August 2006 — Stung Eye

Tween

August 29, 2006 at 12:22 AM

Humourous Phases of Funny Faces - 1906

Make your own with a web-cam and a whiteboard.

Why We Fight

August 24, 2006 at 12:43 PM

Tonight at 8 o'clock the CBC is showing Eugene Jarecki's documentary, Why We Fight [trailer], a meditation on the American war machine.

The film is inspired by Dwight Eisenhower's presidential farewell speech from January of 1961.

A quote from this speech:

"Until the latest of our world conflicts, the United States had no armaments industry. American makers of plowshares could, with time and as required, make swords as well. But now we can no longer risk emergency improvisation of national defense; we have been compelled to create a permanent armaments industry of vast proportions. [...]

This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the American experience. The total influence - economic, political, even spiritual - is felt in every city, every Statehouse, every office of the Federal government. We recognize the imperative need for this development. Yet we must not fail to comprehend its grave implications. Our toil, resources and livelihood are all involved; so is the very structure of our society.

In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist.

We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together."

We are reminded, near daily, that we are fighting for freedom, democracy, and ultimately peace.

We are asked to support our troops, without ever questioning their actions.

Our leaders preach an overly simplistic "us=good them=evil" ideology (see: dualism), appealing to fear, prejudice, and patrotism to win our support.

As responsible global citizens we must see through this rhetoric.

We must always question Why We Fight.

Decorate Your Dignity

August 16, 2006 at 2:59 PM

Hello lovers,

Set aside 25 minutes to watch philosopher Sam Harris outline the dangers of religious moderation.

Yes, moderation not extremism.

Mr Harris is "arguing for a conversational intolerance, in which we require in our everyday discourse that people's convictions scale with the available evidence."

Linky-Pooh:

1960 CIA paper on Brainwashing
Philosophy of Nonviolence, an Introduction
Amazing Infographics by Jonathan Harris (He paints too.)
Rare Philip K Dick interview - 1977 [video]
The Visual Dictionary
On Rabbits, Mathematics and Musical Scales
A Different Kind of Buff - Gorgeous!
Mad World - Oh, I love this song. [Video]
How To Make A Street Art Sticker [video]
Flatland The Movie - I read this book in A'dam. Nice.
Notation and the Art of Reading
Without Gods - Toward a history of disbelief
United States of Absurdity - Bush reads Camus.

False Sense of Insecurity?

August 11, 2006 at 2:09 PM

In light of recent strife:

Don't Panic.

Assessed in broad but reasonable context, terrorism generally does not do much damage.

This is the thesis of John Mueller's* paper, A False Sense of Insecurity.

While deeply tragic for those directly involved, the number of [deaths] as a result of international terrorism is generally only a few hundred a year. [This is] tiny compared to the number who die in most civil wars or from automobile accidents.

100,000 Americans have died in automobile accidents since the 3,000 deaths of September 11th.

[Although] the shock and tragedy of September 11 does demand a focused and dedicated program [...] to prevent a repeat, [...] part of this reaction should include an effort by politicians, officials, and the media to inform the public reasonably and realistically about the terrorist context, instead of playing into the hands of terrorists by frightening the public.

There are psychological barriers to feeling secure from terrorism.

My parents pointed out that we more readily accept death outside the context of premeditated murder. That you are more likely to die by a lightning strike, than a terrorist act, may not instill you with hope.

In some respects, fear of terror [is] like playing a lottery in reverse: the chance of winning the lottery or of dying from terrorism may be microscopic, [yet] one can irrelevantly conclude that one's chances are just as good, or bad, as those of anyone else.

Cory Doctorow comments:

The bottom line is, terrorism doesn't kill many people. Even in Israel, you're four times more likely to die in a car wreck than as a result of a terrorist attack. [...] The point of terrorism is to create terror, and by cynically convincing us that our very countries are at risk from terrorism, our politicians [and our media] have delivered utter victory to the terrorists: we are terrified.

You are not in danger.

Peace be with you. Do no harm.

*John Mueller holds the Woody Hayes Chair of National Security Studies at Ohio State University.