That’s Gay: Johnny Weir // Current

My biggest problem with the whole J.Weir situation isn’t that he didn’t win it’s that the language in the media coverage trends toward derogatory keywords as to how he’s a joke of an athlete since he’s gay. I’m going to try to channel Bryan when these conversations happen, I’m up for that challenge.

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The wait to get into Sochi house was ridiculous but we waited patiently since the word-of-mouth as to Russian awesomeness was intense. Sadly, it was a huge letdown. I suspect the hype was originally deserved, since there were some sweet bar setups, but ultimately unsustainable. Today felt more like a trade show for Sochi’s sponsors. There was no free-flowing vodka. I’d entertained thoughts of saving up to go in 2014. Now Sochi would have to win me back.

The wait to get into Sochi house was ridiculous but we waited patiently since the word-of-mouth as to Russian awesomeness was intense.

Sadly, it was a huge letdown. I suspect the hype was originally deserved, since there were some sweet bar setups, but ultimately unsustainable. Today felt more like a trade show for Sochi’s sponsors. There was no free-flowing vodka.

I’d entertained thoughts of saving up to go in 2014. Now Sochi would have to win me back.

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Only authorized state users can participate in social media, the new standard says, and some sites should be disabled to prevent “unnecessary functionality,” such as instant messaging.

Users can speak on behalf of the state only if authorized, and only within the scope of that authority, and must disclose their names, titles, agencies and contact information.

For those who would imitate the Terminator or Conan, there’s Rule No. 8: “Users shall not utilize tools or techniques to spoof, masquerade, or assume any identity or credentials except for legitimate law enforcement purposes, or for other legitimate state purposes as defined in agency policy.”

No spoofing — California issues social media guidelines - latimes.com

I’m interpreting this as ‘if you work for the man, you’re not allowed to say anything mean about him, especially not if you’re actually allowed to speak for him.’

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ermlabrat:

There are now EIGHT health care lobbyists for each member of congress.  And THAT my friends is what is wrong with politics today.

(via Center for Public Integrity)

Friday, February 26, 2010 — 3 notes   ()

Joan Jett & the Blackhearts - I Love Rock N Roll

Bronwyn and I are browsing through my collection of music videos. Most were downloaded before YouTube became ubiquitous, when I still wanted to tuck videos onto an external drive just in case I suddenly needed to see a certain something.

What I love most about this video is the way Joan isn’t pretty. Ricky Byrd is prettier here than Joan is - and the not-so-subtle implication is that she’s on the prowl and he’s the jailbait. It’s lovely.

She’s fierce before fierce became a codeword.

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The Senate on Thursday approved HB12 on a vote of 24-4, criminalizing a woman’s “intentional, knowing, or reckless act” leading to a pregnancy’s illegal termination. It specifies that a woman cannot be prosecuted for arranging a legal abortion.

Measure on illegal abortions heads to governor - Salt Lake Tribune

THE SPONSOR OF THE BILL IS QUOTED AS SAYING, “I don’t think we want to go down the road of carefully defining the behavior of a woman.” IN RESPONSE TO LANGUAGE TRYING TO CHANGE THE BILL SO ABUSE VICTIMS CAN’T BE PROSECUTED.

WHAT THE FUCK DOES SHE THINK THE BILL DOES IN THE FIRST PLACE? IT CAREFULLY DEFINES THE BEHAVIOR OF WOMEN.

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Religion now appears so early in civilized life—earlier than civilized life, if Schmidt is correct—that some think it may be less a product of culture than a cause of it, less a revelation than a genetic inheritance. The archeologist Jacques Cauvin once posited that “the beginning of the gods was the beginning of agriculture,” and Göbekli may prove his case.

Turkey: Archeological Dig Reshaping Human History - Newsweek.com

Hold on, my synapses are trying to fire in new directions.

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I can’t think of another recent production in which everyone onstage is so quirkily specific and so universal, or in which you could analyze each performance as such a thorough expression of the play as a whole.

Theater Review - ‘A Lie of the Mind’ - In Sam Shepard Land, Home Is Where the Soul Aches - NYTimes.com

I would want to see this even if it didn’t mean ELISABETH’S NAME IN THE NY EFFIN’ TIMES, BABY!

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Tonight Show with Jay Leno Olympic promo (via villareality)

Love it.

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Liberal Democrat MP, Jo Swinson, is putting down a parliamentary motion this week supporting the Royal College of Psychiatrists. She said it was now “crystal clear that media does play a critical role in the development and maintenance of negative body image and eating disorders.

BBC News - Media is fuelling eating disorders, say psychiatrists

I didn’t expect the psychiatrists to try to start this revolution but I suppose it makes sense.

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Dept. Of No Duh: "Report: Social Media Users Are More Likely To Check Email"

maura:

STOP THE PRESSES

I blame the trend of publishing ‘white paper’ blogs with very obvious information and a pretty graph or two on Mashable. Everyone wants to be seen as an up-and-coming social media thought leader, right?

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But this isn’t how the Internet works. Viral content doesn’t spread just from primary sources like YouTube or Flickr. Blogs, Web sites and video aggregators serve as cultural curators, daily collecting the items that will interest their audiences the most. By ignoring the power of these tastemakers, our record company is cutting off its nose to spite its face.

[…]

It’s decisions like these that have earned record companies a reputation for being greedy and short-sighted. And by and large they deserve it. But before we cheer for the demise of the big bad machine, it’s important to remember that record companies provide the music industry with a vital service: they’re risk aggregators. Or at least, they used to be.

Op-Ed Contributor - Free viral videos - NYTimes.com

Damian from OK Go will not go quietly.

Sunday, February 21, 2010 — 1 note   ()
ladimcbeth: I’m sick, so this sounds fantastic to me right now. I have the fireplace, and you’re welcome to use it. Good luck with the tiger.

ladimcbeth:

I’m sick, so this sounds fantastic to me right now.

I have the fireplace, and you’re welcome to use it. Good luck with the tiger.

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Instead of condemning cosmetic or trans surgeries, straightened hair, hijab or high heels as “unnatural,” we would be better served as feminist theorists of culture to ask: Which kinds of bodily practices are normalized as “appropriate” to feminine persons, and to masculine persons, and how? What values (of race, nation, gender, economic status) do these practices normalize? What ideologies are embedded in these often-literal inscriptions upon differentiated bodies? How have these discourses and practices changed in historically and culturally specific ways?

Gender/Queer: Dressed to Kill, Fight to Win | Racialicious - the intersection of race and pop culture(via champagnecandy)(via robot-heart-politics) (via buyhercandy) (via northerndownpour)
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The future of communications requires the consideration of sociological principles when integrating Social Media into the marketing chemistry. This is one of the most important points where we simply need to stop and think about things. As in all of marketing, the most effective campaigns start with listening, reading, watching, and observing. In the world of Social Media, this is not an option. It’s dependent on Sociology and the study of people and cultures online before we even think about engaging them in conversations.

Cultural Voyeurism and Social Media | Brian Solis

This is a distilled and academic summation of the unease I’ve felt with our ‘behind a curtain’ approach to social media - and it’s from 2008. It’s leaving me a little glum, to be honest.

The Academy as an organization can say it’s engaged but I’ll continue to feel like a part-time cultural voyeur, invisibly on the far side of the fence from 9-6.

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