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it's a miracle how they managed to make absurdly surreal, yet somehow still deadpan satire actually seem somewhat sympathetic, in this film.
i am humbled & amused at this delightful dream narrative...
the allegories were simultaneously touching and disturbing:
the price of milk
unfortunately, life doesn't always provide those cinematic happy endings
so, we just have to make up our own endings, i guess?
oddly enough, although i have never been wealthy, i generally have a sense that i will be able to make ends meet... one way or another.
so, i tend not to worry about scarcity much, for myself.
but i have had my moments where i too loose sight of prosperity for others.
i keep trying to keep the vision alive.
but i will not take anyone else's inventory for them, unless they are paying me to do so in a professional capacity ;~})>
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Comments: Read 3 or Add Your Own.
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We're building a Temple!
http://www.temple.communityartmakers.com/temple
and throwing a fundraiser this Saturday (July the 4th) at the Warehouse (1023 Springdale) to raise funds to feed the crew while they build it in the desert. Hope you can make it out and have some fun with us.
Innovative beverages, yummy foodz, fire entertainmentz, performers and SHOOTING ROMAN CANDLES AT THE CREW while they karaoke: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ldxd1vzgCDI
Bring some dollar bills and we'll laugh, we'll cry (from laughing so hard), we'll tell stories till dawn and do things to tell future stories about.
Please forward far and wide - we have a large and hungry crew.
Temple Fundraiser
Saturday, July 4th
8pm - late (early)
AAR Warehouse
1023 Springdale
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Comments: Read 6 or Add Your Own.
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Wednesday, July 1st, 2009
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"Transparency is an essential condition of democracy: citizens cannot make the informed decisions self-rule requires if they are denied knowledge of the actions of their government. Government cannot be accountable if its actions are veiled. But more than this, transparency is an ethical ideal, the political expression of a commitment to honesty." from the NY Times column, Moral of the Story - The Ethicist's take on the news: Neda, Obama and the Power of Pictures, by Randy Cohen, June 29, 2009, 11:59 pm
I have made a fundamental commitment that I will witness any event; and that I will inquire as skeptically as possible into the nature of events that I witness. Furthermore, I have made a solemn pledge that I will register my perspective on the events as I have perceived them; and that I will report them accurately, to the best of my ability. One thing that I have noticed in all cultures is a degree of conservative guidelines that define how people are expected to behave to be recognized as citizens. Although I do wish to emphasize all of our similarities as fellow humans, I also want us to be able to celebrate our differences through building a continuous dialogue with one another. I believe that this issue essentially reduces to a matter of agreeing upon a protocol which can be used to determine whose turn it is to speak and for how long. This too has been a question debated since time immemorial, whether it was among shamans passing the proverbial talking stick, or in the parliamentary exchanges at the Areopagus in Athens, Greece.
However, I believe that a mature society offers its constituents a forum in which they are permitted to question the established order. This sort of skeptical dialogue encourages a healthy evolution of paradigm shifts that can incorporate the inevitable changes in our world of exponentially accelerating information exchange and technological applications. In antiquity, ritual clowns & shamans often provided this role of questioning the status quo for the benefit of society; but with the advent of a strong consumer commodity culture (and one-way mediums like radio, TV, film & printed materials), mass consent to sweeping orthodoxy has been even easier than ever to manufacture. But now, with the advent of hand held video-cameras from which footage can be almost instantaneously uploaded for the world to witness, it has been easier for individuals to question the authority of governments and corporations which have often abused their almost absolute power. Eighteen years ago, the world had to wait until the nightly news broadcast on KTLA-TV to air the video footage of the Rodney King beating (the story was picked up by CNN immediately afterwards). Today, with many smartphones capable of streaming video, current events can be viewed live or with seconds or minutes of delay, depending on the situation and circumstances.
The two-way nature of peer-to-peer transactions in the information age encourages people to carefully consider their opinions, and develop more skeptical perspectives on the accuracy and validity of information. There have been numerous examples in the past few decades of how technology can significantly impair authoritarian power. The fall of the iron curtain has been convincingly attributed to the development of technological implements for information exchange, from photocopiers to computer BBS (Bulletin Board System) networks. However, I believe that the actual deciding factor in the demise of the Soviet Empire was the way in which the information exchange was implemented among the populace. People in the Soviet Union were well aware that the party line was full of misinformation & outright lies. So, they tended to prefer to get their information from underground & international sources, yet they still interpreted the information with skepticism.
However, the information age has forged into a double-edged sword, as tyrannical regimes all over the world, from rogue paramilitary groups like the Zetas in Mexico to the ruling elite in Iran, have been using technology to oppress people as well (Reporters Without Borders currently cites the "12 Enemies of the Internet" as: Burma, China, Cuba, Egypt, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.). The Iranian government is continuing to jam cell phone voice and text signals, as well as blocking internet traffic that is not state-sponsored. And at the very least, bloggers and other protestors who question the ruling elite are silenced as soon as the authorities can locate them. Security forces are hunting for bloggers using IP address, location stamp and timezone searches, as well as potentially triangulating cell phone & GPS signals. At the same time, we are discovering that the same sort of deep packet inspection technology that is being used in Iran is of course being utilized all over the world by corporations, as well as government intelligence agencies, in order to promote everything from product placement, to censorship & persecution of individuals & groups.
As the conditions in Iran have been revealed, public opinion has quickly galvanized in support of Iran's Green Party; particularly since two videos containing graphic footage of Neda Agha-Soltan's horrifically tragic death spread instantaneously across the world. A decentralized network of hackers from all over the world were already assisting the Iranian protestors in a full-scale cybernetic war...reposting Twitter feeds of text (with backing and enforcement by the US State Dept.) , country. I have to say that although I agree that these would be the right things for Iran to do; but the evidence shows that critical letters are unlikely to have any noticeable effect on improving social justice in a nation well known for tyrranical abuses of corrupt power in general. The power of rational dialogue has been recognized all over the world and throughout history for it's ability to transform participants. However, Secrertary of State Hillary Clinton rescinded the Obama Administration's overly optimistic invitation for Iranian gov't officals to attend a July 4th US Independence Day celebration at the US embassy, which has been referred to as failure of "BBQ Diplomacy." Even the ridiculous irony of a party offering hot dogs to Muslims has been overshadowed by the travesty of justice in which university students and other protesters are being routinely arrested, abducted, savagely beaten, and killed throughout Iran. These human rights abuses will continue as long as the tyrannical ruling party of Iran can censor the news of this oppression, suppress the truth of their corrupt behaviour, and otherwise control the transmission of information about the protests in Iran.
I am sensitive to the issues addressed by political activists through peaceful means and I will even support civil disobediance through demonstrations and strikes. However, I do not generally advocate violence, intimidation of persons, or destruction of property, unless such actions are in self-defense or in defense of innocent victims. Obviously, the paradigm shift brought about by the ubiquitous proliferation of the information age (easily accessible cell phones, for instance) is requiring us to reevaluate our ethics in the context of information as power and influence, which can lead directly to people being injured. This is a fact which military intelligence and espionage organizations have been aware of since time immemorial. For many years in Iran, the simple act of transmitting electronic information critical of the government has often been enough for bloggers, online activists, and technical staff to be faced with jail terms, harassment, abuse, and even death. Many people in Iran try to ignore these facts. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called the WWII Holocaust a "myth" and he has "accused the West of using the Holocaust as a 'pretext' for aggression against Palestinians." Perhaps some Iranians do not even realize that the censorship and persecution is going on in their country, much less do many of those that are aware of it feel willing or able to do anything to change the situation. Perhaps it was being surrounded by these feelings of helplessness against a tyrannical dictarorship that led Neda Agha-Soltan to participate in the protest that her associates indicate she was well aware might mean the end of her life? The L.A Tmes interviewed Neda's friend known as Golshad, who says that she and Neda's parents tried to convince Neda not to go to the protests. The Times quotes Golshad as saying "I told her, 'Neda, don't go!' She said, 'Don't worry. It's just one bullet and it's over.'" If these statements are accurate, then was her act of protest that dissimilar to the Unknown Rebel who stood in front of a line of tanks in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China slightly over twenty years ago? Or perhaps she is not unlike the students at Kent State University, who were slain by US National Guard Troops thirty-nine years ago. Perhaps these tragic events will galvanize the youth of Iran towards a lasting solidarity which will supplant the aging leaders of the "Islamic Revolution" who are inevitably on their way out of power. As the political pendulum and the dominant paradigm has shifted towards hope for true democracy in the US, maybe there will be other similar changes around the world? By supporting transparency of communication, we may be able find answers to crucial questions such as these, and possibly even contribute to creating a more tolerant, peaceful, and democratic situation in Iran, as well as in our own government and industry.
"... 'No government can justly claim authority', as South Africa's ANC militants put it in their Freedom Charter of 1955, 'unless it is based on the will of all the people.' Needless to say it is up to the people of Iran to determine their own political course. Foreign observers inspired by the courage of those demonstrating in Iran this past week are nevertheless entitled to point out that a government which claims to represent the will of its people can only do so if it respects the most basic preconditions for the determination of such a will: the freedom of the people to assemble, unhindered, as an inclusive collective force; the capacity of the people, without restrictions on debate or access to information, to deliberate, decide and implement a shared course of action. ..."
- from "Open letter of support to the demonstrators in Iran," Written by Peter Hallward & Alberto Toscano, Friday 19 June 2009
Signed by Noam Chomsky,Slavoy Zizek, Etienne Balibar, Judith Butler, Professor Rada Ivekovic, & Alenka Zupancic
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Although the term, "steampunk" was coined by K. W. Jeter in 1987, and most people by now are familiar with William Gibson and Bruce Sterling's 1990 novel "The Difference Engine" ...my first impressions of steampunk came from Jules Verne, H.G. Wells, Mary Shelley, Michael Moorcock, & Hayao Miyazaki... and I highly recommend reading the comic ,"The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" (don't bother with the movie). If you want to see the seminal steampunk films, check out "Nausicaä" (really, most of Miyazaki's films) & "City of Lost Children" (and most of Jeunet & Caro's work, as well)... Hell, one must really include both the TV series, "The Wild, Wild West" & "Firefly" in this ethos!!! As far as more recent novels go, both G K Chesterton & China Miéville's works have been highly recommended to me by people whose taste in literature is unparalleled. Perhaps one should also consider Terry Gilliam's "Brazil," Fritz Lang's "Metropolis" & Frank Herbert's "Dune" in the steampunk genre! Although I have to admit, I haven't read "Gormenghast." Nor have I seen "The Amazing Screw-On Head" or "The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello" ...yet.
( meanwhile, here are a bunch of links... for a friend who asked for some steampunk resources a couple of weeks ago! (it's amazing what kind of research i can do when i'm procrastinating on deadlines, isn't it?) )
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Comments: Read 5 or Add Your Own.
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Wednesday, June 24th, 2009
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| Subject: | are three beards better than none? |
| Time: | 1:23 pm. |
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urgent coiffure update:
Doryan has joined Lurko & I in volunteering to put his beard on the chopping block, if it is the will of the people for us to go clean shaven!
it looks as though this event may have the potential to become become a barber's wet dream or a tricophilist's nightmare?
it's really up to you!
make your pledge now by replying to this post... it's all for the benefit of Hollis Hawthorne!
currently, we have a grand total of $10 pledged for us to keep our beards!
...thanks, Vasa ;~})>
but I know that there have been people out there wondering what I look like clean shaven... so if you have forgotten, this is your chance!
and no, i won't be repeating the last death-defying stunt I pulled that lead to me shaving...
just don't try to steal the flag from The Damn F**kin' Texans!
cuz if that's the case, then yer gonna hafta take it up with me'n mah flamethrowers (even though they still don't have flashback arrestors) 8^@
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Saturday, June 20th, 2009
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"Two beards... or not two beards?" ;-})> }%^E
This week is your last chance to donate funds to not only determine the fate of two men's beards... Lurko has offered to shave off his chops for charity, so I have thrown my whiskers in the ring, too!!!
But more importantly, your donations will benefit the recovery of Hollis, one of our DPW friends, has a lot of medical expenses piling up on her and her family after a bad motorcycle wreck in India.
Her condition has been improving, as reported in today's update...
So, will people donate more money for us to either:
1) shave
or
2) keep our facial hair?
If you donate enough money by the end of decompression, who knows what other body parts and which other people we will be willing to shave?!!
In any case, our beards are currently on the chopping block, if it is the will of the people for us to go clean shaven!
I know that there are people out there wondering what we look like beardless... so if you have forgotten, this is your chance!
Make your pledge in a reply to this post, now!!!!!
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Wednesday, June 10th, 2009
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Astronomers have found that stars of a recently discovered type, dubbed ultracool subdwarfs, take some pretty wild rides as they orbit around the Milky Way, following paths that are very different from those of typical stars. One of them may actually be a visitor that originated in another galaxy.
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Although I can do without the rejection of responsibility as a public figure:
"I'm trying to be a singer, not a civil-rights leader." (Lambert says
he isn't interested in being the poster child for gay rights.)
I can appreciate this rather intimate moment of self-analysis &
self-affirmation:
"I've finally checked in to my self-worth for the first time in my
life, and the fact that it has coincided with `Idol' is so sweet," he
says. "I mean, I still have moments where I think, `Oh, my skin is
terrible, and I'm a little fat, I should really go to the gym more.'
But for the most part, when I look in the mirror now, I finally see
someone who can do something cool."
--
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/06/09/adam-lambert-im-gay-plus-_n_213038.html
http://www.abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/SummerConcert/story?id=7792417&page=1
http://idolator.com/5162735/adam-lambert-went-to-burning-man
http://images.google.com/images?q=adam+lambert+burning+man&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=ie7&rlz=1I7SKPB&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=IcIuSuq1O6HqsgPiyeCzCA&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&resnum=5&ct=title
http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2009/06/09/the-new-issue-of-rolling-stone-the-liberation-of-adam-lambert/
...his childhood (”I started to realize I wasn’t like every other
boy,” he says), the drug-fueled Burning Man epiphany that led him to
AI (”I realized that we all have our own power, and that whatever I
wanted to do, I had to make happen,” he tells RS) and his run on the
show (”I was like, ‘I’m going to glue rhinestones on my eyelids,
bitch!’ “)...
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Wednesday, June 3rd, 2009
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i am finally getting around to archiving this reply to a post on boing boing, last week... concerning Gareth Branwyn's attendance @ The Equinox Festival (& the William Blake exhibit), next week in London:
concerning Alan Moore's whereabouts, i would check in Northampton... but as he is rarely inclined to grant an audience with his adoring fans, i think that he would generally prefer that you read his interviews!
(although if you're particularly considerate & actually want to carry on intelligent discourse with him, i believe that he has been known to carry on written correspondence with select individuals)
and where is Kenneth Anger?
...with an installation currently @ NYC's P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center
if they're going to display Harry Smith's work, they should contact his close collaborator M. Henry Jones:
...who has continued to screen a florilegium of Smith's films put together in the manner intended by Smith - as performances - using stroboscopic effects, multiple projections, magic lanterns, and the like... under the title, "Harry Smith: A Re-creation" (which I was fortunate enough to attend @ The Scottish Rite Theater here in Austin back in 1999)
iI have to admit a certain affinity for these sorts of things, myself... i recently completed this grant proposal:
The CAVE (Collaborative Audio-Visual Environment)
...a project which has grown from similar roots...
PS it should be noted that what Blake created was *a new kind of fresco*
"...which would be applied, not directly to the plaster on the wall, but to the canvas stretched over the plaster, so that they could be taken off and changed at pleasure..."
--
oddly enough... that same day, i discovered google wave
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The CAVE (Collaborative Audio-Visual Environment)
Often at festivals and other community gatherings, conflicts arise between groups of people based essentially on differences in music and media preferences. In the past, I have mediated such conflicts both officially and unofficially in a variety of settings. My experiences lead me to believe a more pro-active, partially-automated solution would work better.
The CAVE will encourage people to recognize their fundamental similarities, and also celebrate their differences through building an audio-visual dialogue together through which they can comfortably express their conscience concerning even the most controversial issues. This mediation is accomplished through performance, networking, and the exchange of audio-visual data. Evolving models of non-violent conflict resolution, such as cooperative game play, will keep a robust and lively interaction between participants.
The CAVE aims to empower the individual to select audio-visual content for entertainment and education from a “cybernetic collective unconscious” to power the communal audio-visual experiences. Public education will be provided about the nature of artistic collaboration, privacy, transparency, and peer-to-peer sharing of digital information. Concepts such as intellectual property and artistic livelihood will be re-contextualized for the Information Age. By encouraging more peer-to-peer sharing of information in the physical world, we will provide the means to effect a ubiquitous paradigm shift in our society!
Participants will register their presence in a room by scanning a badge when they enter. In order to provide an interactive environment without requiring people to use a computer, people may use their cellphones to take photos of these badges, which will add them as contacts in their phones or web-based social networks (like FaceBook and/or MySpace). The content (music, video, photos, and text) supplied by those present, are queued for the area and will play in rotation. A variety of different games will be played to cooperatively and competitively share the time and space.
People will be able to register and upload content online beforehand, as well as in person at the event, with ipods, and cell phones, laptops, etc. Playlists can be pre-selected, created randomly, or actively constructed collaboratively. People could also opt to perform live music, give a speech, host a discussion, or do performance art. Participants will be given rules and guidelines to provide a framework for them to take turns writing sections of multi-media content in a collaborative dialogue.
The project is designed to facilitate the development of respect and honor for the collaboration, allowing for constructive criticism, but primarily encouraging the participants to appreciate the composition from each other’s perspectives. People who win games can designate prizes to be awarded to humanitarian organizations, sustainable development, open source programming, or other similarly community-oriented causes.
Throughout my life, I have helped many other people actualize their artistic projects. The CAVE will be an opportunity for me to produce, direct, manage, perform, and otherwise share my own personal creative dreams, while at the same time, continuing to offer these opportunities to other people.
--
( will you please step into the CAVE with us? )
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Hollis, one of our DPW friends, has a lot of medical expenses piling up on her and her family after a bad motorcycle wreck in India.
Lurko has offered to do a raffle (date to be announced) for the opportunity to buzz off his chops!
We will be donating all of the proceeds to the benefit the recovery of Hollis.
So, I will toss my whiskers into the ring, too!
...but perhaps we can make it a contest?
Will people donate more money for us to either:
1) shave
or 2) keep our facial hair?
So, who will write & post the code for a web poll / paypal donation site?!!
Details on when and where and how much will follow soon spread the word.
--
Perhaps this will be a reprise of the previously planned Where?House? Extravaganza with live music, DJs, the epic "dance off" between Princess and Lance, Bike-in movie, etc.?
Only this time, no one gets to die right before the benefit that we're planning to throw to generate funds to aid our friend in her miraculous but expensive recovery, OK?
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