HERE

“Whatever you want to do, do it now. For life is time and...

Fri, 19 Mar 2010 10:48:00 -0400

“Whatever you want to do, do it now. For life is time and time is all there is.” This quote passed by on my Tumblr dashboard with 210 notes (for non-Tumbloggers, notes accumulate when a post is reblogged and/or “liked”). Typical.

The popularity of such inanity makes me want to go on a rampage. I want to grab the author and admirers by their lapels and shake them down into teary-eyed admissions that the content of this quote is obviously and unquestionably false and fantastical, not to mention inconsistent with their prevailing beliefs. Since I can’t do that, I’ll just explain a few of the ways in which this quote is so inadequate.

Logically
If we read “is” as an indicator of identity (that is, identical-ness), then if “time is all there is,” and if “life is time,” then it must be true that life is all there is. But “life,” by any standard and non-trivial definition, does not extend to the inclusion of inanimate materials, which obviously do exist and comprise the vast majority of the universe.

Alternatively, if the first “is” does not indicate identity but rather means something like “is measured in,” and if we are saying that “life” and “time” have distinct definitions (as they actually do in the language we are using), then if “time is all there is,” then life would not exist and the statement “life [is measured in] time” would be false.

An alternative reading which may at least be logically coherent is that the first “is” indicates the inclusion of subset “life” within a broader set called “time.” Okay. What does that even mean? Logical coherence is not a logical proof — it’s merely a prerequisite for proving something true, and the legwork is not even close to finishing. If anyone wants to try to prove that “life” is a kind of “time,” be my guest. But I hope the pain of such a contra-definitional endeavor is already apparent.

Ontologically
Ontology is the branch of knowledge about what is, or what exists. The contradictions revealed in the bad logic of the quote prove the impossibility of the quote being true in the real world. Time is not the only ingredient to life, and time is not the only thing that exists. Moreover, until sense is made of it, none of us has any reason to believe that life is a version of time, rather than something that simply coexists with time.

Morally
I could go on about the logical and normative problems of a “do whatever you want to do” moral outlook. Instead, I’ll ask a rhetorical question: Should serial killers heed the advice to do “whatever you want to do”? No? Didn’t think so.

Yes, I know — whoever wrote this is just trying to say that each of us has a limited amount of time with which to work and should make good use of it. But, if you think that’s true — and I do too — then say it in a way that respects the value of the thought enough not to burden it with all sorts of fantastical claims about the universe, especially ones that diminish the universe’s breadth to the smallness of your extremely limited yet apparently very hubristic perspective. Say your maxims in a way that doesn’t reduce morality to an inherently incoherent relativism.

If nothing else, have the self-respect to say what you mean, mean what you say, and align yourself with ideas that make at least a little bit of sense.

—Dan

When Paranoia is Unjustified: The U.S. Census

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 14:06:00 -0400

Paranoia isn’t always unjustified. For example, it’s a very safe bet that corporations will do whatever harm to others if it pads their profits and if they believe they won’t face unduly costly consequences.

But paranoia about the U.S. Census is utterly ridiculous. I just filled out my form. It asks for number of people in household, first/last name, date of birth, and race/ethnicity. The delusional paranoids who won’t answer any question except for the first — how many people are in the dwelling — say it’s because they read the law as requiring an answer only to that question, and don’t want to give the government more information than legally necessary.

Guess what? The government already has all the other information. I love how the same people who don’t want to fill out their U.S. Census form also believe Barack Obama is illegitimate because they don’t believe he has a valid birth certificate like they do — and, by the way, EVERY BIRTH CERTIFICATE HAS ALL THAT INFORMATION AND MORE, AND THE GOVERNMENT CAN ALREADY ACCESS IT.

But that won’t stop the truly nutty among us. Congressperson Michelle Bachmann (Ridiculous-Minnesota) claims the census questions have become “very intricate, very personal” — which I’ll grant her, but only because she probably couldn’t handle a 1st grade math test. (What I won’t grant her is her fear of the imagined Census influence of community organizing group ACORN.) Ron Paul fans are trying to bone up on the law to see how much they can legally refuse to fill out. Coincidence Theories, a blog in the same vein as Bachmann and Paul, has a post about “GPS Jamming to thwart your local, friendly Census worker.” (And the comment section of their post honoring Bachmann’s vow of refusal is quite amusing.) The mother of all conspiracy whackjobs, Glenn Beck, has chimed in as well.

That said, I hope these Tea Party-type morons, as they are concentrated in redder states, refuse to respond to the census properly, as some have promised. It’d mean less representation for the delusional, and that would be a bonafide blessing to the sane of the world.

Update: Turns out that Michelle Bachmann quietly reversed her census position when the Minneapolis Star-Tribune pointed out that her congressional district — and therefore her job as a U.S. Representative — could plausibly be liquidated into other districts if enough constituents didn’t fill out their forms.

A truly principled person would have faced liquidation head-on, but a threat to her personal career and power — and to her own out-sized ego — seems to be the one thing that could have gotten her to switch.

Barnivore's Vegan Beer List

Wed, 17 Mar 2010 17:05:39 -0400

Barnivore's Vegan Beer List:

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

NYT piece on fur industry excludes blood, guts, and torture

Wed, 17 Mar 2010 00:47:00 -0400

This New York Times piece by fashion journalist Eric Wilson explaining fur’s recent resurgence on runways has a gaping hole in it: not one sentence is devoted to considering the lives and terrible plights of the non-human animals who are caged, anally and genitally electrocuted, and most often skinned alive for their fur.

(Mr. Wilson did include the tidbit that some designers “said they felt confident using fur after examining the chain of production and finding it humane,” but you’ll notice that he neither questioned this ridiculous claim nor mentioned the designers’ obvious personal stakes in reciting it.)

I’m glad the paper is interested in publishing how fur companies court and pamper designers behind the scenes to get their stolen skin on runways, but why aren’t they also interested in describing the dirty details of how fur is actually procured? Wouldn’t that be telling the whole story to readers? And isn’t that frankly far more compelling information than how the latest fleeting fashion trend became trendy?

Unfortunately, this pattern of institutional speciesism is very common: mainstream journalists often cover the human drama surrounding animal welfare issues while ignoring those non-human animals whose entire lives are at stake.

They’ll need to be pressured to change for the better, so it’s great to leave comments or email authors when you see this in practice on the internet. If you’re a member of nytimes.com, you can send Mr. Wilson a polite but firmly informed email by going to his news page and clicking on the link entitled “Send an email to Eric Wilson.”

(via bringtheruckuss)

Tue, 16 Mar 2010 13:14:01 -0400

(via bringtheruckuss)

(via lolcarter)

Sat, 13 Mar 2010 15:31:13 -0500

(via lolcarter)

rubenfeld: Local TV News is a fraud, according to a study of...

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 14:10:00 -0500

rubenfeld:

Local TV News is a fraud, according to a study of 11,000 TV stories in LA.

h/t @jayrosen_nyu

This is fantastic, a must-watch. Concluding quote:

“The other day the head of a station group told the FCC that there’s no such thing as the public interest. ‘There’s your public interest, my public interest.’ And he said, ‘We broadcasters, as content creators, monitor what the public wants on a daily basis.’ What the public wants? Well, I want ice cream. I need a well balanced meal. Apparently, the people of Los Angeles want 22 seconds about their local government. Maybe if they got more of that, they’d want more of that.”

A typical (read: ignorant, stupid, and/or selfish) conservative...

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:57:00 -0500

A typical (read: ignorant, stupid, and/or selfish) conservative gets revenge — I guess? — on somebody selling a car with an Obama sticker.

mrala:

I listed my car for sale on raleigh.craigslist.org and got this powerful voicemail the very first day.

I’m assuming this is the picture he was upset about:

Denise: Why are you wussing out?

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 21:17:10 -0500

Denise: Why are you wussing out?
Phil: I never wussed in!

"Republicans always frame the health care debate by saying, ‘Health care decisions should be..."

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 16:34:00 -0500

“Republicans always frame the health care debate by saying, ‘Health care decisions should be made by doctors and patients, not government bureaucrats,’ leaving out the fact that health decisions aren’t made by doctors, patients, or bureaucrats — they’re made by insurance companies. Which are a lot like hospital gowns: chances are, your ass isn’t covered.”

- Bill Maher (video link)

VOTE FOR MATT. Sexiest Vegetarian 2010. Now #7 #6!! Needs to be...

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:39:00 -0500

VOTE FOR MATT. Sexiest Vegetarian 2010.

Now #7 #6!! Needs to be in Top 5 by Friday at noon EST.

Attention All Tumbloggers

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:03:00 -0500

Something awesome is so close we can smell it. It carries the sweet scent of victory. But it will not be easily won.

We are behind in this fight, yet there is still hope. We have not yet called upon our secret weapon: you. We have not yet unleashed your awesome fury, your emo angst, your power to like and reblog and kick the rest of the internet’s ass.

Until now.

Join us as my brother, Matt Mims, co-founder of HEREblog, hits the final stretch of a quest so brash, so brazen, that his girlfriend didn’t even tell him it was happening.

Yes, it’s true: Matt is currently #8 in PETA’s 2010 Sexiest Vegetarian Next Door contest.

#8!!

He needs to get voted into the top 5 by Friday at noon EST to reach the Finals.

Will you help us now, in our hour of greatest need?

Your marching orders, brave warriors:

Click THIS LINK to visit Matt’s voting page.
Click “Submit Your Vote.”
Enter your name and e-mail.
Uncheck the box to avoid receiving e-mails from PETA, unless you want them.
Click “return to where you left off voting.” This part is deceiving because it seems like you’ve already voted, but you haven’t just yet.
LAST STEP: Click “Submit Your Vote.” The “Submit Your Vote” text should change to “Thanks For Voting!” once your vote has been registered.

Oh, and extra hero points if you reblog this post!

Thank you!!
Dan

secrets0ciety: The Cove Film-Makers Break Up Alleged Whale-Meat...

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 15:27:52 -0500

secrets0ciety:

The Cove Film-Makers Break Up Alleged Whale-Meat Smuggling Operation

“This isn’t just about saving whales,” said Louie Psihoyos, the director of “The Cove,” a documentary that chronicles eco-activists’ battles with Japanese officials over dolphin hunting. “But about saving the planet.”

The sushi sting actually began in October, when the documentary’s associate producer and “director of clandestine operations,” Charles Hambleton, heard from friends in the music industry that the Hump, a highly rated sushi restaurant next to the runway at the Santa Monica airport, was serving whale. Mr. Hambleton, who has worked as a water safety consultant on Hollywood movies like “Pirates of the Caribbean,” created a tiny camera for two animal-activist associates to wear during a monster session of omakase — a sushi meal in which the chef picks all the dishes. Video of their meal shows the two activists, both vegan, being served what the waitress can be heard calling “whale” — thick pink slices — that they take squeamish bites of before tossing into a Ziploc bag in a purse.

The samples were sent to Scott Baker, associate director of the Marine Mammal Institute at Oregon State University. Professor Baker said DNA testing there revealed that the samples sent to him were from a Sei whale, which are found worldwide and are endangered but are sometimes hunted in the North Pacific under a controversial Japanese scientific program. Serving unusual fish imported from Japan is the hallmark of many high-end sushi restaurants here, and whale meat is often found in Japanese markets, Professor Baker said. But he said he had never heard of it being served in an American restaurant.

Gilbert Ng joined us for a photo session several weeks ago, in...

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 13:40:00 -0500

Gilbert Ng joined us for a photo session several weeks ago, in preparation for the forthcoming release of our first album, pastpresentfuture. Gil is an amazing photographer who shoots and develops real film. This image was taken on the rooftop of our DIY music space, The Yolk.

Me: Do you watch it's always sunny in Philadelphia?

Sun, 07 Mar 2010 16:26:00 -0500

Me: Do you watch it's always sunny in Philadelphia?
Jess: Nope. Never seen it. What's it about?
Me: Basically there are 5 main characters who own and/or operate a shitty bar in Philly and, though they have their own personality traits, the thing that binds them is that they all share some of the worst social traits of humanity. Selfish, competitive, vindictive, callous.
Jess: I just bought seasons 1 and 2 on Amazon.
Me: Really?
Jess: Yeah!
Me: Just like that?
Jess: YUP

(via swisserswatter) I just like to see kids crying.

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 02:24:11 -0500

(via swisserswatter)

I just like to see kids crying.

"When a man wants to murder a tiger, he calls it sport; when a tiger wants to murder him, he calls it..."

Wed, 03 Mar 2010 14:39:27 -0500

“When a man wants to murder a tiger, he calls it sport; when a tiger wants to murder him, he calls it ferocity.”

- George Bernard Shaw, writer and Nobel laureate (1856–1950) (via jennymarmalade)

inky: The Mouth Licking What You’ve Bled, by Meshuggah (from the...

Wed, 03 Mar 2010 14:35:00 -0500

inky: The Mouth Licking What You’ve Bled, by Meshuggah (from the new DVD Alive).

Don McLeroy FIRED

Wed, 03 Mar 2010 11:11:00 -0500

Several weeks ago we posted about how a delusional group of creationist right-wing lunatics have been exerting out-sized influence on public school textbook standards nationwide from their perches on the Texas State Board of Education.

Well, good news: Don McLeroy, their fundamentalist dentist ringleader, has just been fired by Texas voters in favor of a much saner candidate. What’s more, he was ousted — albeit narrowly — by Republican voters in the Republican primary.

Thank you, Texas Republicans, for seeing some light.

josephinemarch: rainaelizabeth:...

Wed, 03 Mar 2010 01:57:17 -0500

josephinemarch: rainaelizabeth: annahinks:queen-of-everything : twrex : hauntedghost : 9773 : taargustaargus : pizzapuke : joeylusterman