Politeness, by A. A. Milne

If people ask me,I always tell them: "Quite well, thank you, I'm very glad to say." If people ask me, I always answer, "Quite well, thank you, how are you to-day?" I always answer, I always tell them, If they ask me Politely..... BUT SOMETIMES

I wish

That they wouldn't.

 

UncategorizedJack DysonComment
Just turn it up and be quiet.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XzKrYHGxzU&w=700] Yeah yeah you've heard it before and since then loads of people have sampled it and blah blah blah. But imagine hearing this for the FIRST TIME. And isn't it just the BEST break ever? Turrrrrn it up. Dance at your desk. Act the fool. It's what it's for.

UncategorizedJack DysonComment
The elusive big idea

Fascinating thoughts by Neal Gabler in the NY Times:

THE July/August issue of The Atlantic trumpets the “14 Biggest Ideas of the Year.” Take a deep breath. The ideas include “The Players Own the Game” (No. 12), “Wall Street: Same as it Ever Was” (No. 6), “Nothing Stays Secret” (No. 2), and the very biggest idea of the year, “The Rise of the Middle Class — Just Not Ours,” which refers to growing economies in Brazil, Russia, India and China.

Now exhale. It may strike you that none of these ideas seem particularly breathtaking. In fact, none of them are ideas. They are more on the order of observations. But one can’t really fault The Atlantic for mistaking commonplaces for intellectual vision. Ideas just aren’t what they used to be. Once upon a time, they could ignite fires of debate, stimulate other thoughts, incite revolutions and fundamentally change the ways we look at and think about the world.

They could penetrate the general culture and make celebrities out of thinkers — notably Albert Einstein, but also Reinhold Niebuhr, Daniel Bell, Betty Friedan, Carl Sagan and Stephen Jay Gould, to name a few. The ideas themselves could even be made famous: for instance, for “the end of ideology,” “the medium is the message,” “the feminine mystique,” “the Big Bang theory,” “the end of history.” A big idea could capture the cover of Time — “Is God Dead?” — and intellectuals like Norman Mailer, William F. Buckley Jr. and Gore Vidal would even occasionally be invited to the couches of late-night talk shows. How long ago that was.

If our ideas seem smaller nowadays, it’s not because we are dumber than our forebears but because we just don’t care as much about ideas as they did. In effect, we are living in an increasingly post-idea world — a world in which big, thought-provoking ideas that can’t instantly be monetized are of so little intrinsic value that fewer people are generating them and fewer outlets are disseminating them, the Internet notwithstanding. Bold ideas are almost passé.

It is no secret, especially here in America, that we live in a post-Enlightenment age in which rationality, science, evidence, logical argument and debate have lost the battle in many sectors, and perhaps even in society generally, to superstition, faith, opinion and orthodoxy. While we continue to make giant technological advances, we may be the first generation to have turned back the epochal clock — to have gone backward intellectually from advanced modes of thinking into old modes of belief. But post-Enlightenment and post-idea, while related, are not exactly the same.

Post-Enlightenment refers to a style of thinking that no longer deploys the techniques of rational thought. Post-idea refers to thinking that is no longer done, regardless of the style.

The post-idea world has been a long time coming, and many factors have contributed to it. There is the retreat in universities from the real world, and an encouragement of and reward for the narrowest specialization rather than for daring — for tending potted plants rather than planting forests.

There is the eclipse of the public intellectual in the general media by the pundit who substitutes outrageousness for thoughtfulness, and the concomitant decline of the essay in general-interest magazines. And there is the rise of an increasingly visual culture, especially among the young — a form in which ideas are more difficult to express.

But these factors, which began decades ago, were more likely harbingers of an approaching post-idea world than the chief causes of it. The real cause may be information itself. It may seem counterintuitive that at a time when we know more than we have ever known, we think about it less.

We live in the much vaunted Age of Information. Courtesy of the Internet, we seem to have immediate access to anything that anyone could ever want to know. We are certainly the most informed generation in history, at least quantitatively. There are trillions upon trillions of bytes out there in the ether — so much to gather and to think about.

And that’s just the point. In the past, we collected information not simply to know things. That was only the beginning. We also collected information to convert it into something larger than facts and ultimately more useful — into ideas that made sense of the information. We sought not just to apprehend the world but to truly comprehend it, which is the primary function of ideas. Great ideas explain the world and one another to us.

Marx pointed out the relationship between the means of production and our social and political systems. Freud taught us to explore our minds as a way of understanding our emotions and behaviors. Einstein rewrote physics. More recently, McLuhan theorized about the nature of modern communication and its effect on modern life. These ideas enabled us to get our minds around our existence and attempt to answer the big, daunting questions of our lives.

But if information was once grist for ideas, over the last decade it has become competition for them. We are like the farmer who has too much wheat to make flour. We are inundated with so much information that we wouldn’t have time to process it even if we wanted to, and most of us don’t want to.

The collection itself is exhausting: what each of our friends is doing at that particular moment and then the next moment and the next one; who Jennifer Aniston is dating right now; which video is going viral on YouTube this hour; what Princess Letizia or Kate Middleton is wearing that day. In effect, we are living within the nimbus of an informational Gresham’s law in which trivial information pushes out significant information, but it is also an ideational Gresham’s law in which information, trivial or not, pushes out ideas.

We prefer knowing to thinking because knowing has more immediate value. It keeps us in the loop, keeps us connected to our friends and our cohort. Ideas are too airy, too impractical, too much work for too little reward. Few talk ideas. Everyone talks information, usually personal information. Where are you going? What are you doing? Whom are you seeing? These are today’s big questions.

It is certainly no accident that the post-idea world has sprung up alongside the social networking world. Even though there are sites and blogs dedicated to ideas, Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, Flickr, etc., the most popular sites on the Web, are basically information exchanges, designed to feed the insatiable information hunger, though this is hardly the kind of information that generates ideas. It is largely useless except insofar as it makes the possessor of the information feel, well, informed. Of course, one could argue that these sites are no different than conversation was for previous generations, and that conversation seldom generated big ideas either, and one would be right.

BUT the analogy isn’t perfect. For one thing, social networking sites are the primary form of communication among young people, and they are supplanting print, which is where ideas have typically gestated. For another, social networking sites engender habits of mind that are inimical to the kind of deliberate discourse that gives rise to ideas. Instead of theories, hypotheses and grand arguments, we get instant 140-character tweets about eating a sandwich or watching a TV show. While social networking may enlarge one’s circle and even introduce one to strangers, this is not the same thing as enlarging one’s intellectual universe. Indeed, the gab of social networking tends to shrink one’s universe to oneself and one’s friends, while thoughts organized in words, whether online or on the page, enlarge one’s focus.

To paraphrase the famous dictum, often attributed to Yogi Berra, that you can’t think and hit at the same time, you can’t think and tweet at the same time either, not because it is impossible to multitask but because tweeting, which is largely a burst of either brief, unsupported opinions or brief descriptions of your own prosaic activities, is a form of distraction or anti-thinking.

The implications of a society that no longer thinks big are enormous. Ideas aren’t just intellectual playthings. They have practical effects.

An artist friend of mine recently lamented that he felt the art world was adrift because there were no longer great critics like Harold Rosenberg and Clement Greenberg to provide theories of art that could fructify the art and energize it. Another friend made a similar argument about politics. While the parties debate how much to cut the budget, he wondered where were the John Rawlses and Robert Nozicks who could elevate our politics.

One could certainly make the same argument about economics, where John Maynard Keynes remains the center of debate nearly 80 years after propounding his theory of government pump priming. This isn’t to say that the successors of Rosenberg, Rawls and Keynes don’t exist, only that if they do, they are not likely to get traction in a culture that has so little use for ideas, especially big, exciting, dangerous ones, and that’s true whether the ideas come from academics or others who are not part of elite organizations and who challenge the conventional wisdom. All thinkers are victims of information glut, and the ideas of today’s thinkers are also victims of that glut.

But it is especially true of big thinkers in the social sciences like the cognitive psychologist Steven Pinker, who has theorized on everything from the source of language to the role of genetics in human nature, or the biologist Richard Dawkins, who has had big and controversial ideas on everything from selfishness to God, or the psychologist Jonathan Haidt, who has been analyzing different moral systems and drawing fascinating conclusions about the relationship of morality to political beliefs. But because they are scientists and empiricists rather than generalists in the humanities, the place from which ideas were customarily popularized, they suffer a double whammy: not only the whammy against ideas generally but the whammy against science, which is typically regarded in the media as mystifying at best, incomprehensible at worst. A generation ago, these men would have made their way into popular magazines and onto television screens. Now they are crowded out by informational effluvium.

No doubt there will be those who say that the big ideas have migrated to the marketplace, but there is a vast difference between profit-making inventions and intellectually challenging thoughts. Entrepreneurs have plenty of ideas, and some, like Steven P. Jobs of Apple, have come up with some brilliant ideas in the “inventional” sense of the word.

Still, while these ideas may change the way we live, they rarely transform the way we think. They are material, not ideational. It is thinkers who are in short supply, and the situation probably isn’t going to change anytime soon.

We have become information narcissists, so uninterested in anything outside ourselves and our friendship circles or in any tidbit we cannot share with those friends that if a Marx or a Nietzsche were suddenly to appear, blasting his ideas, no one would pay the slightest attention, certainly not the general media, which have learned to service our narcissism.

What the future portends is more and more information — Everests of it. There won’t be anything we won’t know. But there will be no one thinking about it.

Think about that.

Neal Gabler is a senior fellow at the Annenberg Norman Lear Center at the University of Southern California and the author of “Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination.”

UncategorizedJack DysonComment
Two bits of Pushkin

The wondrous moment of our meeting... 

The wondrous moment of our meeting... Still I remember you appear Before me like a vision fleeting, A beauty's angel pure and clear.

In hopeless ennui surrounding The worldly bustle, to my ear For long your tender voice kept sounding, For long in dreams came features dear.

Time passed. Unruly storms confounded Old dreams, and I from year to year Forgot how tender you had sounded, Your heavenly features once so dear.

My backwoods days dragged slow and quiet -- Dull fence around, dark vault above -- Devoid of God and uninspired, Devoid of tears, of fire, of love.

Sleep from my soul began retreating, And here you once again appear Before me like a vision fleeting, A beauty's angel pure and clear.

In ecstasy my heart is beating, Old joys for it anew revive; Inspired and God-filled, it is greeting The fire, and tears, and love alive.

"I loved you..."

I loved you, and I probably still do, And for a while the feeling may remain... But let my love no longer trouble you, I do not wish to cause you any pain. I loved you; and the hopelessness I knew, The jealousy, the shyness - though in vain - Made up a love so tender and so true As may God grant you to be loved again.

UncategorizedJack DysonComment
Ode to the lemon - Pablo Neruda

From those lemon flowersSet free By the light of the moon From that Odor of a love Frustrated, Sunken in fragrance, There came From the Lemon tree its yellow, From its planetary system The lemons came down to the earth.

Tender merchandise! Our shores filled up with it, The markets Of light, of gold From a tree, And we open up The two halves Of a miracle, Congealed acid Which ran From the hemispheres Of a star And the most profound liquor In nature, Unchanging, alive, Indestructible, Born from the freshness Of the lemon, From its fragrant house, From its acid, secret symmetry.

Inside the lemon the knives Cut A small Cathedral, The window hidden behind the altars Opened to the light its glassy acids, And in drops Like topazes they were dripped Onto the altars By the architecture of freshness.

So when your hand Squeezes the hemisphere Of the cut Lemon onto your plate, A universe of gold, You have poured out One Yellow cup Full of miracles One of the sweet-smelling nipples Of the breast of the earth, A ray of light that became a fruit, The diminutive fire of a planet.

UncategorizedJack DysonComment
Ineffective pick-up lines for the modern internet persona

“My Klout score is an 83, which makes me a Thought Leader. There’s a lot of pressure to stay relevant and forward thinking, when you’re that influential. A few sub-par tweets and I could be downgraded to Specialist. I mean, not that there’s anything wrong with being a Specialist… you’re not a Specialist, are you?” - - - “I know you’re a complete stranger, but I’d gladly waste one of my Spotify invitations on you. Give me your number and I’ll throw in a Google+ invite. I’d put you in my ‘Babe’ Circle.”

- - - “That gorgeous woman over there keeps looking this way, like she recognizes me or something. I do maintain a mildly successful YouTube account with over sixty subscribers, so I’m used to this sort of unwelcome attention. Are you an actress?”

- - - “You’ve been published by The Atlantic? That’s cool. My name is frequently used as a tag on Tumblr. We have all the makings of a modern power couple.”

- - - “My U.S. Alexa ranking is 22K, which is fairly impressive for a blog about soft cheeses. It’s not always smooth sailing, though. It can be difficult coming up with compelling content. Brie sort of loses its luster after a few years, you know? How many times can one reinvent mascarpone? I feel optimistic, though – I’ve received great feedback from prospective advertisers and I really think things are about to take off. What I’m saying is, I’d love to take a look at your website and give you a few pointers. If you want.”

- - - “According to this app, only four people in the past sixteen hours have found me so tedious that they’ve found it necessary to unfollow me on Twitter. Just saying.”

- - - “As of now, my mother doesn’t have a Facebook account so, if we were to take this thing to the next level, you wouldn’t have to worry about rejecting her inappropriate Family Request.”

- - - “I’d dance to Cher, if it got you that much closer to affording a new Turntable.fm outfit. You deserve the best.”

- - - “Do you come here often? I do. I’m the Foursquare mayor, actually, which means I come here more than anyone else. That reminds me, I need to check-in. Can I have your Twitter handle? You’re so attractive, I want to Shout it from multiple applications. Simultaneously.”

= = =

Stephanie Georgopulos wrote this for the excellent McSweeny's.

UncategorizedJack DysonComment
And in other Star Wars news...

Taking home electronics to a whole new level, Ericaknit on Etsy has made this AMAZING R2-D2 jumper. Merino wool, $450 (plus postage), all I have to say is YES. And thank god she didn't do C3PO. Click here to see more images.

These are the coins you're looking for. On Niue, a tiny island country that sits 1,500 miles northeast of New Zealand, this November “Star Wars” fans will be able to purchase limited mint copies of silver-plated coins featuring Luke, Leia, Han Solo, and the gang. A $2 coin will cost $117 to purchase, which is worth it just for the Millennium Falcon carrying case alone.

Finally, the geniuses who bought you the Han Solo coffee table have been working tirelessly on one based on the Millennium Falcom. It's pretty. It's $1,500. And it's sold. Look at those smooth lines, that beautiful texture. Would look great with a stack of copies of World of Interiors and Elle Decoration.

ps - you have to listen to this too - you might want to forward to 2.50: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CQedUjHW5A&w=700]

UncategorizedJack DysonComment
The Indonesian electrified train track cure

Indonesian officials are scrambling to find a solution to the latest dangerous trend in Jakarta: people who roam the city's railway tracks looking for free "electric therapy."

As many as several dozen people per day intentionally try to electrocute themselves along the rails, according to local media reports, because they believe it can cure all kinds of diseases, from diabetes to high-blood pressure to insomnia. When trains approach, people briefly step aside but rush back quickly into a sleeping position on the tracks to feel electrical currents they believe will cure their ailments.

Residents say the unorthodox—and dangerous—practice started with a local rumor about a man who tried to kill himself by lying on the tracks. He was fed up after suffering paralysis from a stroke and medical treatment failed to cure his symptoms. He allegedly decided that being crushed by a train would be better than continuing his misery. But while lying on the tracks, he suddenly felt cured, according to the hearsay. It's unclear whether any elements of the story were true.

As word of the supposed miracle spread, train tracks in slum areas in northern Jakarta became trendy as impromptu clinics. Until recently, more than 50 people would show up at the city's Rawa Buaya tracks every day. The numbers have dropped recently, since police and the state-run railroad erected a warning sign, but some people still come, convinced the tracks can cure them.

[full story and photo slideshow HERE]

UncategorizedJack DysonComment
Zatoichi meets Yojimbo, Musahi vs Kojiro

(via)

You might also like this bad boy, a dramatisation of Miyamoto Musashi VS Sasaki Kojiro on Ganryu island in 1612. This is probably one of the most famous duels in Japanese history. Musashi, a cantankerous purist, fought with a long wooden sword (made from an oar); Kojiro, the young pretender, with a 3-feet iron sword.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kj1iI68AQo8&w=700]

There are various versions, but all have the same ending. Miyamoto Musashi killed more than 80 men in duels, and is now considered the greatest samurai to ever live. When Musashi was alive, there was only one warrior that he felt was his equal - an arrogant man by the name of Sasaki Kojiro. The two were rivals for the title of Kensai or “sword saint” for many years. Finally events led to their epic duel on Ganryu island.

Legend has it that the duel was supposed to take place at dawn. Kojiro and most of royal Japan was there waiting. Musashi was still in bed. He woke up an hour after the fight was supposed to have started and painted for a time. Kojiro spent the day furious and bemoaned Musashi as a coward.

Eventually, with the sun high in the sky, Musashi got in his rowboat and his man began the journey to the island. Musashi did not take his long blade. Rather he took only a bokken (wooden sword) he had whittled himself. It was six inches longer than Kojiro’s weapon.

When he arrived at the island, Musashi pulled his boat up so that the sun was in Kojiro’s eyes as he approached. Driven to the point of near madness by anger and anticipation, Kojiro furiously ran towards Musashi, called him a coward, unsheathed his sword and threw his scabbard onto the beach.

Musashi responded, "Kojiro you have already lost." Kojiro laughed at him and asked him why he thought that. Musashi responded, "Only a man who knows he is about to die would throw his scabbard away." Kojiro was completely thrown off by the comment, and in a rage did not follow his protocol of gauging distance and circling, instead choosing to rush Musashi.

Both men charged - Kojiro with his Katana and Musashi with his club. They both leapt, and it appeared, connected. The onlookers thought both men had killed each other. An eternal instant later, Kojiro fell to the ground lifeless, his brain crushed in from Musashi's club. Musashi landed on the ground, and his topknot landed in front of him, on the ground. It had been severed…six inches from his face.

Musashi claimed no one else he would ever fight would reach Kojiro's level and vowed never to fight again, which he did not. Instead, he retired to the mountains, lived in isolation, and wrote the definitive warrior’s handbook – The Book of Five Rings.

UncategorizedJack DysonComment
Images from the secret Stasi archives - the viewpoint of the oppressor

"In a time that is more and more defined by mechanisms of surveillance the 'gaze of the Big Brother' seems ever more omnipresent," says artist Simon Menner. "What it really is that the Big Brother sees. Can the terror such a repressive system spreads be found in these images? Or is the 'gaze of evil' pretty banal and we have to attach the terror ourselves?" Mostly the results of surveillance remain hidden, he continues, but the East German Stasi were not only obsessive in their record-keeping, but are also now widely accessible since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Menner has done an incredible research job through the Stasi's vaults and come up with this fantastic collection of images which, he says, "can broaden our understanding of the function of surveillance and repression".

There's all sorts of things hidden away in the pictures. Stasi agents would take polaroids of people's flats as they (secretly) searched them, there's a set of instructional images showing how to wear plain clothes and blend in, there's even a great set on countersurveillance, called "spies taking pictures of spies taking pictures of spies taking pictures of spies..."' See the whole lot for yourself here, I've put some of my favourites below by way of a teaser.

[slideshow]

Some of his other work is fantastic too - I really like Camouflage - a series of landscapes which each have a real army sniper hidden in them. Dope.

UncategorizedJack DysonComment