Risque Righteousness, Soft Focus Sin

Scantly clad nurses violate curfew, aide a bootlegger and bond with each other trangessionally to appeases their youthful sensations.

Stanwyck, left and Blondell in 1931s "Night Nurse"

“Night Nurse,” starring Barbara Stanwyck and Joan Blondell is a 1931 movie based on the book by Grace Perkins, aka Dora Macy.

In 1931, “Night Nurse” would have been an R movie. Illegal sales of alcohol and risqué subject matter are just a small part of this well written story.  

"Night Nurse," Blondell & Stanwyck 

The conflict begins when Stanwyck notices the abuse of a child via severe neglect from her parents. The young child is on the verge of starvation because her parents would rather imbibe alcohol then care for their young daughter.

The powers that be defend the wealthy parents, and Stanwyck is encouraged to allow the abuse to go on. Her nursing career is also jeopardized while trying to save a little girls life. The wicked world of politics; in this case the medical field, where money is more important then aiding and healing the sick, even if it’s a child.

Black and white archival movies from nearly a century ago may be outdated today, but “Night Nurse” and “Red Headed Woman” have maintained their film noir allure.

Jean Harlow, 1932s "Red Headed Woman" 

“Red Headed Woman” starring Jean Harlow first hit the masses in 1932. This movie would have also gotten an R rating under today’s standards. Harlow, a single woman in this movie pursues the road to riches by dating rich men.

Harlow becomes a shunned woman, but in the end, she gets what she wants. In the last scene of the “Red Headed Woman” Harlow marries a rich, much older man then herself. On their wedding day, she coly smiles at the young handsome chauffeur employed by her new husband.

My review of this flick has done “Red Headed Woman” no justice. In the wee-wee hours of the night, “Red Headed Woman” is a fantastic flick. I fully understand why Jean Harlow was a Hollywood sensation back in the day.

Mark Izzy Schurr    

Mind Peace

Exiled from reality, the incense of aspiration fueled by chaotic creativity is a sensational aroma of enlightenment.  


At long last, my thoughts are clear, and my senses are keen. The myriad of mayhem, often called life, too often caters to hatred and fear. Love and laughter are frequently clouded in lies and lunacy. I’m no longer depressed, I’ve abandoned the desire to fit in. Human salvation lies in the hands of the creatively maladjusted Martin Luther King, Jr. said, and I agree.


Occasionally I go to gatherings of family and friends and mill about with my camera in the hopes of capturing marvelous memories. Sometimes I step outside myself to talk to and photograph pretty women who are absolute strangers to me. 

I don’t know how to live life; so, I observe it as best I can, while trying to document its joys and fascinations. 

Mark Izzy Schurr All pictures via Schurr Shot.

Because of President Donald J. Trump, the U.S. has an erratic and unpredictable relationship with even its allies entrepreneur Andrew Yang said during Wednesday nights democratic debates.

Yang and Hawaiian representative Tulsi Gabbard should be president and vice president. I don’t care which is which. Both Gabbard and Yang talked about the follies and futility of the current 18-year war with Afghanistan. Gabbard said the U.S. government is still spending $4 billion dollars a month on this pointless and tragic war.

If the war were ended, and our troops sent home, this $4 billion dollar a month could be much better spent on health care for all, education, infrastructure and clean water Gabbard said. Thus far, the U.S. government has spent $5.6 trillion dollars in the Middle East.  

Gabbard also pointed out that the U.S. has thousands of missiles aimed directly at various cities. A single launch of one of these missiles would give its city members only 30 minutes to find shelter, and guess what, there is no shelter.

Flint Michigan still has lead in its water, and the government is doing little to nothing about it since 2014. Our current leaders, ‘warmongers’ care only about the wealthy one percent who control all the money, and they have no soul, there’re evil. Wake up America. Yang and Gabbard had less harsh words, but they got their meaning across to me!

“Here we are, with make-up on our faces and our rehearsed attack lines playing roles in this reality 

TV show which is why we elected a reality TV show host in the first place, when we should be talking about the real issues” Yang said Wednesday night.

Yang said automation has already eliminated four million manufacturing jobs, and guess what folks, this is just the tip of the ice burg! Yang has a great slogan; ‘Not left, not right, but forward.  

Gabbard is the only war veteran currently running for president and she was in Iraq in a field medical unit in 2005.

“Everyday I saw the high cost of war,” Gabbard said.

For too long our leaders in their ivory towers in Washington have no idea of the cost and consequences the toll war takes on its soldiers and their families. This wasteful regime war needs to end, and our troops need to be sent home Gabbard said.

Other candidates said Trump is pushing science fiction instead of science fact. Trump thinks wind turbines cause cancer, but they cause jobs.   

Wednesday nights debates also illustrated the importance of education. Currently, 88 percent of all inmates in the U.S. didn’t graduate high school. Too many people are in jail for marijuana offenses, which Gabbard is appalled at, and she put Senator Kamala Harris in her place Wednesday night about this subject.

I was very impressed with Wednesday nights debates, I was enlightened to know that for the past four years, the summers in the world have been warmer each year since its recorded history. Global warming is real folks and Yang said we are ten years too late to fix permanent damage.

Another candidate said Trump is not bashful in his cruelty. Under Trump's leadership, seven immigrant children have died in border lockups. Many people flee their impoverished towns and cities because some gangs in these places tell business owners to give them all their money, or their families will be killed. Women flee these places because of rape, or the fear of being raped. I’ve seen it myself in the 80s while I was in Honduras, people living in sheer poverty, dwelling in mud huts. Our leaders lie and say these people are a crime threat and even threatening our jobs, but that is balderdash.

“Congress is not doing its job, impeach Trump,” one candidate said.

Mark Izzy Schurr

Review Two of "Pet Sematary"

The devious doors of deception are found and opened in April’s “Pet Sematary” movie.  
The uncharted gateways leading to a tangible 5^th dimension, a realm of uncharted territories, where the dead roam amidst the living. Macabre mayhem between the thinking dead, and the uncertain living forge a chaotic cocktail that’s deceitfully delicious.  

“Pet Sematary” is a tale of sorrow and resurrection fueled by unseen ancient deities. This year’s movie “Pet Sematary” strays form Stephen King’s 1980s book with the same title and the 1989 movie, also, “Pet Sematary.”

An adorable happy healthy elementary school aged girl dies tragically when hit by a big rig truck, and that’s when this year’s “Pet Sematary” displays its sinister sensation to horror movie fans of all ages. 

The dead in “Pet Sematary” only come back to life when buried by a loved in an ancient burial ground on the outskirts of Maine. When the dead come back to life, they are not crazed zombies eager to feast on the flesh of the living.

Despite the wisdom from his wife and neighbor, and his own heart, Louis buries his daughter Ellie in the Pet Sematary while his neighbor is passed out drunk and his wife is out of town. The very first night Ellie is resurrected, Louis fears himself for doing so. The picture below is the first night Ellie is brought back to life, and her father Louis has just tucked her into bed for the night. 

When the wife / mom returns home the next day, she is freaked out to see her daughter. Ellie is clearly not the warm-hearted loving child she was prior to her death. Ellie still speaks and hugs, but there’s and ominous void to her looks and personality now. 

Ellie immediately realizes her mom is scared to have her back in her new form.

“Mommy doesn’t want here anymore, that’s OK, I don’t want her here either,” Ellie says.

Jete Laurence, the very young actress portrays Ellie brilliantly!

The jest of this tale; the dead and living belong in two separate dimensions.

Mark 'Izzy' Schurr   

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The endless endeavors weaved into our souls, such as writing, photography, cooking, painting, producing music, drawing and cooking are just a fraction of the vital ventures harnessed within the human spirit and mind. 

If Andrew Yang becomes president, his Universal Basic Income for all Americans would fuel creative minds to heavenly heights.  

The quote unquote American pastime is baseball, and Andrew Yang said in his April 2018 book, “The War on Normal People,” America is in the 4^th inning of a financial apocalypse.

When people stress about money, creativity drops, it’s that simple. 

Yang details the math in his book on how each American citizen 18-years-old and older would receive $12,000 a year on top of what they already earn. Futile arguments against U.B.I. claim that people would become lazy and not work. Yang counters; how many people can live on $12,000 year? The Freedom Dividend, U.B.I. is not Yang's idea. He learned this from Martin Luther King Jr. who proposed a guaranteed income for all Americans in the late 1960s. The $1,000 a month is meant as an aide, not a means to retire once your 18-years-old.

U.B.I., would also cut down the crime rate and help relationships. Why are most petty crimes committed? You guessed it, money. Financial futility keeps some individuals from dating. Myself, once the bills are paid, there's nothing left over for dating. What do many couples argue and fight about a lot? The almighty dollar is a major factor in marriage and relationship hardships. The Freedom Dividend, or U.B.I. would strengthen relationships and make people happier.

A penny for every google search and multi-million and billion dollar businesses would be taxed one percent of its income that would go toward financing the $1,000 a month for all American citizens. If you want all the details on where the money would come from to finance the Freedom Dividend; read "The War On Normal People," or google Andrew Yang on U.B.I. 

Yang said in his book, the Freedom Dividend might cost some people $2,500 a year, but when your receiving an additional $12,000 a year, the math works in the favor of the people. 

Yang uses the word ‘normal’ in the title of his book to mean average. “The War on Normal People’ is the best political book I’ve ever read. The book is barely over 240 pages, an afternoon read, and Yang illustrates the need for immediate change in America’s current financial structure.

Right now, Americans seems content and clueless to the imminent future of mass job loss and financial futility. Love it or loathe it, the future is coming, and in this future most cars will be driverless. Truck drivers, taxi drivers, bus drivers and all others who drive for a living will experience intense job loss.

The technology is already in place for a few people to operate thousands if not tens of thousands of driverless trucks and taxies able to driver across town or across the country while a small few people traffic these vehicles from PC’s in an office.

This very second, Google, Apple and Amazon are investing billions of dollars in artificial intelligence. The market rewards business leaders for making things more efficient. Efficiency doesn't love normal people, it loves getting things done in the most cost efficient way possible. We have a 1960s era government that has few solutions for the problems of 2018 Yang said.   

Automation is coming and it’s coming fast and eliminating more and more jobs. Big retailers including Target and Amazon will one day have mass layoffs. Robots can already do cashiering as well as package and distribute products, while needing only about a dozen or so people that now require hundreds, it not tens of thousands of people.

The above information was not much news to me, but doctors and lawyers will also be hit hard by automation, which I never thought possible until I read “The War on Normal People.”

It will soon be common for a doctor to be able to perform an operation on someone who’s in a different state. With technology that already exist, a doctor in California can guide a robot doctor in New York as it does minor or major surgery on its patient. Understand where this is going, the number of doctors needed in America and the world will be massively reduced.

Automation will also affect lawyers and accountants. Yang states that many lawyers, particularly ones who have recently finished law school and go to work in their first law firm mostly do paperwork. Accountants, much like lawyers have a lot of paperwork, and most of the paperwork is money and numbers which a computer can calculate much faster and accurately then people.

“The War on Normal People” illustrates how even the wealthy one percent will one day be in a state of turmoil. “Mad Max,” the movie is something that could very well be in America’s future Yang said, and I believe him.

Yang is far more eloquently than myself about how America’s future is extremely bleak unless the powers that be start doing something to aide the middle class and poor now. Yang has solutions for a fabulous future with much lower crime and poverty rates. The statistics don’t lie as Yang points out. Crime is much higher in poverty-stricken areas.

“The War on Normal People’ is much more detailed and insightful then what I’ve written, and I cannot recommend this book enough. A must read book for those seeking real answers to today's problems. Five stars for "The War On Normal People." 

Mark (Izzy) Schurr

Overdue Book Review

Spartacus was as close to a God humans has ever encountered in the documented history of humanity.

Veronica, the wife of Spartacus was pleasingly possessed by the ecstatic frenzies of Dionysus, a half god in Greek mythology. Professor Brent D. Shaw’s translation of “Spartacus and the Slave Wars” states that Dionysus was a son of Zeus, and the god of fertility, superhuman strength, long life and vitality.

Thus far, everything written about Spartacus is mostly from his enemies, the Romans. The two books I’ve read about Spartacus illustrated that he was indeed real, and a true humanitarian who should be revered forever.

“Spartacus and the Slave Wars” documents how Spartacus escaped his slave training camp in Capua, Italy with his wife Veronica, his friend Crixus and about 60 other slaves. The name of Spartacus’s wife is not known. There is no documentation of her actual name. Everything you may read about his wife, or see in a movie, including the four-year Netflix series “Spartacus” is a made-up name, so in my mind, her name was Veronica.

More than 70 years before the birth of Jesus Christ, Spartacus was forced to fight in arenas for the Romans. Spartacus may have been Roman himself, but many claim he was a Thracian, which is Belgium today. The Netflix “Spartacus” series adhered to the books very closely with awesome embellishments. A resounding thumbs up for the Netflix “Spartacus” writers.

The people who wrote about Spartacus claim he was indeed a man of great spirit and bodily strength. During his peak years, early 30s or late 20s, he was not only a physical specimen to behold, but also a noble man with great intelligence and like the movies, a romantic. Coming from his enemies, this make the documented history of Spartacus even more powerful. He was indeed a fan favorite in the arenas, a true figure of fame and fear.

Upon escaping his slave encampment, his 60 or 70-person army swelled to 60,000 or 70,000 warriors in less then two years. Some historians claim the Spartacus army was more the 200,000 troops. Regardless, upon their victorious battles, Spartacus spilt all the money evenly amongst all those who fought with him which is the main reason slave warriors were eager to join Spartacus and fight in a justified war.  

“Spartacus and the Slave Wars, A Brief History with Documents” pointed out how pirates betrayed Spartacus. Had the pirates joined Spartacus like they said, they could have shipped him and his army to Sicily, and maybe Spartacus and his army may have defeated the Roman army.

Spartacus’s body was never found on the final battlefield, but historians claim he was killed. It took the Roman army two years to defeat Spartacus and his army who were fighting for freedom and justice.

Large governments are ruled by greed and massive numbers of brain-washed soldiers, and in the end, more than 6,000 of Spartacus’s troops were crucified and their dead bodies upon their crosses lined the main road to Rome for a long time, as a warning to not rebel against the government and its evil regime.

“Spartacus and the Slave Wars” (2001) translated by then professor Shaw at the University of Pennsylvania is an easy a quick read. It also documents the history of the two other slave wars approximately 35 and 60 years before the Spartacus war.

Mark Schurr aka Izzy Schurr

More mutant than man, I feed my mind with fact and fantasy while learning to silence my joy in the embers of the crisp summer nights.

As a creature of chaos, my passion is harbored in the printed pages of the ancients and today’s follies that fill our minds with too much doubt and distrust. Friends are just distant acquaintances while books provide stability and peace of mind.  

The solace of the shadows and the wisdom of various writers calm the rough seas of reality and allow me to embrace to the infinite warmth of patience and creativity.

Mark Izzy Schurr