maximum Leader has been reading, watching tv, playing with his kids, or sleeping rather than blogging. Your loss isn’t really his gain… But hey, this is his site afterall..

Speaking of this site… Naked Villainy turns 5 years old today. Wow! Five years. That makes this blog older than your Maximum Leader’s youngest, the Wee Villain. (He’s not so “wee” anymore. Which is to say that he is not “wee” like he was when he was born, but compared to his old man (and Maximum Leader) he is still “wee.”)

What will your Maximum Leader do tonight to celebrate his blog’s 5th anniversary?

Probably not much…

Just like the amount of content he’s been posting recently…

Carry on.

Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader saw this little tidbit on the Wall Street Journal today. It is good enough to be shared far and wide.

Governments do not make ideals, but ideals make governments. This is both historically and logically true. Of course the government can help to sustain ideals and can create institutions through which they can be the better observed, but their source by their very nature is in the people.

The people have to bear their own responsibilities. There is no method by which that burden can be shifted to the government. It is not the enactment, but the observance of laws, that creates the character of a nation.

- Calvin Coolidge

Although your Maximum Leader is pretty sure that the Wall Street Journal has a much wider readership than this blog… He thinks it is possible that some of his readers (erudite as they surely are) might not peruse the WSJ.

Carry on.

Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader sees that his neighbor’s place is in the news. From just a little ways away from the Villainschloss we have this piece. Washington’s boyhood home found, but no hatchet. From the article:

The archaeologists were delighted to at last find the remains of George Washington’s boyhood home but got stumped when they looked for evidence of the cherry tree and rusty hatchet.

“This was the setting for many important events in Washington’s life,” David Muraca, director of archaeology for The George Washington Foundation, announced Wednesday.

Most biographies offer little detail of the first president’s youth, so the discovery may provide insight into Washington’s childhood, he said. The site is located at Ferry Farm, just across the Rappahannock River from Fredericksburg, Va., about 50 miles south of Washington.

Philip Levy, associate professor of history at the University of South Florida, found evidence that the house was a one-and-a-half-story residence perched on a bluff overlooking the river.

“If George Washington did indeed chop down a cherry tree, as generations of Americans have believed, this is where it happened,” said Levy. The researchers said the artifacts they have recovered did not include a hatchet.

“There is little actual documentary evidence of Washington’s formative years. What we see at this site is the best available window into the setting that nurtured the father of our country,” Levy said.

Three likely locations were excavated over seven years. The site where the foundations of Washington’s home were discovered was built during the first part of the 18th century — Washington was born in 1732 — fit the type of house in which Washington would have lived and also yielded artifacts likely linked to his family.

“Now that we have identified the home, we can begin understanding Washington’s childhood,” Muraca said, as well as dispel some of the folklore surrounding the president’s life. For instance, the tale of Washington’s chopping down the cherry tree with a hatchet and confessing to his father has never actually been proven.

“We see a county-level gentry home,” he said. Washington’s father “was wealthy within the county … not on the colonial level but locally important, and we see a home befitting that status.” The house measured about 53-feet by 37-feet, with a central hallway and two rooms on each side of the hallway.

The eventual goal, Muraca said, is to rebuild the home as it was in the 1740s.

Your Maximum Leader learned a little about this discovery a week ago when he was actually visiting Ferry Farm with his daughter, Villainette #1. (She was in a local “history” camp for a week and visited Ferry Farm - among other local historial landmarks.) We spoke with a student archeologist (who helped with the recent digs) and she told us all about what they had found. Alas, some of the artifacts that the full article mentions are not yet on display. They said it might be 6 months to a year before they start to display the most recent batch of artifacts…

Reason to come back apparently…

Your Maximum Leader should also note that he’s been hit up by the good people at the George Washington Foundation to donate to the reconstruction of the Washington House… He’ll likely donate when he can see some plans…

Carry on.

Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader felt pretty good about the results he scored on this quiz. (Has he taken it before? He can’t recall and is too lazy to check…)

Quiz found at the Breda Conspiracy.

Your Maximum Leader admits that he took one educated guess that turned out okay. Such is the joy of mulitiple choice tests…

Carry on.

Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader exhorts you all to check out our friend Skippy’s new site. Update your links! Visit Skippy often. But be warned… Some of his postings are NSFW.

New site looks nice by the way. It loads faster and is easier to read.

Carry on.

Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader sees that a majority of the Supreme Court of the United States agrees with his long-held belief that the 2nd Amendment to the US Constitution does guarantee an individual’s right to keep and bear arms. In the long anticipated ruling in Heller v. District of Columbia the majority has apparently found that individuals may keep firearms (including handguns) for personal defence. Your Maximum Leader says apparently in this case because he’s not read the opinion yet. He is relying on the interpretation of others. (Those others being the good bloggers over at Volohk and SCOTUSblog. And in case you haven’t seen it elsewhere, clicky this linky for the majority and dissenting opinions.)

Your Maximum Leader plans on snuggling up with a nice Scotch, the Nats on TV, and a copy of the Heller decision tonight and read away.

Then he might go out and buy another gun… It’s his right afterall…

Carry on.

Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader had to heartily agree with his lovely and intelligent daughter, Villainette #1 who declared yesterday evening around the bottom of the 8th inning of the Nats/Angels contest, “Gosh! Our boys are very disappointing.”

Yes… Those Nats are very disappointing. As your Maximum Leader types these words, his beloved Nats are down 8-3 to the Angels of Anaheim in the top of the 8th inning.

Villainette #1 was wondering aloud tonight (while watching them spot the Angels 6 - count ‘em six - runs in the top of the first inning) why exactly we root (root, root) for the Nationals when they are so bad. Your Maximum Leader explained to his offspring that we root (root, root) for the Nationals because they are our hometown team, they are in the National League, and that suffering in this lifetime will reap a heavenly reward. She bought the explanation up until he hit the heavenly reward bit…

Regardless of the Nat’s poor performance of late, your Maximum Leader has gone ahead and bought tickets to this Sunday’s Nationals/Orioles game… He hope his Nats can eek out a win on Sunday.

While your Maximum Leader is just going on about the Nats… Your Maximum Leader will encourage his team to just spend a little money and get a good “high profile” batter to spice things up a little. Give people a little more to root for. Lastings Milledge and Elijah Dukes just aren’t enough. And as much as your Maximum Leader loves Dimitri Young (and he does root for Dimitri Young very much), his best years as a player are behind him… Your Maximum Leader encourages Jim Bowden, Stan Kasten, and the whole Lerner family to just splurge a little and get the fans someone fun and exciting to watch. You’ve got some money to spend (at least we hope you do). If you spend a little money now (and go against the “grand plan” of building the team through scouting and the minors) you might put more butts in the seats and make a little more money. 20,000 fans a game at the new ballpark is hardly praiseworthy.

Anyhow… Your Maximum Leader will go back to watching the game now. And he hopes that a little more suffering watching his Nats lose so badly will earn him a little credit in the ledger of life.

Carry on.

Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader has spent the better part of a few months now listening to and watching various talk shows. He’s heard many conservative pundits and talking heads continuing to lament the fact that for conservatives - or at least “true” conservatives - the Republican Party is not running a conservative candidate. The Republicans, instead, are running John McCain. Your Maximum Leader has grown tired of conservatives wailing in to the night sky “Where is the next Ronald Reagan?”

You know something? Once your Maximum Leader was reading an article about Johnny Depp in some magazine. In the opening of the piece the author quoted some famous actor who said something to the effect of “the next Marlon Brando isn’t going to be anything like the first Marlon Brando.” Your Maximum Leader wants to shake conservatives he meets and say to them that the “next” Ronald Reagan isn’t going to be anything like the first Ronald Reagan.

This is not to say that the next great conservative political leader in this nation isn’t going to share a number of beliefs that were once held by Reagan. But it is to say that the next great conservative political leader isn’t going just spring forth from sea foam off the coast of California (or erupt fully grown from the mind of Zeus - if you prefer a different mythological allusion). The next great conservative leader is going to grow organically and find his (or her) own style.

Having just said that the next great conservative leader isn’t yet upon us, allow your Maximum Leader to vent for a moment about all of the conservative angst over John McCain. If your Maximum Leader may quote the late (great) Barry Goldwater, “Conservatives grow up!” To the admonition to “grow up” your Maximum Leader will add “get over it.” John McCain is an honorable man. He is a man who has for years been a strong conservative on a host of issues. He does have an “independent” streak - but shouldn’t conservatives approve of independent streaks? Are streaks of independence just the types of traits that conservatives have found praisworthy in people like Ronald Reagan (and Barry Goldwater)? Conservatives should look beyond pain-jane doctrinaires and go for someone who is his own man.

And allow your Maximum Leader to be pragmatic for a moment. Of all of the Republicans out there - at this time - John McCain is the only standard bearer the party could have chosen who has a snowballs chance in hell of pulling out a win in November. John McCain is the only possible candidate who could potentially have strong cross-over appeal. He is the only Republican who can adequetely defend himself against charges of being a “typical Washington Republican.” In case you hadn’t been paying close attention, the Republican “brand’ ain’t worth doodly-squat nowadays. Your typical Republican is a big-government, high-spending, perk-loving politician who is only different from a Democrat by scope. The Democrat wants to do everything the Republicans want to do - only more.

This is not to say that John McCain has been the great standard-bearer for small-government, personal liberty, and freedom. He’s been good on those issues, but in many ways John McCain is more in tune with Americans now than many others in his party. This may not please the more “orthodox” conservatives. But pleasing conservatives doesn’t win elections. Your Maximum Leader once was filled with admiration for people who would rather stand on principle and fail than give up their principles and win. That was a long time ago when your Maximum Leader was younger and less wise. Now your Maximum Leader knows that in politics winning is everything. Politics is compromise. Politics on the national stage is all about how much you can get of what you want. (NB: BTW, your Maximum Leader still has piles of admiration for people who do stand on principle in a host of fields - like religion, ethics, etc.) Conservatives who are willing to lose in 2008 on principle are playing a dangerous game.

Allow your Maximum Leader to admonish conservatives who believe that an Obama presidency will be a good thing for the “conservative movement.” You are hoping that lightning will strike twice. The thinking behind this (misguided) belief is that without Jimmy Carter there would be no Ronald Reagan. That certainly was the case in 1980. But one shouldn’t bet the farm (or in this case the whole country) on the hope that the confluence of events that set the stage for Reagan in 1980 can be recreated for some unnamed conservative in 2012.

Your Maximum Leader hopes that conservatives recognize that supporting John McCain and trying to win in 2008 is the only way to advance the “conservative movement.” Four years of European-style socialist government from Obama and a Democratic Congress will not be easily undone.

Just quit whining and get behind McCain. It is the best choice you have available right now.

Carry on.

Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader was saddened, but somehow not surprised, to learn today that George Carlin had passed. Your Maximum Leader ran hot and cold on Carlin. Some of his stuff got a little too political for me to find really funny. But then there were other bits that really worked (like “your shit” and “my stuff”). And of course there is always… Seven words…

RIP.

Carry on.

Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader isn’t sure if Gary has gone and ruined his day. It is possible he has…

To wit:

Eieeee!

Carry on.

Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader has always like the film “A Man for All Seasons.” He’s liked it not because he is a big Sir Thomas More fan - or a great detractor of Henry VIII. (In fact, your Maximum Leader isn’t a fan of either. He dislikes More because of More’s hatchet-job history of Richard III. And he dislikes Henry VIII because he was Henry VIII.) But there is a certain appeal to Paul Schofield’s Thomas More in the film. He is a man dedicated to rule of law and tradition. But Schofield shows that he is torn between loyalty to his prince and loyalty to his faith. In the end your Maximum Leader feels a certain affinity for More - who sticks by his principles and suffers the ultimate price.

Which brings us to Boumediene v. Bush. Your Maximum Leader is torn by this decision. When he says he is torn by it, it is for a host of reasons. On the one hand, your Maximum Leader wants to side with the minority dissents. The prisoners at Gitmo are not on US soil and should not be granted rights guaranteed for Americans (or people in America). But on the other hand, those detainees are being held by the power of the United States in a territory undisputably controlled exclusively by the United States. And the United States is a nation of laws and rights. We (as in the US) shouldn’t just detain people for as long as we care to without attempting a trial.

Your Maximum Leader thinks that the Boumediene decision is wrong to extend access to US Courts to non-US citizens, being held outside the US. He also isn’t sure that once access is granted that it will actually do anything to “help” the detainees. As Chief Justice Roberts wrote in his dissent, the majority holding opens up more questions than it solves. In addition to that it opens up a whole line of inquiry that disturbs your Maximum Leader greatly (could we have non-US citizens working for US companies in foreign countries bringing suits in US courts? could we have non-US citizens with some grievance against the US bring actions in US courts?).

Now having just written that he thinks that Boumediene is wrongly decided, he still thinks that the majority of justices were on to something. It flies in the face of all of our legal traditions to hold someone indefinitely without charge. Your Maximum Leader doesn’t believe that the Military Commissions are moving with any deliberate speed to actually charge someone with something that you could in turn convict them of and thus justify their continued detention. Of course, once convicted by a Military Commission one suspects that a sentance would not be indefinite and service of a sentance would then result in release. Acquittal would, also, have to result in release. Your Maximum Leader thinks that if the Military Commissions were to move a little more swiftly he might not feel that we are holding these detainees indefinitely.

Does anyone else out there think that this is a problem? Let’s be frank here. Your Maximum Leader isn’t advocating that we release these terrorist detainees. (NB: Summarially executing them might be an option. Another option, allow them to “escape” into a minefield separating Gitmo from Cuba and see how far they get.) But holding them without trial forever causes him to worry about the very underpinnings of our whole system of government. Giving them access to US courts is a bad move and sets a bad precedent. What a shitty situation this is.

Carry on.