So, just to review: Dark Knight on Friday night. It was well past time for me to have seen it, I know, but having children changes the number of opportunities you have to go to the movies, as well as really altering the economics of the “night at the movies”. And actually the primary reason we went out at all… Read more →
Month: September 2008
Closet Land
While thinking about the use of torture by governments today, I found myself wishing I could just make everyone watch Closet LandThe “why” here is obvious if you’ve seen the film. If not, then here’s a quote from the creator’s site: “The film captures the psychological landscape of those who engage in torture and aggression, while also defining the nature… Read more →
Raging Out: DVD designed to create xenophobia works
So, the Clarion fund, which exists to “educate the public about the threat of Islamic terrorism” has massively distributing their DVD, which sure seems designed to make Americans afraid of brown people. Interesting, the fund seems to have done this massive distribution in the swing states only. I wonder what objective they could hope to achieve by fanning the flames… Read more →
Raging Out: No One Cares About Torture
It is now a matter of record that Bush, Cheney, Rice, Ashcroft, Rumsfeld, Tenet, and Powell were all directly involved in authorizing the use of torture. The group called itself the National Security Principals Committee. It held dozens of top-secret decisions in the White House. This according to an ABC News investigation, sourced with unnamed, high-ranking officials. The Principals included… Read more →
Sunday Night Gallimaufry
You know the drill, this is the miscellaneous tab closing ceremony. Since I’m tired of politics today, there will be none in this list. I have had several discussions about this recent article on a particular form of elective surgery. All that I can conclude from these discussions is that I have different aesthetic than many of the people I’ve… Read more →
Aside
So, I didn’t get the complete and utter McCain meltdown or doddering that I was hoping for, but if the numbers at MediaCurves are right Obama grabbed the biggest slice of the undecideds on every issue. That makes me feel better.
I like Art
I also the The Arts. Of course I’m an elitist liberal scum, but this just gives me one more reason to despise Stephen Harper. I could rant, but let’s let George at BookNinja do it instead, since he’s so good at it: First, he tried to set up arts and culture producers, from dance companies to music groups to writers… Read more →
A Disorganized Office Is A Sign Of…
Did you see any of the new stories about John Jost and teams’s forthcoming research paper? The one about how “behavioural residue” can be used to predict political leanings? “Conservative rooms tended to be cleaner, more brightly lit, better organized, less cluttered, and also more conventional and ordinary in terms of decoration,” Jost said during a panel discussion on “The… Read more →
Really Not A Suprise
You are a Social Liberal (76% permissive) and an… Economic Liberal (15% permissive) You are best described as a: Socialist Link: The Politics Test on Ok Cupid Also : The OkCupid Dating Persona Test Read more →
US Election Much Less Scary This Week
I’m pretty confident in Obama pulling it off at this point. I know I shouldn’t get my hopes up, but with McCain imploding, Palin being more of a joke every day, and this latest round of Hail Mary bullshit, I’m feeling pretty good. And, you know, almost every time I hear Obama speak I find myself agreeing with him. I… Read more →
Spreading The Word On Harper
A surprising number of people have asked me why I am so strongly opposed to Harper and his lot getting a majority government. It’s like they weren’t paying attention. I would think that anyone who has had their eyes open for the last eight years would have had an object lesson already in what happens when you give a bunch… Read more →
SF Authors Say Smart Things: Speaking Of Wisdom…
You know what I’m tried of? Cynicism that blocks honest attempts to improve the situation. People trying to seem soooo “plugged in” and “been around the block” by acting like shock and anger are inappropriate and even childish reactions to deplorable, illegal, and occasionally reprehenisble behaviour. I could try to make this thought clear, but since immensely talented writer Emma… Read more →
Aside
“I always thought that inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get to work.” That’s one of many, many tidbits to be found at the site for Andrew Zuckerman’s new book, Wisdom. Go there. Watch the clip. Then see if you can resist the urge to buy the book.
Screen Reading
“The inclination to read a huge Victorian novel, the capacity to untangle a metaphor in a line of verse, the desire to study and emulate a distant historical figure, the urge to ponder a concept such as Heidegger’s ontic-ontological difference over and over and around and around until it breaks through as a transformative insight — those dispositions melt away… Read more →
Aside
I love that the Progressive Conservative Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador is spearheading an “Anything But Conservative” anti-Conservative campaign in the election. I wish it was more because of the ReformConservatives’ scary policies, and less because of them screwing over the Atlantic provinces on resource revenues, but I’ll take it anyway.
