They WANT to be repressed!
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Civil Rights, politics
Somebody help me, please! I’m awash in a sea of stupidity.
My humanities classmates are full of ideas like:
“it isn’t really that big of a deal unless you have something to hide” — it being government surveillance.
“…they won’t target you or really care about what you are doing unless you are doing something wrong” — tell that to Peter McWilliams. Oh, you can’t, he’s dead!
“…the cameras don’t limit freedom, you can still do what you want” — as long as “what you want” is within the current cultural norms, and there isn’t a power-hungry fundamentalist deciding what to do about what they view.
Those examples are from just ONE post. The class is full of people who are saying, over and over, very explicitly, that they welcome ANYTHING the government does to “make us safe from terrorism.”
I’m scared.
Tags: civil liberties, government scrutiny, idiots, Peter McWilliams, politics
David Mamet and Political Views
Posted by Cyn | Filed under politics
There’s an essay over at The Village Voice that you want to read before it goes away:
“Why I Am No Longer a ‘Brain-Dead Liberal’” by David Mamet Here’s a brief excerpt.
This is, to me, the synthesis of this worldview with which I now found myself disenchanted: that everything is always wrong.
But in my life, a brief review revealed, everything was not always wrong, and neither was nor is always wrong in the community in which I live, or in my country. Further, it was not always wrong in previous communities in which I lived, and among the various and mobile classes of which I was at various times a part.
And, I wondered, how could I have spent decades thinking that I thought everything was always wrong at the same time that I thought I thought that people were basically good at heart? Which was it? I began to question what I actually thought and found that I do not think that people are basically good at heart; indeed, that view of human nature has both prompted and informed my writing for the last 40 years. I think that people, in circumstances of stress, can behave like swine, and that this, indeed, is not only a fit subject, but the only subject, of drama.
Some thought-provoking stuff in there. It’s good to see someone brave enough to change his views, and talk about it politically. Since I consider the Voice a very liberal publication, it’s especially interesting to see the piece there.
Tags: conservatives, David Mamet, David Mamet Here, elections, liberals, politics
I hate it when that happens
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Blogging, Family, Health, Home, News, politics, Relationships, Sex
I had an entry almost completely written, and it was good. Then I hit something badly with my numb hand, and my browser backed up a page. Now the entry is all gone. Yes, I should have saved sometime while writing, but I was on a roll.
So you’ll have to settle for knowing that I spent the day recovering from yesterday but my body is still pissy at me. Otherwise, I think the ACLU is very confused about what “public” means. According to the APA, I am not mythical (which is a big relief), and researchers at the University of San Diego say that same sex relationships may be healthier than opposite sex couplings. Finally, the Queen is firmly “lowering the ‘chav’ factor” at Royal Ascot, which is sure to make the world a far safer place. Or something.
Tags: ACLU, bisexuality, GLBT, marriage, royalty, University of San Diego
Red/Blue, Strict/Nurturing Families, and Inherited vs. Negotiated Commitments
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Civil Rights, Family, politics
I know that I read Red Family, Blue Family: Making sense of the values issue by Doug Muder several years ago.1 I clearly remember posting a link to it in Suzette Haden Elgin’s blog, and having her pick it up and pass it on enthusiastically.
A friend posted a link to it again this week, and I re-read it today. I don’t know why, but it made even more sense this time around. Muder uses the work of George Lakoff (Moral Politics : How Liberals and Conservatives Think and Don’t Think of an Elephant: Know Your Values and Frame the Debate–The Essential Guide for Progressives) and James Ault (Spirit and Flesh: Life in a Fundamentalist Baptist Church) to explain things that have previously seemed inexplicable.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Baptist Church, Doug Muder, families, George Lakoff, James Ault, philosophy, politics, Sam, Suzette Haden Elgin, values, web server
What is network neutrality?
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Civil Rights, Geekery, politics
From ResearchBuzz:
“Network neutrality” (also called “net neutrality”) is the idea that an Internet access provider must provide access to all parts of the Internet without prejudice — without blocking areas completely, without slowing areas down, etc. According to net neutrality an access provider should treat all Internet traffic equally no matter what it is (e-mail, Web page, video, game, etc.) or where it comes from.
This is a major issue, folks. If you haven’t been there yet, get yourselves over to Save the Internet and Do Something Now.
Tags: discrimination, filtering, network neutrality, Save the Internet