Sacred Disorder | Cliff Bostock's blog – 'Finally, I came to regard as sacred the disorder of my mind' (Rimbaud)
Gay-themed commerical offends 200 people…
…and Heinz discontinues airing it in the UK. Meanwhile several thousand signatures have been collected demanding its reinstatement. Let’s see who has more power — 200 tight-asses or a couple thousand people with a sense of humor. You can read more about the mayo brouhaha here. more about “Gay-themed commerical offends 200 peo…“, posted with […]
Big bad John
This has got to be the most horrible political ad I’ve ever seen. It exploits every cliche that Republicans are “real men” doing the “Lord’s work.” more about "Big bad John", posted with vodpod
A quick summation…
…and explanation of the corrpuption that House Democrats exhibited last week. more about “A quick summation…“, posted with vodpod
Father’s Day reverie
Every Father’s Day until this one, I’ve spent most of the day agonizing over the same dilemma: Should I insult my father by not calling or should I call and make myself subject to his anger and disapproval. Over the years, I’d say it went about 50/50. A complicating factor was always that my birthday […]
It’s my birthday
Somehow, this song by MGMT seems appropriate. It’s too late to die young. more about “It’s my birthday“, posted with vodpod
Pundits and politicos uncover elitism!
Here’s Stephen Colbert’s send-up of the tedious claim that Barack Obama is — gasp! — an elitist. I found it particularly repelling when New York Times columnist David Books recently wrote that Obama had image problems because he’s not the sort you imagine at an Applebee’s salad bar. That’s a reprise of the criticism that […]
The power of imagination
J. K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter books, spoke at Harvard’s commencement on June 5. Her topic was “The Fringe Benefits of Failure and the Importance of Imagination.” It’s a wonderful talk, particularly in its explanation of the way empathy is a function of imagination. Here’s a link to both the video and written […]
Gore Vidal tells all
Any leftie worth his peace-symbol lapel pin has a soft spot for Gore Vidal, 82 and as relentlessly acidic as ever. The Independent recently featured an interview with Vidal on the cover of its book section (see image). I call him a leftie, but here’s an excerpt from the piece: He hands me a copy […]
More on blogging
The often entertaining bloggingheads.tv recently featured a discussion between two legal scholars, Cass Sunstein and Eugene Volokh, about the comparative value of newspapers and blogs. The New York Times framed their discussion as an attempt to determine if blogs are “bad for us.” This is of course a separate question from the one of the […]
Blogging — good for your health?
Scientific American features an interesting article entitled “Blogging — It’s good for you.” It’s an account of studies of the therapeutic value of blogging: Self-medication may be the reason the blogosphere has taken off. Scientists (and writers) have long known about the therapeutic benefits of writing about personal experiences, thoughts and feelings. But besides serving […]