Well, 2005 is coming to end.  Let’s hope 2006 is a little better.  Hopefully there won’t be any city-destroying hurricanes, devastating earthquakes, or terrorist attacks.  With the year coming to an end, all of the "best of" lists are starting to surface.

Barnes & Noble has put together a list of the top-selling books for 2005.  It’s an interesting list that includes the likes of Harry Potter, 1776, Freakonomics, and You, the Owners Manual.  It was also interesting see that people are still buying The DaVinci Code in enough numbers to keep it in the Top 10.

There were no real surprises in the film area.  Revenge of the Sith was the highest grossing film of 2005.  Followed by Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, War of the Worlds, Wedding Crashers,  and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.  There’s all this whining about what a disastrous year this has been for Hollywood, but so far the 2005 box office has pulled in $8.1 billion.  Granted, it’s the first decrease in ticket sales since 1991, but come on!

The television season is only about half completed, but there are still no suprises.  CSI and Desperate Housewives remain the two most-watched shows on network television.  If I had to pick a surprise in the top 5, it would be Grey’s Anatomy, which has been drawing steady ratings even when DH has been a repeat (and they have been chosen to follow the Super Bowl — a major vote of confidence by ABC).  Commander in Chief is the highest rated new show of the season so far, but it’s ratings have slowly deteriorated so it will be interesting to see if Stephen Bochco and can turn it around.

According to Feedster, the most visited blog was something called Endgadget, which I’ve never heard of before now.  It’s followed by Boing Boing, TV Squad (a recent discovery for me and one I enjoy reading daily), Daily Kos, and Download Squad (again a new one to me).  I really don’t know how inclusive this list is, but the highest rated Conservative blog is Michelle Malkin at #8.

According to CNET, the top 10 must-have gadgets for 2005 include the Sony PSP, the Xbox 360, and the 60GB, black video iPod.  I’m not much of a gamer so the first two mean little to me, but I own that exact same iPod and I love it!

I’m sure there are more, but I have better things to do than look for 2005 top-lists.

Do Republicans really think Donald Trump could help them keep the Governor’s mansion?  I mean, come on, he’s not that popular!  Yeah, he’s a well know name, but is he really the kind of person who could beat someone like Eliot Spitzer in a debate? He’s all bluster and no substance – not to mention a pathetic glory hound.  It would be really sad if Republicans couldn’t field a better candidate than this.  Surely, there are some intelligent people out there who could give Spitzer of run for his money.  Money, of course, is the only reason I could think for bringing in Trump, but how much of that “fortune” is actual cash on hand?

If you’re a major fan of Battlestar Galactica, and I most definitely am, then you’ll enjoy this interview with Ronald D. Moore, one of the show’s executive producers.

At one point, the interviewer asks Moore about the criticism directed towards the show that its story lines have an anti-American tone.  Moore, as he often does when asked this question, answers it with a bit of sarcasm and a zinger as the whole anti-American crap.

I find it interesting that people think the show has an anti-American bent.  I’ve often felt the show’s depiction of war was ultra-Conservative.  Oh, well, eye of the beholder and all that.

Let me just say this upfront:  I think South Park is the most stupid, most moronic show ever — EVER — to appear on television and if it disappeared tomorrow, along with its equally moronic creators, I would not shed a tear.  That being said, if you are going to put this crap on television at least have the balls to stand by your product and not cave because a few groups don’t like it.

Because it’s more important to know who blabbed than it is for a sitting president to ignore the law of the land. 

You know, I’m a bit young to remember the Watergate years, but it’s like we’ve stepped into the WABAC Machine!

One of the my favorite TV Shows, Grey’s Anatomy, has a blog!  Granted, Grey Matter is more of an inside look at how the show is written and produced, but I for one like those.  Battlestar Galactica is another favorite show of mine with a blog, except Ron Moore rarely updates it.  David Eick, an executive producer, updates a video log more often.  What I love about these blogs is that they allow the viewer to give feedback to the people behind the scenes and that’s a step in the right direction.  It not only allows viewer participation, but creates a more loyal audience.

According to a UK survey, Star Trek is the most missed show and the one people would like to see returned to television.  Let me just second that.  Enterprise was never as good as previous incarnations of the series but Viacom’s reasoning for canceling the show, low ratings, just doesn’t fly when you consider all the shows are seen worldwide.  Viacom is making money off Star Trek no matter the US ratings.  Here’s an idea:  why not do a BBC co-production and share the costs?  In addition, if the suits at Viacom would get some new blood into the Star Trek fold, be open to new and different ideas, I think the franchise could flourish again.  There are a lot of good people out there interested in doing some Star Trek idea; Bryan Singer and J. Michael Straczynski to name a couple.  If the idea of a major motion picture or a weekly series is too expensive for the suits, why not a series of made-for-television movies?  As you can see, I also miss Star Trek.

Why kind of son-of-a-bitch can call himself a father and just murder his daughters for something the eldest was accused — accused, mind you, no proof exists yet — of doing?  Why kind of wacked out religious system encourages its followers to murder girls and women, gang rape them, in the name of honor?  This bastard not only killed his stepdaughter/niece based on the accusations of a husband who beat her, but also his three youngest daughters aged 8, 7, and 4?  This is just wrong and no sane person should try to excuse it .  If they say their religion allows them to do this, then their religion is wrong.

Looks more heads are going on the chopping block over at Time, Inc.  You know, I feel bad for the people who will lose their jobs — been there done that on more than one occasion — but does Time, Inc. really need 13,000+ people to operate?  Granted, Time, Inc. is a major publishing company with more than 154 magazines, but 13,000+?  I think they could better utilize the Internet and get more bang for their buck — there are a lot of bloggers out there who do a hell of better job than Time’s people.  Of course, it’s doubtful any of their "star" reporters will see the chopping block.

I saw "Lazy Sunday,"  the SNL skit that’s getting so much attention these days when it aired and I have to say:  I didn’t think it was all that funny.  Maybe I’m just getting too old to appreciate the humor of SNL.  I long for the days of witty, sharp satire.  These days the humor on SNL is little more than glorified fart jokes.  If you want to see the skit, iTunes has it free of charge.