Here I offer a new phrase to replace the old. One a bit more [...]]]> For a few decades now people have been calling Carrboro, NC the “Paris of the Piedmont“. I won’t go into its origins here. Some folks are pretty fed up with the phrase. We never like being pigeonholed it seems.

Here I offer a new phrase to replace the old. One a bit more obscure.

“The Christiania of the Carolinas”

Learn more about our new namesake here and here.

Christiania, also known as Freetown Christiania (Danish: Fristaden Christiania) is a self-proclaimed autonomous neighbourhood of about 850 residents, covering 34 hectares (85 acres) in the borough of Christianshavn in the Danish capital Copenhagen. From an official point of view, Christiania is regarded as a large commune, but its relation to the authorities has a unique status in being regulated by a special law, the Christiania Law of 1989 which transfers parts of the supervision of the area from the municipality of Copenhagen to the state.

I was impressed that some actors and producers spoke out in solidarity. But now that the smart writers of The Daily Show have laid it out… I grok it. Viacom is [...]]]> Have to say I was pretty confused about the details of the TV writers strike. But then I saw this video.

I was impressed that some actors and producers spoke out in solidarity. But now that the smart writers of The Daily Show have laid it out… I grok it. Viacom is being fat cat greedy!

This video helped me understand why we need them so much. These folks are our teachers. Well some of them. Maybe not the folks who write for reality TV. hugs and kisses! This vid is funny and educational BTW. It explains a lot!

Thanks for sharing this Albert! More info at the United Hollywood blog.

The Argument Sketch (or Argument, Argument Clinic, or Six More Minutes of Monty Python’s Flying Circus when including the non-argument sections) is a sketch from Monty Python’s Flying Circus.

Palin: “An argument is a collective series of statements to establish a definite [...]]]> Sometimes the Internet seems like one giant argument clinic. Case in point…

The Argument Sketch (or Argument, Argument Clinic, or Six More Minutes of Monty Python’s Flying Circus when including the non-argument sections) is a sketch from Monty Python’s Flying Circus.

Palin: “An argument is a collective series of statements to establish a definite proposition.”

Cleese: “No it isn’t”

Palin: “Yes it is. It isn’t just contradiction!”

Cleese: “Look if I argue with you I must take up a contradictory position.”

Palin: “But it isn’t just saying ‘No it isn’t!’”

Cleese: “Yes it is.”

Palin: “No it isn’t! ? Argument is a intellectual process. Contradiction is just the automatic gainsaying of anything the other person says.”

Ahhh Isn’t our freedom to argue online wonderful!?!

HERE IS SOME INFORMATION ABOUT THE DOWNLOAD:

THE ALBUM WILL COME AS A 48.4MB [...]]]> I decided to pay £10 for the new Radiohead album IN RAINBOWS the other day. It was a pay what you want deal online. I just got an email saying that the files will be available for download tomorrow.

HERE IS SOME INFORMATION ABOUT THE DOWNLOAD:

THE ALBUM WILL COME AS A 48.4MB ZIP FILE CONTAINING 10 X 160KBPS DRM FREE MP3s.

Before I purchased these files I was wondering what file format they would be in. The website said nothing about that to my recollection. Would have been nice to see them in a uncompressed format like Flac. How about releasing multi track recordings for remix under a Creative Commons licensee? Not to steal but to extend the commons of free information.

Take the next step Radiohead. Oh and thanks for this first step. Looking forward to the album.

Pink and Bunny are Cats. They have a video camera and like to share what they know. This is their show’s trailer The Pinky Show, in a Nutshell. (this link is to a page with a QuickTime version of this vid) Man this stuff is brilliant.

Thanks for sharing Paul!

But one has to wonder how far apologies will go in righting past wrongs. Is it the scab that, left unbothered, will heal wounds, or is it merely a quick-fix Band-Aid, slapped on to make the [...]]]> Wonderful and inspiring article/interview with John Hope Franklin in this weeks Indy: John Hope Franklin: Apologies aren’t enough.

But one has to wonder how far apologies will go in righting past wrongs. Is it the scab that, left unbothered, will heal wounds, or is it merely a quick-fix Band-Aid, slapped on to make the ugliness of injury just go away?

Franklin, who knows what it is to grow up in a world where one’s rights and equalities are constantly being questioned, refuses to let go. He thinks it’s not just time for somebody to apologize, but to do something about it.

“No one knows the price that I’ve paid for what I’ve gotten out of this world and this life,” he says. “My efforts represented sacrifices untold, indescribable. They don’t know what my mother went through to see that I had opportunities, and even the fundamentals such as food and clothing and so forth. They don’t know what my grandfather, on my father’s side, paid in terms of taxes so that white young men could go to the University of Oklahoma, where my own father could not go.

“And I don’t see any reason why I should get over that kind of exploitation of my immediate family—my father, my grandfather, my mother, and so forth. I see no reason I should get over it. I see every reason why there should be compensation, apologies, particularly in the hypocrisy it’s represented, in their saying on the one hand that all men are created equal, and on the other hand, them saying if they’re created equal, some are more equal than others.”

The Tibetan Book of the Dead Part 2

In [...]]]> Chuck from Minnesota Stories has a wonderful video and blog post up called What Muslim Prayer Looks Like. Please go over to his site and watch it. Its a simple introduction to the religious culture of Muslims. We must learn about each other in this world if we expect peace to exist.

In light of the detention of six Muslim clerics by US Airways in the Twin Cities, it might be fruitful to show Minnesotans what a Muslim prayer looks like.

A telling quote from the story: A US Airways gate agent wrote that three of the men prayed in Arabic at the gate. “I was suspicious by the way they were praying very loud,” the gate agent said.

Other Thoughts: I think that many Americans ignorance about Muslims is fed by the lack of context in TV news shows. True you can’t encapsulate hundreds of years of history in each broadcast, but you can include educational writing. Editors of TV copy can be sensitive to all cultures when they work on witting. Directors of TV news shows should ask their on screen personalities to exude more love and understanding in their work. I’m not talking about hippy dippy stuff that conservatives across America cringe at. I’m describing a humble openness that encourages all viewers to learn more about what is being presented. Ask yourself TV executives, “Just how does my programing educate the world?”

Quicktime