Heard on ABC radio this afternoon:
South Australian documentary filmmaker Bruce Rodmand is making a documentary about the Family First party. The following are some paraphrases:
On the allegations that a family first volunteer suggested that lesbians should be burnt at the stake:
"I did a bit of research and asked around about this and it seemd that this was the response after severe goading by someone from the Greens. The party did not attampt to sweep this under the carpet but said they were not about this kind of thing."
"Family First are very financially astute - these people are not idiots - and have funded themselves through voluntary contributions."
"They are here for the long haul - not just the next election but 5, 10 even 50 years ahead."
"Family First play the role of Jesus and try and do the right thing. They are different from the Frd Nile group. It's almost a matter of 'How Would Jesus Vote'" (discussion drowned out by snickers and funny voices from ABC DJ Spenser Howson saying "What Would Jesus Do?")
COMMENT:
I can't wait to see this documentary. It sems to be a fair-minded attempt to interpret the Family First Party to the genral Australin public and dispel some myths before they develop.
In The Courier-Mail 11 Oct 04:
Page 6: Newspaper takes pole position for precision
Gary Morgan, pollster:
"He said the new party had 'flown under the pollsters' radar.' 'We have now seen the return of right-wing conservatives and religious-aligned parties and it will be one of the biggest problems facing Labor,' he said."
COMMENT:
Labor has traditionally relied on preferences from the Democrats and the Greens, but with the Democrats failing at the polls and the Greens under Brown crowing about heir electoral success as a separate party, Labor is in strife from its own side of politics.
Page 7: Failed Liberal blames sexual preferences
Re: Ingrid Tall, Liberal candidate for Brisbane:
"Her sexuality became a talking point in the campaign when the family First party and nationals candidate Nick Withcombe attacked her stance on family issues. Family First, the new Assembly of God-backed party, was criticised after one of its electoral workers said the party supported lesbians 'being burnt to death'. With counting continuing, the Greens have not given up on winning the Senate position, but are infuriated by the probable outcome after claiming they were targeted by a deceptive Family First television advertising camapign in country Victoria."
COMMENT:
The tussle of the minor parties (in urban Brisbane) - the Nationals, Greens and Family First. It strikes me that Family First are closer in social values and economic ideology to the Nationals.
Page 12: Opinion & Letters
Barry Welch:
"A rampant and unfettered John Howard in league with the ratbag religious right. Australians should be afraid, very afraid."
(Barrry Welch is an organiser of the Quensland Teachers Union)
COMMENT:
The most virulent attacks on Family First will not come from labor directly - they will come from leftists similar to the one above and from the Greens more directly. Similar to the Chinese political tradition of using relatives and supporters to slander opponents to preserve the face of the key figures.
Page 13: The reason Labor's poll stategy went wrong
John Black (a former Labor senator and campaign strategist)
"Error 5: There were no attempts by Labor to draw a line between themseleves and the Greens, or to attack Family First like John Howard attacked the Greens. Family First seems to me to be like One Nation at prayer. I was horrified to read the comments of some Family First workers about lesbians getting burned at the stake, or lumping synagogues and mosques in with brothels. Yet there were no attack ads on this sort of this, and this group largely escaped scrutiny as a result."
COMMENT:
Reminds me of the post by Tom which sugggested the Uniting Church was the Australian Democrats at prayer. Perhaps I can order a re-post? Tom?
Monday, October 11, 2004
Family First
In the footsteps of Genghis Khan
Just been reading up on Genghis Khan. Get an eyeful of this quote from Genghis Khan: Conquerer of the World:
"In the summer of 1219 Genghis Khan gathered his army together on the Kara Irtish River. He took his young Merkit wife Qulan and his minister Yeh-lu Chu'u-ts'ai with him on this campaign. His youngest brother Temuge-otchigin remained behind in Monglolia as 'the guardian of hearth and home'. In the autumn he moved forward over the Altai and Tarbagatai mountains to Qayaliq (the present-day Taldy Kurgan south-east of Lake Balkash), where Arslan, the khan of the Qarluqs, Barshuq, the idiqut of the Iughurs, and Sugnaq Tegin of Almaliq joined him. It is known that Arslan brought 6,000 men with him and the Idiqut a tumen."
Cop that for a mouthful!
To keep up with a real adventurer, check out Tim Cope, who is travelling across the steppe by horse and camel, and as of now has just hit Kazakhstan and is on his way back to Ulan Bator...
John Safran Vs God (Mon 4 Oct 04)
Just caught the last few minutes of John Safran on Monday night (I got distracted by a political special on the ABC - and I thought he would appear but he's actually on SBS)
johnsafranvsgod
He was interviewing politicians on the door step of Parliament House in Canberra to determine if they were vampires - and was casually ignored by most, but was neatly put in his place by Kevin Rudd.
John's interpretation of this has caused me to rethink his approach.
He cut to a scene outside Parliament hill (the grassy knoll) where he said that he wished he had a witty comeback for such moments but wasn't able to think of one on the spot.
Cut back to Kevin Rudd entering Parliament and John indeed attempting to throw a funny line which fell rather flat.
It seems Safran is well aware of his own comic shortfalls. Originally I had him pegged as a Denton wannabe, but he really is in a class by himself.
He is a true ingenue - a master of artless innocence. He also has a wicked eye for contradictions and hypocrisy (witness his excoriating attitude to Australians who dismiss Americans for being ignorant yet would likely fail
John's geography test on the location of Zaire - actually the Democratic African Republic of the Congo)
John - prove that I'm not a liar! Keep up the good work! And someone, please SMS me on Monday night so I don't miss him again.
And SBS - put this man on DVD. NOW!
Thursday, October 07, 2004
Are your personal moral values Liberal or Labor?
Just made a quiz on Quizllia based on the Christian Values checklist:
Are your personal moral values Liberal or Labor?
Unfortunately Quizilla isn't as smart as I would like and doesn't allow a one-to-many relationship when figuring out its matrix.
I will find something better
Sex Sells
Just logged off hotmail and got redirected (automatically, of course!) to the NineMSN website.
Some articles caught my eye:
Two child porn suspects commit suicide - about pedopghiles caught as part of Operation Auxin.
Child detention is legal: High Court - how 4 Afghani children must stay in detention with their parents
Child killers on the loose. - how diseases are rife and killing kids in 3rd world countries
All thre provide some insight into how children children as regarded in Australian society. But the first one in particular made me think: why anyone would get into child pornogrpahy? But I suppose the bigger question is how prevalent sexual messages are in today's society, and how frequently people seek sexual gratification (legal or otherwise) outside of God's gift of marriage.
I wonder if the images on and articles NineMSN's homepage have anything to do with it:
Sexy lingerie!
Sexy Seafolly swimsuits
Huge adult toy sale!
Browse for a new bra
Meet the Babe finalists
Sexy wallpapers for $4!
Improved manhood
And this is just on ONE day. On a "mainstream media" website. Are we as a culture that depraved or deprived that we can't measure that which we have already become? Time to get NineMSN to take these messages away.
Christian Values Checklist
Scored this one as a link off the Triple J website. Got lots of potential for an online quiz... Hmmm.
Christian Values Checklist
"This summary of the positions of major parties on issues of concern to Christians is provided as a service to the Christian community which makes up 68% of the Australian population as of 2001 Census. It has been compiled after an exhaustive search of party platforms, voting history and statements, including in some cases the state voting record of some parties."
Minority Report
Iraq had no WMDs, says US inspector
The US said they had it, The Brits and Aussies agreed, but UN said there wasn't enough evidence.
Now US weapons inspectors have found there are no WMD's, but say that Saddam "intended" to develop them and they "might" get into terrorist hands, and even the evidence for these being "circumstantial".
Sound like the plot of Minority Report: In the future, the intention of murder is able to be detected before time (flawlessly? see the film) and potential murdererd are arrested and incarcerated before they can do the deed.
What place for due process here? None.
Bid to allow women bishops in Anglican Church voted down
Read the transcript of Archbishop Peter Jenson's interview on the ABC:
Bid to allow women bishops in Anglican Church voted down
QUOTE:
DAVID WEBER: How do you think this decision will be viewed outside of the
church?
PETER JENSEN: Some people will just be astonished. Egalitarianism, the idea that men and women are identical has taken a strong root in our society, and people will talk about glass ceilings and the rest, but what we're discovering also is that as feminism has lost its way a bit, people are beginning to remember that men and women are not only equal but we are different, and that difference shows up in different roles within family life.
:UNQUOTE
Wednesday, October 06, 2004
LETTER FROM THE PRIME MINISTER
Today by very great fortune - or mass mailing machine - I received a personalised letter from The PM. I have not yet heard the telemarketer-style phone calls - but may, as I think I must be in a marginal electorate. I am receiving election material from both major paries at least daily and minor parties weekly. I'm not sure but it almost seems to qualify as stalking. All I need now is some pin-striped suited politician sitting in a hotted up Torana across the road at midnight.
Anyway, read what the Prime Minister had to say. I shall interpret the Liberal Party's positions as I go:
Dear Your Name
[Dear voter estranged from the impersonal party political machine, here is a mass-mailed letter sent to your name and address in an attempt to ingratiate myself with your personally]
I am writing to you because as we get closer to election day it's important to remember what we believe this election is all about.
[We believe this election is about us winning]
I believe there is no more important issue facing Australians today than the economy and interest rates.
[So I will scare you with some rubbery figures and neglect to tell you I have almost no control over interest rates and will be the first to blame forces outside of my control for rises - like the IMF, the World bank, the WTO, the US economy or the price of oil]
The risks of bungling our $800 billion economy are very real. Not only would there be less money to spend on local health, education, roads and defence, but people could lose their jobs, poverty could increase and interest rates could rise, putting real pressure on families' budgets.
[Although I will still enjoy a nice salary and superannuation and gold card while everyone else wallows in misery if it does, I am concerned abot you, the voter. Really.]
A few days ago I announced a number of initiatives to assist families and older Australians:
[That I haven't been bothered about until the election, and suddenly I found all this money sitting underneath the Hansards in Parliament House]
. Introducing a rebate of 30% for out of pocket child care fees for families and, for families with only one main income, an increase in Family Tax Benefits;
[Throw some chickenfeed around and see what the chooks scratch up]
. Grandparents responsible for caring for their grandchildren will get better access to child care and, for those on income support, higher child care benefits;
[ibid]
. New technical schools, toolkits, scholarships, access to the youth allowance and better training for new apprenticeships in areas of skills shortage; and
[Although if you get a job you won't be getting a real wage and you will be at the mercy of your employer while you are told you have more "options" and your working conditions are is "flexible" - code for more options and flexibility for the employer]
. More support for after hours Medicare, delivering services "round the clock" where and when they are needed.
[Medicare offices will be open longer? There will be more medicare offices open? More people will be employed at Medicare so you don't have to stand in those riduculous cues like a Russian babooshka queueing for bread]
So our focus, our first priority is to continue helping families in what we believe is the best possible way - keeping interest rates low and the economy strong.
[We will "free up" the economy and the labour market so that all those at the top of the economic pile can get further ahead, and leave everyone else at a loose end as we abolish services like health and education - so that YOU can pay for them]
By continuing to take responsible decisions now, we can have continued financial security to have the money to pay for our new programs that strengthen Medicare, apprenticeships, and defence and national security into the future.
[Just throw in that line about defence and national security just so we don't forget that you were in Washington during September 11, and you have caught the knee jerk panic bug that plagues our US Allies. John, you forgot to mention interest rates again. Shame on you]
Yours sincerely,
John Howard
Prime Minister
[Buffalo Spammer]
Bizarre and Evil Real Estate Agents
Ancinet Chinese Confucian society regarded merchants as merely parasites on society, merely moving goods arounds from hanmd to hand rather than actually producing anaything of worth. As such they had a low status. The same could be siad of today's real estate agents. Witness the bizarre story coming out of Sydney
"The family that agreed to pay $800,000 for 6 Collins Street, North Ryde was not told their dream home had remained unoccupied for three years because Sef Gonzales had murdered his family there. "
Not that his is especially unusual - people do murder other people, and they often choose to do so in the comfort and privacy of their own homes. What gets my goat is the fact that the buyers were NEVER informed by L.J.'s (the responsible agency) about the incident.
Apart from the usual concerns about the spirits of the dead, the buyers say all the generations of the family are scared about feng shui.
Bad feng shui. Ok.
How does The national president of the Real Estate Institute, Kareena Ballard feel about that whole situation?
"I suppose a murder is something between the people living in that property."
Yes. Yes I suppose it is. Rather like a private contractual arrangement, such as the one you enter when buying a house. And like the victims, the buyers didn't expect to get ambushed when they put the key in the front door.
THE FINAL SEASON
Back in 1998-99, a rumour went about that - with Star Trek: Deep Space Nine in its 7th year, and with Star Trek: Voyager nearing that mark, and thus reaching the age under which, according to the Prime Directive, they must face an ancient rite our people call "THE FINAL SEASON" - Rick Berman, Michael Piller & co were planning a 5th Star Trek series that would star none other than Kevin Sorbo as the captain.
Although these plans went nowhere, they did generate a few rather frightening script possibilities...
- Kev-baby accidentally mistakes a Class 1 phaser for a Remington Ultrasmooth and slices off the lower half of his jaw on camera, just after stepping out of a silver Saab.
- Episodes featuring Mark Twain or Abraham Lincoln will no longer be time-travel or holodeck stories - instead, the script will be claiming that they did actually live in the 24th century
- Special 30th-anniversary tribute to TOS' classic "Who Mourns For Adonis?" has Apollo explaining, resentfully, that "ZOOSSE killed mah family".
- Trill Symbiosis Commission orders Xena and Gabrielle to cease re-associating with each other.
- Kevin sits in Quark's Bar muttering bitterly about how "ZOOSSE killed mah wife" until a Wormhole Alien who has taken the form of Simonius observes: "The Sorbo is not thinking in linear time!"
- Kevin S whips out a huge double-bladed Kull axe and tells Worf "THAT's not a knife; THIS is a knife!"
Monday, October 04, 2004
Friday, October 01, 2004
Re: [youthmultimedia] Synod Wireless Access
It's easy if you try,
No 'net to link us,
And definitely no wi-fi,
Imagine all the people
Imagine there's no mobiles,
It isn't hard to do,
No-one to phone or text to,
No ring-tones too,
Imagine all the people
Imagine no television,
I wonder if you can,
No need for radio or newspapers,
Abolishment of ads,
Imagine all the people
but I'm not the only one,
I hope some day you'll join us,
And the world will meme* as one.
BACKBLOG 02OCT04:
The word "meme" in the final line replaced the original "live". What is a meme?
Thursday, September 30, 2004
Men in Frocks...
Strange, err, bedfellows... That bible of capitalism the Wall Street Journal today (29 September) runs an op-ed entitled “What Would Jesus Spend? Christian virtues won't hurt the economy”. All standard Michael Novak-style doctrine, except for one intriguing detail -- the writer, Professor Deirdre McCloskey, used to be Donald McCloskey, until she né[e] he underwent a surgical transformation:
In October 1995, Gary Fethke, the dean of the College of
Business at the University of Iowa, ran into a colleague, Donald McCloskey, in the hallway of the business school. McCloskey, Fethke noticed, was wearing gold ear studs – small, but on both ears. “What’s this, Don?” Fethke asked jovially. “The earrings! Have you turned gay?”“You want to know, Gary?” McCloskey asked. When Fethke nodded yes, McCloskey, a renowned free-market economist and married father of two, motioned him into his office and shut the door. He then unburdened himself of a startling secret: At age fifty-two, after years of closeted cross-dressing, he had come to the conclusion that he needed to become a woman. And so, the economics professor explained to his astounded dean, he had embarked on a course of hormone therapy, designed to swell his breasts and alter his voice. Over the course of the next year, he intended to become a physical woman: full beard electrolysis, eyebrow bones ground down, gender reassignment surgery. At that very moment, McCloskey confessed, underneath his sensible brown oxfords and argyle socks, his toenails gleamed candy-apple red.
Dean Fethke sat stunned for a moment, then rushed to put McCloskey at ease. “Thank God”, he exclaimed. “I thought for a moment you were going to confess to converting to socialism”...
The 2004 Federal Election Online Poll
"The only poll that counts is the one on election day"
But still interesting to do, and to see the results of your own inept political reasoning (ah, the joys of democracy - mob rule!)
See https://www.wizardpolling.com.au/
NOTE: Lots of registration and personal details required. Takes about 10+ minutes.
Andrew Haigh in India
Andrew Haigh is going at it hammer and tongs on the Indian subcontinent following the Aussie team around as part of www.wavingtheflag.com and micro-monitoring their every move - check out his cricket punditry for the insider's view at:
Parking Spots
Kind of weird but funny
This is one of those "Geek sites" taht will now receive 10 million hits.
Pictures of little cars in big car spaces
http://dubster.com/cars/
Discoveries camp
Cameron informs me that Discoveries camp is on again!
Visit http://www.discoveriescamp.com/
You can see a picture of cameron in his ELO (!) shirt here.
Security Vulnerability in Mozilla-based browsers
See http://www.windowsitpro.com/article/articleid/43991/43991.html
Very important for Mozilla-bases browser users like myself!
Wednesday, September 29, 2004
John Saffran Vs God (Monday 27 Sep 04)
Last night I watched my first episode of John Saffran vs God (http://www.johnsaffranvsgod.com I think). It has been hyped a bit, so I was interested in finding out what it was all about. Although I only caught snippets, here are some observations:
1. John returned to see a Priest in Sicily whom he had met while a contestant on the ABC's race around the world competition. It seems that the Priest had offered John free bed and board back in 1997, and John had responded to the favour by stealing the batteries from the priest's TV remote, and "whacking off" in the priest's bed (sans priest, of course). This became the theme for "confession", with a number of amusing takes with John trying to broach the subject. Ultimately John confesses, but it is the priest's response which intrigued me. he seems to want to laugh out loud, but he held his composure and gave a very measured response. Saffran's
apparent attempt to unnerve the priest instead made John look like a bit of a loser, desperate for a cheap gag but paling in the shadow of the man he attempts to parody.
2. John has a rant about Mormons which seems a little repetitive - crisper writing is needed at this level, but I fear this is a problem with Australian comedy generally. make a gag, repeat it many times, and your (hopefully drunk) audience will keep laughing.
3. John and director then go door-knocking in Salt Lake City Utah, dressed similar to LDS missionaries (with bicycles!) and put themselves across as atheists, trying to convert people to atheism. This was social satire at its best. Very cleverly conceptualized, and well executed. It's golden moments like these that may make the show a repeat viewing for me.
4. A straw poll amongst leftist hippy types with a number of quotes from the HH the Dalai -Lama condemning homosexuality, abortion and sex during the daytime (really). Accompanied by a look-alike Pope and Dalai Lama, Saffran wondered why the Pope is considered an intolerant dogmatic bigot, while the Dalai Lama is the religious King of Cool. He offered the condemnatory quotes to the "progressives" and got them to pick - Pope or Dalai Lama? All chose the Pope, but all quotes were from the Dalai Lama. Apart from some clever editing issues (were the ones who correctly chose the Dalai Lama left on the cutting room floor?) this was another inspired stunt by a man with an axe to grind in search of a stone.
5. John Saffran in India - he goes looking for a guru. He first finds a man who won't answer his questions, especially "What is the meaning of life?", and ends up telling another guru some porky-pies about seeing a vision of Australia in the guru's hand. The local who introduced him was insulted that he should lie, and John looked awkward backpedaling the way he did.
Attempting to excite religious experience in himself or others is one thing, but outright lying makes John seem like a slippery customer, rather than the religious leaders he is toying with.
Saffran eventually links up with the President of India's Rationalist Society, who, like the priest in Sicily, is a much more mature individual than John. Indeed, he uses John's "white skin"
in an expose of street magicians, snake charmers and pain devotees, much to the surprise of John but the amusement of the audience. Seeing Saffran get punctured through the cheek and burnt in the name of reason was an eye-opener, and he bore (no pun intended!) it with good grace.
Verdict: I enjoyed this episode of John Saffran vs God, patchy though it was. To me, Saffran comes across as a shallow experientialist looking for a cheap shot and a gag or two, but on the way he uncovers some profound prejudices and truths, not only within himself, but especially amongst the people he meets. The average perosn's religious sensibilities are profound
enough without us needing John to wipe our noses in it. Nevertheless, definitely worth a second look.
Hyde Park Homosexuals
I recently had the opportunity to visit historic Hyde Park Barracks in
Sydney. Amongst other uses, the Barracks was used to quarter convicts, and
part of the upper storey has been remodelled after the original manner.
Enormous windowless brick-walled rooms filled with row upon row of hammocks
swing silently in the near darkness of day time. You can only imagine what
it was like at night. Great depravities were perpetuted there. Some points
of historical note:
1. The colonial military authorities had great difficulty supervising the
convicts at night, as reliable watchmen could not be found, and the convicts
were untrustworthy so as not to be able to be relied upon to keep a vigilant
watch on the nocturnal habits on the inmates. Peep holes were installed but
to little avail.
2. One convict, who was blind, thanked God every day that he was so, as he
did not have to be a witness to the great horrors which occurred there.
3. Only "gentleman" convicts were so offended by what was going on; the
majority saw no problem with their behvaiour.
4. Convict boys as young as 16 and 17 were preyed upon by older men for
homosexual favours and rapes.
Yes, all four of these points refer to the homosexual practices of the
inmates. It's amazing what survives the test of time, doesn't it?
Monday, September 27, 2004
Bomb Scare in Brisbane CBD
A friend of mine had a bomb scare outside his building in Brisbane - the Commonwealth centre - and he doesn't think it was a hoax. It was apparently set to go off at 5:01pm and catch the workers leaving the building. Someone noticed the suspicious package and contacted security. The police attended and cordoned off Adelaide and Creek Streets, then once it was investigated
that locked down the entrance/exits on that side of the building. He tells me he got out the train station side so it was not an impediment to him. Apparently, it was discovered not long before 5pm. No mention of it was made on the news at 6pm. Bomb scares aren't that unusual because the building has several (Australian) Federal Govt organisations resident that rile people eg Child Support, ATO, Centrelink. His IT manager was the one came in and said it was genuine, but he doesn't have anymore info than that at the moment. Hopefully we will hear some real info tomorrow when the Security Manager reports on the incident. If you were one of the hundreds of people inconvenienced by the closed off CBD streets, you know now why.
Tolerance
Just re-watched "Goldmember" recently. Best quote (from Michael Cain, of
course!):
"Goldmember! There are only two types of people that I hate: People who are
intolerant of other people's culture, and the Dutch."
Just about says it all, really.
Sunday, September 26, 2004
We Know More Than Our Pastors
We Know More Than Our Pastors: Why Bloggers Are the Vanguard of the Participatory Church
By Tim Bednar
Here
Yet to read + critique. Will update shortly. But sounds like more blogger hype. "Blogger Saves the World" etc etc
100 bizarre worship tricks
Well, something that I have been grappling with for many years but doesn't seem to be a problem for some is how to properly "do" worship. Accordingly, here is a list of 100 bizarre (to my pre-modern mind) worship "special effects" for the postmodern age... (from Jonny Baker, of course)
http://jonnybaker.blogs.com/jonnybaker/text/worshiptricks.html
And I like the fact that he has called them tricks. he knows EXACTLY what they are. More smells and bells. Postmodern Christian listgroup, here we go again...
Saturday, September 25, 2004
Social Justice Stuff
What does Nelson Mandela, failed leader of a failed African state, have to say about that?
http://www.overcomingviolence.org/peace2004
One Big Whopper
Visit http://www.onebigvillage.com.au/onebigvillage/
QUOTE:
It'’s amazing, but true. A child will be born today who you'll never meet.
But something you do, or don'’t do, today will change the course of their life.
UNQUOTE
This is pure unadulterated hype. Why put the mockers onto the everyday punter, when it's really the big multinational corporations in bed with corrupt third-world governments that's REALLY doing all the harm. Who are you trying to dupe? Shame on World Vision for supporting such nonsense.
Ellen DeGener(ate) to Play God(dess)
More Cameron forwards....
COMEDIAN Ellen DeGeneres is getting a promotion - to supreme being.
DeGeneres will star as God in a remake of the 1977 comedy "Oh, God!".
The original starred George Burns as the creator and John Denver as a supermarket manager tapped as a new prophet.
"Ellen is a strong comedian and she has always done material about God and questions about God," said Jerry Weintraub, who produced the original movie and also will oversee the remake.
Weintraub said he would hire a screenwriter and director with the aim to shoot the movie during a break in DeGeneres' schedule from her talk show next summer.
From: The Herald Sun, your daily dose of tabloid trivia!
I wonder what the comparison would be between an octogenarian Eastern European Jew formerly known as Nathan Birnbaum?
Seventeen magazine, the girls' fashion bible, gets religion
NEW YORK -- Faiza worships five times a day, while Rhianna is as likely to believe in God as in the Easter Bunny. Kristin prays too, but to the God and the Goddess.
This teenage religion debate can be found on the pages of a magazine better known for explaining how to match lipstick to blush -- not exploring the concept of a higher power.
But under editor in chief Atoosa Rubenstein, the girlsÂ’ publication Seventeen has added a faith section that includes inspirational messages, personal stories of spiritual struggle and testimonials on such issues as prayer and gay teens who attend church.
The content is serious. Verses from the New Testament are printed beside sayings from the Prophet Muhammad. The teachings of Pope John Paul II and the Dalai Lama are also featured.
On the Net: Seventeen: http://www.seventeen.com/
Friday, September 17, 2004
Palestinian Family Terror
Nice article from your ABC making contact with terrorists - now, will they pass on their infor to the aprropriate authorities or maintain their journalistic "integrity" and pave the way for more innocent deaths?
In an exclusive interview with AM, members of the Qawasmeh family say
Israel will never crack the secretive family cell.Mark Willacy reports from Hebron.
http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2004/s1200255.htm
Scattered in the dust and rubble of Abdul Qawasmeh's home are family photographs from happier times. And stuck proudly on a wall which survived the Israeli army demolition is a large photo of youngest son Ahmed. But it's not a family snap from times gone by, but rather a so-called martyrs poster printed last week. "I'm going to be honest with you, what my son did was right," Abdul Qawasmeh tells me.Two weeks ago Ahmed Qawasmeh hopped on a bus in the Israeli city of Beer Sheva and detonated a suicide bomb belt. Within moments a second Palestinian man blew himself up on another bus just a few hundred metres away. Sixteen people were killed, among them a three-year-old boy. Ahmed Qawasmeh was the fifth member of his Hebron-based family to become a suicide bomber.
Note the terminology:
1. family cell
2. martyrs poster
3. suicide bomb belt
3. suicide bomber
Let's change that:
1. TERRORIST cell
2. TERRORIST poster
3. TERRORIST bomb belt
4. TERRORIST bomber
Doesn't sound much like family tragedy any more, does it Mark? Let's hope Mr Qawasmeh runs out of relatives real soon.
Tuesday, September 14, 2004
Aussie Hostages in Iraq
From the ABC's AM Program interview with Michael Rubin, who finished a stint in July this year as an adviser to the Coalition Provisional Authority in Baghdad:
On who is behind it:
"...but there's so many groups they're a dime a dozen and they always tend to shift."
On how Iraqis feel about it:
"It sounds more like an al-Qaeda linked group. Iraqis may be nationalistic, but many of the Iraqis when you read the Iraqi newspapers and such frown on such things as kidnapping, because they feel that it gives a) Iraqis and b) Muslims a bad name."
On why it has happened:
"That said, unfortunately I think Australia's in this position today largely because the Philippine Government and the Spanish Government previously caved in to such blackmail."
On who is helping the terrorists at home:
"Most certainly the Australian election is relevant to this issue. The insurgents tend to be remarkably politically sophisticated. Remember that those home networks, I wouldn't be surprised if people in Australia were emailing some of the insurgents, basically describing the Australian political situation and try to determine how to best affect it."
So, according to the expert, we have an obscure Islamic Miltant Group with links to Al-Quaeda, not Iraqi nationalist terrorists but Islamic religious terrorists, kidnapping Australians in the hope of influencing Australia's foreign policy, because it has been shown to work as the Spanish and Phillipinos have already caved in, being aided in some way by locals here in Australia.
Therefore we have terrorist sympathisers in Australia, quite happy to assist Islamic terrorists who kidnap people in order to achive their political ends. Who are these people? Where do they come from? Where do they live? And why do they hate our government and way of life so much?
This is a poor advertisement for Islamic Australians. Where are the voices from the Australian Islamic Community decrying hostage taking and armed militancy? Why is there such a great silence? Imams of Australia, speak up! Distance yourself from these groups who would hold Australia, your country, to ransom. Join your Iraqi brethren in condemning such acts of terrorism.
Monday, September 13, 2004
Patriotic posters with a twist
From Adam...
Hi All
I get a newsletter from Whitehouse.org, which is a parody version of the Official White House website and damn funny too. They have a poster page that doesn't pull any punches and probably more factual than any of the crap from the real White House.
http://www.whitehouse.org/initiatives/posters/index.asp
...very funny, effective anti-propaganda.
Haroon Siddiqui on Beslan
In the interest of balance, I have found some material by Haroon Siddiqui , well-known columnist at the Toronto Star, commenting on the Beslan massacre of the innocents:
"Commentary on the Beslan tragedy fell into two camps, attributing the terrorism either to the so-called Islamic culture of death or to Russian brutality in Chechnya...."
He goes on to explain this first point of view (Islamic culture of death) , and then turns to the second (Russian brutality in Chechnya):
"The contary view .... justifies the killing of innocent civilians. The thinking is found not only among some militants but also their backers among Muslims."
Siddiqui then goes on to list the Russians heavy-handed apparoch in Chechnya and compares this with Bush and Sharon.
If I read this quote right, it is OK to kill other people's children if they have killed yours first. Revenge is the way to go. So there is support for the Chechyan terrorist who said at the school,
"The Russians killed 20 of my children and now I am going to kill you."
Haroon Siddiqui is not just explaining their evil motivations. He is justifying them to a world that weeps.
Sunday, September 12, 2004
Pray for Justice
The horror of the Beslan school massacre has the world feeling angry but impotent about the spectre of terrorism, writes Ruth Limkin.
Helicopter Crash Kills Aussie Bishop
An Australian Greek Orthodox bishop was killed alongside the spiritual leader of African Greek Orthodox Christians in a helicopter crash that killed 16 off the coast of northern Greece on Saturday.
Bishop Nectarios was a bank manager before being ordained a priest-monk and serving at the St Nectarios Monastery in Adelaide....He was the head of the church's operations in Madagascar, Mauritius and Reunion - which was part of the Alexandrian church before becoming its own diocese in 1997.
Peter VII, the 55-year-old Alexandrian Patriarch, was greatly respected for his work on improving Orthodox relations with the Coptic and Roman Catholic churches, as well as his humanitarian work in Africa.
Saturday, September 11, 2004
Mark Steyn on Beslan
PWEI
Some interesting discussion on the youthmultimedia list.
Let's put two and two together, shall we?
Link to Red Simons camping up a few soundbites from the PM. Who do YOU trust?
Link to Fairfax article (SMH) postulating pop culture constant pumping out content.
Quotes:
It's not just music - the whole world is in a rush..... Politicians communicate in shorter and shorter sound bites.
Accelerated culture, says Schwartz, also throws up more global issues: "The age of uncertainty and this all-incessant change is actually tied up with fear ... you know.... politicians are all crooks...."
And "clever" has-been comedians try and distill a complex political issue into a few sound bites played over and over again. Imagine the words of JFK or Martin Luthor King being boiled down with this treatment. It trivialises the issue to absurdity, adds nothing to public debate, and dumbs down discussion to a few power point friendly dot points.
And it's been done before. Never heard of Pauline Pantsdown?
Friday, September 10, 2004
World 'wants Kerry as president'
From the BBC:
World 'wants Kerry as president'
A new poll in 35 countries suggests that people around the world would prefer Democratic challenger John Kerry as US president over George W Bush."Kerry would win handily if the people of the world were to elect the US president"
Steven Kull, Maryland University
Steven Kull, brilliant stuff. That's why we call them "soverign democracies". George Bush is NOT the WORLD'S president, he is the President of the United States. Only. How would the Norwegians (74% Kerry, 7% Bush) feel is the same question were asked of Americans if they preferred Kjell Magne Bondevik or Kristin Halvorsen as Prime Minister? The answer would be very telling. Who?
How about this? FatherMcKenzie readers, vote now! Who do you want to see elected Prime Minister of Norway? Results soon...
Monday, September 06, 2004
Lucasfilm sequels...
From John:
I guess the problem with repeated sequels to a grand 'space opera' movie like 'Star Wars' is that the 'gee whizz' magic gradually wears thinner and thinner with each instalment, and audiences become more aware of plot holes and characterisation flaws.
Although, I must admit that 'Star Wars' sequels in the tradition of various s.f. Grand Masters would lack something. Just imagine.....
'Jedi of Dune' by Frank Herbert - Where Luke conquers the Empire with an Army of Religious Zealot Sandpeople and sets up a regime worse than Palpatine and Vader's. Most of the Rebels are executed for 'heresy' and the whole thing is somehow justified by evolutionary imperatives known only to a mysterious sisterhood.
'Foundation and Empire Strike Back'- Luke, seeing through Obi-Wan and Yoda's meaningless explanations, discovers a means by which the Force is able to be technologically detected and blocked and finds true happiness as a scientist. Princess Leia formulates the laws of psychohistory and has a long, didactic conversation with Han Solo, who goes on to cause the Empire to self-destruct using clever trade tactics.Little do our heroes suspect that R2-D2 and C-3PO (who are actually ancient telepathic robots, R. Daneel and Giskard) are the real reason for all rebel victories, patiently and benignly shepherding the Galaxy whilst pretending to be mechanical comedians.
'Star Wars Scream with Blood on Harlequin's Birthday' by Harlan Ellison - Luke and Darth Vader turn on the Emperor, killing him and setting up the Utopia Meditative Co-operative, where Puppies live in people's scio-skins. Chewbacca eats Han and Leia. C-3PO and R2-D2 take over a Sandcrawler and torture the Jawas inside in a variety of hideous ways.
And that's not to mention 'Lord Vader's Castle' by Robert Silverberg, 'The Hitch-hiker's Guide to Endor' by Douglas Adams and 'Clone Supermen are our Superiors' by Robert Heinlein.
The Bourne Supremacy
"They should have left him alone" - Yes, indeed.
Not going to waste much time reviewing it. Go to http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/bourne_supremacy/ if you want more detail. Suffice to say I did not like it. Here's 12 reasons if you want a justification:
1. hand held camera shaking made me nauseous
2. let's just zoom RIGHT UP into the face of the actors, shall we? ALL THE TIME
3. micro-second establishing shots
4. too many jump cuts (yuck!)
5. long, repetitive and boring car chase sequences
6. where does he get all those spy gadgets from if he's "out"of the agency?
7. he is a killer and seeks "redemption" - but he doesn't even say sorry! (see it to know what I mean - but don't see it, if you know what I mean)
8. he recklessly endangers the lives of innocents and police simply going about their job, yet is too noble to personally kill the real baddies - he simply allows them to die. Good old Lion King morality again.
9. nice to know the Italians, the Germans and the Russians all jump to the tune of the CIA
10. now that the cold war is over, the baddies are just criminals and their motivation is money, unlike the real world where the baddies are fanatics and their motivation is ideology
11. complete lack of meaningful dialogue
12. too tight a focus during action and fight scenes - said to be a director's fall back when detailed choreography and stunt work is too time-consuming. Just zoom in and let the audience imagine the rest. Think of it like watching the 100m Olympic final as a blur of wrists, shoulders and shins.
Messages from Heaven
Messages from Heaven
Discovered this on a google browse in search of the phrase "at the heart of every good movie is a redemption story". Hmm.
A biblical examination of the apparitions of the Virgin Mary and other supernatural activity, on the rise throughout the world. Does the Bible anticipate apparitions, signs and wonders in the last days? Does the Word of God reveal the origin of these phenomena? This unique video exposes dangerous deceptions.
AND there's also a quiz on the site: Do you think like a Protestant or Catholic?
I am an 8 out of 10 Protestant. Or semantically challenged.
The top 20 things that suck about the new Star Wars Trilogy
The top 20 things that suck about the new Star Wars Trilogy
Title says it all really. Though I think we could do better. I mean, George is making a fortune here. We should be able to cane him a little harder.
Saturday, September 04, 2004
"Best of the Christian Press 2003."
Website MethodX gets "Best of the Christian Press 2003" award from The Associated Church Press.
And yes, the website [formerly "wesbite"] has the obligatory "Spiritual Types Test".
I thought I would come out as a "Padawan"
but . . .
I am a SAGE. Yess - to be a Jedi at last!
Now I am the MASTER.
(you can be a Sage Prophet Lover Mystic )
(Lover???)
Friday, September 03, 2004
On fire for baptism
Ireland's first floating church, operated [formerly "opearted"] by faith-healing Tridentine Catholic bishop, Michael Cox, burst into flames today, then exploded and sank minutes after a rescue helicopter winched its three crew members to safety.
A despondent Cox, 58, said he had a vision of "going around the coast
with her, and challenging any abortion ships that might come into the area, and
fighting evil."
Back to the drawing board, Bishop.
Church pins hopes on chocolate
See Church pins hopes on chocolate for a desperate take on getting pews warm. What annoys me is not these initiatives, asinine as they may be, but newspapers gleefully predicted the decline of the Church, as such prophesied rates, there will be negative millions attending Church nevery Sunday within the next 10 years.
Such prognostacations are a bit like the paperless office. An intriguing theory, but one that will never come to pass.
Thursday, September 02, 2004
Brother Harry Smuggles Gospel
"It's a story that resonates with the Great Story for which we are all designed ... Harry is a Christian hero parents can joyfully share with their families," Granger enthused. " J.K. Rowling's books are filled to the brim with Christian themes, imagery, virtues and meaning, implicit and almost explicit, and this is the reason, oddly enough, that the books are so popular. The human heart longs for experience of the Christian message, even imaginative experience, and Harry Potter ‘smuggles the Gospel' better than anyone!"
Vatican returns Contested Icon to Russia
Vatican returns Contested Icon to Russia
Link from Mark Shea
Notes by Tom:
(1) This is a parody. It is not a real news item.
(2) The guy who wrote, the "Curt Jester", it is Catholic (even according to the Scott-ist definition).
(3) He is not having fun at the Pope's expense.
(4) Therefore it is intrinsically licit (licitum intrinsece) to read this, and even laugh at it, if you find it funny (as I did).
(5) But you really need to see the pictures to enjoy it fully.
(6)
Arnold, The Presarian
Who would have thought it possible? An interesting (and well-documented) insight into the Governators rise and rise from Austrain obscuredom to possibly the most powerful man in the world. . . the stages in the regress to barbarianism.
http://www.evangelicaloutpost.com/archives/000837.html
Beats being Auric of Gelderland from Lichtenstein anyday.
Wednesday, September 01, 2004
Sophie's Choice
Recently I have been listening to Phil Jenson's Sermon series on "The Cross". He was describing Jesus' response to his approaching execution as an intense emotional struggle. A similarity with the death of Socrates is drawn in the book Sophie's World. However, Phil contrasts the true passion of Jesus, as he approaches what he knows to be the real truth about death, with the cool, rational response of Socrates, who himself said, "Whether to live is better than to die - who knows?". In reading Sophie's World for myself, I came across another interesting Socratic approach to the problem of knowing - the answer is actually inside everyone, but it just needs to be teased out.
The Christian church's engagement with society through popular culture is similar - we believe that we need to "connect" with the masses, so we use popular culture (films, TV, music) with the intention of making the link from The Matrix to the good news. But the approach in my experience is essentially Socratic. It assumes that Christ-consciousness is "inside" the hearer, "inside" popular culture, and we just need to lead them to that insight. "Really, you've been Christian all along - although you thought you were just a U2 fan".
In reality the converse is true. Such an approach needs to be turned on its head. The gospel breaks through into your domain from the outside - it is not an insight that you "realize" by drawing on your popular culture "experience" - it is the direct experience of God by you.
'Brevissimae bracae' is Latin for hotpants
From The Age:
But he acknowledged that the translation for hotpants was particularly admirable. "Bracae is a good classical word for trousers and brevissimae means very short," he said. "I'd have to agree with them on that one."
But what's Latin for weblog?
"Almost Famous"
"Rachel Jordan", call your office. This excerpt is from 'Almost Famous: The "celebrities" who love the GOP', by Rob Long, at Slate.com:
Even for me, an ultra-loyal Republican, the two creepiest words in the English language are "Christian rock".I've listened to my fair share of it, too -- long drive across the country; busted iPod -- and there's something so weird about it. It sounds like regular bad music when you first tune in. The lyrics always seem like regular bad music lyrics, too -- "I feel your body next to mine/ And that makes my whole life shine" -- but after a second or two you realize that they're singing about Jesus, not some girl named Mandy, and the whole thing just seems, well, creepy. Because rock music -- and most other forms of entertainment, when you really think about it -- is fundamentally about carnal desire. And Jesus, when you really think about it, is fundamentally not.
Which is all a long way of saying that I don't think I'm going to enjoy the "entertainment" portion of the Republican National Convention. It won't all be Christian rock, of course. According to the most recent RNC press release, conventioneers will be treated to country music acts such as Brooks & Dunn, Lee Ann Womack, Darryl Worley, and Donnie McClurkin. They'll be joining Michael W Smith, Daniel Rodriguez, Daize Shayne, Sara Evans, and Dana Glover on the podium. Sounds exciting, no? I'm aware that I'm going to sound like one of those liberal Democrat media snobs -- which is unfair, because I'm a conservative Republican media snob -- but who are these people? I live in Venice, California, so I happen to know who Daize Shayne is -- Google her yourself, if you're interested -- but most of the other names are drawing big blanks.There are rumors, of course, that Britney Spears is a closet Bushie -- which might be true; she's from Louisiana, right? -- and we've all seen Ted Nugent's Republican spiel. But the sad truth is, the real difference between Democrats and Republicans is that their celebrities are, like, actually famous and ours are, well, singing weirdly erotic songs about Our Savior. [...]
There's at least one very crass pun waiting in that excerpt, but you'll have to work it our for yourselves since I'm not going to stoop to that level.
More on Catholics in Crisis
I have read both the St Matthias Briefing's "Catholics in Crisis" article and the book A Long Way From Rome that it reviews. The book is disappointing from an evangelical perspective. A collection of ageing baby-boomers who want to liberalise Catholicism, and occasionally try to appropriate analogies from Protestantism to do so (the usual suspects: "a new Reformation", Luther nailing his theses to the church door, etc). The Catholic liberals make the same mistakes as the traditionalists: they assume that Protestantism is more liberal than Catholicism. This is true in precisely two (2) areas: if you are a clergyman who wants to marry, and if you are a married couple who want to use contraception. (And even in these areas, Catholicism allows ex-Protestant ministers to stay married even after being re-ordained as Catholic priests, and markets timed-abstinence methods of birth control as being more reliable than pills and condoms). In just about every other theological area, the adherents of sola Scriptura either agree with the Pope (eg, on homosexuality) or are stricter (eg, on whether God permits Christians to pray to saints or to pray alongside Muslims).
The Briefing review I found a bit fluffy, and light on analysis of the book. The most interesting part was the note at the end -- that the author "became a Christian at the age of 19 and was a member of the Roman Catholic Church for 29 years". Unless Jensenism now encompasses some Mormon-type belief in the pre-existence of spirit babies up to a decade prior to conception, I take this as evidence against the often-raised charge that the Sydney Anglicans around the Carlingford Vatican regard [all] Catholics as "non-Christians".
Monday, August 30, 2004
CATHOLICS IN CRISIS
Just in from Matthias Media (actually a little while ago as i haven't opend the e-mail until just now) - article on CATHOLICS IN CRISIS of interest in the free edition of this month's Briefing
UPDATE:
This is actually a review of A Long Way From Rome: Why The Australian Catholic Church Is In Crisis, Chris McGillion (ed)
As an ex-Catholic with deep concerns for my friends and family who are still in the Catholic Church, I read this book wanting to find a glilmmer of hope for them within its pages. I was disappointed.
Download the August copy of St Matthias Briefing - free! (1.4mb, pdf format)
Visit now
Sunday, August 29, 2004
HMAS BALLARAT
Recently i had the opportunity to visit HMAS Ballarat the latest ANZAC-class frigate in the Australian Navy. Very nice, but just a little too squeezy for my liking. The last time I was on a Naval vessel was in 1992 on the HMAS Brisbane. The Brisbane is now being prepared to be sunk as a diving wreck off the coast of Queensland. Ironically, at the time of my recent visit, HMAS Brisbane was moored alongside HMAS Ballarat - the old with the new. Quite a contrast.
Friday, August 27, 2004
Caroline Cox
Recently I had the opportunity to hear Baroness Caroline Cox speak at a local gathering about her work with Christian Solidarity Worldwide (an interview with her on ABC's Religion Report can be found here).
I spoke with her briefly after the event, mentioning that I had looked her up on the internet before coming, to which she responded that there were a number of unfavorable things said about her by the Sudanese Government. I re-read these for myself, and after hearing her speak for myself and meeting her personally (albeit briefly), she didn't really strike me as the kind of person described in AboutSudan.com - she is put in the same boat as the CIA! About Sudan.com is affliliated with some paranoid totalitarian mob called "Executive Intelligence Review" and boast that all monies collected beyond operating costs goes to "charities" (and after September 11, we all know what that means, don't we?).
A quote from their site gives it all up:
But, just as the Lady is, indeed, no lady, so the CSI is anything but
Christian. Beneath the veneer of humanitarian concern for the oppressed, is one
of the most important tools of British Intelligence. Its actual function, as the
documented record shows, is to implement a policy dubbed the "Clash of
Civilizations" by another operative of British Intelligence, Bernard Lewis, and
popularized by yet another of their stripe, Samuel Huntington. Through political
operations, which often include intelligence and military activities, CSI has
been in the forefront of efforts to foment conflict between Christians and
non-Christians, most specifically, Muslims. The war in Sudan is a case in point,
and perhaps a showcase of CSI methods.
No punches are pulled here. Obviously, some Sudanese sympathisers don't like anything Bristish very much, as they were the former colonial power in the region. I suppose they might feel the same about Australia. Old Aussie had its say in that way back in the late 1800's when we sent a contingent to the Sudan, and we struck a medal and awarded it to veterans to commemorate it (along with our other pre-Federation forays to South Africa to put a stop to those damn Boers and to China to quell the Boxer Rebellion on behalf of Queen and Empire).
Who or what is driving this diatribe? Read more deeply into About Sudan.com, and come up with three countries with regularity - Iraq, Iran and - surprise surprise - Saudi Arabia, including the oil and construction firm of the Bin Laden's. What a nice place. And Caroline Cox is planning to go back, even though the Khartoum government had given her a "5-year sentence in absentia". She is hardly a spy - she is one brave woman. And if the current Sudanese government have anything to do with it, she is more like a potential martyr to the cause of human rights.
BTW I wrote to the government of Sudan to have a whinge about their human rights record using a letter supplied by Amnesty international (yes, AI think there's something rotten in Khartoum too). But the Sudanese Government aren't really up with the times, and don't really have great access to the WWW yet. The e-mail bounced (I sent it to the Canadian Embassy, as there is no Sudanese representation in Australia) but I have found what looks like a more reliable address and I will try again.
Thursday, August 26, 2004
LZXRAY
Interesting site I just browsed into. Having read the book and seen the movie "We were soldiers once and young", I was obviously attracted. Of especially interest is the opportunity to download some actual combat camera footage.
WRT the book / film - I read the book in order to understand the film better, as Col. Hal Moore in the DVD special features claimed this was "a soldier's movie - as it was".
Well, it must have been damn confusing, because the film didn't make a whole lot of sense at times! It was a Mel Gibson effort after all, so enthusiasm sometimes gets in the way of accuracy (witness The Passion), but I still was interested enough to explore further.
The film only tells half the story - after LZ XRay the yanks went onto to LZ Albany and got slaughtered in a classic ambush, and only superior firepower saved the day. This is left out of the film (as it would make it twice as long) but is probably the better lesson.
Reminds me of the battle of the Teutoburger Wald, inspiring the famous cry by Emperor Augustus, "Varus, give me back my legions"
(by the way the traitor was a turncoat general named "Arminius". Hmmm.)
NEW TEMPLATE
Been playing with the templates lately - like this one?
It mean all my polls, counters, gifs, jpegs etc dies away, but it should make the site easier to laod - and easier to change!
Now, if i can only fill it with worthwhile content. Hmm...
Wednesday, August 18, 2004
EXTREME IRONING
Visit http://www.extremeironing.com/
It's sport, it's extreme, it's... ironing!
Possibly the most bizarre extreme sport on Earth celebrates its first ever world championships next month.
Extreme Ironing devotees like nothing more than removing creases from their clothes halfway up cliffs, on top of mountains or in busy city streets. Its creator Phil Shaw, of Leicester, says it "combines the thrill of an extreme sport with the satisfaction of a well-pressed shirt".
From http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/2176024.stm
Googles' cached article about Australian enthusiasts from The Age here
Australia Chapter at http://www.extremeironingoz.com/
Sunday, August 15, 2004
THERE'S PANDEMONIUM HERE... EXTRAORDINARY EMOTIONAL SCENES
YES!!! There's nothing like vindication - better than revenge! Ian Thorpe WINS Olympic Gold in the Men's 400m final.
For all those knockers out there who now stand up and say, "I knew he could do it" let me say I WAS WITH HIM ALL ALONG!!!
Where were YOU in the hard times, in the dark times, in the times when Australia turned its back and said , "Shame"?
NOWHERE then, and NOWHERE now.
Read it and weep.
Friday, August 13, 2004
WIENERS AND NUT JOBS NEED NOT APPLY
Check out the CNN article - why do the lawyers get to have all the fun?
...The flash animation movie swirling around the Internet with President George Bush and Senator John Kerry singing to the tune of Woody Guthrie's "This Land Is Your Land."
Bush: "You're a liberal sissy!"
Kerry: "You're a right wing nut job!"
Both: "This land will surely vote for me!"
The bit is hilarious. Unless you are The Richmond Organization, a music publisher that owns the copyright to Guthrie's tune through its Ludlow Music unit.
"This puts a completely different spin on the song," said Kathryn Ostien, director of copyright licensing for the publisher. "The damage to the song is huge."
Visit http://www.jibjab.com to see what I mean. And yes it is funny. But by describing Bush as an idiot with no brain who likes to war monger, the song does more for Bush than Michael Moore could ever hope to damage him with those same words. Americans seem to like a President who is, like their popular culture, sports and approach to foreign policy, a no-brainer.
Thursday, August 12, 2004
FAR-FETCHED-HYPE 9/11
Ok, I have now seen the globally renowned flick "Fahrenheit 9/11" and now feel qualified to add my two cents to the equation.
I suppose I shall muse on this more, but my initial impressions upon leaving the cinema were:
1. Americans are stupid, dumb, thick, ignorant - does MM really hate his own countrymen that much? And are two little old ladies in a nursing home really qualified to speak with any authority on anything except whether dinner should be at 4 o'clock or 4:30?
2. Americans are fat - really fat. Unless you are a Marine. But even one of those recruiter guys was pretty portly. Even the politicians are fat, stupid or both (but not neither).
3. No so much that hundreds if not thousands of innocent Iraqi civilians were killed, but that Americans debased themselves by killing them "immorally"
4. Very "lite-on" about Weapons of Mass Destruction
5. ONE image / mention of Bush-poodle Tony Blair, and none of Bush-lap-dog John Howard. C'mon, didn't we make a bigger impression than that? Some stock B & W footage of a man boxing a kangaroo is not enough. If Australia is not important enough to feature more prominently in a Michael Moroe documentary, we should withdraw from Iraq, the UN and ANZUS immediately!
6. America is one big weird messed-up place
7. Michael Moore has an uncontrolled bias - not towards the Democrats or against Republicans per se, but towards the little guy, the small man, the mom and pop store, small town America, all those other cliches. If you are small, you are good. If you are big, you are bad. Well, how about YOU Michael?
8. Iraqi grandmothers would kill you as soon as look at you if they had a smoking AK-47 to hand and you were an unarmed American
9. The number of tenuous links you can make between the President of the United States of America and Terrorists is equal to, but not greater than, the connection between you and anyone else on the planet (aka "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon")
10. When government is run like a business, business ends up running government.
Saturday, August 07, 2004
GADZOOKS! IT"S KAZOOK!
From Star Wars .com
In developing the look of Kashyyyk, the Art Department first turned to the much-maligned 1978 television special to see what had come before. "We watched that on a loop about four or five times, avoided suicide, and went back to work," laughs Church. Though produced on a variety show scale, the Holiday Special's Wookiee world (then called Kazhyyyk -- pronounced, oddly, as 'Kazook') did have an establishing shot of a Wookiee domicile rendered as a painting by Ralph McQuarrie. The set built for the show -- the inside of Chewbacca's home -- was a mix of flashy sci-fi tech and carved-from-wood naturalism
Any one who has ever sat through the Star Wars holiday special will know what they mean. I only ever recall seeing about half of this way back in the late 1970's or early 1980's as a kid when it was shown on TV. My vague recollection also includes a comic book style cartoon starring Boba Fett and that Chewie had a family and lived up in the treetops. A lot like Ewoks on steriods. For a crack-up review see http://www.stomptokyo.com/movies/star-wars-holiday-special.html
Tuesday, August 03, 2004
STAND-UP, STAND-UP FOR JESUS... Interesting piece in The New Yorker about "edgy" Christian comedian Brad Stine:
"He aimed most of his barbs at liberals and unbelievers, but Christians took flak, too. He did an impression of a Protestant, whining, “Satan made me lose my job!” (“No—your incompetence made you lose your job!”), and made fun of churches that organize “Harry Potter” book burnings (“Here’s a good rule of thumb: If Hitler tried it—maybe go the other way”)."
If you count Mark Steyn as a Christian -- which he apparently is, even though his columns are light on the God talk -- that makes two.
Monday, August 02, 2004
THE RIDICULES OF CHRONIC...
To answer my co-blogger's question, I saw Chronicles of Riddick on the weekend. Verdict: 7 out of 10. Imagine, say, if Stargate (the 1995 movie) had been filmed by Tim Burton, and you've got the general idea. Like Stargate itself, not awful, in many areas quite intriguing and thought-provoking, but could overall have been done better. Also bits of Starship Troopers, Judge Dredd and, indeed, most of the other not-awful-but-also-sub-LotR/ Gladiator level science fiction/ fantasy/ sword-n-sandals stuff served up over the past 12 years (ie, since film spec-fi reached its absolute nadir in 1992 [*])... And also very large chunks of Alien-3 (and Alien Resurrection). Not surprising, seeing as David Twohy scripted both. Stephen King once told an interviewer that, if he were a "serious" author, the critics would rave that "King is now re-visiting themes that are integral to his work". But since he was Stephen King, all they'd write was "King is starting to eat himself".
The most interesting element (excuse pun) of Riddick is its bad guys -- a Nazified warrior death-cult called the Necromongers, who sweep across the galaxy on a jihad crusade to convert or kill entire worlds' populations. These guys are about six-tenths the Borg, three-tenths the Harkonnens and/or the Sardaukar from David Lynch's 1984 "Hmm, melange pie" version of Dune, and the remaining one-tenth the aliens from Dark City.
The least interesting element of Riddick is what the producers, and I assume Vin Diesel (the film's star and driving force), seem to have considered the most interesting: the punch-ups and knife-fights. They go to the trouble of postulating an intriguing future interstellar civilisation, and an intriguing bunch of enemies whose alien religion and eldritch powers threaten it... but they don't pay it too much attention. In the end, Riddick wins because simply he's a tougher, meaner, head-kicking badass than even these death-cult super-Sardaukars who're in his way. He wins, basically, by dragging himself across a sun-scorched rockscape and by killing someone in a knife fight. He doesn't win by turning his enemies' powers and strengths against them [**]. The Necromongers might as well be Cylon Centurions or Spielbergian Nazis for all the difference they make to the plot.
Oh, and don't put too much stock in what mainstream film reviewers write about science fiction/ fantasy movies. I don't think I've ever seen one get a positive review from David Stratton or Evan Whitton (other than LotR of course). What the fans find interesting -- bizarre new ideas and exciting plots -- is a turn-off to mainstream reviewers who are more interested in the exploration of character (read: neurotic teenager lies on bed watching fan rotate for 25 minutes).
As Isaac Asimov once noted, SF can't afford to focus too much on character because that would detract from the changed world in the background: "Gulliver is an ordinary man and Alice is an ordinary girl. To have strange people in strange worlds would be one strangeness too many".
That's not to deny that written SF would benefit greatly from losing some of the pulpy cliches ("The twin suns rose early that morning. They shone hotly upon the towers of the planet of Cesarion Prime, which had just been conquered by the Zargvorod Imperion. Faulchok watched the suns rise with barely concealed anger in his three eyes. He hated the Zargvorods because they had killed his father three years before...") so beloved by its more successful practitioners. But as writers as diverse as CS Lewis and Philip Pullman have shown (now there's two names I never thought I'd use in the same list), it's entirely possible to competently depict the characters in the foreground while focusing primarily on the big vistas of the universe in the background.
[*] 1992: Freejack. The Lawnmower Man. Highlander II: The Quickening. And Alien 3. The prosecution rests.
[**] Unlike, say, the much-maligned Last Trek, Nemesis, where (warning: spoilers) it was Shinzon's earlier use of his telepathic powers to mind-peep on Deanna Troi that later allows Picard to locate and strike his cloaked starship.
Sunday, August 01, 2004
CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK (OR "BATTLEFIELD EARTH 2")
I have not seen this movie but I am now very intrigued and keen to do so after watching David Stratton review it on ABC's "At The Movies".
DAVID: ... I sat there through, what, nearly two hours of this being utterly bemused by how incomprehensible it is. Partly because it's so dark.....You want to shine a torch on it to see what on earth is going on. But I think this is a worthy successor. Not so much to 'Pitch Black'.... more like 'Battlefield Earth'.
MARGARET: Oh, dear.
Puny man-animals! What are you thinking? We will destroy you! Mwoa ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha harrr!
Friday, July 30, 2004
FIRST TOM CLANCY GHOST-WRITES GENERAL ANTHONY ZINNI'S BOOK SLAMMING BUSH... and now this. It's enough to put the US Republican Party off the name "Jack Ryan" for another generation.
Mr Ryan just withdrew as Republican Senate candidate for Illinois (against a Democrat opponent, Barack Obama, who's now the Tiger Woods of US politics, [*] notwithstanding that his name is easily mixed up not only with you-know-who but also with Amiri Baraka, the looney left State Poet of New Jersey). Mr Ryan crashed and burned after a scandal that erupted when a newspaper demanded and got access to sealed court records of his divorce from his ex-wife -- Jeri Ryan née Zimmerman, perhaps better known to our average reader as the actrice who played "Seven of Nine" in Star Trek: Voyager. In her divorce papers, Ms Zimmerman accused her ex-husband of pressuring her to boldly go where she had not gone before, and of believing (incorrectly, it turns out) that her resistance would prove futile. However, neither side wanted these he-said, she-said allegations made public, for obvious reasons (they have a young son). The divorce court agreed, but a later judge sided with the newspaper's claim that the public interest in knowing the moral fibre of one's future Senator outweighed the right to privacy.
Herewith the state of the right to privacy under US law: it guarantees your right to run an abortion clinic on main street, and to demand that Right to Lifers not show photographs of aborted foetuses anywhere nearby. But it does not mean that you and your ex-spouse can agree, by mutual consent, to keep your marital dirty laundry (so to speak) un-aired in public.
[*] Correction: Obama is not the Tiger Woods of US politics.
Thursday, July 29, 2004
MICHAEL MOORE PLAGIARIST
How could you sink so low, Michael? A stunt that is beneath even John Pilger! Ripping off another artiste's work - and an Aussie to boot! Why do you hate us?
QUOTE:
Moore took Aussie clips for hit filmJuly 27, 2004
AUSTRALIAN artist and filmmaker George Gittoes has objected to American Michael Moore's use of some of his work a controversial movie.Mr Gittoes said today Mr Moore had incorporated about 17 selections from his own documentary film Soundtrack to War into Fahrenheit 9/11.
They depicted American soldiers and their music in Iraq.
"Michael got access to my stuff and assumed that I would be happy for it to be in 9/11. I would actually have been quite happy for it not to be in 9/11."
"Mine's a better film. My film's balanced. I don't think there's a lot of balance in 9/11."
"When I finally discussed it face to face with Michael, I realised that no-one wants to be a spoiler. He's an artist and that's how he makes his work.
"He doesn't go out to Iraq like I do and dodge bullets. He makes it from mainly archival footage and the stuff that other people shoot."
UNQUOTE
REVENGE OF THE WHAT???
Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith - It occurred to me that Sith is an anagram of a far more sinister word - and would aptly desribe George's two most recent films to date. Let's hope the third stands on its own merits rather than, like an errant President, those of its parents. Not much effort to have fun with the advertised T-Shirt either
Wednesday, July 28, 2004
MICHAEL MOORE MUSINGS (1)
I have taken to numbering these posts as I wade through "Stupid White Men". Ultimately I may put them all together.
Two thoughts which have occurred to me:
1. Michael Moore has a blind faith in the American system, in which "every child could become President" etc. If this isn't the ruling classes distributing pulp ideologies to the masses, I don't know what is. To be the President of the USA you need to be at least a) rich and b) influential. Not many Americans fulfil these criteria, so Moore and the rest of his Yank think tank are dreaming.
2. He loves Orwell so much, he should add some new entries to the Newspeak lexicon: RepubliBAD, and DemoGOOD. He had similar blind, nieve optimism inthe Democrats as a poltical movement. Maybe not in specific personalities and practices, but as an ideology, it is very "Moore-ish".
Also, just found out recently on the ABC that Mrs Teresa "Heinz" Kerry is worth at least $US500 million, and that the potential First Gentleman and Mrs President have a house worth $10 million (see Slate.com).
How can Moore legimately look his audience in the eye about big business connections, wealth, conflicts of interst, fingers in pies etc when BOTH sides of US politics are in it up to their necks?
Puts a new spin on Samual Johnson's immortal words. Try: "I am willing to love all mankind - except an American politician"
For more seppo insults, try here (although there are way too many pop-ups for my liking!)
Tuesday, July 27, 2004
STUPID JIHAD AZKABAN
I am currently reading"Stupid White Men"by Michael Moore, at the same time as "Jihad" by Tom Carew and "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" by JK Rowling.
Don't be surprised if I wind up thinking some reactionary ex-British SAS leftie who studies magic in secret is on a one-man mission to broker a revolution between the world of the ordinary and the extrordinary.
Back to Moore - I have read his intro, his new intro and Chapter one, and what strikes me is ho whe really feels he is not only onto something big that the rest of us are too lame to switch on to, but also how he is up against it the "liitle big man", if I may. He really considers himself a prophet.
If anywhere near what he claims to be true is actually so, then why hasn't anything be done about it? Does anyone take this guy seriously or is he just a ranting, raving loonie? No surprises that the US gvernment is captive to corporate interests, but is George Bush Jr really a puppet president? Someone please give me the facts (and not the Micahel Moore facts, either).
I saw bowling for Columbine, which was interesting if not disjointed and incoherent (more like a pastiche of smaller pieces quickly nailed together without a strong unifying theme) and I'm keen to see that Fahrenheit movie (although I have heard it is quite "out there").
Why is Michael Moore such a phenomena? Does he represent an idea whose time has come, but with far too much smug self-righteousness and fact bending to be taken seriously? If so, he is allowing hubris to squander an opportunity most of us never see.
MORE ON RELIGIOUS AFFILIATIONS OF FICTIONAL CHARACTERS... No obviously Jewish characters in The Lord of the Rings, as far as I can tell, but otherwise they cover a wide theological spectrum:
ARAGORN is Plymouth Brethren, because he tells the Hobbits “My friends, you kneel to no-one”.
BOROMIR is Roman Catholic, because, when others are wary of the dangers of all creatures being in submission under the One who wears the Ring, he insists "It is a gift!"
DENETHOR is Pentecostal, because he pours oil upon Faramir and waits to catch the fire.
FRODO is Amish, because (a) he walks everywhere and (b) despite being begged, he adamantly refuses to give Bilbo a ring.
GALADRIEL is a megachurch Christian singer, because she says "All shall love me and despair".
GANDALF is Seventh-Day Adventist, because he talks about dragons and the end of the world. Or else's he's a Hyper-Calvinist, because he says "Many who live deserve death, and many who die deserve life".
GOLLUM is a High Church Anglican or an Old Catholic, because (a) he deeply desires to wear a gold ring, and (b) he refers to himself as "we" and "us" even though he has no followers.
MERRY is Baptist, because he says “I don’t think I’ll smoke ever again”.
PIPPIN is a Californian New Ager, because he exclaims in dreamy wonderment "The Eagles! The Eagles are here!"
SAMWISE is Hindu, because he addresses Frodo as “Mr Frodo”.
SARUMAN is an Episcopalian bishop, because he says "The world is changing".
TREEBEARD AND THE ENTS are Eastern Orthodox, because they deliberate for a very long time before reaching agreement that Hobbits are not Orcs.
UGLUK is Lutheran, because he says "Looks like meat's back on the menu, boys!"
ADDENDUM: And of course KING THÉODEN is a Puritan, because in the middle of a life-or-death battle he still wants his supporters to "Reform the line!"
To those who submitted variations on the suggestion that ÉOWYN would be a clergyman of [insert name of] denomination because she says "I am no man"... Charity, please, people. Charity.
Monday, July 26, 2004
PAGAN IDOLATRY
Has anyone actually seen the start up of the Olympic flame? Is this pagan idolatry or what? Check out the piccies here. By the way, some of those vestal "virgins" are looking pretty old, if you know what I mean.
Old chick
And what about that Olympic Oath? What's all that stuff there about the "glory of sport"? Please, aren't we over than humanistic-we-are the-champions guff yet? Hasn't a century full of wars taught us anything?
And the torch relay? If not invented then certainly perfected by the Nazis for the 1936 Olympics, no less. Jeese Owens, eat your heart out.
POLL RESULTS
The results are in. "Latest Poll" has gone on for abut 3 months now!
What college fraternity were those crazy Iraqi pranksters trying to gain admission to when they were caught on camera?
Votes
Phi Beta Qua'eda 27%
Semper Fi 9%
Taliban Sorority Sisters 18%
The Skulls 9%
Leo's Legends, UQ 27%
The Inklings 0%
Animal House 9%
Readers are encouraged to draw their own conclusions about the validity of this poll.
SPACE SHUTTLE NAMES
I was musing the other day (as one does) on the names of the Space Shuttles and realised that there is a hidden alphabetical sequence to their names! Conside the following;
A = Atlantis
B = ???
C = Challenger, Columbia
D = Discovery
E = Endeavour, Enterprise (Originally designated "Constitution")
and on the Space Shuttle Word Search (!) I found a "Pathfinder" (actually only a mock-up of the real thing). Obvious name really when you think about it.
But what about the others? Why the obsession with "C" names (Challenger, Columbia, Constitution)? Why don't any Space Shuttles begin with the letter B?
Time to start a campaign. Name the new space shuttle or orbiting vehicle or whatever is coming out next, and have it start with the letter "B".
My nomination: Space Shuttle Bush.
Yours?
UPDATE: The Russian Space Shuttle was apparently named "Buran" which means "Snowstorm". Mystery Solved.
AT LAST, WE WILL REVEAL OURSELVES... Don't click on this link unless you want to know the title (and, I'd guess, the plot) of the third (that is, the sixth) Star Wars film, due out next May. Here was me betting Lucas would pick either The Fellowship of the Jedi, or Always Two Towers, There Are -- No More, No Less [as I noted to Chris in the Comments below, no epic movie trilogy is complete these days without knights, princesses, Dark Lords, a Part Three with "Return of the..." in the title, and a Scandinavian actor reciting the line "Vot doz zhor HEART tell you?"], but it sounds as if George III refused to take the bait. ("Emulate Peter Jackson? In our moment of triumph? I think you underestimate their long-term marketing shelf life! Twenty-seven years have I movie tie-in action figures and toy swords to youngsters been marketing, hmmm, yes!...").
At least, this time the title should remain stable between announcement and release -- not least because Wrath of the Sith would be too much of a tongue-twister for anyone who's not an English, Greek or Spanish speaker.
Hat tip for that scoop to The Flying Space Monkey Chronicles, via James Lileks (again! Is there any field of pop culture that man's not across?).
Which reminds me... If there are any German-speakers out there who've seen Sternkrieg: Der Galaktischereich Gegenangriffieret (etc) in Deutsche, I have two long-pondered queries: (1) Do they render Yoda's speech in English word-order to make it sound strange to German ears? (2) They don't translate "Stormtroopers" as Sturmabeilitung, do they?
Monday, July 05, 2004
WELL, SHE DID ABIDE BY THE ONE-CHILD POLICY... James White's weblog has a link to an astonishing news report about how "pro-choice" Catholics in Latin America are praying to Mary (as in, Mary the Mother of Jesus Christ), to intercede for them (with which deity, being left unspecified) to make legal abortion available throughout Latin America.
