February 2008
Free Lunch Isn’t Cool, So Some Students Go Hungry
Lunchtime “is the best time to impress your peers,” said Lewis Geist, a senior at Balboa and its student body president. Being seen with a subsidized meal, he said, “lowers your status.”
This is why people hate student body presidents.
Proposal: Manifest Destiny Dining
When you are dining with a friend or new acquaintance, slowly push your silverware, napkins, and plates outward, expanding your borders. Once territorial dominance has been established, continue dining at your leisure. Do not cede territory to shared appetizers or bread baskets.
“Woman as a Symptom of Man”
Interesting piece on a new movement led by Dr. Leonard Sax promoting single-sex education in public schools. Sax basically argues that “Girls and boys play differently. They learn differently. They fight differently. They see the world differently. They hear differently.” I’m not even sure I would disagree with this proposition, but it seems to me a logical fallacy to then essentialize these differences and institute them along quasi-segregationist lines, rather than understanding them to be the result of a curved, masculine social space, of an imbalance already playing itself out in the construction of gender identity and even sex itself.
It also seems like a bad idea to relegate children to the position of objects in need of techno-biological administration, as is the case with the application of focus-enhancing drugs, as well as this new system which attempts to turn cognitive science data into an ideologically suspect socio-political agenda. It comes as perhaps no surprise that the movement is supported by No Child Left Behind.
I would urge all socially conscious cognitive scientists to give this material a second look.
National Security… Serious Business
A wonderful bit of FUD released by the Clinton campaign today:
Here is Obama’s response. The telephone has been replaced with a gritty, battle-hardened vet:
Both, of course, represent the kind of watered down “feel good” politics we’ve become accustomed to. So how do they stack up against national security ads from other eras? Take, for example, this epic Lyndon Johnson ad from 1964 (he was running against Barry “Shakespeare” Goldwater):
And lastly, here’s a great clip from Mr. Show:
(Via The Caucus.)
What is Advancement?
Great post over at the Advanced Theory blog.
On Television, Interpellation and the big Other
It is practically a given that every person living in a modern, first-world society owns a television — and not just one, but many. There are exceptions, of course, but I think this is a fairly uncontroversial claim. Most television is quite awful, barring, at the moment, The Daily Show & Colbert Report, Nip/Tuck and The Wire. Again, probably an uncontroversial claim. Consequently, most of what I watch is strictly limited to what I’ve illegally accrued thanks to broadband and BitTorrent. Nevertheless, even though I objectively know that what I have on my computer will provide for me more entertainment if I desired, more intellectual satisfaction in some cases, or perhaps more bragging rights after having seen some “classic” film, the television continues to exert a rather fascinating power. Although I know that I will be subjected to commercials, terrible writing and a complete lack of satisfaction with whatever it is that I am watching (save the aforementioned shows), I am compelled to turn it on and watch.
Read more on On Television, Interpellation and the big Other…
Karl Pilkington Does Art
The world’s funniest man looks at “the world’s funniest art.”
Does everything mean something here… Is that just a gay bloke climbing a tree?
Fricke’s Picks: Horace Silver
Great find from David Fricke:
In the Fifties and Sixties, pianist Horace Silver brought a Latin sway and cocksure funk to hard-bop jazz, first with the historic Jazz Messengers, then as a leader and composer of standards such as “Señor Blues” and “Song for My Father.” Live at Newport ‘58 (Blue Note) is a surprise from Silver’s early prime, a previously unreleased set of Silver leading a quintet in dynamic expansions of four tunes, including the cool brass glide and staccato-piano bite of “Señor Blues.”
Here’s a video of “Señor Blues.”
Proposal: Steam Cleaner
When you are in a clothing store, ask a salesperson to steam your clothes with the in-store clothing steamer. Offer them loose change or a clothing item on your person if they refuse initially.
Feed the world? We are fighting a losing battle, UN admits
The Guardian:
The United Nations warned yesterday that it no longer has enough money to keep global malnutrition at bay this year in the face of a dramatic upward surge in world commodity prices, which have created a “new face of hunger”.
It’s really quite sad that while the Pentagon’s budget is a record $515.4 billion this year, the UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) is $2.9 billion. (Via I cite.)
Dylan, White Collaborate on Unfinished Hank Williams Track
I’m looking forward to this album, which is a collection of Hank Williams lyrics without music performed by modern artists with Dylan producing. I hope to see a very eclectic mix as a “fuck you” to the limits of genres.
“I’ve recorded songs in my garage. Am I a ‘garage band’?” - Bob Dylan, Theme Time Radio Hour Friends & Neighbors
This part of the article was sort of heartbreaking though…
It’s an initiative that recalls the Mermaid Avenue albums by Billy Bragg and Wilco. On those records, Bragg and Wilco “finished” songs that had been left uncompleted by Woody Guthrie.
According to some reports, these Woody Guthrie lyric sheets were originally going to be given to Bob Dylan. Woody’s daughter, Nora, changed her mind after hearing that Dylan had appeared at a concert for the Pope - an act she deemed contrary to her father’s politics. Bragg was approached instead.
Was intolerance compatible with her father’s politics?
“A sexy notebook that businesses can actually use.”
With the obligatory acknowledgement of sounding like an Apple fanboy (yes, I enjoy Apple’s more than PCs), what exactly makes this computer more feasible for business use than the MacBook Air? Granted an ethernet port is a must for old networks but that seems like a niche, and a disappearing niche at that.
It has a DVD drive? How is that tied to business again?
And for all we talk about people moving to streaming video, the fact is, I can’t remember the last time I took a cross-country flight without someone watching a DVD near me.
Remember, “Business.”
Besides, I can’t remember the last time I took my laptop on a flight and used a DVD. It’s much more efficient for battery life to just rip it the night before, or to just play downloadable content.
Stuff White People Like Suggestion: Stuff White People Like Blog
White people like the site Stuff White People Like. They like putting it on their blog and giving a short analysis as in these examples:
Brilliant and self-conscious or racist* and simplistic? *Note: I don’t mean that it’s racist against white people. That’s… ridiculous.
And…
Read more on Stuff White People Like Suggestion: Stuff White People Like Blog…
On the subject of Bette Midler…
Jason Hartley’s got all the answers to my pressing questions. I asked, why is Bette Midler always getting tangled up with Advanced artists?
I’m not totally sure about her. The Advanced do love her, but the Advanced often love those who are not Advanced. I think, though, that there is some Advancement in her and at the very least she would understand what it is to be Advanced. She’s also quite bawdy at times.
If you don’t know what Advancement is by now, you should really get on it and read the Advanced Theory Blog.
Walking the Earth With My Little Donkey Judas
There’s something about this story I really relate to.
JONATHAN DUNHAM is walking the earth. Assisting him in this endeavor is his donkey, named Judas. They have stopped to rest for a few days in Colinas de San Lorenzo, a slum in this dusty town on the cattle-raising plains of northwestern Venezuela.
Thanks For The Love
(Via Japan.)
Viva Obama!
Best political ad since the Mike Gravel rock ad.
Leaked RIAA Training Video: Find Pirates, Find Crack-Dealing Terrorist Murderers Too!
Gizmodo:
This is a leaked official RIAA training video produced with the National District Attorneys Association telling U.S. prosecutors why they should bust music pirates: Because it’ll lead them to “everything from handguns to large quantities of cocaine [and] marijuana,” not to mention terrorists and murderers!
Yes. It is that absurd.
Lisa Schiffren: Worst Person of the Day
In an unsurprisingly sleazy move from the (proto-fascist) National Review Online, Lisa Schiffren, utilizing her extraordinary apparatus of political acumen, pens a remarkable tale of Barack Obama’s “political origins,” arguing that because his parents were in an interracial marriage, they were Communists—yes, the kind of analytical profundity one would expect from this epic publication.
For a better analysis, check out Edge of the American West’s post. If you choose to read the original Schiffren article, I would suggest keeping Stuff White People Like in mind.
Hillary’s Flip
Has anyone else noticed her hair is getting very… Strangers with Candy-ish?
PS: I feel like I’m a Republican for making that image.
US Court Shuts Down Wikileaks
We previously linked to this website when it first appeared in the news after they revealed that several suspicious Wikipedia edits had IP addresses which resolved to the U.S. government. The U.S. is now joining Thailand and China in banning the website. Any sarcastic comment about the suspect nature of “freedom” seems to be incredibly passé, and in this case I think the situation speaks for itself.
Stuff White People Like
This is probably the best blog ever.
Here are just a few examples:
- Coffee
- Religions their parents don’t belong to
- Organic food
- Diversity
- Barack Obama
- Non-profit organizations
- Having black friends
- Apple
- Microbreweries
- Not having a TV
And the list goes on!
(Via The Weblog.)
The Jewish Kurt Cobain
Rolling Stone’s Rock & Roll Daily:
Speaking of the Moldy Peaches, our hero Adam Green’s new album, Sixes & Sevens, is out in March — twenty songs stuffed into forty-eight action-packed minutes. “For my fifth studio album, I hired some Brooklyn gospel singers to give my music some class,” says Green. “It’s a comeback album with a message.” The single “Morning After Midnight” is already a hit in Belgium; he duets with girlfriend Loribeth Capella on “Drowning Head First”; and “You Get So Lucky” revives the pan flute. “I nearly crapped myself after that,” he says. “I knew that my life was never going to be the same.” Our favorite? “Getting Led,” which Green describes as “a sweet and tender song about fatalism and submission.” “People say I’m the Jewish Kurt Cobain,” says Green. “But I’m really the Woody Allen of music.” Discuss.
Hillary 4 U & Me
The strange spelling in this video made me wonder who Prince is endorsing this election cycle.
(Via Wonketee.)
Vanity Fair Re-creates Hitchcock
A bit ridiculous, but the photos and the accompanying anecdotes about Hitchcock’s bizarre persona are well worth checking out. I think my favorite anecdote is the one for The Birds:
Hitchcock said he made the film in order to “scare the hell out of people,” but Hedren may have been more scared than any audience member. Hitchcock ordered Hedren not only a complete wardrobe for her films, but also—shades of Vertigo—one for her personal life…
Obama: Actually, I Think We Can
An extremely comprehensive analysis of all of Barack Obama’s policy positions, for anyone looking for a good reason to endorse him as the presidential candidate.
“Hitler is… out of the way…”
I was under the impression that the Allies were supposed to get the Chronosphere. I guess we’ll have to work on Tesla coils now.
PS: When they say “No one knows what will happen” and then casually say they’re recreating the big bang…
Energy Dept. Funding Iranian Nuclear Reactor
Politico-philosophical question: does this justify a preemptive strike on ourselves?
Do You See What I See?
A hilarious little blog about Dutch Golden Age Painting.
I see a well dressed man holding a book. Possibly a ledger, with several more on the self.
Is this gentleman, sporting a lovely? fur coat, working his accounts or is he just rewriting the bible from a humanist standpoint?
And…
Do you see what I see:
1) Just imagine if you had to wear burlap. It would be like wearing a coffee bean sack all day.
2) This is my dinner and my future pillow etc.
Clinton Ahead, Plans to Come From Behind
Clinton said she was modeling her campaign for the Democratic nomination for president on the Giants’ last-minute, 17-14 victory over the undefeated New England Patriots.
“I took a lot of heart from that, Dave,” said Clinton, who is neck-and-neck in many polls with rival Barack Obama on the eve of the 22-state nomination contest. “The fourth quarter before Super Tuesday, you’ve got to keep going.”
That’s such a phony narrative. How can anyone believe the “come from behind” story she keeps selling? It’s so strange for the front runner to keep insisting they’re the underdog. I would say the level of phoniness is unprecedented in this campaign, but then again there’s always Mitt Romney (or more obscurely, Ron Paul).
Icarus Feathers
“This is what is possible, if you believe,” Mr. Obama said.
“We believe,” the crowd replied.
“There are a lot of people who tell you not to believe,” he added. “There are a lot of naysayers. A lot of doubting Thomases.”
Slaughterhouse Workers Suffering From Neurological Disease
This reminds me of an X-Files episode called “Our Town” to an uncanny degree. The plot takes place in the small city of Dudley, Arkansas, home to Chaco Chicken’s factory farm headquarters, where a rare and incurable neurological disease, called Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, is plaguing some of the people in the town, and particularly the workers at the chicken slaughterhouse. As it turns out, the entire community is in a cult that has been practicing ritualized cannibalism, lead by the owner of Chaco Chicken. He apparently learned of a technique to live forever by consuming human flesh from a native tribe when his plane crashed during World War II in a remote jungle. The partially consumed corpses were being fed to the chickens, the rest were being dumped in a bloody river where all of the spare chicken parts go after they’re stripped.
Adam Green Kisses Whoopi
Wow, the Juno soundtrack with seven Moldy Peaches and Kimya Dawson songs has reached number one on the charts! Maybe Adam Green will finally be getting the respect he deserves, or at least some sugar from Whoopi. Here’s the Moldy Peaches on the View
Also, check out Adam’s website for news on the new album coming out, and some amusing pictures…
Arrested Development Movie
Now that George Michael is such a star, I’m sure he’ll get top billing.
Kristin Dos Santos from E! Online confirms that the cast members were asked by the show’s producers if they would be willing to star in the motion picture. AD’s leading man, Jason Bateman, confirmed to the gossip columnist that preliminary talks had begun. Elsewhere, Jeffrey Tambor admitted on the Ron and Fez Show on XM Radio that he was approached by Ron Howard to see if he was willing to reprise his role(s).
The Pentagon’s Biggest Budget Since World War II
The Times:
When the Pentagon on Monday unveils its proposed 2009 budget of $515.4 billion, annual military spending, when adjusted for inflation, will have reached its highest level since World War II.
This seems fair to me. Winning the war on terror and defending our homeland are obviously more important than national healthcare or equal access to non-crippled public education. But, jeez, social security is really in trouble, we just don’t have the money to continue that kind of ridiculous spending, what with all of the “welfare queens” (a.k.a. single black women with children) living off of the hard-earned paychecks of lavishly paid CEOs.