Rereading LOTR reminds me of my imaginings of a society where technology and nature were intertwined, and trees bioengineered so that their branches interlaced to create dwellings with beautiful stones set in their natural bark, electricity derived from the organism while the waste of the household fed it. Mass production, as with all things, has its wise and not so wise uses.
It's interesting to me to note the differences the Protestant work ethic has created in our culture. On one hand, it puts the dreariness of any work for money over self improvement and betterment, in a way, though it could be argued that this is capitalism's work more than anything else. On the other, it fuels the drive for independence.
In my visits and dealings with European culture, it seems to me as if anti-intellectualism never gained the foothold there that it has here, most likely due to the history of the culture.
I had some beautiful dreams and awful nightmares last night. If my memory is correct, some took place in a dreamscape which has never been used before.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Thoughts from the Train
Sometimes I wonder whether art and religion are strange bloopers from humanity’s need to generalize. When I pass the sandstone cliffs I sometimes find myself almost seeing faces in them, seeing how beautiful they are and perhaps putting in a carve there, a carve there. I wonder why it took so long for the shapes we find so beautiful in nature to become accepted as art.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
This isn't actually by Christopher Walken, but...
http://twitter.com/cwalken
This post meant mostly for Chris.
This post meant mostly for Chris.
Tale of Genjii: As suspected
Ahha! Here we have it: the jealous, eager to please, pliable woman is more desirable than the talented, sensuous, aggressive woman with multiple callers. Her unfaithfulness is named as her largest fault, but the man who states this was seeing the jealous woman at the same time as her! The scholarly woman who has not absorbed feminine traits is named as the worst of all, and the woman who is quicker than her partner as a witch.
One wonders if this is Shikabu's opinion or what she has gleaned from court life. "Yes, it is an uncertain world, especially for women. They are like bits of driftwood." I hear the echo of the frustrations of early feminists.
I'm not usually about feminist criticism, but this book about a man written by a woman in an old patriarchal society which right now is focusing on affairs between men and women practically invites it.
Other observations about the book: its descriptions of scenery are extremely beautiful, and it is interesting to hear one of the characters talk about "none of this Japanese nonsense" in reference to writing. Apparently the transition to a native language was still underway at the time this was written.
Oh, and the women on Painted Babies should have their children taken away. No lie.
One wonders if this is Shikabu's opinion or what she has gleaned from court life. "Yes, it is an uncertain world, especially for women. They are like bits of driftwood." I hear the echo of the frustrations of early feminists.
I'm not usually about feminist criticism, but this book about a man written by a woman in an old patriarchal society which right now is focusing on affairs between men and women practically invites it.
Other observations about the book: its descriptions of scenery are extremely beautiful, and it is interesting to hear one of the characters talk about "none of this Japanese nonsense" in reference to writing. Apparently the transition to a native language was still underway at the time this was written.
Oh, and the women on Painted Babies should have their children taken away. No lie.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Endangered Species and Hobbyists
Posting that picture of a Wombat reminded me of an idea I had.
In the pet trade, especially the fish and reptile trade, owners are sometimes in charge of animals which have become endangered within their native range. Sometimes these fish or reptiles are wild-caught; sometimes they are secure fixtures in the hobby who's natural habitat is in severe danger. I would love to see a group of hobbyists, laymen, who were doing their part to help preserve these species through a concerted effort to breed and observe them.
Now, there are a couple obvious roadblocks to this:
1.) No pedigree and unknown genetic makeup of many of these animals.
2.) Breeding programs enforce strict guidelines almost impossible to effectively enforce in a
group of laymen.
3.) A non-standardized environment means that almost none of these animals could realistically
be re-released into the wild.
Of course, you could have to sign a contract to join the organization promising to follow certain guidelines. And these animals could be the basis of a later breeding effort by professionals focusing on re-population and genetic strengthening.
I don't have the details worked out, but I would love to see something like this happen.
In the pet trade, especially the fish and reptile trade, owners are sometimes in charge of animals which have become endangered within their native range. Sometimes these fish or reptiles are wild-caught; sometimes they are secure fixtures in the hobby who's natural habitat is in severe danger. I would love to see a group of hobbyists, laymen, who were doing their part to help preserve these species through a concerted effort to breed and observe them.
Now, there are a couple obvious roadblocks to this:
1.) No pedigree and unknown genetic makeup of many of these animals.
2.) Breeding programs enforce strict guidelines almost impossible to effectively enforce in a
group of laymen.
3.) A non-standardized environment means that almost none of these animals could realistically
be re-released into the wild.
Of course, you could have to sign a contract to join the organization promising to follow certain guidelines. And these animals could be the basis of a later breeding effort by professionals focusing on re-population and genetic strengthening.
I don't have the details worked out, but I would love to see something like this happen.
As predicted, The Guild is very funny. The series stars Felicia Day, the actress who played Penny in Dr Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. So far I have watched all of season one and recommend the show, as it is very quotable. Youtube hosts the first season and streams much faster than their site.
I am glad that nobody on LOTRO remotely reminds me of the people on The Guild. Speaking of LOTRO, I haven't played for the past couple of days.
I am glad that nobody on LOTRO remotely reminds me of the people on The Guild. Speaking of LOTRO, I haven't played for the past couple of days.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Domestic Violence
I just have to rant here.
Why do all of these people blame the victim?
Abuse is not a simple process. Usually before an abuser physically assaults his or her partner it is preceded by slowly demolishing the partner's self esteem and isolating them from all support networks. By the time the actual violence happens many victims even feel as though they deserve it. It can take an abuse victim six or seven tries to before they leave their partner permanently. This is a complex psychological subject that has entangled thousands of people, and to call Rihanna stupid because she did not leave Chris Brown or to say that "she deserves him" is blaming the victim, an attitude which makes it even harder to break the circle of violence and reinforces the self esteem and isolation issues that have been created around the the victim.
To say that she deserves his violent reaction she got because she hit him first? Yes, in a loving relationship anything more than playful violence is not acceptable, but choking, punching, and biting are not in the same category as one swat. If one partner does something unacceptable that is no reason for the other partner to escalate in, especially since he was hardly defending himself.
If they were not romantically involved, would we find this situation ok? Girls are very capable of being violent, but that does not mean that women(or men!) do not need protection from this sort of thing. He beat her into a pulp and she barely swatted him. Unjustified much?
Nobody in a healthy relationship has to be afraid of their partner in any way.
Why do all of these people blame the victim?
Abuse is not a simple process. Usually before an abuser physically assaults his or her partner it is preceded by slowly demolishing the partner's self esteem and isolating them from all support networks. By the time the actual violence happens many victims even feel as though they deserve it. It can take an abuse victim six or seven tries to before they leave their partner permanently. This is a complex psychological subject that has entangled thousands of people, and to call Rihanna stupid because she did not leave Chris Brown or to say that "she deserves him" is blaming the victim, an attitude which makes it even harder to break the circle of violence and reinforces the self esteem and isolation issues that have been created around the the victim.
To say that she deserves his violent reaction she got because she hit him first? Yes, in a loving relationship anything more than playful violence is not acceptable, but choking, punching, and biting are not in the same category as one swat. If one partner does something unacceptable that is no reason for the other partner to escalate in, especially since he was hardly defending himself.
If they were not romantically involved, would we find this situation ok? Girls are very capable of being violent, but that does not mean that women(or men!) do not need protection from this sort of thing. He beat her into a pulp and she barely swatted him. Unjustified much?
Nobody in a healthy relationship has to be afraid of their partner in any way.
History of Myspace
For future reference, my snark is usually not about criticizing a person, just their work. Also, "You suck at Photoshop" is good.
Today, the real history of myspace
More
Condensed:
Today, the real history of myspace
More
Condensed:
What News Corp. doesn't want you to know about MySpace
1. MySpace is NOT a viral success. MySpace was advertised on mass levels to reach the public. MySpace was created by a company named eUniverse (who later changed their name to Intermix Media). eUniverse was a marketing and entertainment company who had over 50 million e-mail addresses in their databases, as well as over 18 million monthly web users. eUniverse leveraged their resources to proliferate and advertise MySpace.com. eUniverse went as far as telling 3 million users of their paid dating website, CupidJunction.com, to sign up for free MySpace accounts. (CupidJunction message screenshot)
2. MySpace.com is Spam 2.0. MySpace has spawned an incredibly successful twist on the age-old art of self-promotion, allowing—even encouraging—the marketing of everything from bands to businesses on their site. Essentially, they've opened up a channel through which to solicit and promote everyone and everything, most importantly the individual. The whole site is, in essence, a marketing tool that everyone who registers has access to. Users constantly receive spam-like messages from said bands, business, and individuals looking to add more "friends" (and therefore more potential fans, consumers, or witnesses) to their online identity. A testament to this strange new social paradigm is the phrase "Thanks for the Add," a nicety offered when one MySpace user adds another as a friend. Best yet, to use the site, members must log in, causing them to inadvertently view advertisements, and then read their messages on a page with even more advertisements. In the world of MySpace, Spam is earth, air, fire, and water.
3. Tom Anderson did NOT create MySpace. Most users don't know that Tom Anderson (pictured) is more of a PR scheme than anything else—the mascot designed to give a friendlier feel to a site created by a marketing company known for viral entertainment websites, pop-up advertising, spam, spyware, and adware. As MySpace's popularity grew, the MySpace team moved to create a false PR story that would best reflect the ideals and tastes of its growing demographic. They wanted to prevent the revelation that a Spam 1.0 company had launched the site, and created the impression that Tom Anderson created the site, and the lie worked. According to Anderson, the bulk of his initial contribution is as follows: "I am as anti-social as they come, and I've already got 20 people to sign up."
4. MySpace's CEO Chris DeWolfe is connected to a past of spam and shady business associates and brought those connections to eUniverse/MySpace (see full edition for details).
5. MySpace was a direct assault on Friendster.com. The major key players in the ultimate development of MySpace have Friendster accounts, and name Friendster and its founder in their original business proposal. The current CEO of MySpace, Chris DeWolfe has been a member of Friendster since June of 2003 (MySpace was not conceived until August of 2003).
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