All posts by John O'Neill

John O'Neill is a writer for Writtalin. He keeps his nose in the news. He is a big fan of pretty sunset pictures and crisp words. Don't tell him, show him. Firm believer in dinner and drinks. Journalist, athlete. You can email John at: [email protected]

Posted On March 19, 2014By John O'NeillIn Girls, Manzone

#WCW: Zahia Dehar – The Modern Marilyn Monroe

Marilyn Monroe grew to fame as the quintessential American Sex Symbol before she died at the early age of 36. She was an actress and model whose reputation preceded any of her appearances with the promise of a beautifully wild girl. Despite her professional accomplishments, it would be her flaunted looks that mesmerized America for over a decade. She was not afraid to be sexual in a time of conservatism, and was even able to make the “Happy Birthday” song sultry and memorable when she serenaded JFK.   Today aRead More
1. Isle of Man Race Statistically the most dangerous race in the world, the Isle of Man race has killed over 240 of its racers. The race is a motorcycle tourist trophy race held on the Isle of Man. It was first organized in 1907 and continues today. It survived both world wars, has seen different classes-  from amateur, to expert, and even side-car. It is now a high speed, high risk, and completely badass motorcycle race, deserving of your attention. 2. Free Climbing In the world of free climbing,Read More

Posted On February 27, 2014By John O'NeillIn Miscellaneous, Rants

7 Things We Should Just Let Go Of

We could all take a lesson from Rose. Even though she never thought she’d have to let go of Jack, every once in a while, letting go is all there is left to do. Here are a few things we should let fall to the bottom of the sea, gone forever. 1. Safari Besides their private browsing (ahem) is there any use for this truly awful browser? It might have been a step up from NetScape but it comes in far below Firefox, Chrome and, yes, even Internet Explorer. ForRead More
It’s not easy finding a suitable guy these days, and maybe that’s because, as a guy, it’s hard to meet the standards set forth by Disney shorts, romantic comedies and any Matthew McConaughey/Ryan Reynolds/Ryan Gosling fantasy film that girls so adore. It seems that weighed against reality, meeting the “right” guy would be pretty hard for any girl. Here’s why: To fit the standard, a guy must meet the following criteria: a. He should be stable, hard-working and well-paid.      b. He should be spontaneous. c. He must makeRead More

Posted On February 20, 2014By John O'NeillIn Miscellaneous, Rants

8 Times When it is Fine to Just F**king Lose it

This year, my New Year’s Resolution was to try to be more patient with people and more understanding of little things that shouldn’t frustrate me. Friends and family are always telling me to slow down and take a breath. Truth is, I tried and continue to try. But sometimes it’s completely alright to just lose it, throw the bird, pass on a double yellow, or skip your iPhone across a lake. For instance… 8.  Drivers going well under the speed limit on a single lane road When you are inRead More

Posted On February 14, 2014By John O'NeillIn Buzzworthy, The Scene

Axe vs. Dove: A Study in Advertising Techniques

Ethics in media are always fun. While certain companies have ignored the criticism and continued to air-brush and starve their models, others have taken a more wholesome approach – marketing their products to “real” women. Two companies are in particular contrast. See: Dove vs. Axe. But, in looking at the ethics of one vs the other, are they so different? There is little difference between an Axe commercial and a male sexual fantasy. Beautiful, thin women coming out in droves to stroke the head of a guy made desirable by hisRead More

Posted On January 27, 2014By John O'NeillIn Miscellaneous, Ramblings

Ranking the States

From the greatest of the great to the horrendously awful places to live in the United States of America   The Greatest of the Great: Colorado California New York Michigan Hawaii   Your Second Choice: Florida Maine New Hampshire Virginia Louisiana North Carolina Connecticut South Carolina Vermont Delaware   The Wildly Mediocre: West Virginia Wyoming Minnesota Nevada Wisconsin Oregon Massachusetts Maryland Rhode Island Montana Washington   The Unfortunately Livable: Iowa Texas Alaska Utah Tennessee South Dakota Arizona Georgia Idaho Indiana Illinois Pennsylvania Kentucky   The Downright Awful: Alabama New JerseyRead More

Posted On January 26, 2014By John O'NeillIn Miscellaneous

5 Famous Suicide Notes

Here are the last written words from some of history’s notable people, taken directly from their suicide notes.   #1 – Hunter S. Thompson; Method: Gunshot to the head #2 – Kurt Cobain; Method: Shotgun to the head To Boddah Speaking from the tongue of an experienced simpleton who obviously would rather be an emasculated, infantile complain-ee. This note should be pretty easy to understand. All the warnings from the punk rock 101 courses over the years, since my first introduction to the, shall we say, ethics involved with independence and theRead More
1. All of your friends are getting married. All of your friends are wild and single. You can’t win. You feel surrounded by the friends who, a) got married so young that you question why you aren’t getting married, or, b) by friends who are so ambitiously single that you question the relationship you are in. 2. You have money, but not a lot of money. You’re out of college and making some dollars. But those dollars run out scary fast when you start shopping for two. Plus, life insurance,Read More

Posted On January 14, 2014By John O'NeillIn Music, Music Reviews

Reviewed: R. Kelly’s “Black Panties”

R. Kelly just released an album titled simply and tastefully titled “Black Panties” – yet again proving there are things in this world that only R. Kelly is allowed to do. His latest work of lyricism isn’t music for the family so much as it is music for making a family. With songs like “Crazy Sex,” Kelly ensures the making of many, many more seasons of Teen Mom on MTV. “Black Panties” is 17 continuous tracks of rousing sexuality that will pin you to the bed – or, as theRead More

Posted On January 5, 2014By John O'NeillIn Sports, Sports Takes

Listen to the Champ

Muhammad Ali is the greatest heavyweight boxer of all time. He fought 61 bouts in 21 years, winning 56 times, 37 times by KO. He was an Olympic Gold Medalist in 1960 and was the heavyweight champion of the world 1964-1967, 1974-1978, 1978-1979. He was also the most controversial athlete of his time.   He knew he was the greatest, saying: “I am the greatest, I said that even before I knew I was” He could talk down any opponent, saying things like: “I’m so fast that last night IRead More

Posted On January 4, 2014By John O'NeillIn Lifestyle, Miscellaneous, Rants

Love yourself, and Take a Picture

This is a poem I wrote about selfies:   Think twice Smile nice Or pay the price Of your ugly selfie vice   We live in the ultimate culture of narcissism. Us twenty-somethings love ourselves more than any generation before. Ever since the first smartphone maker manufactured the first reversible camera, we’ve been obsessed with ourselves: seeking self-validated self-esteem gained from a self-taken picture of oneself has manifested in the onslaught of obnoxious selfies and selfie behavior. Surely, you’ve seen it. The airport is one popular spot. Right in frontRead More

Posted On January 1, 2014By John O'NeillIn Lifestyle, Miscellaneous, Rants

Go Naked on Your Next Vacation

This isn’t a sensual, romantic or happy post whatsoever. You probably opened it because it said “naked,” in the title, and that part I meant. Hey, it got you to open the article, didn’t it? Don’t worry, I included a picture of a half-naked girl, which has made your time thus far totally worth it. Anyway, this is a rant – a rant about how awful it has become to travel with bags on an airline. Recently, I flew to Santa Barbara. I had an awesome time. On the flightRead More

Posted On December 31, 2013By John O'NeillIn Lifestyle, Miscellaneous

9 Books and Their Great Beginnings

You’ve got something great to tell the world. A novel, a poem, a short story. The words will be worth millions. There will be readership, a New York Times bestseller. Then a movie, and then viewership,and theme parks at Disney World. You sit down to smack some keys. Your mind goes blank. You don’t know where to begin. You get up. You decide to make dinner instead.   Every great story must have a great beginning. I sat down to a couple of national and international classics to see howRead More