Kevin Murphy, author of the long-running site Ghost in the Machine, provides an excellent perspective on the history and possible future of the American progressive movement in these twoposts. For those of you interested in history, politics, and actual understanding of a complex topic, I highly recommend taking the time to read them.
To my mind this is something that the web can do well. Kevin is well-educated and well-spoken, has a thorough understanding of this topic, and has enough passion to share his knowledge with an anonymous public. Admittedly, the length of an in-depth essay is initially daunting to the rapid-fire mindset inculcated by most web design (and writing), but if the content is worthwhile it should run to the length needed for full expression.
Take a few minutes and visit GitM. Read the progressive essays or — if political analysis doesn't float your boat — take in his in-depth movie reviews. It will be time well-spent. Unless, of course, you don't have the patience for anything more than two sentences and a funny picture, in which case you probably don't get much out of Hidden City, either.
Wordie, a terrific little site deserving a post of its own, just published a list of "25 Gifts for Wordinistas". If you have a word fan on your shopping list and are looking for a little something (or a big something), check John's list. There are several items that your humble host would love to have, for example, (he says, wondering if the sound of his voice covered the thud that hint made when it hit the floor). I am particularly fond of the Typewriter Key Cuff Links, myself.
For the recently converted vegetarian in your life, the one who feels better about her soul but is still filled with an unholy craving for the taste of bacon, consider a purchase of Bacon Salt. That's right, salt that tastes just like bacon, without any of the guilt. (Okay, maybe a little guilt if you have high blood pressure; I mean, it is still salt.) According to their site "Bacon Salt is a zero calorie, vegetarian, kosher certified seasoning salt that makes everything taste like real bacon." C'mon, how great is that?
While the web is pretty solidly mainstreamed these days, we must still be honest: geeks and nerds still account for a significant percentage of the web's audience. That means that most of you reading Hidden City probably know on or two people who would appreciate the wares offered by Think Geek. Lasers, electronic toys, computer gear, snarky t-shirts, caffeine — they have every thing a geek desires except romantic companionship. (For that you could visit Real Doll, but let's not go there. You have Google; use it if you are so curious.) My current favorite in the "t-shirts guaranteed to drive away women" sweepstakes is the Wi-Fi Detector Shirt, a t-shirt with built-in lights and electronics that make it glow in the presence of a wireless signal. For pure geekiness that will be difficult to best.
Anyone with a few thousand purposeless dollars and some serious love for your humble host should feel free to buy me this steampunk Victorian laptop. I would love to have it on my desk in my office.
I've been following this Thanksgiving tradition for so long that my original angry bitterness about the state of this country — and the way its supposed leaders have sold out the American Dream for television ratings and bumper stickers — has morphed into a weary, cynical resignation. But I haven't yet abandoned all hope, so I will share with any new readers this recording of William S Burroughs reading his poem "A Thanksgiving Prayer." This year, though, for those people disinclined to listen to the audio, here is the text of the poem. And finally, courtesy of the miracle of YouTube, here is the Gus Van Sant film version.
Now that my tradition has been observed, perhaps I will post more later.
Four weeks into this cold it is finally showing signs of fading, even if it has not yet released my concentration from captivity. Please enjoy these complimentary Sunday morning coffee links. We hope they will amuse and enlighten you.
Pez Sweet World: uniquely modified Pez dispensers. Many are funny, some are sad, a few are disturbing.
Life in the Year 2000, as imagined by the French in 1910: I am in love with the term paleo-futurism; between that and my steampunk interests I suspect I am in the wrong world.
Climate Change Escapism on BLDGBLOG: I'm not entirely convinced that people want climate change so they have something new to do on vacation, but it's an interesting discussion.
The WGA strike is continuing without relief in sight. A lot of people don't really know what it is about, and I've been a little surprised by the number of people who have made comments about rich, greedy writers. This is weird to me. Are there really that many people laboring under the misconception that writing is a lucrative career?
Here's a short film by the union that explains the basis for the strike, and what the union is trying to get for its members. Yes it is biased, but it is also honest.
One telling point in all this is that the producers/networks/studios are pretending that the Internet is just a huge billboard. They treat all new media distribution — from web episodes to streaming content — as "promotional material," therefore paying little or nothing for the scripts, acting, and so on. As television and movies converge with digital delivery, more and more people use their Internet connection instead of cable, making it imperative that writers (and later this year, actors) get new contracts.
Mark Evanier has worked as a screen writer for a long time, and has some interesting observations on the strike (one - two - three - four), while these comments from a Metafilter member give a good synopsis of the numbers involved and how a screenwriter actually gets paid (one - two) and another writer puts in a view on salaries.
I wish the writers well, and I hope the strike ends soon, with a fair contract created.
UPDATE:
Derek Powazek weighs in, saying the writers don't get it, either, and that web content should not be treated the same as older distribution methods. Marc Andreesen, on the other hand, sees this as a a potential crisis moment for old media.
This is interesting. Local blogger Frances Nash, long a member of the Hidden City link list, isn't actually real. She's the protagonist of the new book Total Constant Order by author Crissa-Jean Chappell. According to Chappell she started the journal while she was working on the novel, and now that it is published she has shut it down. "Her thoughts and dreams are based on my own, though disguised in the form of fiction."
It's an odd thing to do without making it clear that the thoughts you are reading aren't the thoughts of a high school girl, but of an author portraying one. It is hardly unique, though, and certainly nowhere near as destructive as the Kaycee Nicole hoax perpetrated on the Internet (and Metafilter) in 2001. As far as I know "Frances" limited her contact with the South Florida on-line community to a few comments here and there, usually when someone linked to her writing or photos. In a way the revelation makes me feel a bit better; while I have always been impressed with the quality of "f-i-n"'s writing and art, there was a certain disconnect that made me a little uncomfortable, something I always attributed to the obvious age difference between us.
(An interesting side note: A couple of years ago CriticalMiami scored a link on Metafilter, said link provided by a nearly new member named Thayer-P. In the comments of the post someone pointed out that "it would have been better if you [Thayer-P] would have just directly linked to Frances Nash's blog. Her writing is much more interesting." What an odd coincidence, that the male protagonist of Chappell's novel about Frances Nash is named Thayer Pinsky. It doesn't mean anything, really, except that Chappell liked CM as much as he's been as much a fan of hers. Using a pseudonym online is hardly a crime against god and country.)
In the end I don't suppose it really matters. Chappell lives in Miami, and is clearly a talented writer. Perhaps she'll choose to open up more direct communication with the locals, now that she's dropped her mask.
