Flames & Fallacy

You know you're a read when...

2011-03-11T21:54:00.001-08:00

You know you're a reader when thinking of all the books you'll never be able to read makes you want to cry.

The Price of Democracy

2011-03-07T19:55:00.001-08:00

The price of democracy is conservatism whenever the collective national I.Q. drops below a certain level.

Interview Answer

2011-03-06T21:34:00.000-08:00

I hate this question: What is your greatest weakness?

Primarily, stupid. Chances are, if I knew of this weakness, I would try to fix it. If it was so crippling or such an important component of my character that I cannot, I doubt it's anything I would want to share with someone who gets a say in whether or not I have a job. Really, it's just a test of your ability to produce bullshit on command.

I've never been able to come up with an answer for it that didn't make me despise myself, so I'd like to go with the following:

What is your greatest weakness?

My immense penis size. At times, the responsibility weighs heavily.*

*Seriously though, my greatest weakness is my inability to accurately measure things.

E-book reader bill of rights

2011-02-28T21:04:00.001-08:00

http://librarianinblack.net/librarianinblack/2011/02/ebookrights.html

Cauliflower, Broccoli, & Colour-Blindness.

2011-02-28T20:53:00.001-08:00

Cauliflower is what colour-blind people eat when they aren't careful when buying broccoli.

To: Vegetarians, Vegans.

2011-02-28T14:15:00.001-08:00

The lipid hypothesis and vegetarianism/veganism have both been extensively discredited.

http://www.paleonu.com
http://www.amazon.com/Good-Calories-Bad-Gary-Taubes/dp/1400040787
http://www.amazon.com/Vegetarian-Myth-Food-Justice-Sustainability/dp/1604860804

What we are left with is not a genuine, rational, position with any significant scientific support, but a motley collection of undereducated, unqualified, nutritionists desperate to justify the existence of their careers with pathetic arguments from authority and blatant deceit, researchers who cannot distinguish between hard facts and casual correlation and appear to simply have no concept of the difference between correlation and causation. Morally, there is little reason to abandon the consumption of meat: there are numerous compelling reasons to abandon factory-farmed food, but that is an entirely different topic altogether.

In short, read skeptically, and then decide on the correct answer, not on whatever conclusion will make you feel special, or provide ever-so-precious ammunition in your own self-righteous war on the human condition.

Fuck the MPAA/RIAA.

2011-02-16T11:36:00.001-08:00

Exactly my thoughts.

Why Religion Should be Confronted

2010-12-08T15:10:00.001-08:00

A great article by Victor Stenger is over at the Huffington post.

Why not a Stateless Society?

2010-10-27T07:45:00.001-07:00

My post on a forum, in response:

Human nature is not chaotic. We are a very ordered species, having evolved as such by a process of organization perpetuated by the evolutionary advantage that it confers. We instinctively organize ourselves into family units and tribes. The complexity of the modern world has necessitated a larger government with more specialized functions than in the past.

Those who propose anarchy as a solution to the world's ills are offering either a thinly veiled return to agrarian society, or the very frightening prospect of submitting to corporate rule. It is an instinctive, although illogical proposal: Society 1 does not function properly, therefore its opposite system, Society -1 must be adopted instead.

Corporate Theft

2010-10-09T12:27:00.001-07:00

What is theft? Very simply, it is taking something that is not yours from someone else. If you take a chocolate bar, and leave the store without paying, that is theft. A simple concept that has served humanity well. For the most part, there is a strong social stigma against theft: we perceive it as being wrong. (Yes, there is a great deal of ambiguity - a man who steals a loaf of bread from a wealthy merchant to feed his starving children is probably commuting a far less heinous crime than a man who steals money from a child beggar.) And yet today, we allow theft to occur constantly around us, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, all around the world.

I shall be blunt: the world's natural resources do not belong to corporations. Corporate exploitation of natural resources is theft. It is not a business opportunity, nor a potential source of feedstock for the industry that we have grown to love oh-so-much. It is theft, plain and simple: taking what does not belong to you, as I'm sure any six-year old will be quite happy to tell you.

The world's natural resources do not belong to corporations: they belong to the inhabitants of this planet.

The Religion Switch

2010-10-01T13:18:00.001-07:00

I have a smart friend, who is quite religious. I'm not quite sure how we ended up friends, but I will attempt to surmise the form that our religious convictions (and lack thereof) play in our relationship: he is a devout Christian, accepting the scripture as not just a form of morality, but morality itself. I, on the other hand, if labels must be applied, am a nihilistic militant atheist. Our conversations tend to be quite interesting as a result. He disowns organized religion, for the most part, but carries the evils of religion along with him: discrimination against homosexuals, is a 610k, and insists that adaptation does occur, but gradual change that can be demonstrated in an organism is not evolution(!).

Now, talking to him about religion and morality is quite odd; it's not the first time that I have observed this phenomenon, but in him it is particularly pronounced. An example of a fairly standard conversation between the two of us is as follows:

Me: Well, what about homosexuality, do you honestly think that it's a sin, or any such garbage?

Him: Yes, the bible says that a man shall not lie with another man.

Me: What about women? Can a woman lie with another women?

Him: No, you have to actually consider the meaning of it, not just the actual words.

Me: Yea, we seem to have to do that a lot, don't we? Well, why is homosexuality immoral?

Him: Well, the bible says that a man shall not lie with another man.

Me: Yes, I know, but why is it a sin?

Him: Because the bible says-

Me: Yes, I'm quite aware of what it says, but do you think it's a sin?

Him: Of course.

Me: Why?

Him: Because the bible says-

Me: I know, but why do you, independently of the bible, consider homosexuality to be a "sin".

Him: But the god is the source of all morality, and the bible is his word.

Me: How do we know that the bible is the word of god?

Him: Well, the bible was written over many years by many different people, and the message is all the same, and there is not a single contradiction in the whole thing.

Me: Yes, there are... well over a hundred, at my last count, and I'm sure that there are many that I've missed.

Him: If god isn't the source of morality, then what is?

I could go on, but I feel quite sure that you get the point. I'm sure that any skeptic of religious dogma has experienced this disconnect before: you're talking to a quite sane person, who seems to look at the world in a way that supports rational thought and scientific inquiry.... and then religion is brought up.

That's when the indoctrination and isolation from alternative points of view and an actual education kicks in. I personally call this "The Religion Switch", as I imagine it as a switch that flips whenever religion is mentioned, which temporarily disables the part of the brain responsible for any actual thought.

Around the Web

2010-09-16T09:04:00.000-07:00

As always, my (mostly successful) attempts to find the worthwhile material underneath all the crap of Lolcats and YouTube video of people being injured.

A moving letter by Mother who lost her son to an illegitimate war.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/mike-friends-blog/i-have-become-uncomfortably-numb

Roughly my opinion:
http://www.lowbird.com/data/images/2009/12/e091207-pett.jpg

Some amazing artwork.
http://sergey-larenkov.livejournal.com/

A humorous take on a distinctly interesting subject:
http://www.churchhopping.com/ten-verses-never-preached-on/

The pathetic thing is, this list probably isn't comprehensive. At least the bible isn't just full of crap; it's also full of contradictions.
http://www.evilbible.com/Biblical%20Contradictions.htm

Evidence that yes, uranium is a non-renewable resource, but that there isn't quite the shortage that the anti-nuclear corner seems to believe in.
http://nuclearinfo.net/Nuclearpower/WebHomeAvailabilityOfUsableUranium

More corporate exploitation. (Wow, there seems to be a theme somewhere!)
http://rabble.ca/news/2010/09/hidden-costs-canada%E2%80%99s-banana-market

In my opinion, likely the best XKCD ever.
http://xkcd.org/792/

It does sound as if there is some truth to the claim.
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/09/canadian-tar-sands-industry-government-maintains-higher-water-toxicity-natural.php?campaign=th_rss

If you haven't seen the tower being free-climbed, then I'll direct you over to Boing-Boing. I have a fear of heights that however inconveniencing, still made watching this in full-screen quite an adventure.
http://www.boingboing.net/2010/09/15/free-climbing-a-towe.html

Sarah Palin + EFF + bullshit TOS.
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/09/sarah-palin-revisited

Great Wired article.
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2010/09/obama-epa-investigations

Nothing but good news on here, eh?
http://www.alternet.org/module/printversion/148169

Just because I want to stop explaining this to the employees at electronics stores.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Megahertz_Myth

If you don't know why America has a lacking system of public transportation:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_American_Streetcar_Scandal

Laugh of the day:
http://www.boingboing.net/2010/09/15/alvisos-medicinal-al.html

It just do happens that I love TED.
http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/15/the-magic-that-is-ted/

I watched both, and enjoyed them: nothing revolutionary, but still should be enough to return pro-DRM back to the world where the rest of us live.
http://craphound.com/?p=3071

Unfortunate.
http://www.crunchgear.com/2010/07/28/starcraft-ii-pirates-stung-by-malware/

I really enjoyed this, although I doubt it will mean much if you don't have an interest in LOTR, although you never know.
http://philipreeve.blogspot.com/2010/08/this-is-tolkien-poster-i-had-on-my.html

I'll leave it at that. If you have anything I might be interested in, send it my way. Remember, proper credit is a right, not a gift, not optional.

"I don't want to live on this planet anymore." (Part I)

2010-09-13T08:32:00.000-07:00

One of the principles of human society is conflict. Whether between ideas (string theory) ideals (democracy) or morals (capital punishment) there is always a component of contention: nothing is ever universally agreed upon. Some would argue it's a positive trait of humanity, since scientific methods of inquiry revolve around questioning. But at some point; some things simply reach a point at which they are not just beyond all reasonable doubt, but all doubt.* The Earth orbits the Sun. Everyone that believes otherwise is ignoring such massive amounts of evidence that I feel almost guilty insulting them. Almost.

Simply put, if you still take the word of the Church over the enormous quantities of evidence that humanity can present to show that there is indeed a G-type main sequence star that all planets in our solar system orbit, you should be certified insane. There is no mass-cultural delusion or brainwashing of children that religion employs to create blindness to reason in it's adherents.

Simply stupidity: http://www.galileowaswrong.com/galileowaswrong/

In case you were wondering where the quote that is the title of this post came from:

*(Although sometimes there is simply not enough evidence anywhere: while evolution is now supported by a body of such vast amounts of evidence that most rational thinkers would have to abandon their sanity to insist it's incorrect, there is a massive part of the population that is not so enlightened.)

Wall-Street Shamans

2010-09-07T08:05:00.000-07:00

In more than one respect, those who labour in the banks and firms of Big Finance remind me of pre-medieval shamans.

Both spin never-ending lies in complex forms as varied as they are untrue. Their word governs everything from medicine to ~~Republican~~ tribal politics. In return for these lies, they are excused from any actual work: betting on whether or not a number is going to increase or decrease is not a productive occupation: it is little more than educated gambling, and is the modern equivalent of prayer and chants - at best useless, and more often than not destructive.

I've always found it interesting that we choose to not merely accept, but encourage the pursuit of these careers in our society. We may have taken a step away from religion and barbarism, but insist on keeping the crazy old men in tents, chanting about the end of the world and when the rain will come.

Quote

2010-08-27T08:50:00.001-07:00

"I do not agree with a word you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." -- Voltaire

A bit of this

2010-08-17T13:29:00.000-07:00

This video is quite worth an honest laugh.

Over at Raj Patel's site, he brought peoples attention to a film about farmer suicides: a slightly upbeat and comical look, but still a very effective medium to transport information.

http://rajpatel.org/2010/08/16/the-lighter-side-of-farmer-suicides

The Quote.

2010-08-15T10:21:00.000-07:00

Seek out argument and disputation for their own sake; the grave will supply plenty of time for silence.

There you go: in a single sentence, Christopher Hitchens has summarized a principle that I always found difficult to express. Inquiries about why I "can't keep my mouth shut." now have a solid answer.

Letters to a young contrarian has had a profound impact on me. It has led me to question my own "resistance" to "popular culture" (read: Apple, energy drinks, and brand-name clothing), and has left me with a bitter taste that insists on recurring every time people dismiss my entire being as "a phase", whether directly and consciously or not.

My deepening respect for Mr. Hitchens though, has been made a sad affair by the most diabolical of medical maladies. If I understood his writing as it was intended to be interpreted, the odds of defeat seemed stacked against him.

One last challenge, it appears, for the face of contrariness and controversy the world round.

What a wonderful police officer.

2010-08-12T06:46:00.000-07:00

In the event that anyone hasn't yet seen the video of the officer threatening a bubble-blowing protester with arrest.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGMTm3QRwEc&feature=related

Hypocrisy of "Pirates"

2010-08-10T09:06:00.000-07:00

I am pro-filesharing.

But that doesn't mean that I have any patience for the hypocrisy that can be found on torrenting sites.

I'm talking about believing that they have some form of "ownership" over what they upload. Yes, as in "that douche copied my torrent." or "don't go to that site, they just copy other people's torrents."

If you think that someone can own these torrents, then how can you believe that it is morally or legally acceptable to upload the files in the first place?

Freedom to share information and media is something that should, and will, happen universally, or not at all.

Property

2010-08-04T17:17:00.000-07:00

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/100804/national/gold_mine_holdout

I have to say that even I found his refusal to move strange.

That just makes it an even more compelling point: when, or more accurately, why, should the government be able to take a person's property and give it to another individual, or, in this case, a company?

Obviously, there needs to be some sort of balance. If a 1000 kilometer highway has to stop because someone refuses to sell the property that the road passes through, should the government have the power to confiscate it? What if the company just wants it? Is profit a factor, or do the rights of an individual not have a dollar sign attached?

Software Alternatives.

2010-08-02T13:31:00.000-07:00

One of the greatest features of the computer and internet is that of freedom of choice: you can choose your operating system, your hardware, software, and have access to far more information and media that anyone has ever before had.Unfortunately, software has largely become dominated by a handful of different programs: Microsoft now has a voluntary monopoly over most operating systems and the software that they run. I won't go into the details, but a system with no competition does not foster creativity, innovation, or accountability. Choose software based on its merits and principles, not popularity.

The following are alternatives to the most commonly used operating systems and software that I personally use and would recommend.

---------------------

Right off the bat, lets start with the big one: your operating system. Chances are, you use Windows. I can just about guarantee that you aren't a supporter of the Microsoft Monopoly. A voluntary monopoly is one thing when the software actually works but entirely another when it's crashware. Sure you can but a Mac, if you have the money and don't mind the labels that are sure to be affixed to you, but it's still proprietary. Fortunately, some very smart people have spent a lot of time creating alternatives.
Linux is really the way to go, but there are so many different distros that it can be hard to choose: I would recommend Ubuntu, although Mint is also an excellent alternative, and both work well for newbies, although I would recommend Ubuntu overall, but that's something to be saved for another post.

Windows media player has a whole host of alternatives. I personally use two: Songbird to manage my music collection, and VLC for video playback, along with quickly opening any other media files.

Although it's been said over and over, it still bears repeating: OpenOffice is a free alternative to Microsoft Office, and is every inch it's equal in the standard office suite tasks.

FireFox is the king of open-source, and for good reason. A lot of people spend time in their browsers, and the ability to customize and create to your hearts content is quite simply a necessity.

Getting Online in "The Future"

2010-07-31T11:17:00.001-07:00

A great story: a dystopian tale truly worth of Big Brother Inc.

http://blogoscoped.com/archive/2010-06-24-n15.html

Guide to Stumbling Quickly

2010-07-30T20:08:00.000-07:00

This guide is for any Stumbleupon user who wishes to stumble faster and more efficiently, or anyone who just enjoying Stumbleupon and wants to mess around with the toolbar. For most Stumblers, this isn't necessary: it's only useful for things like webcomics, quotes, etc, where speed is helpful while you trawl through the pages that are suggested to you. Over time, Stumbleupon's accuracy will increase, but until then you will want to move quickly as you teach it what you like.

If you are new to Stumbleupon, or have never heard of it, then a good place to begin is here: http://www.stumbleupon.com/aboutus/

To begin, you will need to:

Feel free to familiarize yourself with it, and then when you want to stumble quickly, on to this:

Go to the shortcuts tab. My favorite configuration is to use Ctrl + the arrow keys to stumble and rate pages, so that hand only does minimal movement, although the same thing can be done with other keys.

Hit "OK", and you should be good to go.

Pathetic.

2010-07-30T16:22:00.000-07:00

http://www.nationalpost.com/computers+used+delete+criticism+trace/3334621/story.html

This is a crime committed by a government official, and they should be reprimanded appropriately. It is a deliberate attempt to mislead the Canadian public. I may personally consider the stealth fighter a mistake (the only ones that we need to worry about invading are the Americans, and chances are they won't openly, and a handful -or even hundreds- of aircraft would be unlikely to deter them). But people have a right to be informed, and this is not a child making fun of someone famous, it is someone altering the information to stand in line with their personal opinion or to secure their own professional gain

Blog update.

2010-07-30T16:18:00.000-07:00

I've broken one of my rules of design and am currently using a white font on a black background.

This is a crime, and in the words of Shepard Book:

"you're going to burn in a very special level of hell. A level they reserve for child molesters and people who talk at the theater."

Corporations in early Dystopian novels.

2010-07-30T11:14:00.000-07:00

The most famous Dystopian novel of all time, 1984 , contains not a single reference to corporations, or any form of privatized industry that I can recall. Come to mention it, neither did Brave New World. Obviously, when these novels were written and published, no one could have predicted the rise of corporations: sure, there was big business, but the government was seen as much more of a threat to privacy, as it probably was.

Now, however, the government is held in check by the interests of industry - little change is conducted without the blessing of the monoliths that we have chosen to lift above our heads. Without the recording industry and it's associated groups and lobbyists, how much interest would the government have in cracking down on piracy? Sure, creators would complain, and then developed new ways to make money. Big Brother doesn't watch us: that outsources to security firms. Big Brother doesn't educate us: that's left to television and advertising.

When you examine the roles that corporations now play, buisness seems to resemble Big Brother more than the government.

In honour of this, I will be referring to it as Big Brother Inc.

Huxley's Society of Infants and modern society

2010-07-26T14:14:00.000-07:00

One of the primary components of the society in Aldous Huxley's Brave New World is that of the continuation of infant behaviour well into adulthood. People never develop self-control, since they see no reason to delay gratification any longer than is absolutely necessary. Sexually, they conduct themselves with the reckless abandon inherent to any childishly simplistic social system. They are conditioned throughout their youths by endless repetitions of slogans to keep them dependant on soma: a mind-altering drug that allows them to escape the world around them for something perfect. Heresy is anything than runs against the not just predominant but inescapable dogma that has become inseparable from the population at large.

At the time he wrote it, his personal opinion was that this twisted utopia was still hundreds of years away. However, the relentless pace of technological improvement has rendered this date obsolete: by his own admittance, it could well occur within a century of his time. The standard fearful cries would usually be cued at this moment, but I will refrain from doing so. We are not living in Brave New World, but our society had developed some rather parallel behaviours.

Instant gratification has become the mantra of the developed world: to consume is a nearly religious experience, and to be successful is transcendent, since such success is defined and celebrated by the weaker and stupider amongst us. Our children may not be produced in test tubes, or have recordings played while they sleep, but it would be moronic to believe that the constant blast of advertisements doesn't condition them for consumerism – if it didn't then the corporations certainly wouldn't waste the money – they may be many things, but stupid is not among their traits. Sex may not be viewed as a passive form of social bonding yet, but it is well on the way: it's persistent presence in the media is by popular demand: if sex didn't sell, it wouldn't be sold. Capitalism 101. The same white noise that conditions people into consumers prepares them for a life spent as a percentage point to the pharmaceutical companies: Ritalin, Tylenol, Viagra, Levitra... ask any child, and they know exactly what these products are, if not precisely what they do. A life of chemical dependency is the only kind to be had. To be different is to be labelled: “nerd, faggot freak, loser” are just a few of the titles so cleverly bestowed upon anyone feared for their individuality. After all, if those people are one of them, then they aren't one of us.

It's easy to look in the mirror if you get to choose who looks back at you. It's even easier when the drugs and static from the television prevent you from seeing anything.

Cory Doctorow Interview.

2010-07-18T08:21:00.000-07:00

A reason.tv interview with Cory Doctorow over at his website.

http://craphound.com/?p=3029

Awesome guy who writes great books. He's got a new book out, For the Win, and I'm just about to order it.

A failure of our intellectuals.

2010-07-11T18:41:00.000-07:00

http://mises.org/daily/3864

What do you think that Plato or Socrates would have though of this? I would never attend a class conducted by someone who had decided that ideas were his, and his alone.

Do I think that it's right to be able to copyright a plan, or an object? Absolutely. But an idea? An undefinable, ethereal image of a dream! How can one learn and grow if all ideas are owned?

Just another step in the ever-advancing corporatism of the modern world.

What they should be doing

2010-07-11T17:26:00.000-07:00

Now, I may often feel frustrated with the government. OK, my general state of existence is frustration, but why is it that they're so blind as to not recognize an excellent opportunity?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/jul/11/detroit-urban-renewal-city-farms-paul-harris

Now, if you gave these people a few million to buy land and equipment (or either, if the government already owned it) they could do a lot: in one stroke, people would have something resembling a job, a sense of something happening, and food. But not just any food: fresh, healthy, local, likely organic food. This is food that could be used to replace the corn-syrup carbohydrates that seems to pass as food these days that most of the city is consuming. It wouldn't be a ton, but it would be a good start to rebuilding the community.

Or, you could give some businesses a bigger stimulus package. I would like to say something sarcastic, like "your pick", but it would be wrong: because it's not your pick, it's a bunch of the wealthy and the powerful deciding exactly how they plan to launder the money this time. And it makes me angry, because these are some people that would actually do something with it, instead of just squandering it on more corporate profits.

Open Email to HP

2010-07-09T14:08:00.000-07:00

http://www.eff.org/issues/printers This article got me considering yet another privacy issue, so I went to http://seeingyellow.com/, and got the info for my printer. I am aware that non-lasers do not have embedded tracking... yet. This is simply an exercise to see how they handle the inquiries. If enough people are aware, care, and ask/complain about it, then they will remove it.

I sent the following through the internal HP system:

I've been a customer of yours for quite a while now, and own a laptop and printer. My family all use HP products.

My concern however, is that there are tracking measures embedded in my printer. I understand the need to prevent counterfeiting, but I somehow doubt that my Deskjet D4360 could actually be used to print money.

Is my printer taking part in a practice that I consider very concerning from a privacy standpoint? If so, do you have any printers that do not?

EDIT: I will post the response. (If I receive one, that is.)

G20: The Fall of Democracy in Canada begins

2010-07-09T08:52:00.001-07:00

http://www.thespec.com/Opinions/LettertotheEditor/article/800965

An opinion that I can very strongly relate to. Any pride that I had in my country has faded beyond recognition.

A power that we should have.

2010-07-07T19:26:00.000-07:00

The power to tax is the power to destroy. – John Marshall

That is a power that we should have over corporations: the boot should be held to the throat of every BP, every Wal-mart, every Monsanto.

Fear Campaign

2010-07-07T12:13:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, it's just amazing how stupid the media must think that we are.

But the more frightening problem is that it seems to work.

Credit for image: http://www.unstructed.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/selection_247_123.jpg

G20

2010-07-07T12:09:00.000-07:00

I'm ashamed.

I, a Canadian, am standing by while the police that are supposed to protect us are brutalizing (innocent) people. When you hear about a rapist getting smashed into a wall, it's hard to feel sympathetic. Same when a child molester is attacked in jail. I mean, I know that even the lowest among us deserve safety, but a part of me is cheering the karma. The socially conscious part of my brain apparently isn't capable of winning our over my more base feelings.

Ands that's just the beginning.

It's a sad day to be a Canadian.

Too many Vaccines

2010-07-06T15:03:00.000-07:00

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38046491/ns/health-cold_and_flu/

I'm sure that it wasn't the pharmaceutical companies that overstated the number that needed to be purchased.

And I'm pretty sure that the error margin that they have just happens to be oh, 25%.

After all, it could've been worse.

It could've been 50%.

Site Updates

2010-07-06T14:56:00.000-07:00

Just pointing out that there have been a couple additions to the site.
An "About Flames & Fallacy" pag
"About Me" page has been updated
"Contact" page has been updated to function properly

Review: "The cult of the amateur" by Andrew Keen

2010-07-05T19:33:00.000-07:00

I was browsing through the shelves of the library when I came across this book. As I've always been a fan of the immense changes that the Internet has made in the way that we produce and share information, and am a strong advocate of examining both sides of any argument, I decided to give it a read.

In a perfect world, I would be able to say that I read it, disagreed with many of the points, and then would go on to calmly recite exactly on which points I diverged from the author.

(To clarify a quick point, I rarely start a book and then leave it unread: it may be a few weeks before I get around to finishing it, but well over 90% of the time, I eventually do.)

In reality, I made it to page three, at which point I encountered this sentence:

"If we keep up this pace, there will be over five hundred million blogs by 2010, collectively corrupting and confusing popular opinion about everything from politics, to commerce, to arts and culture."

This may not be the most frustrating sentence I have ever come across, but it certainly does rank up there.

Politics: http://www.dailykos.com/ I hardly think that this website can be accused of corruption and confusion, especially when compared to the fear machine that is the mainstream media and the communications arm of the Republican Party known as FOX news.
I may not be a reader of "commerce blogs" (I actually might have a hard time picking one out), but somehow doubt that they are any less valid than the wild speculation that seems to take place in print sources.
Andrew Keen seems to be unaware of one very fundamental lesson concerning art: it's nearly impossible to define, and even harder to place limits upon. He can hardly say that brilliant modern computerized illustrations isn't art... or at least not any more than I can say that all Michaelangelo did was hack at a bit of rock. In fact, the internet has created democracy in music on an unprecedented scale (a likely topic for another post.)
Culture is something defined by it's very definition: a hundred years ago, it was white linens, opera, and expensive coats. Nowadays, it's quite different, to say the least, and people generally consider "culture" synonymous with snobbery.

Of course, his justification for these "exceptions" is that simply enough, if you give an infinite number of monkeys (read: computer users) and infinite number of typewriters (internet enable computers) they are bound to come up with at least a few worthwhile objects.

I beg to differ. None of those sites are accidents, and precious few of their creators would have had their talents put to nearly as significant use in the mainstream media. If they were given a chance at all.

No longer can only a few create, and count on everyone else consuming what they produce simply because that's all that exists. Now, everyone has a voice, and an intelligent voice has a much better chance of being listened to.

For that, I'd put up with some apparently useless blogs and a few million pointless YouTube videos any day.

What is the G20?

2010-07-05T10:38:00.000-07:00

Today, someone asked me what the G20 was.

I really wasn't sure what to do: do I give him the condensed version from Wikipedia? Or do I reply with my standard sarcastic, rather cynical interpretation?

So, what do I think about the G20 summit in Toronto? Annoyed by the massive waste of money on "security" and embarrassed by the way that Canada's police force has behaved, and cynical about the purposes of the meeting.

First of all, the waste of money. Really, why can't this meeting be held in an out of the way lodge in the Swiss Alps? "Oh, transparency!" we all cry. Yea, well, a billion dollars later, and all we have are a bunch of cops making sure that not a single individual can get within sight of the meeting. How's that for transparency? And doesn't that say something when the government needs police that are increasingly resembling a paramilitary combat force?

The police abuses that make me ashamed to say that I'm a Canadian:

So what do I think that the G20 is all about?

It's a gathering of the richest, most powerful leaders in the world coming together in an orgy of self-importance to discuss their own success, and decide how to move forward with keeping the rest of the world underneath their heel.

BP Oil Spill

2010-06-17T07:21:00.001-07:00

I want to see the BP executives hang.

Unfortunately though, I'm likely going to have to settle for them paying cleanup and loss-of-income costs.

Dear Yahoo!

2010-06-01T19:33:00.000-07:00

Dear Yahoo!:

I have three points to raise:

Yahoo! Answers is an abomination. I understand that it is a profitable component of your services, but I assure you that in the long run you will benefit from such a cleansing of the internet. The world would benefit enormously if you heed my request.

Your name, while pleasantly modern, really should not have an exclamation mark - look to the top of this letter to see the issue.

I will not watch videos on your homepage. Provide me with the text article that you post, or else I will leave, and turn on Adblock as punishment.

Sincerely, Justin

Dove & Cynicism

2010-05-30T14:40:00.000-07:00

Not to be cynical...

OK, let us be serious: I'm a cynical person. When I first became aware of the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty, the blatant hypocrisy was almost painful. It would be like Xe (formerly Blackwater) starting a petition for peace in Iraq.

The focus of much of the campaign seems to be about weight - as far as I am aware, Dove doesn't sell any products that claim to assist in weight loss. A safe attempt then, that is unlikely to ostracize any of their current market, and is an easy way to sell self-esteem.

Not to mention the fact that Unilever also owns Axe, whose commercials treat women quite clearly as a prize to be won... but only if you wear their products.

But it's really just a clever marketing strategy: in today's hyper-commercialized, fake-sympathy advertising, the angle was bound to be snapped up by a competitor. And really, I'm willing to put money on this campaign improving people's view of Dove. "They don't sell things, they sell tools for women to empower themselves, to project outer beauty to accentuate their inner womanhood..." Cue motivational pseudo-feminist propaganda reel.

It's a good business strategy. If I was BP right now, I'd be trying to hire the brains that came up with it.

Not made to measure baby
One size does not fit all
~Made to Measure (by My Ruin)

Apology

2010-05-30T11:53:00.000-07:00

"Sorry for not posting recently, I've been going through some things irl, and I'll try to get back to my regular posting as soon as I can..."

No. I read this constantly and it never fails to annoy me. There are a lot of blogs on the internet, and not all that many are commercial. How many of these writers are being paid to write? Those that are, perhaps, owe something to their readers.

I do not write for money. I don't write for fame (or whatever the blogging equivalent can be considered as) and I certainly don't write for my readers. I write for myself. If along the way, what I choose to say is interesting or relevant to you, your life, or your work, then that's awesome. I enjoy the interaction - I don't crave it, but it does cast an interesting form of reflection over my writing.

Perhaps if I was to promise a post of some sort to the regular readers, and then retract the statement, then I would feel as if I owe an explanation. But that is a matter of common courtesy, not as could be implied, a principle that I would feel myself required to respect.

In short, no apology will be forthcoming if I haven't been posting at a pace on the blog that most people would consider optimal. Your readership is appreciated.

Fictional Iron Man/Monster Energy Drink Ad

2010-05-28T11:37:00.000-07:00

A project that I figured I might as well add the great repository of information that we call the internet.

Note: I do not support Monster or their products: they're just pop (death in a can) with some extra caffeine and vitamins. Iron Man is pretty cool though. All images are owned by Marvel and Monster.

The Big Bang Theory & Ubuntu

2010-05-17T19:05:00.000-07:00

At last, one of the two things that have never been on the Big Bang Theory has been acknowledged: Ubuntu.

Sheldon: "Ahh, Ubuntu, my favorite Linux-based operating system." (I believe that was the quote, if it isn't, I'd appreciate the correction.)

Every computer nerd (and Sheldon certainly is one) uses, or has used at some point a Linux distribution. It's a small point, but it has endeared the show to me even further.

Now, the only thing that I'm waiting for a mention of is Dungeons & Dragons. (Yes, I've seen every single episode, and I'm quite sure that it has been included in none of them.) Really, a show about nerds, and not a single mention?

Ridiculous.

Fast Food

2010-05-17T17:59:00.000-07:00

I made the mistake of venturing into a fast-food restaurant yesterday. I can't describe it as anything other than frightening.

The usual scents of grease and salt were present, the whirring of the air-conditioning and the clanks and splashes of whatever is being turned into "food" in the back.

But the thing that always frightens me the most is the staff. As you get up to the front of the line, uncomfortably close to a morbidly obese and copiously sweating person, a woman apologizing for a spilled drink, a small child doomed to an early death due to poor diet and worse exercise and at the pushy customers and crying babies... you look into the eyes of the man at the register, and you watch a little more of him die inside. He's a man. Not a boy, it's not a phase, this is his life, what he is and what he does.

And it makes you want to leave. To tell him to quit. To take your money and leave, him standing there. So that everyone is silent, and just sits there, thinking about how short life it, how much of it they've wasted, and how little they have left.

But instead, you just hand him the change, take the greasy, salty, overly sweetened food, thank him, and walk out the door with your head down, out back into the sunshine, so that you can forget what it is that you just did.

Iron Man 2

2010-05-16T16:42:00.000-07:00

Being a bit of a comic book nerd, I went to see Iron Man 2.

I'm not much of one for movie reviews (it's based far too much on opinion, and I really don't have the interest in trying to communicate such a complex experience to somehow who most likely can't at all relate to what I did experience). So I'll keep it short.

The movie was good although I preferred the first: the characters then seemed more compelling, and the plot more complex, realistic, and a fair bit funnier. But perhaps that was just my experiencing Robert Downey Jr., aka Tony Stark, aka Iron Man for the first time.

Really though, what struck me, is that the part of the movie that I found the coolest was the interfaces that Mr. Stark employed throughout. The projections(?), while entirely unrealistic, are probably some of the most interesting GUI's that I've ever seen. Yes, they were in the first movie as well, but it's just now that it really struck me how interesting they are.

It would be a fairly intuitive way of manipulating information, although I fear that if our relationship to computers ever did progress to that point, then people would be largely shut out from the control that we now possess due to our (comparatively) intimate relationship with the coding and processes that they consist of...

But to be able to zoom in to view a series of pictures from different angles, work on them, quite literally, by hand, and then pick them up and hurl them into an interactive garbage can would be quite an experience.

I have to wonder, is the current trend towards touch screens and intuitive interfaces more than just a fad?

Tax Dollars & Police Accountability

2010-05-13T07:49:00.000-07:00

<- That is what your tax dollars are being used for. To buy the pepper spray and body armor that that officer required to spray these WTO protesters in Seattle.

Before bothering to read any farther, do you agree with this statement: police forces are established to protect and serve the citizens. If you don't agree with this statement, then it's probably not worth reading any farther, although I welcome you to do so.

Now, if we consider that statement correct, then we have to ask ourselves: do you want your tax dollars, and your complacency to enable such gross abuses of power? Were these protesters lighting fires, settings bombs? No. They were merely protesting somewhere that the government had decided they shouldn't be allowed to. I am reasonably sure that if you went around the country asking people, very few would say that these people were a danger to anyone. Stopping robberies and muggings, preventing shootings and perusing killers? Yes. They are a threat to everyone, including themselves. The same thing will occur over and over, unless we care to do something to break the cycle.

Why are there such blatant abuses of power?

Lack of accountability. No one knows who that officer was, where his orders came from, or why they were issues. The police system is about as transparent as a cinder block from the vantage point of the ordinary citizen. Deciding what to do about it is a lot more complex: after all, just adding more rules and regulations is likely just going to make it more complex and confusing. For a start, every officer should be clearly emblazoned with a number. I mean, huge, yellow lettering across their chest and back. And as short as can be managed, as well. No 17 digit I.D. tags that no one will remember. And anonymous access to a website where you can enter the number and be provided with a link to contact this person's commanding officer, along with links to resources about citizen rights. A pipe dream? Probably, but it's a least a start.

We can make a difference: I'm sure that most people have seen the video of police storming a suspected drug dealer's house, shooting his dogs and arresting him.... while young children were present. And then finding nothing but a small amount of marijuana. And there have been changes made, no matter how minor they are, including a statement that presence of children may be considered a factor in whether or not an armed assault will be conducted. (Source, anyone?).

They're our police. When people are as afraid of them as they are of the criminals that they should be protecting us from, the system is broken.

The Failure of the Maker's Bill of Rights

2010-05-13T07:10:00.000-07:00

The Maker's Bill of Rights is certainly an interesting document: it clearly states many of the qualities that I believe are important when purchasing something, especially electronics.

If you can't open something up, can't take it apart, see how it works, put it back together again and sell it, if you can't alter it as you wish to, or give it away when you're done, then you don't own it, it's not yours.

But something that most people fail to acknowledge is that it's still our choice: it can be something tiny, like choosing a 'Droid over and iPhone, or larger: choosing to use Linux over Windows. But whatever the decision is, there is always a choice, even if the choice is abstaining: not buying anything at all hurts the manufacturer almost as much as you buying their competitor's product.

An XKCD that I find relevant to this topic as a whole:

Really, what I'm trying to say is that we do have a choice: it's not the manufacturers fault for not providing the products that we want, it's our fault for not demanding them, and refusing to buy anything less.

Wireless Internet Security

2010-05-11T08:00:00.000-07:00

My wireless security has been compromised.

Now, the worst part isn't that someone is in my network: in fact, I'm pretty impressed by how he* blew through my 20-something character password, with WPA encryption and a hidden SSID. No, the problem is that he's using my bandwidth. Not just a few YouTube videos either: at one point, 12gig in one day.

That is not hacking. He beat me, yes, he broke into my network, smashed my security, and embarrassed me. But he also provided me with a chance to outsmart him, a challenge issued and well received. That is, to me, what hacking is about. Not making viruses, not theft, not damage to another, but the defeat of another in virtual combat: a nerdy battle to the death.

This, however, is not hacking: it is theft. The very nature of a wireless network means that I am always on the defense. To break my security is not necessarily even a negative experience: I guarantee that my defenses will be far stronger, and my security protocols more stringent overall when all is said and done. The bandwidth overages that now plague me have been a significant expense, and have spared this individual from actually paying for his own.

To hack for personal gain to me is not hacking: it is theft. Perhaps I have an overly romanticized view of it, but this is not in the true spirit of hacking.

*It's not sexism, just convenient to stick with one gender. I may not have any statistics that confirm my point to hand, but I assure you that the odds are that my adversary is male.

Freedom of Speech, Internet Uploading, & Telus Mobility.

2010-05-08T09:12:00.000-07:00

I have owned two phones:

The LG Dare (An iPhone ripoff.)
(currently) The LG Keybo

Now, imagine a world without the internet. When I purchase something, the only realistic medium in which I have to express my satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the product is word of mouth. Therefore, I am limited to at most, providing the information that I possess to a hundred or so people, although the actual number will likely be far lower.

However, in writing this post, I am exposing my experience with the product and the company that provided it, to a nearly unlimited amount of people: chances are that only a few will bother to read it, and it will be relevant to fewer still, but at least it is there for anyone who wishes to seek it out. This is the great value that the internet has: that ability to upload and produce, not just the ability to consume and download, although it might be buried under mountains of pornography, spam and poor spelling.

Now, onto my systematic dismantling of Telus Mobility and their products. The (proprietary, unalterably isolated) OS that the phones run is a disgrace. It`s actually just pathetic. The music player slows to a crawl if more than 100 songs are loaded onto it (even though it supports an 8gb extra memory in the form of a microSD card) and it has little functionality other than texting and phone calls, which is not what any reasonable person would expect from a several hundred dollar smart phone. Neither is of solid construction, with the Dare needing replacement 6 months after the plan was purchased, and the Dare's hinges worn out with only a tiny amount of use.

Telus, in all my dealings with them, has been quite uncooperative: the staff were pleasant enough, but when push came to shove, they were effectively powerless to correct anything.

In short, I'm fairly certain that you don't care, but maybe someone who is thinking about buying a phone plan from Telus will do a little more research and decide if that's what they really want.

Around The Web

2010-05-06T16:52:00.000-07:00

The usual assortment of useful, informative and funny links:

http://www.pcworld.com/printable/article/id,193811/printable.html Very useful is you happen to be tech support for friends and family members, as I so often seem to be.
http://contentconsumer.wordpress.com/2008/04/27/is-ubuntu-useable-enough-for-my-girlfriend/ Highlights some issues with Linux (specifically Ubuntu) that are preventing it from becoming a more mainstream OS.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=126536482 Clever solution employing, although probably not possible to implement on a significant scale.
http://www.joeydevilla.com/2008/04/28/montana-meth-projects-billboards/ A fascinating look at how Montana is combating use of meth.
http://webtint.net/tutorials/how-well-be-building-websites-in-5-years-html5-and-css3-layout/ A glimpse into the likely future of the web.
http://wildammo.com/2009/09/26/national-flags-never-tasted-this-good/ Delicious national flags.

God Bless Us All

2010-04-16T18:13:00.000-07:00

God Bless us all...

...and Anna Nicole, and poor MJ... not to mention the joy of consumption, the false idols plastered on our walls, our billboards, and our minds. The slow eradication of everything The Regime doesn't want us to know... the indoctrination of children every year by religion, schools, and their idealistic, blinded parents. Destroy the world, one dollar bill, one percentage, one point on a computer screen at a time.The plastic isn't just in our pockets and in our houses, it's bred into our children and molded into our minds. Work, buy, consume die, and never question anything. Don't worry; you're safe though. The terrorists are being taken care of, and they'll stay away as long as you don't ask where your civil liberties went.

God Bless us all.

As you can tell, I've been feeling pretty frustrated, and decided to pop this piece of writing from a few years ago from my 'Iconoclast' folder, and stick it on the blog. It was originally posted on a message board in response to some mindless dribble about "God Blessing Us All, for we, and many others, have sinned, but America is strong, and we shall...." or something similar to that. Feel free to rant and rage, it's what I'm here for.

Plato Quote, the fallacy of political apathy.

2010-03-22T10:16:00.000-07:00

“Those who are too smart to engage in politics are punished by being governed by those who are dumber.”

Too many times I've heard people describe politics as being for "the masses." What these people don't understand is that politics will affect them, no matter how apathetic they are. I'm not necessarily saying to vote, but at least make the effort to be educated about current issues and how we can resolve them.

Around the Web

2010-03-22T08:30:00.000-07:00

I really just need somewhere to share random web-pages happened upon through Stumbleupon, emailed links from friends, and the end results of my meandering through the web. To that end, I have added a new category: Around the Web.Without further ado, onto the first set of Random & Interesting.

Stumbleupon gifted me with this gem, a list of the "56 best/worst anthologies of high school students". It was really a great idea for a contest, and several of the entries certainly made me laugh.

Support Details solves a very important problem: If you are a proficient computer user in the 21st century, it is nearly guaranteed that at some point a computer-illiterate friend or family-member will request that you play the role of tech support for whatever issue it is that they have. Unfortunately when a problem is encountered while installing software, the user may not be able to tell you what OS they're running, or is Javascript is turned on, but they can probably type in your email address.

I recently was looking for an exact quote from Beowulf, and unfortunately, I don't own a copy, digital or otherwise. Digital Classics to the rescue. I couldn't download any of them (anyone have any info about that?) There are over 100 literary classics, and they're all free, legal, and high quality.

For quite a while now I've been wondering about the future of print material: it seems quite likely that most newspapers and magazines won't be around for two much longer, but I'm really more concerned with books, and found a great post about "Why E-books will not replace paper-bound books (at least anytime soon)" Along the same lines, I dug up aGlobe & Mail article: A lament for the bookshelf, which is both well-written and entertaining.

Contact me, or comment if you think you have anything to add to a future list.

Flames & Fallacy

You know you're a read when...

The Price of Democracy

Interview Answer

E-book reader bill of rights

Cauliflower, Broccoli, & Colour-Blindness.

To: Vegetarians, Vegans.

Fuck the MPAA/RIAA.

Why Religion Should be Confronted

Why not a Stateless Society?

Corporate Theft

The Religion Switch

Around the Web

"I don't want to live on this planet anymore." (Part I)

Wall-Street Shamans

Quote

A bit of this

The Quote.

What a wonderful police officer.

Hypocrisy of "Pirates"

Property

Software Alternatives.

Getting Online in "The Future"

Guide to Stumbling Quickly

Pathetic.

Blog update.

Corporations in early Dystopian novels.

Huxley's Society of Infants and modern society

Cory Doctorow Interview.

A failure of our intellectuals.

What they should be doing

Links

Open Email to HP

G20: The Fall of Democracy in Canada begins

A power that we should have.

Fear Campaign

G20

Too many Vaccines

Site Updates

Review: "The cult of the amateur" by Andrew Keen

What is the G20?

BP Oil Spill

Dear Yahoo!

Dove & Cynicism

Apology

Fictional Iron Man/Monster Energy Drink Ad

The Big Bang Theory & Ubuntu

Fast Food

Iron Man 2

Tax Dollars & Police Accountability

The Failure of the Maker's Bill of Rights

Wireless Internet Security

Freedom of Speech, Internet Uploading, & Telus Mobility.

Around The Web

God Bless Us All

Plato Quote, the fallacy of political apathy.

Around the Web