Aside: Potpourri
Was in Boston the other day visiting Kate's sister, tooling around Cambridge. If you're into folkitude, keep your eye out for Rachael Davis. Good heavens, what a voice. Cuts like a knife, but it feels so right. She did an a capella version of (that previously loathsome song) Somewhere Over the Rainbow that made me question everything. This was at Club Passim, the grooviest joint in that jewel of a city.
Today Kate and I will eat at the only Ethiopian buffet in N. America, as far as I know.
Kate bought me an Udu clay "drum." I have been having a ball with it. It is a spherical terra cotta shell with a hole in the side that you hit. No membrane. It makes a beautiful watery resonant thooooo ( and a wu wup if you do it fast). The tone bends depending on the way you cover the hole. It just makes you think that you are swimming in a freshwater cave under the desert.
I'm reading a collection called Short Studies from Lingua Franca regarding various titillating episodes in public intellectual life - mostly from the 90's. A few essays on the politics of obscurantist language (Sokal hoax, Judith Butler, blah blah), murdered professors, sexual harrassment, what it's like to be Zizek-the-dazzler, etc. Also reading some Peter Mathieson and Mircea Eliade. Picked up the Eliade with a Richard Cavendish book about the history of the Tarot. They read quite nicely together.
Here's a new idea. Let's grant that the lifeworld is being colonized by technology - especially the managerial professional sector of the world economy, i.e. the West. There is no on-the-clock/off-the-clock. Everyone is on call with their cell phones and laptops. Let's also grant that this colonization is advancing and won't stop until we are working all the time. The question is this: What are the human limits of this progression? I think two things: the human needs of intoxication and of sleep. Regarding the first, I think we can take a model from drunk driving, which we designate as a preventable phenomenon that takes more lives than almost any other single thing. But it's not alcohol that is interfering with driving. Historically, one would have to say that it's driving interfering with alcohol- the car and its demands encroaching on the human phenomenon of intoxication. Sleep is similar in that it is almost as mysterious of a foe. Certain sectors of society already have sleep laws, but it is difficult, minus some real breakthroughs in sleep research, to see how it could go beyond this rudimentary discipline. Computers don't need sleep, but the mind still mysteriously does. In any case, sleep and intoxication seem to be the main barriers to a fully trans or post-human body politic. How will intoxication be tranhumanized? (Potential Answer: tranhumanization is an intoxication.) How will sleep be transhumanized? (Dunno.)
In other news, the Valerie Plame/Rove case is going mainstream, picked up by the AP, Reuters, LA Times, Guardian, and others you want to read about it. The congressional democrats are pressing the national security buttons. The only thing I can't figure out is why someone as intelligent as David Corn of The Nation is asking that Rove be "fired" from Bush's cabinet. What is going on here?!! I cannot think of a better cop-out strategy for the Bush administration. What we ought to be asking for is prison time and a thorough independent investigation that not only strikes at the Plame Naming but also at all of the fabrication of documents and other impeachable offenses.
Today Kate and I will eat at the only Ethiopian buffet in N. America, as far as I know.
Kate bought me an Udu clay "drum." I have been having a ball with it. It is a spherical terra cotta shell with a hole in the side that you hit. No membrane. It makes a beautiful watery resonant thooooo ( and a wu wup if you do it fast). The tone bends depending on the way you cover the hole. It just makes you think that you are swimming in a freshwater cave under the desert.
I'm reading a collection called Short Studies from Lingua Franca regarding various titillating episodes in public intellectual life - mostly from the 90's. A few essays on the politics of obscurantist language (Sokal hoax, Judith Butler, blah blah), murdered professors, sexual harrassment, what it's like to be Zizek-the-dazzler, etc. Also reading some Peter Mathieson and Mircea Eliade. Picked up the Eliade with a Richard Cavendish book about the history of the Tarot. They read quite nicely together.
Here's a new idea. Let's grant that the lifeworld is being colonized by technology - especially the managerial professional sector of the world economy, i.e. the West. There is no on-the-clock/off-the-clock. Everyone is on call with their cell phones and laptops. Let's also grant that this colonization is advancing and won't stop until we are working all the time. The question is this: What are the human limits of this progression? I think two things: the human needs of intoxication and of sleep. Regarding the first, I think we can take a model from drunk driving, which we designate as a preventable phenomenon that takes more lives than almost any other single thing. But it's not alcohol that is interfering with driving. Historically, one would have to say that it's driving interfering with alcohol- the car and its demands encroaching on the human phenomenon of intoxication. Sleep is similar in that it is almost as mysterious of a foe. Certain sectors of society already have sleep laws, but it is difficult, minus some real breakthroughs in sleep research, to see how it could go beyond this rudimentary discipline. Computers don't need sleep, but the mind still mysteriously does. In any case, sleep and intoxication seem to be the main barriers to a fully trans or post-human body politic. How will intoxication be tranhumanized? (Potential Answer: tranhumanization is an intoxication.) How will sleep be transhumanized? (Dunno.)
In other news, the Valerie Plame/Rove case is going mainstream, picked up by the AP, Reuters, LA Times, Guardian, and others you want to read about it. The congressional democrats are pressing the national security buttons. The only thing I can't figure out is why someone as intelligent as David Corn of The Nation is asking that Rove be "fired" from Bush's cabinet. What is going on here?!! I cannot think of a better cop-out strategy for the Bush administration. What we ought to be asking for is prison time and a thorough independent investigation that not only strikes at the Plame Naming but also at all of the fabrication of documents and other impeachable offenses.
posted by thebaffler at 8:04 AM
2 Comments:
It's been a while since I visited your blog, Rog. Noticed the Karl Rove reference. My assessment is that he'll squeak out of a possible criminal indictment by successfully arguing either: (a) that disclosing that Joseph Wilson's unnamed "wife" works in the CIA does not legally qualify as having "identified" her; or (b) that he possessed no requisite knowledge that Plame was covert. Still, the public and media will, and has already begun to, take their prize in political flesh, even if Rove doesn't do the frog- (or in this case I should say toad-) walk.
Funny thing: a few weeks ago I passed ol' Karl in the hall of the agency I work for. I had a vague sense of why he was there, though it surely didn't pertain to the Plamester.
I would like to comment on your discussion of "on-the-clock/off-the-clock". I would also like to comment on the fact that I appreciate your discussions and linguistic prowess.
As a rather high level IT professional I have achieved what many in the industry strive for. What success do I speak of? I broke away from the strangling grasps of a pager, cell phone, email, instant messenger, and GPS chip implant (okay, so I exaggerated a little on the last one). I explained to my superiors my position concerning leisure time and sleep and how the lack of either will hamper my motivation towards work. Don't get me wrong. I LOVE my job and profession. Here is an interesting fact - I churn out more work in 35-40 hours each week than most of my peers produce while working a 60-hour week. I base my findings on the progress reports compiled each week by the project managers. That is exactly why my superiors have given in to my request for free time. LW (Less work) + LT (Leisure Time) = MP (More Product) in my book and on the progress reports. And "yes", others have slowly been following in my leisure time antics.
RANT SECTION:
People need to stop buying into the "Rat Race" and understand themselves and the world around them. I won't get into that except for the fact that people in the corporate world live for their retirement and Oh, how sad that is. Every day I listen to many people talk about their retirement savings and what they are going to do during retirement. Get off your a#$ and live for each day people... praise the music...take a dip in the lake. Now I'm just getting silly!
Although most humans probably don't consider me an adventurer I nurture my adventurous side as much as possible.
I would just like to give a shout-out to your upcoming nuptial agreements Mr. Blogger!
...I'm Drunk, it's my birthday! Hooray for intoxication!
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