Psychosomatic Rants

The government is covering up the biggest zombie outbreak in history!

2008-05-11T01:12:00Z

One site is working to uncover this ‘eminent zombie apocalypse’ and that site is, Lost Zombies.

The goal of Lost Zombies “is to gather definitive proof that zombies are real and to compile that proof into a feature length documentary film. We are asking the general public to assist us by submitting any proof of zombies they may have. We believe as a community we can educate the world’s population of the reality of zombies and the potential, if not, eminent zombie apocalypse.”

Now at first, I thought this was a joke, don’t get me wrong, I love zombies, but zombie films (3D preferred) not real life walking dead. It seems that the folks over at Lost Zombies have really found out that an outbreak has happened and they have videos and photos that have been submitted by people from all over the world to prove it!

They even have images “that were pulled from a hard drive sent to Lost Zombies by an anonymous contact who goes by J. We believe J was a tester at the pharmaceutical company where the Zombie outbreak originated.” - According to the Lost Zombie website.

This is unreal, so for the safety of the human race, please if you have any photos, videos, documents that help uncover this zombie outbreak - send them to Lost Zombies, ASAP! (and have your footage in the first ever community driven zombie documentary.)

I know I always have my video camera with me and if I see anything, I will let Lost Zombies know.

Find more videos like this on Lost Zombies

The Horse Drawn Carriage Conflict in NYC

2008-05-05T00:48:24Z

The subject of banning the horse drawn carriages in NYC has been talked about a lot in some of my comment pages so I thought I would make it an official blog post. This will open the topic to everyone. In addition to opening this topic, I will also give some details on why it is important to get these horses off the streets of NYC.

There are many different reasons why a ban on horse drawn carriages is important. I wont go into every little detail here but I will list some of the important issues on why these horses do not belong in the streets of NY. (If you want more information about this issue feel free to ask me in the comment page on this post or just Google it - there is a ton of information out there from both sides.)

As you may already know, the ASPCA, along with the Humane Society of the United States, PETA, and local advocacy groups, argue that ‘reform’ legislation is not enough. The health hazards posed to horses by traffic, noise, exhaust, and hard concrete, as well as the industry’s proven unwillingness or inability to provide horses with decent living and working conditions, show that there can be no humane alternative to a complete ban on horse-drawn carriages in New York City.

According to a NYC comptroller’s audit of the horse drawn carriage industry found a long list of problems in the carriage industry, from lax veterinary care to infrequent inspections. The audit also found that the horses were not provided with enough water, were at risk of overheating on hot asphalt and were forced to stand in their own waste because of inadequate drainage. Vets even say that ‘Lameness and hoof deterioration are inevitable when a horse spends its life walking or jogging on the unnaturally concussive asphalt of city streets’

The horse drawn carriages also pose a threat to human safety. I have posted at the bottom of this post a short list of incidents involving horses used in carriage operations in New York City since 1999.

What can you do to help the horses in NYC?

If you live in one of the five boroughs of NYC, please ask your Council Member to sign on to Tony Avella’s bill AND contact Council Speaker Christine Quinn who is blocking this bill at City Hall.

Check to see if your Council Member has already signed on to the bill If you live outside of NYC, please contact Mayor Michael Bloomberg to let him know what you think of this industry.

Also, If you are in the NYC area and would like to help; please let me know because I will be here in the city working on this issue. (If you do not know how to contact me, please just leave a comment below.)

September 14, 2007: A horse who was spooked by a street performer’s drum ran nearly a block along the sidewalk before slamming into a tree and dying. The horse’s panic caused a second horse—who was still attached to a carriage—to dart into traffic and collide with a car. (The horses name was Smoothie)

July 4, 2007: A frightened carriage horse bolted away from his driver and collided with a taxi on Central Park S. A motorcyclist abandoned his bike in order to avoid the horse. The cab driver was treated for injuries at the hospital, the horse suffered several gashes on one leg, and the cab sustained significant front-end damage.

June 2, 2007: A spooked carriage horse galloped away from his driver and was hit by an SUV in an intersection. When the horse fell, the carriage broke loose, was propelled into the air, and landed on the curb, barely missing pedestrians. * April 13, 2007*: A carriage horse was hit by a taxi at Grand Army Plaza.

September 14, 2006: After collapsing in Central Park, Juliet, a horse who was used to pull carriages in NYC for almost two decades, was whipped repeatedly by the carriage driver in an attempt to get her to stand up. A horrified crowd gathered and begged the carriage driver to stop beating her. Juliet was eventually hauled away in a police trailer to her stable, where she died early the next morning.

May 5, 2006: A horse pulling a carriage through Manhattan was spooked and ran amok, narrowly missing several vehicles before colliding with and overturning a moving car. The driver of the car was hospitalized and witnesses claimed that the horse sustained a gash near his or her neck.

April 28, 2006: A young horse being trained to pull carriages was suddenly spooked and bolted, colliding with a 71-year-old bicyclist in Central Park. The bicyclist had to be hospitalized, and the carriage driver jumped out of the vehicle during the incident, injuring his knee.

January 2, 2006: A horse pulling a carriage in Manhattan was suddenly spooked and ran, colliding with an automobile. The horse had to be euthanized because of severe injuries, and the carriage driver was hospitalized in critical condition with a fractured skull.

May 14, 2005: Two horses broke free from the carriage that they were pulling after a hit-and-run collusion with a van. The driver was thrown from the rig and landed on his head. * October 25, 2003*: Four people got the “scare of their lives” when a horse pulling a carriage suddenly bolted down the street and barreled into another carriage, causing both rigs to flip over. Four people were treated for injuries.

January 22, 2002: A horse pulling a carriage through traffic became frightened and bolted. The carriage got wedged between two cars, damaging them and several others. The horse had to be tranquilized, and it took several people to free the animal and the carriage.

November 26, 2001: A taxi cab collided with a horse-drawn carriage in South Central Park, startling the horse and injuring the carriage driver.

November 2000: A horse pulling a carriage broke free, bolted, and struck a car while galloping down the street. The horse tripped and fell to the ground, injuring a leg.

August 27, 2000: A horse-drawn carriage turning a corner in Central Park tilted past its balance point and suddenly slammed onto its side. Four tourists were strapped to backboards and taken by ambulance to a nearby hospital.

April 26, 2000: A horse in a carriage-ride stable escaped and ran down the street, creating havoc as drivers slammed on their brakes to avoid hitting the animal. A traffic control officer avoided serious injury by jumping back when the horse was within three feet of her. The horse narrowly missed being hit by a bus.

August 5, 1999: A runaway carriage horse jumped onto the sidewalk, injuring two elderly pedestrians and hitting a car.

June 28, 1999: A hit-and-run driver crashed into a horse-drawn carriage, breaking the driver’s jaw and sending the horse galloping down the street. The horse was hit by an oncoming car.

January 8, 1999: A horse was fatally electrocuted while pulling a carriage.

1999: An “out-of-control” horse jumped up on the sidewalk and struck and injured two elderly pedestrians.

Revenge of the Zombie Chickens

2008-05-03T03:36:35Z

I have been waiting a long time for this film to come out - In fact, I was given a script before they started shooting this film to give my input on it. Of course, I am talking about the only movie you need to see this year (that is not in 3D), Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead!

Back in 2005, I had the privilege to go on location where Lloyd Kaufman was filming Poultrygeist. Lloyd and his crew gave me the royal treatment, showing me how they made the chicken dead and how they made 100 percent sure that no animal ingredients were used in making this gore fest.

For those who don’t know about Poultrygeist, here is the movie synopsis.

Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead is cinema’s first chicken-zombie horror-comedy… with musical numbers!

When well-meaning but somewhat dim Arbie (Jason Yachanin) returns to the spot of his first (and only) romantic encounter with his high school sweetheart- the not-so-romantic Ancient Tromahawk Tribe Indian Burial Ground- he is shocked to discover two horrible realities:

Not only has the graveyard been bulldozed to make room for the newest fast-food “American Chicken Bunker” chain restaurant, but after only one semester at college, his girlfriend Wendy (Kate Graham) has been transformed into a left-wing, lipstick-lesbian liberal, and spends her free time protesting the corporate takeover of America. Reeling from heartbreak and a brutal beating from Micki (Allyson Sereboff), Wendy’s new activist girlfriend, Arbie channels his spite into applying for a job at the very restaurant they are protesting against.

But something else is feeling wronged by all of the construction and commotion… Something not human…

Meanwhile, newly employed Arbie’s new coworkers are a colorful group: the sassy manager Denny (Joshua Olatunde); the burqa-clad Muslim, Humus (Rose Ghavami); the animal-loving yokel Carl, Jr. (Caleb Emerson); the effete Mexican spitfire Paco Bell (Khalid Rivera); and a mysterious 60-year-old man who has been working in fast-food all his life (Lloyd Kaufman).

Together, they slowly uncover the supernatural secret of the American Chicken Bunker, while the owner General Lee Roy (Robin L. Watkins) tries to keep a lid on everything, lest the scandal taint his growing empire. But once workers and customers start dying in bizarre and grotesque ways, it becomes clear that this isn’t just a mild case of salmonella … but something much more FOWL.

Will Arbie and his friends stop the supernatural before they infect all the artificial food stuffs, the customers or even the world? Will Arbie be able to win Wendy back now that he’s making minimum-wage? What’s Carl Jr. doing with that frozen chicken? And what’s with all the singing and dancing?

It’s Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead!

If you want to see Poultrygeist there are several screenings;

In NYC - Friday May 9th at 7:30pm and 10pm And in LA - June 13 - go to www.poultrygeistmovie.com for more details

And now for the trailer - Only from Troma, of course!

What were you doing when Shrek 3D came out on DVD?

2008-04-30T21:04:10Z

Ok, this is ‘A Nerd in 3D’ revisited, well, in a strange way.

I own a device that allows me to make videos in 3D. Not the old fashion, but still loved, anaglyph 3D movies (you know the kind where you need the red and blue glasses) but in glorious field sequential 3D. (You know the kind where you need the electronic shutter lens glasses.)

Anyway, I have a huge pile of tapes of just random stuff that I had shot over the years in 3D and I came across this silly video I did back when Shrek 3D came out on DVD. Now, I don’t have a clue if the compression on YouTube will effect the 3D quality at all (don’t worry you can still watch it in 2D -its just not as fun) and since I am on the road I can not test it out with my 3D equipment. Come to think of it, it would be nice to have a 22” 3D Monitor from iZ3D to view this 3D video clip ….hint, hint, wink, wink, nudge, nudge, say no more, say no more, over at MarketSaw.

So, enjoy this

1.8 Days covered in Blood

2008-04-30T14:00:41Z

There is a new 3D movie coming out called 1.8 days, starring Gary Busey and drummer for the band Collective Soul, Will Turpin.

I am not sure what the movie is going to be about but it doesn’t matter with a promotional poster like this one - I am totally sold on this film.

But if you want a plot summary,

Two hustlers, their ex-fiancé, a ruthless crime boss, and a bounty hunter, all intent on killing each other, suddenly find themselves in the middle of an “invasion.” The lifelong enemies must band together to defeat the (what the hell are they!?). They just have to stop fighting each other long enough to survive.

Blinders - The Truth behind the Tradition

2008-04-30T01:27:48Z

I am going to be here in NYC for a while, working on the horse drawn carriage ban. So, I thought I would introduce a film that was just completed not too long ago, (it should be released soon) that talks about the NYC horse drawn carriage industry. The documentary is called ‘Blinders - The Truth Behind the Tradition.’

I had a chance to screen this documentary and it is amazing because it really takes a deep look into this industry and takes viewers behind the scenes to expose the truth behind the tradition.

I recommend ‘Blinders’ to anyone who wants to know about the horse drawn carriage industry here in NYC.

Here is the trailer.

NYC, Ban Horse Drawn Carriages

2008-04-27T16:42:56Z

Yesterday, I arrived back in NYC to join forces with the ASPCA, Humane Society of the United States, The Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages, PETA and several other groups and individuals to put a stop to the abusive ‘tradition’ of the horse-drawn carriage industry.

We have seen for years, it is impossible for any agency to monitor the horses in the carriage industry properly and ensure their health and well-being. No amount of regulation can protect the public from the danger of horses who bolt when they become frightened. New York City has the highest horse-drawn carriage accident rate in the country, and horses suffer lung damage from inhaling exhaust fumes.

According to a NYC comptroller’s audit, which found a litany of problems in the carriage industry, from lax veterinary care to infrequent inspections. The audit also found that the horses were not provided with enough water, were at risk of overheating on hot asphalt and were forced to stand in their own waste because of inadequate drainage.

Vets even say that ‘Lameness and hoof deterioration are inevitable when a horse spends its life walking or jogging on the unnaturally concussive asphalt of city streets’

On Sat, April 27 we held a meeting for locals who are concerned about these horses. At the meeting, Daniel talked about the history of the horse-drawn carriage industry and what people could do to help raise public awareness.

After the meeting, we all went near the hack lines (hack line is where the horses/carriage stand, with no shade, while the driver attempts to grab people to go for a ride.) with posters and post cards for people to sign to voice their concerns about the abusive industry.

It was a very productive day we talked to hundreds of people and they were very supportive of the ban on horse drawn carriage in NYC.

New York City Council Member Tony Avella introduced groundbreaking legislation that would ban the abusive horse-drawn carriage industry in the city. So the time is now for us all to let the city council members know that this cruel and outdated industry needs to end.

If you are in the NYC area and would like to help; please let me know because I will be here in the city working on this issue. (If you do not know how to contact me, please just leave a comment below.)

ZOMBIE STRIPPERS!

2008-04-19T02:47:12Z

Sony Films is opening today, in selected theaters, a new movie called 'Zombie Strippers' - Starring Robert Englund and Jenna Jameson. You have to like a movie that has Robert England, well because he is the star of one of the all time great horror movies, and Jenna Jameson, well, you know why... because after seeing the film 'Earthlings' she has become a voice for the animals.

Anyway, you know this is going to be good chesse-y, please give me my 80 minutes of my life back, type of movie, with the tag line, "They will dance for a fee but devour you for free."

So here is the Synopsis for the film;

Nightmare on Elm Street's Robert Englund and worldwide media sensation Jenna Jameson star in Zombie Strippers. When a secret government agency lets out a deadly chemo virus causing the reanimation of the dead, the first place to get hit is Rhino's, a hot underground strip club. As one of the strippers get the virus, she turns into a supernatural, flesh-eating zombie stripper, making her the hit of the club. Do the rest of the girls fight the temptation to be like the star stripper, even if there is no turning back? Also Roxy Saint (of the Goth band Roxy Saint and the Blackouts) and Ultimate Fighting Champion Tito Ortiz, Zombie Strippers is a sexy, bloody, hilarious good time!

So here is the official trailer - enjoy!

Letting the days go by

2008-04-13T03:29:17Z

Do not ever let people tell you that you do not have time to do something. I hear people all the time saying, "If I had more time I would do ... (insert something to do here)"

I know- I have found myself saying that exact phrase. In fact, I am sure we all have said it at least once, maybe twice or even an hundred times. I found myself saying it earlier today and I get frustrated when I find myself saying it, because I do not want to use that phrase as an excuse for not doing something. It can become so easy to write the things off with that simple phrase. We only have a short time in this world to spend with our loved ones, seeing the world and meeting new people and there is ALWAYS time for those important things that make our lives so much better.

So in the interests of the old saying, '...Take time to smell the flowers' - I will share with you my past seven days of making time to do...

It was Sunday, April 6th - Mylie and I woke up early and packed up for the day to take a road trip. Our first stop was at Trader Joe's. I will not go into details about Trader Joe's because if you have been reading Psychosomatic Rants you already know how I feel about this place.

Our second stop was at the Williamsburg Winery - This was my first time ever to visit a winery. I am not a huge wine fan, well; I really dislike the taste of wine. I went in hopes to see if the wine I had that was not good or if I really do not like wine. We arrived at the winery, it was cold, cloudy and rainy - a perfect day.

From the Williamsburg Winery website;

The tour includes a video presentation on grape growing (viticulture) and winemaking (oenology), a stroll through the barrel cellar and a visit to the production area. In our museum you will enjoy a collection of unique and rare vintage wine bottles with a grand finale tasting of seven of our wines in an etched wine glass that is yours to take home as a keepsake

Before I go on, it must be noted that you can NOT put Mylie and me in a room with a video presentation. We both find these videos beyond hilarious. To add the odd and very funny videos that tours create is the fact that not everyone who is on the tour with us finds the humor in these videos so out of respect we try to keep our comments and laughter to ourselves. That is very hard for Mylie because she tried to hold in her laughter - her face turning bright red - tears falling from her eyes - her body begins to bounce do to the force of her holding in her laughter. Then as I try not to laugh at her laughing, a clip of the 'wine master' comes on the screen. This person's face was flushed - with rosy cheeks and he begins talking about the art of wine making. It is clear that this wine master is totally drunk in this video. So my laughter kicks in and so here we are Mylie and me in a room of people who think drinking wine is a upper society and very proper both of us trying to hold in our laughter with Mylie making squeaky sounds in-between her laughter that, I think is her saying, "Stop, I cant take it anymore, stop!'

The twelve-minute video is now over, the tour guide enters into the room, and that ends our video presentation of the tour. Now on to the wine making....

At the end of the tour, we had the privilege of tasting seven different wines. It is important to note here - Mylie and I left our house around early morning and at 2:30pm, we started the tour - we had not eaten anything all day. No breakfast, no lunch, we had a couple handful of popcorn and Mylie had some coffee.

So on with the story - The tour guide poured us the first glass of wine while giving us the history of that wine. Then came the second glass, then the third, and then I noticed that Mylie was starting to get a buzz going - I looked at her and she had this HUGE smile on her face and as she looked at me she said, "This is good!" with a little giggle in her voice. I started to laugh and said, 'You are drunk' She said, 'No, I am not - but we can't drive once we are done here.' We reached our seventh glass of wine in a fifteen-minute span and we were feeling pretty good. - I found out that I still do not like wine -but the desert wine is pretty good.

Then we went on to Richmond, VA to eat at Panda Veg - All I need to say here is ALL YOU CAN EAT VEGAN BUFFET!

Fast forward a couple days later....

I found myself hanging out at horse sanctuaries - way out in the middle of nowhere. (I am sure it is somewhere for the people who live there)

I spent the rest of the week grooming horses and learning about their individual stories. Some were rescued from horse tracks, from PMU farms, carriage horses, and from slaughter.

Spending time at these horse sanctuaries was amazing. I learned so much about these wonderful animals and how horrible the horse 'industry' can be - for example, the horse drawn carriages in NYC are sold to slaughter instead of being retired after a life of hard and miserable lives pulling people through the crowded streets of NYC.

Now it is 11:25pm on Saturday April 12, 2008 and I am standing looking out my window at the city below and asking myself - "What will I make time for, tomorrow?"

The Rebirth of Zombie Popcorn TV

2008-04-05T22:18:52Z

Yes, Zombie Popcorn TV is back and better than ever.

You can view ZP TV at anytime by going to the 'Page' section to your right and click 'Zombie Popcorn TV Player' There are several videos up already and I am going to be loading several more over the next couple of days. I am also working on more content, so if you have any suggestions, comments, or if you want to work on a video together- Feel free to let me know. Hope you enjoy the re-birth of Zombie Popcorn TV!

Touch it, Feel it, taste it...

2008-04-03T18:34:50Z

Ok, maybe not taste it - I don't think I want to encourage people licking their screens.

I have been working on giving Psychosomatic Rants a new look and feel. I received several comments over the past year that it was hard for people to find older posts on here. So, I changed the navigation - now you will be able to find a post via, comments, month, author, date, and archive index. Also, the trackback links are in full working order - I know we had issues with them in the past.

So here it is - I hope you enjoy the new look and feel. If you have suggestions, comments, or problems please let me know.

Before I go, a fellow blogger over at Heathens Online - is thinking about attending Ringling Bros and is leaving it up to their readers to help them decide on if they should go or not. So please go over and leave nice comments about why they should not attend animal circuses.

Thanks!

STOP FILMING I AM TRYING TO COVER SOMETHING UP!

2008-03-31T17:09:30Z

I took a week long break from the Ringling tour to visit NYC's Horse Drawn Carriages. I will not bore you with the details of what I was doing there - but you can read about it on 'The PETA Files' and check out the fruits of labor with a fun Youtube video. - don't forget to read about how you can help NYC's horse drawn carriages- here

Psychosomatic Rants is one years old!! -

2008-03-29T19:54:47Z

Happy Anniversary!

Zombie Popcorn has gone through several changes over the years. Zombie Popcorn TV, Zombie Popcorn Radio, and what you know now - Psychosomatic Rants - The Text Side of Jason Bayless and Mylie T.

So to celebrate the anniversary of Psychosomatic Rants - We present you with Psychosomatic Rants. Volume One: March 28, 2007- March 19, 2008 (The Anniversary Edition)

Now you can get all the wonderful stories from the blog plus additional photos to add to your collection.

Psychosomatic ...

Volume One: March ...

By Jason Bayless and ...

Book Preview

(just click on the box above to order the book)

Thanks to everyone of our readers and the people who helped make Zombie Popcorn/Psychosomatic Rants what it is today!!

VICTORY!!! yet, again

2008-03-19T20:19:26Z

Charlotte, N.C.--Following discussions with PETA about Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus' long history of animal abuse, including citations and fines by federal authorities, Charlotte-based grocery chain Harris Teeter has confirmed that it will not enter into future partnerships with the circus. Fred Morganthall, president of Harris Teeter--which is owned by Ruddick Corporation and operates 200 supermarkets in seven states--told PETA via e-mail this week that while the company must honor its current contractual promotion, "[g]oing forward, we will not be supporting circus promotions. ... I know we already have turned one sponsorship down." As a token of appreciation for looking out for the best interests of real elephants, PETA sent Morganthall a vegan chocolate elephant.

Ringling's animal care record is riddled with animal deaths and U.S. Department of Agriculture noncompliance notices, investigations, warnings, and penalties, including a $20,000 fine for the death of a baby elephant who died after Ringling forced him to enter the ring repeatedly while he was sick and a formal warning for inflicting painful injuries on two baby elephants. Former Ringling employees have reported shocking abuses, including that a chained elephant bled profusely following a violent 30-minute beating with steel-tipped bullhooks, terrified elephants who urinated and defecated in fear at the sound of their trainers' voices, a lion who died in the desert heat in a boxcar, a horse who died without receiving veterinary care, and horses who were tethered and beaten.

Harris Teeter joins Denny's, General Mills, Burger King, Liz Claiborne, MasterCard, Ford Motor Company, and Sears, Roebuck and Co., all of which ended their sponsorships of either Ringling or UniverSoul circuses.

"We salute Harris Teeter for distancing itself from the whips, chains, and loneliness that define circuses like Ringling," says PETA Vice President Bruce Friedrich. "A trail of dead baby elephants is something that any business concerned about its public image can do without."