Ken Dow & the Tigers of Wrath

Thu, 24 Apr 2003 16:14:28 GMT

Ken Wilber: The War In Iraq
"unfortunately, the world needs integral action. unfortunately, it will not get it, whether we go to war or not. still, better to light one candle than curse the darkness. so we work on ourselves and attempt to increase our own integral consciousness to some degree each day, so that in the end we leave the world just a little bit more whole than we found it..."

Fascinating essay and my introduction to the work of Ken Wilber.

Tue, 15 Apr 2003 16:38:14 GMT

Rushkoff: Judaism as a Medium - practicing what we preach
"So I think I'm finally learning how to speak about Judaism. That is, I'm learning how to speak about religion as a process, rather than as a thing. And this tends to make the whole discussion a heck of a lot less contentious. In media theorist's terms, I guess what I'm trying to do is show how Judaism is less about content than contact."

Sat, 12 Apr 2003 15:15:35 GMT

The Kunstbar wants your soul.
[Via Mark Hurst]

Sat, 12 Apr 2003 15:01:08 GMT

Truly deplorable comment by Donald Rumsfeld in the face of widespread looting and violence in Iraq: "It's untidy. And freedom's untidy. And free people are free to make mistakes and commit crimes and do bad things". Can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs, eh? Nice. He then goes on to rail about how the press is exaggerating the situation, replaying "the same picture, of some person walking out of some building with a vase". Strange that he wasn't offended when we were saturated with the same Iraqi kissing the same soldier over and over again.

Thu, 10 Apr 2003 17:57:08 GMT

Went to see Chantal Kreviazuk when I was in London last Tuesday. I hadn't realized what an accomplished pianist she is - very impressive. And of course there's that incredible voice, at times soaring and then suddenly throaty and rasping. There was no band, just her and a grand piano, although she did a few tunes on a synth and one on the guitar. The songs came across beautifully; "Surrounded", "Leaving on a Jet Plane", "Waiting" and "Far Away" were standouts for me. Another surprise was her sense of humour; before this I'd only seen her perform one song at the Junos a few years back, and there was no room for banter. On Tuesday she had some hilarious bits, from a Mommie Dearest moment to Planet TackySex. Great show, highly recommended.

Mon, 07 Apr 2003 16:32:18 GMT

Rare Neal Stephenson speech on May 1
"On May 1 at 4:30 Eastern Daylight Time, Neal Stephenson will deliver a live lecture at CMU in Pittsburgh that will be simultaneously webcast. Stephenson's notoriously shy about appearing at conventions or giving speeches -- I've only heard him speak once, when he picked up the Hugo award for Diamond Age -- so this is a rare treat."
[Via Boing Boing]

Might try to tune in for this one. Stephenson's a great writer - Cryptonomicon is solidly on my list of favourite reads, and Diamond Age was a staggering work of imagination.

Fri, 04 Apr 2003 17:58:03 GMT

Douglas Rushkoff is in the thick of touring and speaking about his latest book, "Nothing Sacred - The Truth About Judaism", as in:

"The texts and practices making up Judaism were designed to avert just such a scenario. The tradition stresses transparency, open-ended inquiry, assimilation of the foreign, and a commitment to conscious living. Judaism invites inquiry and change. It is an "open source" tradition - one born out of revolution, committed to evolution, and willing to undergo renaissance at a moment's notice. But, ironically, some the very institutions created to protect a religion and its people are now suffocating them."

What he's discovering is that, if nothing else, rigidity is sacred. He's speaking at the Holy Blossom Temple in Toronto on May 29th. I'm not Jewish but I'd love to go - the analysis seems relevant to individual-institution relationships of any kind. Plus I'm a sucker for the topic of religion vis a vis spirituality.

Fri, 04 Apr 2003 13:24:15 GMT

Jeffrey Simpson: Choose your side: puerile or servile?
"So much of what passes for Canadian debate on Iraq has been puerile or servile. And the debate has not been fundamentally about Iraq, but about the United States and Canadians' reflexive reaction to our neighbour. Thus we have been treated to puerile anti-Americanism because the U.S. is fighting a war, and servile pro-Americanism for the same reason...Happily, the historical evidence of international threat perceptions demonstrates that the Canadian tradition has been to reject the puerile and the servile and, instead, to make judgments based on world circumstances, alliances and the country's interests.

Bingo. I've been in a number of, ah, vibrant discussions about Iraq and the point I try to make is exactly this: What is actual threat and what is a just response? With this lens, the invasion of Afghanistan was justified, while that of Iraq is not.

Fri, 04 Apr 2003 12:52:25 GMT

Note to weather gods: it's April. After receiving about 15 centimetres of snow yesterday, on top of freezing rain, I awake this morning to discover a winter storm warning is in effect and another 15 centimetres is heading our way. This is so not funny. With SARS and Bagdhad to lift our spirits every day, who needs this?

Wed, 02 Apr 2003 14:10:38 GMT

"Hope," a retired four-star general subsequently told me, "is not a course of action." Whoa. This New Yorker article describing Rumsfeld's apparent mismanagement of the American invasion planning and implementation is astounding. If this is accurate, I feel awfully sorry for the US and British soldiers caught in such a dangerous and unnecessary predicament.

Wed, 02 Apr 2003 13:28:25 GMT

Globe & Mail: We wish for a prosperous United States
"First question: Of the top five suppliers of imported oil and gas to the United States, how many support the war?

Answer: A big fat zero. The five are Canada, Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Nigeria, in that order. Together, they accounted for nearly 60 per cent of U.S. petroleum imports in 2002."