Get your geek on at Comicpalooza

Got your geek on?
I do. It’s been nearly six years since I’ve attended any type of science fiction convention. Thanks to Comicpalooza on May 27-29, I’ll be able to slake my desire to dress in costume and join thousands of other cosplayers and stargazers and geek out for the weekend.
I attended the second Comicpalooza two years ago when it was just a comic book festival in a Houston mall. Next weekend, Comicpalooza will return to the George R. Brown Convention Center and will feature a huge number of movie stars, authors (such as Katy resident and vampire romance novelist Kerrelyn Sparks), comic book artists and creators, roller derby, gaming, and a bunch of other fun and unusual things.
In four short years, Comicpalooza has grown to become the largest convention (or con, as they are often called) of its size in Texas and is on pace to become one of the largest in the country. Even if you’re not into comic books or that whole sci-fi thing, it’s a great place to people watch and to see and meet some well-known Hollywood actors.
You want some Star Wars? They’ve got the one and only Chewbacca (Peter Meyhew) and the original Boba Fett (Jeremy Bulloch). How about some Star Trek? Welcome Counselor Deana Troi (Marina Sirtis) and the Klingon Kurn (Tony Todd). Perhaps Battlestar Galactica captures your fancy. Try spending the weekend with Admiral Adama (Edward James Almos) himself! Does Harry Potter have you under his spell? Seamus Finnegan (Devon Murray) might have the cure. If you’re anticipating the upcoming Green Lantern flick, actors Deke Anderson and Nick Jones will be there with the scoop.
Other actors include Sam Trammell, Meaghan Rath, Sean Maher, voice actor Tom Kane, James Hampton, and Dan Braverman.
Of course, what would a comic con be without comic book and anime creators. There will be more than three dozen artists and writers there, including Arthur Suydam, Brian Denham, Larry Elmore, Chris Foreman, Alejandro Garza, Phil Hester, Bob Layton, Terry Moore, and Dirk Strangely, to name a few. It would fill all the space I have in this column just to name all the guests and events going on at Comicpalooza.
For fans of horror, Splaterfest will be returning and new this year will be a film festival. If gaming is your thing, there will be several experts and many opportunities to twiddle your thumbs across a controller. Other added attractions include a roller derby demonstration and Quiddich matches between teams from Texas A&M and Sam Houston State.
One of the things I like the most is the costumers (or cosplayers as they are now known). Several groups will be there, such as the Star Garrison from the 501st Legion (Star Wars Stormtroopers and other bad guys), the Rebel Legion (the good guys from Star Wars), a Ghostbusters group, steampunk costumers, and many others, including TexLUG, the Texas Lego Users Group. If you in the mood for a good bodyslam, Doomsday Wrestling will be there.
As an experienced con-goer, I can tell you that I’ve never seen a lineup this huge outside the daddy of ’em all, the San Diego Comic Con. If you look at all the novelty entertainment, much of it is a first for a comic con. This is clearly going to be one of the biggest and most unique cons in the country.
As it continues to grow, it will finally be mentioned in the same breath as San Diego, Atlanta’s Dragon-Con, San Francisco’s WonderCon and the New York Comic Con. In four short years, Comicpalooza has surpassed Starfest, Denver’s long established sci-fi convention. That is where most of my con experience comes from, though I have been to others.
It always amazes me that no matter how hugely popular these events are, the average person is scarcely aware of them. A lot of people think they are an extension of the old Star Trek conventions, which is the main root of these events. Needless to say, the modern cons have boldly gone where no Star Trek festival has gone before. And the more that movies and comic books blend together, the more varied and popular they will become.
For more information, visit www.comicpalooza.com or look them up on Facebook.
I know where I plan to be in my Lone Ranger disguise that weekend. I will definitely have my geek on. How about you?

Better late than never: Thank you moms!

Well, that was weird. I normally write a Mother’s Day column the week before the big day, but this year I blew it.
Mother’s Day seemed to be early this year. I know it’s past us already, but I still want to give a shout-out to all the moms and moms-to-be out there. I don’t think I’d call motherhood a thankless job, though it may seem like it at times. Since I am not a mother, I don’t exactly feel qualified to say for sure. But I have a mother and a wife who is a mother and I can tell you that they love the job and wouldn’t trade it for anything.
Being a housewife, however, is a whole different story. That does involve a lot of thankless work. Please allow me to take a brief moment to tell all the moms, wives, housewives, stay-at-home moms, single moms, working moms, grandmothers, and any other woman who has, is, or is contemplating becoming a mother, thank you for all that you do. Believe me; it really is appreciated by most of us males of the species.

Conspiracy theory
Once again our dear President Obama has made a really stupid mistake. His decision to not release photos or video of a dead Osama bin Laden is a huge blunder that also flies in the face of his campaign promise to make government more open and transparent.
About 10 years ago we got to watch ad nauseam as nearly 3,000 people died at bin Laden’s command. For more than a decade the taxpayers of this country have funded the manhunt for him. We taxpayers paid the men who killed him. We paid for the equipment they used. Those images belong to the American people, no matter how grisly they are.
To be sure, release of the photos would be inflammatory. On the other hand, not releasing the photos creates the mother of all conspiracy theories. Inflamed passions will die down, but conspiracy theories have a significantly longer shelf life.
I somehow doubt that people – i.e. our enemies – will be inflamed any more by pictures of his corpse than they were about news of his death. Frankly, I don’t care if we anger our enemies. It will subject us to more media coverage of radicals shooting guns, burning the American flag and assaulting us with verbal tirades. Yes, it will also put some of our troops in harm’s way, but they are in harm’s way already. It may result in our enemies coming out of hiding in order to shoot at us. Bring ’em on!
There are moral and ethical questions about releasing the pictures. No doubt they are not for the squeamish and young children to see. At least I think so based on the description of bin Laden’s death. I would like the opportunity to decide that for myself. I don’t want a politician making that choice for me. I have spent just under a fourth of my life waiting for the day bin Laden is brought to justice, only to be denied tangible proof of his demise. I don’t have to tell you how frustrating that is.
It’s not that I have a morbid curiosity to see him dead or any desire at all to exploit it. I just want the satisfaction of seeing for myself the proof that he is truly gone and getting intimately acquainted with the real “great Satan”. More than that, however, is my fierce opposition to the notion of our government keeping secrets from its people.
I can see and agree that there are some things that should be kept secret in the name of national security. But Obama himself said the photos pose no national security risk. I see this as an example of the President denying us something we’re entitled to under the Freedom of Information Act. This is the same President who feels he can violate the Constitution and require citizens to buy health insurance. I see a very disturbing trend here. Or perhaps I’m wrapped up in a big conspiracy theory. (Where is Wikileaks when you need them?!)

Speaking of conspiracy theories
I can’t begin to tell you how many people have approached me in recent weeks convinced that Hempstead Mayor Michael Wolfe is guilty of nepotism. Let’s please put this rumor to rest. Unless you have proof of this, it is wrong to perpetuate the rumors. I have checked with three different sources, including the mayor himself, and am convinced he has not hired any relatives to work for the city that he cannot legally hire. He told me he has had ample opportunity to hire relatives and has adamantly refused to do it. I believe him. If I am wrong, I encourage anyone to come to me with names, proof of hire and the statute it violates. Otherwise, do as the Good Book says and stop being a gossip. Thank you. ’Nuff said.

Download this before you upload that

The old saying “nothing lasts forever” may apply to many things, but apparently it has lost its meaning in the digital age.
If you text it, upload it, photograph it, blog it – whatever it is you do, keep in mind that it will never completely go away. Someday, somehow, someway, it can and probably will be retrieved and viewed by someone it was never intended for.
I lost a job once because of a snarky email I sent to my supervisor three months earlier. It didn’t matter that the issue had long since been resolved and was long forgiven and forgotten, my supervisor’s boss found the email and I was instantly history.
I am a Facebook junkie. I put a lot of pictures and most of my writings on the social networking site. Everything that anyone posts online will stay forever in the ethereal realm of cyberspace. Even if I deleted my account today and removed everything from Facebook’s servers, a copy of it would remain in any number of places where those with the knowhow could call it up any time they desired.
If I take a picture of my kids doing something goofy and send it via text or email to my wife, it will always exist somewhere out there. If I were to lose or donate my old phone, anyone with the right skills could pry into it and find things that I thought were permanently vanquished.
It’s important for people to know and understand the permanence of digital communication. Given that there are trillions of texts, emails, etc. sent out, the likelihood of them being rediscovered by unintended persons is very slight. But if someone were to investigate you – say for a job, security clearance, because you became rich and famous or whatever – they can use technology to find whatever they want, even if you believe it to be long gone.
Those who are into “sexting” – sending sexually explicit messages, pictures and video – must do so with the realization that several years down the road those things could wind up on the computer of a potential employer or even your grandchildren.
If you send nude or risqué pictures of yourself to your boyfriend/girlfriend or even a spouse and that relationship goes sour, you are powerless to stop that person from exploiting those images and wrecking your reputation and your life. Think about it, do you really want to explain to your spouse, or child, or pastor, or employer why there are pictures of you performing a sex act with someone who is no longer in your life?
There might also come a time when you go to your boss seeking a raise or promotion and he first asks you why you questioned his parentage in an email to a colleague.
The digital age is a wonderful thing with tremendous possibilities. Instant communication has great value and importance. It can also be the snake that bites you when you’re not looking. The main thing is to be aware of what you are doing and sending out into cyberspace. If you don’t want it shouted or shown from the rooftops, then you probably shouldn’t be doing it.
The Internet is a great equalizer in many ways. It’s very transparent. It can make the weak powerful and the powerful weak. In my youth, my youthful indiscretions rarely went beyond the memories of those who experienced them with me. Today, youthful indiscretions can wind up on Facebook or YouTube and be there to haunt you well into your retirement years.
Look before you leap and think before you speak. It’s called integrity and it’s a value that is quickly fading with each succeeding generation. Our fathers and grandfathers believed the Bible in Luke 12:2-3 when Jesus said “There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the roofs.”
That is now our digital reality. Our private and public lives are merging. It has been said that the real character of a person is how they act when they think no one is looking. In this day and age you can no longer assume no one is looking or listening, especially if it crosses into cyberspace.
That’s something to think about the next time you feel that nothing lasts forever.