BOOK REVIEW: Brent Weeks' The Black Prism

Brent Weeks is the author of the acclaimed The Night Angel trilogy (The Way of Shadows, Shadow's Edge and Beyond the Shadows). He has a new series out, called the Lightbringer series. The first book is titled The Black Prism, and it is really, really good. As regular readers of this blog know, I am an aficionado of genre fiction, primarily "hard" science fiction (space opera in the mold of Peter F. Hamilton, Alastair Reynolds, Richard K. Morgan and James S.A. Corey) and mystery thrillers (Henning Mankell, Peter Robinson, Michael Connelly, Ian Rankin and Jo Nesbø). I also read some fantasy, but only what I would consider the very top of the line stuff (like George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire, Peter Brett's Demon Cycle saga, Daniel Abraham's The Dagger and the Coin series and some Brandon Sanderson). I would add Weeks to this list of great fantasy writers on the strength of his first trilogy and the promise of how good his second one, the Lightbringer series, is shaping up to be.

Like his Night Angel trilogy, the Lightbringer trilogy has as its central character an orphaned boy who may have special powers. Although this sounds cliched, in both series Weeks  makes things interesting by adding surprising elements to his characterizations of lead and supporting characters.
The main character is Kip, an overweight 15-year-old who is literally the son of the village idiot. They live in a region called Tyrea which is one of the Seven Satrapies which comprise the known world. Tyrea is shunned because it was devastated during a recent war and so anything associated with Tyrea is considered unlucky, backwards and shameful.

The Lightbringer series is built around an interesting, if complicated magic system which is based around using light and a magical substance called luxin to do amazing things. Because of this magical system, the central power structure is called the Chromeria, and is headed by a person called the Prism, who has the rare power to use luxin combined with light of any color. Very few people can use luxin at all, and usually if they can they can only use it with one or possibly two hues.

It turns out that not only can Kip use (or "draft") luxin (in more than one color) but that he is also the illegitimate son of the current Prism, Gavin Guile, who defeated his own brother Dazen Guile 16 years ago during a civil war known as the Two Prisms War. Kip is brought to the Chromeria and so we have a typical "fish out of water" tale combined with the youngster with hidden powers tale.
There is also a fair amount of political intrigue around the governing of the Chromeria itself and when a dangerous insurrection starts up (in Tyrea, of course) The Black Prism becomes a bit of war tale as well.

I don't want to go reveal too many more aspects of the plot, I hope that I have given you a taste of the book and a sense that regardless of what kind of fantasy plots you like (rooting for the underdog, palace intrigue, complicated magic system, big action scenes of battle or the will they or won't they of star-crossed lovers) you will enjoy The Black Prism because all of these themes (and more) are included in its pages.

Apparently, The Black Prism is the first book of a four book series. I have also bought (in hardcover!) and read the second book (The Blinding Knife), which is possibly even better and I am looking forward to reading the third book, The Broken Eye when it comes out later this summer, and of course the final book, The Blood Mirror.

Title:  The Black Prism.

Author: Brent Weeks.

Length: 688 pages.

Publisher: Orbit.

Published: July 23, 2013.

OVERALL GRADE: A/A- (3.83/4.0).

PLOT: A.

IMAGERY: A-.

IMPACT: A-. 

WRITING: A.

TENNIS TUESDAY: Ivanovic #9 Leapfrogs Jankovic #10; Azarenka Plummets to #17; Berdych Slumps To #7

Ana Ivanovic's gutsy 3-set win over Maria Sharapova on Saturday night in the Cincinnati semfinals allowed her to leapfrog her countrywoman Jelena Jankovic to reach World #9 on the WTA rankings this week, which means she will be seeded in the Top 8 of the U.S. Open next week due to Li Na's withdrawal from the tournament.

Simona Halep continues at World #2 in the rankings after losing a tight 3-set match to Sharapova in the quarterfinals of the Cincinnati tournament despite being up a break in the last two sets.

2-time major champion Victoria Azarenka plummeted to World #17 in the rankings after failing to defend her championship points in Cincinnati. She's trying to get her game back after being off the tour for several months with an injury.

Tomas Berdych's slump continues, although being at World #7 in the rankings is still an impressive achievement.

Rafael Nadal's withdrawal yesterday from the US Open means that he will lose the 2000 points from his 2013 win, but in order for Roger Federer to leapfrog his arch-nemesis and reach World #2  immediately the 17-time major champion would need to win his record 18th major in New York.

2014 US OPEN: Nadal Unable To Defend Title Due To Wrist Injury

Defending champion Rafael Nadal withdrew from the 2014 US Open today, one week before the tournament starts due to a wrist injury which has prevented the former 14-time major champion from defending any of his ranking points won in his undefeated 2013 hard court summer season where he won 3 titles (Cincinnati, Montreal and New York).

Nadal issued a statement in English and Spanish on Facebook:

Siento anunciar que no podré participar en el US Open, torneo en el que en los últimos años he tenido muy buenos resultados. Entenderéis que es un momento duro para mi porque es un torneo que me encanta y en el que tengo muy buenos recuerdos, de los fans, de los partidos nocturnos, de tantas cosas. No me queda otra que aceptar que no puedo competir este año y como siempre trabajar para que cuando vuelva esté preparado de la mejor manera para competir. 

I am very sorry to announce I won’t be able to play at this year’s US Open a tournament on which I’ve played 3 consecutive finals in my last participations. I am sure you understand that it is a very tough moment for me since it is a tournament I love and where I have great memories from fans, the night matches, so many things… Not much more I can do right now, other than accept the situation and, as always in my case, work hard in order to be able to compete at the highest level once I am back.

Nadal's withdrawal means that Roger Federer will be seeded #2 at this year's U.S. Open and will be unable to meet World #1 Novak Djokovic before the final. Federer and Djokovic met in four consecutive semifinals from 2009 to 2012 (with Federer only winning once, in 2009, but losing the final to Juan Martin del Potro) and Djokovic has reached the final the last four years, winning only once (in 2011, defeating Nadal). It also means that World #9 (and 2012 US Open champion) Andy Murray will be seeded #8 and thus could not meet Federer or Djokovic until the quarterfinal at the earliest.

2014 HUGO AWARDS: Ann Leckie's Ancillary Justice Wins Best Novel

The 2014 Hugo Awards were announced in London yesterday and Ann Leckie's debut novel, Ancillary Justice, won Best Novel. Ancillary Justice is one of the most celebrated science fiction novels of all time, having earlier this year won the Nebula award for Best Novel as well.

Leckie, 48, has also won the British Science Fiction award and the Arthur C. Clarke award for Ancillary Justice. According to Kameron Hurley (who won 2 Hugo awards yesterday!), it is the first book in history to win the Clarke, Hugo and Nebula awards. It also won the Locus award for Best First Novel, while Abaddon's Gate won the Best Science Fiction Novel award.

I have now read the book and while I think it is good (possibly great) I probably would have voted for Charlie Stross's Neptune's Brood instead. Happily, Stross won a Hugo award for Best Novella.

I will try to get my review of Ancillary Justice posted before the sequel, Ancillary Sword is released on October 7, 2014. Ancillary Justice has received much acclaim for the thought-provoking way in which gender is dealt with in the book.

The Hugo award winner for Best Short Story was an interesting story by John Chu called "The Water That Falls on You from Nowhere" which has gay sexuality at its core. Other notable wins were Gravity for Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form and Game of Thrones ("The Rains of Castamere") for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form.

One of my favorite sci-fi blogs, A Dribble of Ink won a Hugo for Best fanzine!

EYE CANDY: David Lovelace

David Lovelace is an African-American male model from Houston, Texas. According to his Model Mayhem profile, he is 37 years old, 5-foot-11 and 190 pounds. He has a Facebook page where he is listed as a pro natural bodybuilder as David A Lovelace and another where he is listed as a model.

I think you can see why!

2014 CINCINNATI: Federer Defeats Ferrer To Win 80th ATP Title

Roger Federer won his 80th ATP career title by defeating David Ferrer 6-3 1-6 6-2 in the finals of the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati. This match was the first ATP Masters series final to feature two players above the age of 30. It was Federer's 22nd ATP Masters shield, placing him five behind Rafael Nadal's record total at 27 and 3 ahead of Novak Djokovic's 19. It was Federer's first win at this level since his 2012 win (in Cincinnati over Djokovic) and stopped a streak of four losses in a row in ATP masters series finals (l. Tsonga in Toronto 2014, l. Wawrinka in Monte Carlo 2014, l. Djokovic in Indian Wells 2014 and l. Nadal in Rome 2013).

Federer has now won in Cincinnati six times: 2014, 2012, 2010, 2009, 2007 and 2005. His career total of 80 is 3rd on the all-time list. Only Jimmy Connors (109) and Ivan Lendl (97) have won more. Federer is now 80-41 in career finals and 3-4 in finals this year. He has the most wins on tour of any active player: 49 and beat three top 10 players on his way to the title: Milos Raonic, David Ferrer and Andy Murray.

2014 CINCINNATI: Serena Defeats Ivanovic To Win 5th Title of 2014

As expected, World #1 Serena Williams defeated Ana Ivanovic 6-4 6-1 to win the final of the Western & Southern Open, her 5th title of 2014, the 62nd WTA tour title of her career but her first in Cincinnati after 6 appearances. Just by reaching the final, Serena clinched the title of the 2014 US Open Series and will have the opportunity to win a record $4 million if she defends her 2013 US Open championship.

2014 CINCINNATI: Ivanovic Defeats Sharapova In 3-Set Drama; Faces Serena In Final

Ana Ivanovic dominated Maria Sharapova for the first 12 games of their semifinal match at the Western & Southern Financial Open, racing out to a 6-2 4-0 lead when a controversial call came at 30-all which robbed the Serb of a point. Sharapova was able to grab the momentum by breaking and holding serve and eventually stole the second set despite being down 2-5 by winning 5 consecutive games while Ivanovic got more tentative as the Russian hit with more authority. After a quick break early in the 3rd set almost everyone was expecting Sharapova's 8-3 head-to-head record to be decisive. Especially after Ivanovic stopped play soon afterwards in the 3rd set to have her blood pressure checked after she complained of intense nausea and pain.  Ivanovic was able to break back to even the match at 2-all but Sharapova went up a break again to lead 4-2 and 5-4. However, amazingly Ivanovic was able to save two match points on Sharapova's serve at down 4-5 and eventually the Russian double-faulted to even the third set at 5-all. Sharapova was not happy by this turn of events and mouthed clearly "Check her blood pressure!"

However, Ivanovic showed why she leads the WTA tour with the most wins on tour this year by holding serve and hanging touch in Sharapova's service game to go up 4-12 for double match point. Ivanovic squandered the first when she challenged a line skipper that was clearly in but on her second she hit a powerful crosscourt backhand that Sharapova could not handle to end the year's most dramatic contest 6-2 5-7 7-5.

Ivanovic will face Serena Williams in the final. Serena came back to beat her good friend Caroline Wozniacki  in 3-sets for the second consecutive week. This time it was 2-6 6-2 6-4.

Serena leads Ivanovic 6-1 in their career head to head but the sole loss came earlier this year at the Australian Open and the two have played 3 times so far in 2014, with all three meetings going to three sets. The two are playing in their 5th tour final of the year on Sunday, with Serena sporting a 4-0 record and Ana a 3-1 record. If Ana plays on Sunday the way she started the match with Sharapova it will be  a rough match at the office for the World #1. However, I doubt that she ca come back from such an emotional win and put up a similar level of play two days running.

MadProfessah's pick: Serena!

MOVIE REVIEW: Guardians of the Galaxy

The latest movie from Marvel Studios is Guardians of the Galaxy. This movie has been heavily marketed and I really had not intended to see it but after it was released the film earned excellent reviews and stellar ratings at rottentomatoes.com (92% critics, 96% audience). The film stars Chris Pratt as Peter Quill a.k.a. Star Lord, the sole human member of a rag tag group of misfits and criminals from across the Galaxy that includes Groot (a talking and walking tree-like alien, voiced by Vin Diesel), Rocket (a small furry alien who resembles a raccoon, voiced by Bradley Cooper), Gamora (a green-skinned humanoid played by Zoe Saldana who is also a deadly assassin and daughter of the villainous Thanos) and Drax (a muscular, powerful humanoid who takes all statements a little too literally, played by Dave Bautista).

Guardians of the Galaxy is bolstered by a breakout performance by Pratt as Star Lord. He is funny, sexy, geeky and charismatic--sometimes in the same scene! Pratt is definitely the best thing about the movie, but after him the next best thing is the overall "vibe" of the film, which irreverent and fun. It is also, quite often, a bit ridiculous.

Some examples of the ridiculous aspects of the film include: 1) Glenn Close's hair and make-up (playing the leader of the planet Xandar whose people Thanos is trying to exterminate) is comically bad, resembling a cartoon. 2) Peter Quill has a mixtape of 70's and 80's hit songs from his dead mother which we are to believe that even though these civilizations have spaceships and advanced technology they don't have digital copies of music? 3) There's a scene which takes place in a prison which our characters will of course break out of (is this a spoiler?). The ridiculous part of the scene is basically how easily our heroes escape because of how incompetent the guards are as well as the venality of the other prisoners.

The irreverent vibe is exemplified by the film's great soundtrack and Pratt's goofy but effective dancing, to songs like "Oooh Child," "I'm Not In Love," and "Ain't No Mountain High Enough." Another example is the Star Trek like make-up to indicate alien physiognomy.

Overall, Guardians of the Galaxy is a classic sci-fi romp, reminiscent of the original Star Wars  (in tone) but with flaws reminiscent of other fun films like The Fifth Element and Serenity. What I'm trying to say is that Guardians of the Galaxy is definitely worth seeing and an enjoyable entertainment.

Title: Guardians of the Galaxy.
Director: James Gunn.
Running Time: 2 hours, 1 minute.
MPAA Rating: Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, and for some language.
Release Date: August 1, 2014.
Viewing Date: August 10, 2014.

Writing: B.
Acting: A-.
Visuals: B+.
Impact: A.

Overall Grade: B+/A- (3.50/4.0).

CELEBRITY FRIDAY: With Lauren Bacall's Death, Every Star In Madonna's Vogue Is Dead

Madonna's 1990 hit song Vogue is well-known for its name-checking bridge, where the Material Girl gives shout outs to some of Hollywood's greatest classic stars. With the death of Lauren Bacall on Tuesday at the age of 89, everyone mentioned in the song is now dead. It's also one of my favorite songs of all time!

Matthew Rettenmund at Boy Culture recounts the 16 celebrities who were mentioned in Madonna's song:

#8 Greta Garbo (September 18, 1905—April 15, 1990)
#3 Marilyn Monroe (June 1, 1926—August 5, 1962)
#9 Marlene Dietrich (December 27, 1901—May 6, 1992)
#13 Joe DiMaggio (November 25, 1914—March 8, 1999)
#14 Marlon Brando (April 3, 1924—July 1, 2004)
#2 James Dean (February 8, 1931—September 30, 1955)
#4 Grace Kelly (November 12, 1929—September 14, 1982)
#1 Jean Harlow (March 3, 1911—June 7, 1937)
#12 Gene Kelly (August 23, 1912—February 2, 1996)
#6 Fred Astaire (May 10, 1899—June 22, 1987)
#10 Ginger Rogers (July 16, 1911—April 25, 1995)
#5 Rita Hayworth (October 17, 1918—May 14, 1987)
#16 Lauren Bacall (September 16, 1924—August 12, 2014)
#14 Katharine Hepburn (May 12, 1907—June 29, 2003)
#11 Lana Turner (February 8, 1921—June 29, 1995)
#7 Bette Davis (April 5, 1908—October 6, 1989)

The stars are listed in the order that they were mentioned in the song (which if you click on the image at the top of the post has the text of the bridge).

Hat/tip to Kenneth in the 212 

President Obama Makes Statement About Disturbing Police Activity In Ferguson, MO

President Obama has made an appearance where he uses the term "excessive force" in describing the disturbing situation in Ferguson, MO. Obama where the police have been using aggressively militaristic tactics like tear gas, firing rubber bullets at protesters and arresting journalists to "maintain order" in response to community protests about the fatal shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown, an unarmed African American male, on Saturday August 9.

HISTORIC FIRST: Fields Medal (Mathematics' Nobel Equivalent) Goes To Female Stanford Professor

Maryam Mirzakhani is the first woman to win mathematics' most prestigious prize

Finally! After 80 years, the most prestigious prize in mathematics, the Fields Medal has been awarded to a woman. Maryam Mirzakhani, currently a full professor at Stanford University was declared one of four winners of Mathematics' Nobel-equivalent at the International Mathematics Union in Seoul, Korea today.

The Guardian reports:

Born in 1977 in Tehran, Iran, Maryam Mirzakhani received her Ph.D in 2004 from Harvard University, where her advisor was Curtis McMullen. From 2004 to 2008 she was a Clay Mathematics Institute Research Fellow and an assistant professor at Princeton University. She is currently a professor at Stanford University. Her honors include the 2009 Blumenthal Award for the Advancement of Research in Pure Mathematics and the 2013 Satter Prize of the American Mathematical Society.

I wonder if any media outlets will be requesting comment on Mirzakhani's breakthrough achievement from Larry Summers?

4th Circuit Denies Request For Stay In Virginia Marriage Equality Case

The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has refused to prevent its July 28th ruling opening up Virginia's discriminatory marriage laws to same-sex couples from going into effect next week.

The action by a 3-judge panel in the Bostic v. Schaefer case means that unless the U.S. Supreme Court intervenes, which it almost certainly will, Virginia same-sex couples could start getting married next Wednesday August 20.

This is unlikely to happen, as the U.S. Supreme Court has already ruled in the 10th Circuit case of Kitchen v. Herbert that a stay could be issued while Utah appeals its loss at the federal district and federal appellate levels.

Hat/tip to Joe Jervis

GODLESS WEDNESDAY: Poll Indicates LGBT Americans Less Religious

Joe.My.God pointed out a recent Gallup poll which demonstrates that LGBT Americans are less religious than other Americans. In my mind, this is a good thing!

Gallup explains the difference may be explained:

The under-representation of LGBT Americans in the ranks of the religious in the U.S. today has a number of possible causes. Some of these center on the effect of church policies and doctrine, which have historically been disapproving of non-heterosexual love and relations, while others may reflect demographic and geographic differences in the LGBT population compared with the rest of the population. 

Societal attitudes toward same-sex relations have become more accepting, and recent stances taken by several churches and religions reflect this. Just this summer, the Presbyterian Church (USA) voted to allow that denomination's ministers to perform same-sex marriages in states where it is legal. If these types of shifts continue, LGBT adults may be more likely to feel welcome in attending churches and other religious institutions, as well as in identifying as religious, personally.

So maybe that's why atheism and gayness go together like rainbow flags and pride parades!

QUEER QUOTE: LGBT Groups Issue Statement On Michael Brown Killing

The fatal shooting of an unarmed 18-year-old Black man named Michael Brown by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri (just outside St. Louis) has been roiling the internets since it happened on Saturday August 9.

LGBT groups are often criticized by other progressive groups, especially African American civil rights organizations for a lack of reciprocity when it comes to coalition work but today comes word of a joint statement from numerous LGBT groups about the heinous Michael Brown killing:

When communities experience fear, harassment and brutality simply because of who they are or how they look, we are failing as a nation. In light of the recent events in Missouri, it is clearer than ever that there is something profoundly wrong in our country. The lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community cannot be silent at this moment, because LGBT people come from all races, creeds, faiths and backgrounds, and because all movements of equality are deeply connected. We are all part of the fabric of this nation and the promise of liberty and justice for all is yet to be fulfilled. 

The LGBT community stands with the family of Michael Brown, who was gunned down in Ferguson, Missouri. We stand with the mothers and fathers of young Black men and women who fear for the safety of their children each time they leave their homes. We call on the national and local media to be responsible and steadfast in their coverage of this story and others like it--racialized killings that have marred this nation since the beginning of its history. We call on policy makers on all levels of American government not to shrink from action, and we are deeply grateful to Attorney General Eric Holder and the Department of Justice for their immediate commitment to a thorough investigation. At this moment, we are inspired by the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies … but the silence of our friends." 

ACLUCenter for Black Equity, Inc.Equality FederationGay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD)GMHCHuman Rights CampaignNational Black Justice CoalitionNational Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR)National Center for Transgender EqualityNational Gay and Lesbian Task ForceNational Minority AIDS CouncilNational Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance (NQAPIA)PFLAG NationalPride at Work, AFL-CIOSoulforceSoutherners on New Ground (SONG)United AIDS

Good work!

Even while on vacation, President Barack Obama has also commented on the shooting, calling it "heartbreaking."

TENNIS TUESDAY: Tsonga Returns To Top 10 After 5-Year Absence

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga returns to the Top 10 for the first time since March 1, 2009 after his surprising straight-sets win in the final of the ATP Canadian Masters over Roger Federer. Tsonga had an amazing run in Toronto, beating four consecutive Top 10 players in World #1 Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Grigor Dimitrov and Federer. He became the first player outside of the Top 10 to win a Masters series event since Ivan Ljubicic did it in Indian Wells in 2010. No other player had beaten four Top 10 players and won a Masters series shield since Guillermo Canas did it in 2002.

The ATP Masters tournament in Cincinnati has started but Victoria Azarenka has withdrawn, and Venus Williams lost a tough 3-setter against Wimbledon semifinalist Lucie Safarova just days after beating her sister Serena to reach the final of the Rogers Cup.

2014 ROGERS CUP: Tsonga and Radwanska Win Titles

Much to my surprise, at the 2014 Rogers Cup both Agnieska Radwanska and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga were able to win their respective finals against their older and more venerable opponents, Venus Williams and Roger Federer. Tsonga beat Federr 7-5 7-6(3) to win his 11th career title. He has now beaten Federer 3 times  at the Rogers Cup in Canada, despite having a 5-11 record overall againt the Swiss great.

Radwnska similarly dismissed Venus in straight sets 6-4 6-2, with Venus appearing not as sharp as she was in her surprising3-set  semifinal win over her sister, World #1 Serena Williams. At this point in her career, wins over the World #1 are probably more important than titles to Venus anyway.

EYE CANDY: Joshua Trusty (reprise)

Joshua Trusty has been featured as Eye Candy before (December 23, 2013). He's 26-years old and 5-foot-10, 160 pounds. In case you thought Joshua would only look hot scantily clad, in my mind he even looks hotter all suited up:

Don't you agree?!

2014 ROGERS CUP: Tsonga Beats 3rd Consecutive Top 10 Player, Can He Top Federer In Final?

As expected, World #3 Roger Federer continued his unbeaten record against Feliciano Lopez, as did Jo-Wilfried Tsonga against Grigor Dimitrov. It was Federer's 11th consecutive win against the Spaniard and Tsongas 4th consecutive win against the Bulgarian. It was also the Frenchman's 3rd consecutive Top 10 win in as many matches this week. He has beaten World #1 Nivak Djokovic, World #9 Andy Murray and World #8 Grigor Dimitrov. I actually expected Dimitrov to  turn things around against Tsonga, but instead he lost in straight sets.

Federer has a 11-4 head-to-head advantage against Tsonga and will be playing in his 120th career ATP Tour final, trying for his 80th title. Tsonga is playing in his 20th final, trying for his 11th title

MadProfessah's pick: Federer!

2014 ROGERS CUP: Venus-Serena XXV Goes To Big Sis, Venus Will Face Aggie In Final

Surprsingly, Venus Williams beat her younger sister Serena Williams, the World #1, in the semifinals of the Rogers Cup in Montreal, Canada on Sunday. It was the 34-year-old American's first win in 6 meetings with her 32-year-old sister, with their overall head-to-head now standing at 14-11 in Serena's favor.

Venus won 6-7(2), 6-2, 6-3, her first win over a reigning World #1 since her 2009 win over Dinara Safina in the Wimbledon semifinals. Venus will face Agnieska Radwanska in her 3rd final of 2014. Venus leads their head-to-head 5-3 but has lost the last two meetings to the popular Polish player. The two have no played since 2012 and clear the 2014 edition of Venus is a player that Radwanska has not met.

MadProfessah's pick: Venus!

2014 ROGERS CUP: Tsonga Beats Djokovic AND Murray, Faces Dimitrov In Semi, Federer-Lopez In Other

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga won his first two matches against Top 10 players this year at the Rogers Cup in Toronto this week, beating World #1 Novak Djokovic 6-2 6-2 and following that up with an epic comeback down 0-3 in the final set to beat Andy Murray 7-6(5) 4-6 6-4. His reward? A third top 10 player in Grigor Dimitrov who saved 2 match points in his 3rd set tiebreaker to sneak past Kevin Anderson 5-7 7-5 7-6(6). Tsonga is 3-0 against Dimitrov but has not played the Bulgarian phenom since 2011.

In the other semifinal. Roger Federer will face Feliciano Lopez. On his 33rd birthday yesterday, Federer defeated David Ferrer for the 15th time in a row, while Lopez outlasted Milos Raonic. Federer has a 10-0 lifetime head to head against the Spaniard.

MadProfessah's picks: Federer versus Dimitrov.

2014 ROGERS CUP: Semifinals are Serena-Venus XXV, Makarova-Radwanska

In Montreal, Canada at the Rogers Cup, both Venus Williams and Serena Williams had to survive tough 3-set matches to reach a semifinal showdown against each other, their record 25th meeting on the WTA Tour. (Serena leads 14-10, having won their last 5 meetings.) Serena had to overcome a slow start against Caroline Wozniacki to win 4-6 7-5 7-5 while Venus followed up her epic win against Angelique Kerber on Thursday with a gutsy win against Carla Suarez Navarro despite blowing a 2nd set lead.

In the other semifinals Ekaterina Makarova will face Agnieska Radwanska.

MadProfessah's pick: S. Williams vs A. Radwanska final.

I'm in Portland, Oregon

MadProfessah is in Portland, Oregon, the home of world famous bookstore, Powell's.

I'm here for Mathfest, a conference of the Mathematical Association of America.

FILM REVIEW: A Most Wanted Man

The other half and I wanted to see a movie last weekend and so we went to see A Most Wanted Man which is getting excellent reviews (90% rating on rotten tomatoes) and extra attention as one of the last films starring the late Oscar-winning Philip Seymour Hoffman.

A Most Wanted Man is an adaptation of a book by John le Carré, a spy thriller by the same guy who wrote the source material for Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. Also starring in A Most Wanted Man is Rachel McAdams (Midnight in Paris), Robin Wright (House of Cards) and Willem Dafoe (The Grand Budapest Hotel). This is not as distinguished a cast as the other le Carré adaptation, which had the likes of Colin Firth, Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy and Benedict Cumberbatch.

The later film has a similar "vibe" to the first, which I think is intentional, even if the directors are different. Both films are about the spy trade. While Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy was about the hunt for a deep cover double (or triple?) agent in British Intelligence in the 1970s A Most Wanted Man is set in Hamburg, post-9/11. A title card as the movie starts reminds the audience that this is the city in which Mohammed Atta planned the attacks of September 11, 2001. Then we see a gaunt white guy with a very long beard and a large backpack drag himself out of a manhole and approach a series of parked cars.

We next see Hoffman as Gunther Bachmann, apparently part of some kind of German domestic secret intelligence service trying to find the next Mohammed Atta. Bachmann looks like a man who is married to his work, overweight, smoking and drinking but clearly dedicated. It turns out the white guy we saw earlier  draws the attention of Hoffman's group because he is a known Russian-Chechen extremist whose name is Issa. Issa apparently is the son of an infamous Russian general named Karpov and he is in Germany trying to claim his inheritance, which is in a secret numbered account held in a bank run by Dafoe's character, Tommy Brue. McAdam plays a naive asylum attorney named Annabel who brokers the connection between Brue and Issa. Bachmann's team knows all this is happening because they immediately have Issa, Annabel and Tommy all under surveillance.

The regular German domestic security service (equivalent to our FBI) and "the Americans" in the form of a raven-haired Robin Wright show up at this point, very interested in trying to capture Issa and stop whatever he's planning, especially when Brue discovers that Issa's inheritance is in millions of Euro. That could buy a lot of bang.

The interesting thing about the movie is that it raises a lot of questions about terrorism, surveillance, interrogation, loyalty and bureaucracy. It's not clear who the film wants the audience to root for, since even a very good man has a little piece of him that might be very bad, as one terrorist hunter says to another, as they dangle an opportunity for one character to take an action that could most definitely be seen to be supporting the movement of money which could support terrorists. But it is the terrorist hunters who create the opportunity and present it to the attention of the "good guy." Hoffman and his team are very willing to allow circumstances to go further and further along so they can get a better view of the bigger picture, perhaps snare a bigger fish, even though they aren't even sure who (or even if) that bigger fish would be.

There's a lot of nuance in A Most Wanted Man, and that makes it thought-provoking and more than a little unsettling as well. 

Title: A Most Wanted Man.
Director: Anton Corbijn.
Running Time: 2 hours, 1 minutes.
MPAA Rating: Rated R for language.
Release Date: July 25, 2014.
Viewing Date: July 27, 2014.

Writing: B+.
Acting: A-.
Visuals: B-.
Impact: B.

Overall Grade: B/B+ (3.16/4.0).

Sixth U.S. Circuit To Hear Appeals In SIX Marriage Equality Cases Today

Today, August 6th will be an extraordinary day in the history of marriage equality. The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati will hear marriage equality cases from all four states in the jurisdiction of the circuit: Michigan, Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee.

As the Columbus Dispatch puts it:

It will be the single-largest legal event in the same-sex marriage debate since June 26, 2013, when the U.S. Supreme Court declared part of the federal Defense of Marriage Act to be unconstitutional. Since then, every major federal and state court ruling nationwide has gone in favor of gay-marriage proponents. The Cincinnati hearings are expected to draw such large crowds of journalists and spectators to the Potter Stewart U.S. Courthouse that the clerk of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has set up two overflow courtrooms equipped with piped-in audio of the proceedings. All five cases will be heard by the same three-judge panel, consisting of former Ohio Supreme Court Justice Deborah L. Cook, 62; ex-state Solicitor Jeffrey Sutton, 53; and Martha Craig “Cissy” Daughtrey, 72. Daughtrey was appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1993, while Cook and Sutton were picked by President George W. Bush in 2003.

The 6th Circuit is considered relatively conservative so even though marriage equality is on an unprecedented winning streak in federal court, a win from this court would be something of a surprise.

GODLESS WEDNESDAY: Republican Congressman Sends Bible To Every Other Member

A Republican Congressman from Mississippi named Steven Palazzo is garnering headlines over his actions of sending a copy of the Bible and a letter to every member of Congress that says "I find that the best advice comes through meditating on God's Word. Please find a copy of the Holy Bible to help guide you in your decision-making."

Has this person never even heard of the concept of separation of church and state?

TENNIS TUESDAY: Serena,Sveta,Raonic Win Titles; Ivanovic Returns To Top 10

Serena Williams came back from 1-5 down in the first set of the final of the Bank of the West Classic at Stanford University against Angelique Kerber, saved two set points and won the match 7-6(1) 6-3 to win her 4th title of 2014. It was both competitors fourth final appearance of the year but Serena has not lost a final and Kerber is yet to win one. Serena, playing in her first tournament back after her disastrous French Open and Wimbledon results, confirmed her #1 ranking, which she has now held for an astonishing 200 weeks in her career. Only Steffi Graf (377), Martina Navratilova (332), Chris Evert (260) and Martina Hingis (209) have held the top spot longer. Serena now has 61 career titles, having won earlier this year in Rome (d. Errani), Miami (d. Na) and Brisbane (d. Azarenka).

Also wining titles this weekend were Sveta Kuznetova, who won her first title in four years by outlasting tough competitor Karumi Nara 6-3 4-6 6-4 in the final of the Citi Open in Washington, DC. It was vindication for the 2-time major champion, who led 3-0 in the second set. It was just Kuznetsova's 14th career title. Last year, I attended the men's final of the D.C. tournament, seeing John Isner lose to Juan Martin del Potro in three sets. This year it was an all-Canadian affair, with Milos Raonic defeating Vasek Pospisil 6-1 6-4.

Raonic is now at #6 in the world, just two slots above fellow "Young Gun" Grigor Dimitrov who moves up to World #8. The Top 5 was unchanged with injured del Potro making his way out of the Top10.

For the women, Ana Ivanovic returns to the Top 10 after a 4-year absence, while Serena celebrates her  200th week at #1. Next week, 2014 French Open finalist Simona Halep will rise to #2 because Li Na has withdrawn from the entire summer hard court season (Canada, Cincinnati and New York) with an injury.

Barack Obama Turns 53 Today!

The President is 53 years old. The grey is getting more noticeable. I wonder what he will look like in 2017?

WATCH: Second Interstellar Trailer is out!!

Christopher Nolan's Interstellar is by far my most anticipated film of 2014! The first trailer came out awhile ago, and just a few days ago the second trailer was released. The poster came out in June, and the film will hit theaters on November 7, 2014.

It stars Matthew McConnaughey, Anne Hathaway, Sir Michael Caine, Jessica Chastain and Matt Damon.

EYE CANDY: Rodney Razor (b/w)

Rodney Razor, Jr. has appeared as Eye Candy twice already this year (April 14, 2014 and June 16, 2014). Rodney is a 30-year-old natural bodybuilder with his own website (RodneyRazor.com) and is active on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

And yes, he is phyne!

New Report On Progress In LGBTQ Immigration

A new report from Funders for LGBTQ Issues, titled Pathways Forward, has been released.
From the introduction:

For most of the twentieth century, anyone who openly identified as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) was banned from immigrating to the United States. HIV-positive people were also barred from entry. Until 2013, the immigration system denied recognition of LGBT families: the so-called Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) prevented gay, lesbian, and bisexual U.S. citizens from sponsoring their same-sex partners for permanent residence. 

Slowly, over the past three decades, all of that has changed. The ban on LGBT people was repealed in 1990, and the ban on people living with HIV was lifted in 2008. In 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court’s Windsor decision overturned part of DOMA, recognizing the legitimacy of binational same-sex couples, ending years of separation and uncertainty for tens of thousands of couples.  

But the pathways to equality and basic quality of life is still hard for the vast majority of LGBT immigrants in the U.S., who now number an estimated 904,000. By comparison, New York State is home to 575,000 "out" LGBT adults. In fact, nearly a tenth of the nearly 9 million "out" LGBT adults are immigrants.

The full report is 24-pages long but is chock-full of important information like:

Funding for LGBTQ immigration issues has risen 20-fold from $146,000 in 2002 to over four million dollars in 2012.

As a former board member of Immigration Equality and an immigrant myself, this is good news!

2014 STANFORD: Serena Faces Kerber In Final

Serena Williams reached the final of her first tournament back on the WTA tour, beating Andrea Petkovic 7-5 6-0 on Saturday at the Bank of the West Classic on the campus of Stanford University. She will face Angelique Kerber in the final on Sunday afternoon after the German saved match point to win 4-6 7-6(4) 6-2 late Saturday night.

Serena had a tough battle with former World #1 Ana Ivanovic on Friday night, coming back herself from 2-6 down in the first set to win the last two sets 6-3 7-5. This was an important victory for Serena, facing a player with the most wins on tour this year, who had beaten her at the 2014 Australian Open. Ivanovic played very well, at times out-hitting Serena and showing none of the mental lapses that have plagued her game in the past; she will be rewarded by entering the Top 10 on Monday.

Earlier in the week Venus Williams surprised many by putting on a vintage display of power and will to defeat Victoria Azarenka 6-4 7-6(1). Petkovic managed to defeat her in one of the best matches of the year, 6-1 3-6 7-5. Venus fought hard, coming back from a break down in both the second and third sets, eventually evening the match out at 5-all in the final set but lost the two last games and the match.

SATURDAY POLITICS: The Racial Implications Of Impeaching Obama Depicted In A Cartoon

hat/tip to Joe Jervis

Uganda Constitutional Court Declares Anti-Homosexuality Act 'Null and Void'

Good news out of Uganda for the first time in a long while! The virulently homophobic Anti-Homosexuality Act was invalidated by a 5-judge panel of Uganda's Constitutional Court, because Parliament passed the bill last December when it lacked a quorum.

The Guardian reports:

A panel of five judges ruled on Friday that the speaker of parliament acted illegally when she allowed a vote on the measure despite at least three objections that not enough MPs were in attendance. 

"The speaker was obliged to ensure that there was quorum," the court said in its ruling. "We come to the conclusion that she acted illegally." 

While celebrating the ruling, activists warned that homosexuality remains a criminal offence in the east African country under colonial-era laws. 

The fiercely controversial statute represented a dramatic toughening of the penalties. It banned the "promotion of homosexuality" and enabled life sentences to be imposed for various same-sex acts, including touching in public or living in a same-sex marriage. 

[...] 

The challenge to the law was brought by 10 petitioners, including academics, journalists, both ruling and opposition MPs, human rights activists and rights groups. They claimed that it violated the constitutional right to privacy and dignity, as well as the right to be free from discrimination and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. 

Friday's ruling was made before a courtroom packed with Ugandans opposing or supporting the measure. Activists erupted in loud cheers after the court ruled the law "null and void". 

Among those present was Frank Mugisha, director of Sexual Minorities Uganda."We welcome this ruling and Uganda's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community can celebrate a small victory against oppression," he said. 

"However, we are disappointed that the case was not heard on its true merits. The truth is that, not only is the anti-homosexuality act persecutory, it is also unconstitutional and illegitimate. This law has no place in our society, which values dignity, privacy and equality for all our citizens. Until the act has been dismissed on the substance of our arguments, we cannot rest easy."

Congratulations to the brave LGBT Ugandan activists on their legal victory! I'm sure we have not heard the last of this. But today, at least, is a day of celebration.

BOOK REVIEW: The Apocalypse Ocean (Xenowealth Series, Book 4) by Tobias S. Buckell

Tobias S. Buckell's Xenowealth series is an entertaining melange of space opera and Caribbean diaspora culture. I only discovered the series after his eco-thriller Arctic Rising (featuring a Black lesbian James Bond-like character!) became a bestseller in 2012.

The first three books in the Xenowealth series, Crystal Rain, Ragamuffin and Sly Mongoose were published by mainstream publishers but then Buckell successfully used Kickstarter to fund the production of the fourth book in the series, The Apocalypse Ocean. Bizarrely, even though I reviewed the first three books right after it came out somehow I missed the publication of the fourth book.

In fact the only reason I even know that The Apocalypse Ocean exists is because my friend Karen Lord who is a published science fiction author (I love writing that!) was visiting Southern California and she told me that Buckell has a sequel to  Arctic Rising out called Hurricane Fever (which is dedicated to Karen and set mainly in Barbados) and oh by the way did you know Xenowealth Book 4 came out 18 months ago?

I was able to quickly buy a Kindle copy of The Apocalypse Ocean and enjoyed it very much. The Xenowealth universe is very interesting and Buckell writes with flair. Here is the blurb from Buckell's website giving an overview of The Apocalypse Ocean:

Welcome back to the Xenowealth. 

Humanity continues to gain control of the Forty Eight Worlds as they deorbit wormholes and join the many worlds and civilizations together. But as they do so, they must deal with the horrors of past injustices as humanity forms new societies out of the wreckage of the old. 

And some of those horrors aren’t content to rest. Kay, who has rescued herself from a hellish life dominated by uncaring alien creatures, seeks bloody twisted revenge for what was done to her. 

And a new force is not happy about the manner in which the Forty Eight worlds are reshaping themselves. In fact, it’s about to put a stop to it all.

The plot of The Apocalypse Ocean is an expanded version of "Plaça del Fuego," a short story published at Clarkesworld Magazine in 2009. Both are set on the planet of Octavia, a minor planet in the Forty Eight Worlds that are connected by a wormhole network created aeons ago but are now being used by humans aliens alike. In the first three books, humanity was fighting to break free from centuries of enslavement and domination by an alien race called the Benevolent Satrapy. The humans have split into two primary factions, one group calling themselves the Xenowealth and the League of Human Affairs.

As you can tell from the name of the series (Xenowealth) Buckell's books spend more time depicting one particular group. The Xenowealth group features characters like Pepper and his daughter Nashara, who are both near-superhuman, dreadlocked wearing cyborgs known as "ragamuffins" who appear to be nearly impossible to kill. Pepper and Nashara are great characters who have appeared in most of the Xenowealth books.

In Book 4, Buckell introduces several new interesting characters: Tiago, a street kid who is a pickpocket in the city of Palentar on the island of Plaça del Fuego; Kay, a teenage girl who has been genetically engineered to emotionally control and manipulate humans and is Tiago's boss; the Doaq, a mysterious, terrifying monster who appears to have a wormhole for a mouth; and Thinkerer, a robot from the League world of Trumball who has questionable loyalties and hidden abilities.

The best part of The Apocalypse Ocean is the breakneck pace of the action that Buckell is able to maintain, as he continues to ratchet up the stakes involved and reveal more and more of the underlying structure of the larger Universe the story is set in.

I'm very glad that The Apocalypse Ocean was written and I applaud Buckell for his tenacity and audacity in getting it out there. I hope it (and Hurricane Fever) are successful enough that the wait for the fifth and final installment in the series, rumored to be named Desolation's Gap, will cone out sooner rather than later. I know that I will plunk down my hard-earned cash to pick that up!

Title: The Apocalypse Ocean.
Author: Tobias S. Buckell.
Paperback: 250 pages.
Publisher: Amazon Digital Services.
Date Published: December 13, 2012.
Date Read: July 15, 2014

OVERALL GRADE: A/A- (3.83/4.0).

PLOT: A.
IMAGERY: A.
IMPACT: B+.
WRITING: A.