How will I absorb a talking point, like Edwards and Kerry are out of the mainstream, unless I get it jackhammered into my skull? That’s where Television lends a hand.
Monthly Archives: July 2004
Google is at it again with Picaso
Today I went to google and found something new: a link to photo management software called Picasa. I can’t explain how pleased this made me – this is exactly what I’ve been looking for. You see, my family and I bought my mom a digital camera for her birthday (or was it xmas?) last year, and I’ve never really been able to successfully teach her how to use all the software with it. She has been quite pleased with it but hasn’t really been taking full advantage of the potential, and so after months of frustration Google comes out and recommends some software for the management of your photos. Well you guys already know that I trust google… and lo and behold, it’s pretty awesome. Right away I’ve got this beautiful thumbnail collection of all my photos organized by date. I’m telling you, if you have a lot of photos it’s well worth your while to check out the program.
Friday at the Charlie
Well, once again I am filled with hope at the burgeoning Winnipeg underground music scene. I went to Charlies on Friday night to see a firend’s band perform only to be blessed with 3 fantastic acts, all of which encompass the Winnipeg vibe. Wormhole, my friends band, brought a throaty yell to a rock and roll crowd that hasn’t been seen in years, Tele presented a youth and sound that is unique and harmonious compared to today’s pop music; top it all off with Inward Eye, a fresh energetic band of brothers rocking the small club scene and you’ve got a rock night of heaven. I’m telling you, I haven’t been as rejuvenated by such music in a long time, and it personally makes me proud to see these future stars rocking it out in little old Winnipeg. What the hell is happening to our little unknown community?
exxonsecrets.org
If you’re ever having an internet discussion with an anti-environmentalist and they pull out a study conducted in the name of science by such and such or at this or that institute which clearly shows how the problems of the environment are trumped up tomfoolery, just head to your trusty exxonsecrets.org site and start doing some searches. This website has very carefully documented all of the financial contributions between exxon and the various ‘think tanks’ and other such institutes. It’s hard to argue for the unbiased nature of a particular study if they’re getting major donations from the oil company with the most to gain from our continued energy dependence. If the current chairman of Shell admits that the threat of climate change makes him “really very worried for the planet”, then perhaps even the hardcore denialists should wake up and smell the burning oil.
Individualism vs. Collectivism
While browsing a ‘competitor’, a passionate poster (Chris Buors) of my new WinnipegForums.ca had casually posted a response intimating that individuality was inherently superior to any kind of collectivism. I had to respond.
Mirror Post
Shameful, I know, but I’m going to be echoing Wally’s blog once again because he’s found something really nifty and cool. I’ve mentioned in the past a tool I use to keep track of noteworthy URLs: Spurl to track them and del.icio.us to display them. Enter Extispicious, a cleverly designed category display tool.
This is my noosphere.
This is Wally’s.
If nothing else, you should start using those tools because I tell ya, it’s damn handy to go back and find a URL that you thought was interesting but can’t remember anymore. Plus it’s portable! No need to worry about emailing links to and from work. 😉
The failure of Symbolic Thought
Wally sent me a most interesting article on the failure of symbolic thought. I haven’t finished reading it but it’s full of good quotes already:
We seem to have experienced a fall into representation, whose depths and consequences are only now being fully plumbed. In a fundamental sort of falsification, symbols at first mediated reality and then replaced it. At present we live within symbols to a greater degree than we do within our bodily selves or directly with each other.
…
We succumb to objectification and let a web of culture control us and tell us how to live, as if this were a natural development. It is anything but that, and we should be clear about what culture/civilization has in fact given us, and what it has taken away.
Yep, a long and tricky read but it seems to be worth it.