Society Archives | Page 9 of 16

TagSociety

Stupid humans, beep-boop-beep

I am too tired to get into anything too in-depth here. When work lets up I wanna write some more bla-bla. Anyhow, let’s get to the top three headlines of the weekend so I can close my browser window finally:

French paradox redux? US vs. French on being full
It’s the French paradox redux: Why don’t the French get as fat as Americans, considering all the baguettes, wine, cheese, pate and pastries they eat?

That is interesting, not because Americans are fat’tards, but cuz it implies a lack of subjective awareness. The implications of this research will be far-reaching over the next decade (if any educators or whoever decide to apply it somewhere useful).

Like ants, humans are easily led
When it comes to being misled, humans are no more sophisticated than ants or fish.

‘Nuff said. I’m just glad headlines like this are making it in larger metro centres like London. Next, I want this on the cover of North American papers. Mostly just so I don’t have to hear about Britney anymore.

Dumb and Dumber: Are Americans Hostile to Knowledge?

A popular video on YouTube shows Kellie Pickler, the adorable platinum blonde from ‘American Idol,’ appearing on the Fox game show ‘Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?’ during celebrity week. Selected from a third-grade geography curriculum, the $25,000 question asked: ‘Budapest is the capital of what European country?’

Ms. Pickler threw up both hands and looked at the large blackboard perplexed. ‘I thought Europe was a country,’ she said. Playing it safe, she chose to copy the answer offered by one of the genuine fifth graders: Hungary. ‘Hungry?’ she said, eyes widening in disbelief. ‘That’s a country? I’ve heard of Turkey. But Hungry? I’ve never heard of it.’

Such, uh, lack of global awareness is the kind of thing that drives Susan Jacoby, author of ‘The Age of American Unreason,’ up a wall. Ms. Jacoby is one of a number of writers with new books that bemoan the state of American culture.

Yup.

I love you all. I just wanna get that out there in case my current client drives me to hang myself. bbl

Underwater City Proposed For Amsterdam

February 16, 2008 / TiamatsVision

“It seems a bit counter-intuitive; we are used to seeing Dutch floating projects, not buried ones. Architect Mosh? Zwarts says “”There has always been a lack of space in the city, so what we are doing is building a city under the city by using a new construction technique, which will not interfere with street traffic.”- by draining and then building under the canals.And what does he propose filling it with? Parking, shopping and “leisure”.

The engineers say it is doable. ‘It is both feasible and sustainable, creating a city beneath the city is not futuristic, it is a necessity in this day and age.’ Zwarts says the geology is great for this. “Amsterdam sits on a 30-metre layer of waterproof clay which will be used together with concrete and sand to make new walls. Once we have resealed the canal floor, we will be able to carry on working underneath while pouring water back into the canals. It’s an easy technique and it doesn’t create issues with drilling noises on the streets.”

(via Tree Hugger)

(Thanks Z11!)

“The Last American Freakshow” and the BAFTA Controversy

February 11, 2008 / TiamatsVision

“The Last American Freakshow” is a movie (still in progress), that follows a traveling freakshow. Disabled film-maker Richard Butchins says in his own words: “I filmed the elephant man, the dwarf, a giant, a pair of lobster people, the half woman, a clown and a jumble of jug band musicians. On tour in a 20 year old school bus, travelling 2500 miles across America, the ‘freaks’ worked their way through the wild west. Laughing, crying and drinking – a carnival of the damned – searching for a home…”

Originally the British Academy of Film and Television Arts was going to show the film at their awards ceremony. After deciding that the film wasn’t “politically correct”, they backed out of the agreement, and chose to show “Lars and The Real Girl” instead. According to Butchins’ blog: “the kicker is this: BAFTA offered to show ‘Lars and the real girl’ as an alternative to my film. For those of you that don’t know ‘Lars and the real girl’ is a Hollywood comedy about an able bodied man who has a life sized doll as a girl friend. It’s a good film but hardly a film that prompts debate or challenges the societal view of disability, let alone highlighting the problems of being a disabled film-maker – talk about insensitive….So, they are trying to use their PR company to stop them looking like the prejudiced tyrants that they are. I really don’t know why they have taken against my film in this way, it sort of defies understanding. I suspect, though, that right now they are more concerned about not wanting to be portrayed in the National Press as anti-minority, than with my film.”

In another post he states: […] “Freak carries, in some peoples minds, a pejorative meaning it means something bad. But is it? To be out of the mainstream isn’t necessarily a bad thing and meanings change over time. At one point in history having a black skin made you a freak and we think of that as ridiculous now. These performers are trying to bring an awareness of their ?normality’ to peoples attention through entertainment (it is, after all a ‘show’) and that’s a valid and worthwhile, if sometimes, challenging thing to watch. They deserve support not denigration for what they are doing. This film documents this and as a result is funny, entertaining and sometimes difficult, it makes you feel uncomfortable on occasion and encourages you to examine your preconceptions about disability and that’s the point. These characters are young and put themselves in your face – mostly people get it – but some figures in the media establishment can’t take it. Do the ?freaks’ have to be quiet little cripples and conform to stereotypical ideas of disabilty to be accepted. It would appear they do, that’s prejudice and prejudice always has a victim…”

They enjoy what they’re doing, and are paying their bills in the process. This should be celebrated. But, I suppose that those in the mainstream and the “politically correct” prefer them bagging our groceries and collecting carts. Or maybe they just expect them to stay out of sight all together. What a load of crap…

(via Cabinet Of Wonders)

(999 Eyes: Authentic Human Oddities Freakshow and their YouTube channel)

The Evolution of Evil

February 6, 2008 / TiamatsVision

“Perhaps a global political apocalypse has already arrived. Activists and dissidents should understand that evil forces and tyrannical governments have evolved. Just as human knowledge and science expand, so do the strategies and instruments used by rulers, elites and plutocrats. By learning from history and using new technology they have smarter tools of tyranny. The best ones prevent uprisings, revolutions and political reforms. Rather than violently destroy rebellious movements, they let them survive as marginalized and ineffective efforts that divert and sap the energy of nonconformist and rebellious thinkers. Real revolution remains an energy-draining dream, as evil forces thrive.

Most corrupt and legally sanctioned forms of tyranny hide in plain sight as democracies with free elections. The toughest lesson is that ALL elections are distractions. Nothing conceals tyranny better than elections. Few Americans accept that their government has become a two-party plutocracy run by a rich and powerful ruling class. The steady erosion of the rule of law is masked by everyday consumer freedoms. Because people want to be happy and hopeful, we have an epidemic of denial, especially in the present presidential campaign. But to believe that any change-selling politician or shift in party control will overturn the ruling class is the epitome of self-delusion and false hope. In the end, such wishful thinking perpetuates plutocracy. Proof is that plutocracy has flourished despite repeated change agents, promises of reform and partisan shifts.”

(via Global Politician)

Srsly you guys. WTF

February 4, 2008 / Fell

Dumb

PS — I am busy helping Anon in Canada. BBL when things aren’t so busy with that and work.

The RFID Controversy: Corporations Want to Imbed Traceable Microchips to Everything We Buy, Wear, Drive and Read

January 31, 2008 / TiamatsVision

‘Once a tagged item is associated with a particular individual, personally identifiable information can be obtained and then aggregated to develop a profile.” ~ U.S. Government Accountability Office report on RFID technology

A future full of traceable microchips is much closer than many would like to think. Already microchips are being found in computer printers, car tires, personal care products, clothing, library books and “contactless” payment cards. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg, experts say.

[…] The Washington Post reports that this technology is already well developed and enables objects and people to be tagged and tracked wirelessly. Newer and potentially invasive uses are being patented, perfected and deployed daily to unsuspecting consumers. While the technology obviously presents a risk to privacy, many believe that these microchips are the way of the future. Like it or not, these potential tracking devices will soon be imbedded everywhere imaginable. Microchips with antennas will be hidden in virtually everything you buy, wear, drive and read, allowing retailers and law enforcement to track consumers wherever they go.”

(via The Daily Galaxy)

7 Reasons The 21st Century is Making Us Miserable

January 29, 2008 / TiamatsVision

“Scientists call it the naked photo test and it works like this:
Say a photo turns up, of you nakedly doing something that would shame you and your family for generations. Bestiality, whatever. Ask yourself how many people in your life you would trust with that photo. Studies show that for almost everybody, the number of people we really trust is shrinking. About a quarter of the people they talked to said they had NO ONE to confide in. Walk down the street, one out of four people you pass have nobody. Among the people who did have somebody, the average number of people in their circle of trust was two. And that includes spouses and parents. Yes, this is new. The numbers are down a whole bunch since just 1985. The world is becoming a colder and lonelier place. Here’s why.”

(via Pointless Waste Of Time)

Wiccan Beauty Queen Rejected as Pageant Judge

January 29, 2008 / TiamatsVision

“She might be a witch, but Stephanie Conover says that’s no reason for officials at an upcoming Toronto beauty pageant to reject her as a potential judge. Conover, who was crowned winner of the Miss Canada Plus Pageant last year, said she was recently invited to be a judge at the Miss Toronto Tourism pageant on Feb. 2. “I said I’d definitely be there,” Conover told the Star yesterday.

“Then, last week, on Monday, they asked me for a biography. I told them everything I do, how I’m an entertainer and a singer and a dancer. I talked about my charity work and I said I also have hobbies, including songwriting, knitting, painting, yoga, reiki and tarot cards.” That’s where things got sticky. “We just got her bio a week ago and we don’t agree with it,” said Karen Murray, Miss Toronto Tourism pageant director. “We want someone down to earth, not someone into the dark side or the occult.”

“We need a judge who has an upright reputation and we would be proud to introduce to the audience,” noted a Jan. 24 letter to the Miss Canada Plus group from Murray and another official with the Miss Toronto Tourism pageant. “Our board of directors has eliminated her as a judge as tarot card reading and reiki are the occult and is not acceptable by God, Jews, Muslims or Christians. Tarot card reading is witchcraft and is used by witches, spiritists and mediums to consult the dark world.”

(via The Star)

Stewart Home’s Assault on Culture online for free

January 28, 2008 / Klint Finley

Trevor Blake says:

The Assault on Culture by Stewart Home (1987) is a book I have recommended to many people for many years. It is well-researched while clearly-written, brief while informative. The Assault on Culture describes ‘utopian currents from Lettrism to Class War.’ Some of the more familiar names in this current might include the Situationists, Fluxus, mail art and punk rock. Stewart Home went on to write Neoism, Plagiarism and Praxis, which includes descriptions of his performance art / magick attacks on agents of conformity in a psychogeographically mapped England. Not only does the character King Mob in Grant Morrison’s Invisibles act like Stewart Home, he looks like him. Read up on the real thing.

Full text of Assault on Culture.

(via Trevor).

Bill Gates Issues Call For Kinder Capitalism

January 25, 2008 / TiamatsVision

“Free enterprise has been good to Bill Gates. But today, the Microsoft Corp. chairman will call for a revision of capitalism. In a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, the software tycoon plans to call for a “creative capitalism” that uses market forces to address poor-country needs that he feels are being ignored. “We have to find a way to make the aspects of capitalism that serve wealthier people serve poorer people as well,” Mr. Gates will tell world leaders at the forum, according to a copy of the speech seen by The Wall Street Journal.

Mr. Gates isn’t abandoning his belief in capitalism as the best economic system. But in an interview with the Journal last week at his Microsoft office in Redmond, Wash., Mr. Gates said that he has grown impatient with the shortcomings of capitalism. He said he has seen those failings first-hand on trips for Microsoft to places like the South African slum of Soweto, and discussed them with dozens of experts on disease and poverty. He has voraciously read about those failings in books that propose new approaches to narrowing the gap between rich and poor.”

(via WSJ)

Theme by Anders Norén — Up ↑

Technoccult

Mutate Your Mind