As much as I want to say, "I told you so," to the former sorority girls expelled from their sorority because of their appearances, it shows how far society has come. You can find the story on the U.S. edition of CNN.com. I think it's worth commenting on, because apparently this sorority wasn't content to just give bids to the pretty girls, but now they're willing to expel girls after they've been initiated.
Another article on CNN says that 20 year olds are more narcissistic than ever, which I believe. It's painful to watch fellow students disrespect people who have worked decades for their positions. It's sad to hear post-test discussion where people say "I can't believe he put that much on the test, who does he think he is?"
I think I lost my blogging momentum, but I don't think it takes much to see just how much we need to remember the image of God as a huge part of our foundation for how we relate to other people, and that there is something more to being a beautiful person than having nice skin. I think Dove's recent commercial is worth its weight in gold for the message its sending:
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Monday, February 19, 2007
Heads up: 666
Brian originally talked about this.
De Jesus is in the news again, folks. Be sure to watch the video clip.
I don't really pray that God will let me live my life for a certain period of time. I figure he will just use me and take me home whenever he is ready. But I think I will pray to outlive De Jesus, just so I can see the looks on his followers faces.
I suppose it's easy to joke about because we think we see through him so easily, but I do feel for his followers.
De Jesus is in the news again, folks. Be sure to watch the video clip.
I don't really pray that God will let me live my life for a certain period of time. I figure he will just use me and take me home whenever he is ready. But I think I will pray to outlive De Jesus, just so I can see the looks on his followers faces.
I suppose it's easy to joke about because we think we see through him so easily, but I do feel for his followers.
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Wow
I don't want Cut the Chatter to turn into a celeberity gossip blog, which are the Sodom and Gomorrah of the Internet community, but can I just say...
Damn, Britney. Damn.
It was cool when Natalie Portman did it in V for Vendetta, but that was for a movie. And anyways, Natalie Portman is a great actress. Britney Spears isn't a good singer or a good actress, but, whatever. I don't even know what I'm thinking. I'm shocked.
Damn, Britney. Damn.
It was cool when Natalie Portman did it in V for Vendetta, but that was for a movie. And anyways, Natalie Portman is a great actress. Britney Spears isn't a good singer or a good actress, but, whatever. I don't even know what I'm thinking. I'm shocked.
Thursday, February 15, 2007
He came out with it, and I came down with a sinus infection.
Last week, John Amaechi came out of that closet, which just seems to be getting bigger and bigger. In any event, I turned on ESPN and saw them doing a special on the British homosexual, which is fine, I suppose. But I don't remember the name John Amaechi at all. The only characters I remember from the Jazz are John Stockton and Karl Malone, and I guess that's because I liked using the Utah Jazz as a team when I played Tecmo Super NBA 1995 back in elementary/middle school. I never got that good at it, but I think I could beat my dad.
Anyways, here's a story that puts some real perspective on the issue.
I'm sick, and so I won't be able to attend Winter Conference this year. I'm pretty bummed, but it makes sense. The whole fall of man thing. And so I can't follow up on my video (Auburn's Winter Conference Promo):
Anyways, here's a story that puts some real perspective on the issue.
I'm sick, and so I won't be able to attend Winter Conference this year. I'm pretty bummed, but it makes sense. The whole fall of man thing. And so I can't follow up on my video (Auburn's Winter Conference Promo):
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Battle of the Bands: Deerhoof vs. Bloc Party
It's time for another round of Battle of the Bands. Deerhoof released their Friend Opportunity album a couple of weeks ago, and it received significant reviews from the online music community. But can the trio survive against an assault from Bloc Party, fresh off their 2005 Silent Alarm success?
Deerhoof's album is quite a bit of progressive and eclectic rock. I don't lump them in with the likes of Dream Theater, Allman Bros., etc. when I say "progressive rock," but I will make the reasons for the use of the term clear shortly.
Instantly you are struck with a powerful attack of keyboard synth, bass beat, and furious drumming as the album opens with "The Perfect Me." You will probably enjoy the novelty of the chord progression, but a tension build under the changes and you seek some form of resolution. Ironically, the relief comes from Satomi Matsuzaki, and initially her voice sounds foreign and peculiar to the indie afficionado who has his sights turned to the East Coast and Europe. Matsuzaki, like so many other singers, can initially put you off and make you feel uncomfortable. But her voice is an acquired taste, not unlike black dark roast coffee. The singer's voice is not merely a thing at which you scratch your head and mutter "Ok, that's cute...," but it become endearing and a valuable part of Deerhoof's arsenal.
After more than 40 years of rock and roll, it might seem like all the creative riffs have been discovered, and that all of the various arrangements of instruments have been made. But Deerhoof's Friend Opportunity continues to press the limits of their instruments, their artistic abilities, and the genre itself. The result is a rich diverse album that is at the same time simple, thoughtful, and most importantly, enjoyable.
Listen to Deerhoof's "+81."
Bloc Party released A Weekend in the City last week, and I downloaded it (from emusic.com) to see if it could live up to the pressure of a great debut album. I loved Bloc Party's single from their last album, "Helicopter." The fact that FIFA 06 used that single as the soundtrack to an English Premiership highlight reel made the song even more enjoyable, but now when I listen to it I want to play soccer.
I was expecting more of the same, with a few artistic developments when I downloaded the album. My thoughts on it are mixed, and while I've listened to the album the whole way through a couple of times, there are songs that make me instantly switch what I'm listening to on iTunes. A reviewer at Cokemachineglow tellingly wrote, "Okereke now sings instead of barking, and, well, oops on him." Okereke's style was unique and sincere, but his newer efforts at lyric-singing reduce him to an average singer, and it seems that anyone with a similar range (and his isn't that marvelous) could fill his shoes. And I will let other reviewers online comment on the poverty of some of the lyrics. Okereke...I don't care if you want to drive to Brighton on the weekend.
With the singer out of the way, we are left considering the rest of the band. Russell Lissack provides a few fun riffs just as he did in "Helicopter," and Matt Tong's drumming is as fast-paced as ever. The problem involves what happens between the riffs, which are scattered and uneven throughout the album. Bloc Party seems to be committed to the electric lead and rhythm guitars, a full drum kit, and an unimpressive bass as their means of communicating their thoughts and music. Unfortunately, this reveals that they are more instrumentalists than musicians. On Weekend in the City, they bound themselves to a very limited form of expression, and while they may express some art-rock norms, they are unable to push the boundaries and advance music in a significant way.
Watch Bloc Party's live performance of "Hunting for Witches"
That's why Deerhoof wins out in this issue of Battle of the Bands. Deerhoof provides the listener with clearly identifiable rock patterns, so that the listener feels comfortable. Bloc Party does the same, but Deerhoof uses that comfort to gradually introduce new thoughts on music, and thus helps the listener appreciate even more forms of music, and isn't that what releasing an album should be all about?
Deerhoof's album is quite a bit of progressive and eclectic rock. I don't lump them in with the likes of Dream Theater, Allman Bros., etc. when I say "progressive rock," but I will make the reasons for the use of the term clear shortly.
Instantly you are struck with a powerful attack of keyboard synth, bass beat, and furious drumming as the album opens with "The Perfect Me." You will probably enjoy the novelty of the chord progression, but a tension build under the changes and you seek some form of resolution. Ironically, the relief comes from Satomi Matsuzaki, and initially her voice sounds foreign and peculiar to the indie afficionado who has his sights turned to the East Coast and Europe. Matsuzaki, like so many other singers, can initially put you off and make you feel uncomfortable. But her voice is an acquired taste, not unlike black dark roast coffee. The singer's voice is not merely a thing at which you scratch your head and mutter "Ok, that's cute...," but it become endearing and a valuable part of Deerhoof's arsenal.
After more than 40 years of rock and roll, it might seem like all the creative riffs have been discovered, and that all of the various arrangements of instruments have been made. But Deerhoof's Friend Opportunity continues to press the limits of their instruments, their artistic abilities, and the genre itself. The result is a rich diverse album that is at the same time simple, thoughtful, and most importantly, enjoyable.
Listen to Deerhoof's "+81."
Bloc Party released A Weekend in the City last week, and I downloaded it (from emusic.com) to see if it could live up to the pressure of a great debut album. I loved Bloc Party's single from their last album, "Helicopter." The fact that FIFA 06 used that single as the soundtrack to an English Premiership highlight reel made the song even more enjoyable, but now when I listen to it I want to play soccer.
I was expecting more of the same, with a few artistic developments when I downloaded the album. My thoughts on it are mixed, and while I've listened to the album the whole way through a couple of times, there are songs that make me instantly switch what I'm listening to on iTunes. A reviewer at Cokemachineglow tellingly wrote, "Okereke now sings instead of barking, and, well, oops on him." Okereke's style was unique and sincere, but his newer efforts at lyric-singing reduce him to an average singer, and it seems that anyone with a similar range (and his isn't that marvelous) could fill his shoes. And I will let other reviewers online comment on the poverty of some of the lyrics. Okereke...I don't care if you want to drive to Brighton on the weekend.
With the singer out of the way, we are left considering the rest of the band. Russell Lissack provides a few fun riffs just as he did in "Helicopter," and Matt Tong's drumming is as fast-paced as ever. The problem involves what happens between the riffs, which are scattered and uneven throughout the album. Bloc Party seems to be committed to the electric lead and rhythm guitars, a full drum kit, and an unimpressive bass as their means of communicating their thoughts and music. Unfortunately, this reveals that they are more instrumentalists than musicians. On Weekend in the City, they bound themselves to a very limited form of expression, and while they may express some art-rock norms, they are unable to push the boundaries and advance music in a significant way.
Watch Bloc Party's live performance of "Hunting for Witches"
That's why Deerhoof wins out in this issue of Battle of the Bands. Deerhoof provides the listener with clearly identifiable rock patterns, so that the listener feels comfortable. Bloc Party does the same, but Deerhoof uses that comfort to gradually introduce new thoughts on music, and thus helps the listener appreciate even more forms of music, and isn't that what releasing an album should be all about?
Monday, February 12, 2007
the MANifesto
Ladies, but mostly gentlemen, welcome to the 21st Century. Women have made impressive strides in the field of civil rights, and they have declared that women can do anything a man can do, plus a little change (like childbirth). I feel that male sex has not thought about the implications of equal rights for both men and women, and I have thus set forth some principles to encourage the average man to stand up for his rights. The male sex has long been encumbered by thoughts of "gentility," which is a word that women created to trap men in a small, sexist cage. Women no longer listen to some of our demands, so why should we listen to some of theirs?
1) We, as men, resolve to no longer put the toilet seat down. Scientists have proven that nearly twice as much men as women suffer from chronic back pain, and this is most certainly the cause.
2) We resolve to never, never share the remote. Women read books and look at paintings. Men watch real things, like television. Thus we demand and will retake our sovereignty of the cathode ray tube, both now, and forevermore.
3) We resolve to stop opening doors for women. The awkwardness of jockeying for a position to where the man can open the door, and the excess of thought done in preparing for such moves both overburden a man's brain in unecessary ways (as in, non-sports thinking). We still retain the right to open the door, if we think we are entering a hostage situation.
4) We resolve to proudly belch and fart, as these are our natural and holiest of biological functions.
5) We resolve to scratch ourselves whenever we damn feel like it.
6) We resolve to dress ourselves. Women have tried to dominate the male's choice of aesthetic appearance, to which we say, no more! We dress for the optimum level of comfort, and it is sexist to tell us to do otherwise.
7) We resolve to watch action movies whenever we want, whether women are in the mood for them or not. A man's desire is not contingent upon a woman's, and our mastery of the remote (all forms of them, really) demands that we have the choice of film.
8) And finally, we resolve to abolish that insipid holiday, Valentine's Day. Valentine was a loser and shouldn't be celebrated. This female-driven holiday is another bar in the sexist cage that leads to the oppression of men, and dammit if we aren't going to break this one. If women want flowers from someone, they can ask their girl friends for help.
Good manifestos have a round ten points, but as a man myself, I resolve not to worry more about the MANifesto until further notice. My brothers would be appreciated to add more points.
Men of the world, unite!
1) We, as men, resolve to no longer put the toilet seat down. Scientists have proven that nearly twice as much men as women suffer from chronic back pain, and this is most certainly the cause.
2) We resolve to never, never share the remote. Women read books and look at paintings. Men watch real things, like television. Thus we demand and will retake our sovereignty of the cathode ray tube, both now, and forevermore.
3) We resolve to stop opening doors for women. The awkwardness of jockeying for a position to where the man can open the door, and the excess of thought done in preparing for such moves both overburden a man's brain in unecessary ways (as in, non-sports thinking). We still retain the right to open the door, if we think we are entering a hostage situation.
4) We resolve to proudly belch and fart, as these are our natural and holiest of biological functions.
5) We resolve to scratch ourselves whenever we damn feel like it.
6) We resolve to dress ourselves. Women have tried to dominate the male's choice of aesthetic appearance, to which we say, no more! We dress for the optimum level of comfort, and it is sexist to tell us to do otherwise.
7) We resolve to watch action movies whenever we want, whether women are in the mood for them or not. A man's desire is not contingent upon a woman's, and our mastery of the remote (all forms of them, really) demands that we have the choice of film.
8) And finally, we resolve to abolish that insipid holiday, Valentine's Day. Valentine was a loser and shouldn't be celebrated. This female-driven holiday is another bar in the sexist cage that leads to the oppression of men, and dammit if we aren't going to break this one. If women want flowers from someone, they can ask their girl friends for help.
Good manifestos have a round ten points, but as a man myself, I resolve not to worry more about the MANifesto until further notice. My brothers would be appreciated to add more points.
Men of the world, unite!
Saturday, February 10, 2007
Burping, and "Blame Pam, not Jim"
Do you ever find yourself listening to music in a coffee shop, and then burping audibly? I just forgot that even though I was listening to loud music, not everyone was, and let out a significant belch. Did I apologize? Of course not, because this is America.
Side note for discussion:
Who do we blame for the events of the Office Episode of 8 February 2007? In my opinion, Jim is not at fault. Pam has spent the past few episodes obviously pushing Jim away ("Oscar, I'm ready to be set up on a date", and leaving the reception with Roy). Jim, who we've seen as willing to go beyond some of Pam's more subtle eccentricities, cannot be asked to do more than interpret Pam's activity as a shot across the bow saying "I've moved on too, Jim."
One particular minor problem I have with Jim is his use of Pam's last name, "Beesly." Using someone's last name is a distance-creating mechanism, and dammit Jim, stop.
Side note for discussion:
Who do we blame for the events of the Office Episode of 8 February 2007? In my opinion, Jim is not at fault. Pam has spent the past few episodes obviously pushing Jim away ("Oscar, I'm ready to be set up on a date", and leaving the reception with Roy). Jim, who we've seen as willing to go beyond some of Pam's more subtle eccentricities, cannot be asked to do more than interpret Pam's activity as a shot across the bow saying "I've moved on too, Jim."
One particular minor problem I have with Jim is his use of Pam's last name, "Beesly." Using someone's last name is a distance-creating mechanism, and dammit Jim, stop.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)