NoMad MaN: Feedback

Quality

2004-02-07T08:42:00-08:00

It's an odd thing that if one takes the time to post their thoughts on the internet, folks who visit the page often assume you're some sort of an authority. If you can manage to make your post sound clever, you may eventually find yourself on the syllabi for various courses at institutions of higher learning (try searching google for this: "link:http://www.synaptic.bc.ca/ejournal/foucault.htm"). I get a fair bit of mail querying on one subject or another I've covered in a page, whether mentioned in passing or I've taken a more diligent shot at the subject. For example:

From: "Kirk" Sent: Saturday, November 08, 1997 11:36 AM Subject: Help I am attending a course (Supervisory Leadership Institute) for peace officers in California. One of the books they are having us read is Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. I am on Chapter 7 and I am having difficulty getting connected with this book. I have never taken any classes in Philosophy and I have a feeling that that is affecting my ability to connect on the meaning of the book. Can you help me out. In the book he refers to Chautauqua as an old time traveling circus. Through out the first few chapters of the book he uses this to relate to something. Can you provide any insight on what this means and what it is that he is trying to get across to his readers... Thank you, I look forward to hearing from you..... Kirk From: "patrick jennings" To: "Kirk" Sent: Saturday, November 08, 1997 3:21 PM Subject: Re: Help Hi Kirk, A Chautauqua was not a circus but a travelling discussion group. Sort of like talk radio in person. I suppose they often broke down into what could be colourfully described as a circus. They were often religious in context, though this is not a requirement of a Chautauqua. However, as in Robert Pirsig's Zen..., these discussion groups often devolved into more of a lecture--one guy on a soapbox. That is, by calling it a Chautauqua Pirsig attempts to characterize what he's doing in the book as a friendly discussion, but in fact it's a book and therefore a monologue. The reader can't participate in the development of the discussion which is what a Chautauqua is supposed to be doing. It does set a nice, friendly tone for the book though. good luck, Patrick. From: "Kirk" Sent: Wednesday, November 19, 1997 6:59 PM Subject: Re: Help I am almost done with this book and I feel lost. I am reading this book for a supervision and leadership for law enforcement supervisor course. We are supposed to talk about how this book relates to leadership. Can you give me some insight on how this book relates to leadership. Thanks From: "patrick jennings" To: "Kirk" Sent: Wednesday, November 19, 1997 9:06 PM Subject: Re: Help Hi Kirk, Don't get too uptight about Pirsig's philosophical depth. It's not really all that difficult. Basically, what the book is about is Quality. Let's use law enforcement as an example. On the side of police cruisers is emblazoned the phrase "To Serve and Protect." It's a nice slogan and, if the police force is up to it, a pretty good qualitative measure of police performance. That is, if at the end of the day a police officer can say he succeeded in serving and protecting the people in his jurisdiction he can also say he succeeded in meeting the quality bar. If all police officers perform similarly then the police force on the whole meets that qualitative measurement. Public opinion, currently, isn't so impressed. For a multitude of reasons, the popular perception of the Police in the US suggests a new slogan: "To patronize and harass." I'm not saying this is a correct assessment on the part of the citizenry, but the perception persists. Let's suppose for a moment that the public is right. This then would be another exemplification of Pirsig's thesis that Quality is not at the forefront of our mind. He uses the maintenance of a motorcycle as an example and notes that all too many mechanics are not careful, are not thinking when they perform their jobs. They're not paying attention to the quality of their work. Quality is not important to them and everything in their life and work suffers for it. Many people would say the same for law enforcement. I've met plenty of decent police officers--such individuals are perhaps in the majority. However, on numerous occasions I've run across the path of officers who've proven themselves less than decent. The motivations for their actions seem not "To Serve and Protect" but rather "To Have and Display Power". It's unfortunate when this happens because those experiences stick with people, and in the most extreme cases get enormous play in the media. All Pirsig's really saying is that doing things half-assed has become something of a way of life in our times. It's the "show up and punch the clock" mentality. Often we don't even bother defining a quality bar for our selves--or our employees--to meet. Quality did not become Job #1 at Ford until Japanese car manufacturers' superior cars began outselling American products. With a largely captive domestic market, they'd stopped caring about expending the time, money and *energy* to make a quality car. Sometimes we *think* we're doing the best quality work possible, but haven't really thought about whether our measurement criteria have quality themselves. An example: I was recently travelling through an unfamiliar town and was ticketed for speeding in a school zone. I hadn't seen the school zone sign and was even acceleration to the usual 35mph after passing the quite obvious speed trap. The officer was of the exceptionally decent sort and let me know that normally he'd have let me go with a warning, but "there've been quite a few complaints about vehicle speed during school hours and Town Council doesn't consider warnings to be enforcement of the speed zone." By most objective standards he was doing Quality work. However, his actions do not alter the fact that I sped all the way through the school zone. That is, while giving me a ticket met the "To Serve" aspect of the quality bar, it falls a little short of the "To Protect" aspect. That is, how do you make sure people don't speed through a school zone in the first place? The school zone sign is posted about 30 or 40 feet down the horizontal bar of a 'T' intersection. That's not an excellent place to put a road sign--people have only just negotiated the intersection and their focus may still be narrowed on avoiding altercations with objects on the road. I'd just turned left onto the T pulling my 35' travel trailer which doesn't even straighten out until I'm 50' past the intersection. I've got a lot of things on my mind when negotiating narrow roads and roadside signage does not always register when I'm more worried about short-cornering a car at the intersection. Sometimes enforcement falls short of protecting the people. So, to raise the quality bar a little bit, the officer (along with his superiors and Town Council) need to consider the "To Protect" bit a little more closely. It's nearly a useless effort to ticket me and the other people I suspect just aren't seeing the posted sign. You've already failed to protect the children who might be on or near the roadway when a car naively barrels through at 35mph in a 20mph zone. In my travels across North America I saw plenty of towns which placed flashing school zone signs on the centre-line of the roadway. They are essentially impossible to ignore or miss. And I rather believe that even for those who might see the roadsign postings, flashing yellow lights and a sign in the middle of the road are perhaps a much stronger inducement to slow down. If, while sitting beside the road waiting for someone to speed through the school zone so he could ticket them, if the officer also thought about ways to keep people from speeding through the zone at all then he'd be fulfilling his mandate. If he should come up with an idea, and bring it to his superiors and/or Town Council, then he's proving that Quality is central to the performing of his duties. I think that's the kind of thing Pirsig's getting at. It's not sufficient to show up and follow the work plan. You have to be constantly evaluating not only your performance but the criteria by which you measure your performance. From time to time you have to sometimes ask, "What does it mean: To Serve and Protect?" Then, of course, you have to make adjustments when appropriate. Applying all this to the question of leadership isn't too difficult a task. A good police officer will keep an eye to his/her own Quality. Leadership is the act of assuring that Quality is maintained throughout not just the police force, but throughout the community that force is intended to serve and protect. For example, had that officer who ticketed me for speeding in a school zone taken his concern that the speed limit sign was poorly placed, and followed through until its position was changed, then he would have displayed qualities of leadership. Hope that helps, Patrick.

The Uncertainty Principle in the Everyday

2004-02-07T08:16:32-08:00

I really enjoyed your pages >I'm a drama lecturer at Brunel university and im giving a lecture discussing >how documenting live performance process can be/should be thought of in a >similar vein as the uncertainty principle. ie the observer of performance >practice effects the practice itself. >Your pages have really helped outline some key areas in a very accessible >language >so thanks >ruth Ben-Tovim > From: "Patrick Jennings" To: "Ben-Tovim/Yeger" Sent: Saturday, February 20, 1999 6:41 PM Subject: Re: giving a lecture Observer, participant, performer, documenter. Such disparate relationships to the event. Each with a different story to report. Each with its own limits on perception. And everyone playing to the 'audience'. Layer upon layer. Weave within weave. That must have been a fascinating lecture: to prepare, to present and to receive. Glad I could be of assistance, Patrick. ]]>

Lutefisk

2004-02-07T07:22:47-08:00

One of the most popular entries on my site is one of those "stranger to a strange gourmand" stories -- that is, the visitor to a foreign country cajoled into trying the local delicacy. The delicacy in this case is lutefisk. I'll start with an example of the typical response I write to the feedback that page generates. Following that: a sample of the feedback. From: Patrick Oh, I wish I'd written that piece. Actually, since that implies I'd have to have actually *sampled* lutefisk, perhaps it's just as well to allow Clay Shirky the honour of authorship (and the dubious distinction of experience). I've CC'd the unfortunate sot so he'll know his sacrifice is appreciated. On the other hand, pickled herring I have some fine experiences with, even if it has cost me a friendship or two. Seems not everyone's so fond of the marvelous stuff. Go figure. Cheers, Patrick. ]]>

> I read your account with equal parts amusement and feelings of ancient > terror. My grandmother was a 19th-century Swedish immigrant (from > Varmland, to be exact), and when I was a child, we still crammed all of > her 9 children and their families into her house or one of my aunts' > houses on Christmas Eve for a gift exchange and a table full of Swedish > food. We remember the food mostly because of its color, or rather, lack > thereof: it was all gray and brown. > > Aside from the pickled herring, or sill, the eating of which remains > today among my family a right of passage into adulthood and actually > tastes much better than it looks, the one food I remember not for its > taste but for its smell is lutefisk. We wondered as children why anyone > would ever want to stuff such awful-looking, smelly junk into his mouth, > and the younger children were terrorized by the older ones who swore > that before a single present was handed out, everyone, even children, > would have to eat some lutefisk. My opinion hasn't changed. > > Even though I haven't seen a plate of the stuff in 35 years, I still can > remember the smell. After reading your account, I'm convinced I haven't > missed a thing. Thanks. > Tom Benson Bo Leuf wrote: > ...hahaha... > (http://www.synaptic.bc.ca/ejournal/lutefisk.htm) > > That was an inspired bit of cultural documentary. In Sweden we have > "lutfisk" as well, a traditional Christmas item, and it is quite true > that without the potatoes and pepper-gravey, there is precious little > about it that anyone would want. You didn't _really_ go into any > great detail about the consistency, which can of course vary somewhat > depending on various factors, lye and preparation. We don't exactly > serve it lukewarm, but there is something about the specific heat of > well-prepared lutfisk which apparently makes it physically impossible > to retain a temperature in excess of about 30 C outside of the oven. > > In northern Sweden, however, we not only celebrate once a year with > lutfisk, we also have the midsummer tradtion of "surstr?mming" (i.e. > fermented herring). This is a rare delecacy indeed, and would be > rarer still if some would have their way, and has one thing that > lutfisk can never have -- the smell. This fish is prepared in the > summer, and sealed into tins to ripen (and I use the work advisedly) > until the following midsummer. A good year is hinted at by the > swelling of the tin's top and bottom, which also warns you of the > fact that there may be considerable pressure involved. Never, repeat > *never* attempt to pack down a tin or two in your luggage before > flying home; it is doubtful if your insurance will cover the effects > on your belongings and those of your fellow passengers. > > How to describe the smell of surst?mming? Bottled gas, sort of, you > know, the kind with the added sulphate smell for safety reasons. But > it goes beyond this with a rare and inspired pungency. There was the > news story some years ago about the Swedish couple living in Berlin > who decided to have surstr?mming one day. Worried neighbors called > the fire department and emergency services about a gas leak. When the > panic eventually settled, the couple lost the contract to their > apartment and were told never to return. > > They should have known better. Surstr?mming should be partaken of > only in the great outdoors, in the midsummer evening. There one sees > in full the potency of nature mixed with culture. The secret of a > successful surstr?mming party lies in careful preparation: freshly > boiled potatoes of the season, small and served unpeeled, the special > white unleavened flat bread baked in stone ovens, real butter, beer, > and of course, akvavit. The surstr?mming tins are opened far to > leeward and the "fish" inspected for quality. Usually declared fit > for consumption, drained, they are then moved to some suitable > serving platter and taken to the table. The tins and remaining liquid > contents, and any "unfit" fish, are all left at the opening site and > there serve the laudable purpose of attracting, stunning and perhaps > killing off the local flies and mosquitoes, away from the > festivities. > > Surstr?mming is by preference put whole on buttered flatbread and > eaten, but may also be eaten on a plate with the potatoes and soured > cream, garnished with chopped fresh chives. In addition, tradition > allows several variants of pickled herring to be served, rather > similar though not fully identical to the Christmas offering. Most of > this selection also serves as the "backup" in case the year's > surstr?mming should, oh horrors!, prove totally inedible even to the > most diehard. > > Between bites, shots of akvavit are drunk, possibly of the variously > spiced varieties (including St John's wort), each accompanied by a > short ditty on the theme of strong drink, and chased by moderate to > copious amounts of beer of varying strengths. And a good time is had > by all... > > Regards > / Bo > -- > Bo Leuf > The Leuf Project > http://www.leuf.org/ From: Karen McGann Sent: Friday, June 04, 1999 8:47 PM Subject: Lutefisk > Wonderful story, I know you're not making it up, only someone who has > had it can talk about it so well!! Being a 1st generation American, of > Fin Swede parents, Lutefisk was at our table every Christmas eve. > Though the tradition was dropped several years ago, I still shudder when > I remember the gelatinous mass covered in white sauce and peppercorns. > Thanks for the chuckle! Karen > From: Nilsson, Eija Sent: Saturday, November 27, 1999 3:56 AM Subject: Food you eat ? Hello! Our family is going to eat LUTFISK today 1999-11-27. Have you same specially food you eat in Canada , in a Christmas - time?? Our recept includes a much pepper in white-saus. Whitout this tastes this fish "nothing". from Eija Nilsson (Sweden) [ED: My response to Eija's query: "Mmmm, yes, many things specially around Christmas. My favourite? Shortbread cookies - subtly sweet and velvet on the tongue."] From: BCCCCH@aol.com To: LUTEFISK Sent: Sunday, November 26, 2000 10:02 AM Subject: Lutefisk It's not such a big deal, it's just fish! My Mom makes it once a year. It's ok, it could be really good if you eat it right. It must have cooked green peas. I never make it, I just eat it. Fy bubblan. Ulrika Langels (Swedish exchange student) [ED: And to Ulrika: Perhaps some day I'll try it. I am a rather adventurous gourmand. However, I will take Clay Shirky's advice (the author) and be sure to have plenty of Aquavit before the first attempt!] From: William C. Case Sent: Thursday, January 11, 2001 9:44 AM Subject: lutfisk Hej! As an American living (=gone native) in Sweden f?r 30 years, I can tell you that lutfisk is really not that bad. The description here is a rather more complicated Norwegian restaurant variation I feel. The ordinary Swedish lufisk is just served with ordinary white sauce, admittedly a lot of black peppar, and possibly green peas. No snaps required. The real Swedish delicacy, from northern Sweden, is surstr?mming. That is, herring allowed to ferment in a tin can. The smell is wonderfull, like when the sewage pipes have been stopped up for a week or so. Has to be experienced, and snaps definitely required. Otherwise, my previous wife had a great cookbook, "The Princess' Cookbook", with recipes that start like: "Take 28 swans . . .". But my favorite was always: "How to prepare rancid herring." Tells you quite succintly about the hard times in Sweden in bygone days, doesn't it. Regards, William C. Case From: Bill McFall Sent: Wednesday, December 19, 2001 11:25 PM Subject: Tears, etc. Patrick, Just finished reading "Lutefisk". Now that I've mopped up the tears from laughing so hard, I'm printing it to take to a weekend Christmas gathering. We all try to bring some narrative that will entertain the group - ages 14-74. "Lutefisk" should do the trick! For a similar guffaw, search out Russell Baker's "Francs and Beans". It was originally published in The New York Times on Feb. 18, 1975. It is also available in Laughing Matters, compiled by Gene Shalit, which is hysterical throughout. Again, pass along to Clay Shirky: good piece, well written, very funny, Bill McFall New Berlin, Wisconsin My web source was a link from: http://www.santesson.com/christ/lutfisk.htm From: "Robert Wood" Sent: Thursday, December 13, 2001 12:41 AM Subject: lutefisk > How true... your words of wisdom... ;-) > Lutefisk is for the stong of mind and meek of taste, but... > why not try some of our other national dishes next time you come to > Norway? > - Grave salmon (fish tenderized (rotted) for many days in the fridge). > - Sv?lahode (cooked sheep head (the eyes are sooo delicious). > > Merry Christmas > > Yours faithfully > Robert Wood > (Norwegian by birth) > I'll finish this long post with my response to the message above. From: "Patrick Jennings" To: "Robert Wood" Cc: "Clay Shirky" Sent: Saturday, January 26, 2002 5:06 PM Subject: Re: lutefisk Hmmm, suddenly lutefisk is looking somewhat appetizing. However, you haven't lived until you've tried deep fried scorpion skewers (beijing), roasted widjitty grub (australia) or baked sheep's lung (kashgar.) I saw some barbecued dog's head in Xian, but couldn't quite bring myself to try it, tempting as it was. It never amazes me that foods which sound so bizarre can taste so good (deep fried scorpion!?) while something so delectably described as Lutefisk creates such acutely foul responses! I've CC'd Clay Shirky, author of the Lutefisk bit. Perhaps there's another story idea for you Clay? Cheers, Patrick. patrick jennings synaptic :: grey matter media

Traversing China by Bicycle: Some Nuts&Bolts

2004-02-07T06:39:55-08:00

From: Benjamin Hart Sent: Friday, April 30, 1999 6:55 AM Subject: qi zixingche heng quan zhongguo > Hi. I'm planning a cycling trip across China similar to the one you > completed - only in reverse. I was just wondering how long the whole trip > took, and did you pull a cart or just use saddle bags? > > Thanks, > Benjamin Hart

Actually, the new rail line between Kashgar and Korla might be running by the time you get there. [ED: It's complete now. Taking it would likely be preferable to the bus.] Cheers, Patrick. ]]>

draft vs. registration for the draft

2004-01-08T22:29:16-08:00

One travelogue entry in particular, written in 1995 while travelling through Vietnam, generates a fair bit of negative feedback, much of it strongly worded. (See This Just In: United States to become 11th Canadian Province). It's nice, every now and again, to receive something more constructive in its criticism, and pleasant in its message.

From: "Alex D" To: "Patrick" Sent: Monday, March 17, 1997 2:11 PM Subject: draft vs. registeration for the draft in the entry titled 'Hanoi Jane never stayed at the Hanoi Hilton' you mention that '...Jimmy Carter re-instituted the draft in response to Soviet aggression in Afghanistan ...' Skipping the technical detail, it is closer to the spirit of the action to say Jimmy Carter reinstituted the registeration for the draft. I have also spent quite a bit of time travelling in Asia, and I have been enjoying your entries. I particularly liked the entry about Khao Sarn road. It reminded me of the endless hours I spent people-watching there. In fact, I found your pages simply by doing an Alta Vista search on 'Khao Sarn', wondering if anyone had written about the experience. My trip to Thailand was in 1990. Now I am stuck in endless meeting and soon will have the title of 'VP of Managment Operations' in charge of 60 people. Wondering how long I will last. I keep telling myself, with the money I'll save I will be able to do all the travelling I want, later... Keep it up. Alex From: "patrick jennings" To: "Alex D" Sent: Tuesday, March 25, 1997 9:42 AM Subject: Re: draft vs. registeration for the draft Hey Alex, > in the entry titled 'Hanoi Jane never stayed at the Hanoi Hilton' you mention that > '...Jimmy Carter re-instituted the draft in response to Soviet aggression in > Afghanistan ...' > > Skipping the technical detail, it is closer to the spirit of the action to say > Jimmy Carter reinstituted the registeration for the draft. > You're right to correct my laziness on that one. Yours is the better wording. Actually, I'm used to being chastized plenty for that page, though the fault is found elsewhere; the majority of Vietnam vets pass over that item and thump me for cowardice, aiding and abetting the enemy, etc. Your correction is rather refreshing. Glad to hear you've been otherwise pleased with my efforts. And I can commiserate with your current condition: I stuck with Microsoft for three years so I could eventually travel, write and photograph in an unfettered state. When you're ready...you'll make it happen. Cheers! Patrick.

I've been reading Chomsky again...

2004-01-06T05:52:35-08:00

It was at the end of my first year of travelling, 8 months in Australia followed by 3 months in Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam and Japan. I was in Los Angeles, my staging ground for entering North America on the way to Vancouver, spending a week or so in Santa Monica. There was something both comforting and vapid about walking Santa Monica's 3rd street promenade with its upscale shops and bars, with upscale tourists and locals promenading past street entertainers and the homeless hoping for some of the former's disposable income. It was rich and beautiful, poor and sad all rolled into a microcosm of the culture I was re-entering. (A couple years later, I would be there again, and while dining on take-out Thai would think of the Genesis song, The Grand Parade of Lifeless Packaging). At the hostel, travellers from all around the world sat unblinking in the TV room, watching the day's popular sit-coms and hardly breaking a grin. And I was reading Chomsky again. The result was the travelogue entry Land of the . . ., which generates some feedback from time to time...

I share your feelings about the difficulties of seeing the world from > Chomsky's perspective. Nature is disinterested if not downright cruel > and mankind is a part of nature. Doesn't the old testament say something > about too much knowledge bringing much sorrow. I'm resigned to the real > state of affairs, and I can't figure out where Chomsky gets the optimism > to passionately fight for something better. Maybe Chomsky and others > have left me incurably depressed. Knowing that there are sensitive > people like you lightens the load though. Thanks for your insights. gk > > From: "patrick jennings" To: "Gerald Karam" Sent: Sunday, March 16, 1997 6:46 PM Subject: Re: Chomsky Gerald, that was a thoughtful and inspirational piece of mail. Thanks so much. Just yesterday with a new friend driving up to Vancouver in her car we were talking about the burden of knowledge. She came up with the obvious observation of the tree of knowledge, the serpent, and mankind being cast from the garden of Eden. A powerful metaphor. As for Chomsky finding optimism, I can't speak for him. Perhaps once we recognize the burden of knowledge it's impossible to flee back to ignorance. Caught in our knowledge we have a choice: to do nothing and let that burden fall on others--perhaps innocents--or to take up responsibility and act, despite the odds. For me, looking in the mirror is much easier after taking the second choice. The other fork leads to despair. Thanks for taking the time to share yourself. Cheers, Patrick. /" target="_blank">" hspace="4" align="right" border="0">Presently listening to:The Grand Parade of Lifeless Packaging - Genesis - The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway&keyword=&mode=music">/" target="_blank"> ]]>

If you don't want to pay this cost, don't start a war.

2004-01-06T04:49:31-08:00

In 1995, while in Japan, I spent about 24 hours in Hiroshima, a city of memorials. The most common phrase on the dozens of memorial plaques mounted on various monuments around the city is At 8:15 AM, on August 6, 1945... I wrote extensively of my experiences there in my travelogue. The following feedback is in response to Pika Don.

From: Duffie Smith > To: "feedback" (PIKADORI) > Sent: Wednesday, April 14, 1999 6:09 PM > > > The cost of war is high. The cost of war, if lost can be even higher, > as the Japanese found out in Aug. of 1945. If you don't want to > pay this cost, don't start a war. Clinton needs to remember this too ! From: Patrick Jennings To: Duffie Smith Sent: Friday, April 16, 1999 12:32 PM Subject: Re: Among the costs of war, whether eventually winner or loser, is the loss of our humanity. Remember this: the targets had been purposely left free of the conventional bombing that had already levelled Tokyo and many other cities. The reason? So when the bomb was dropped, its efficacy could be better studied. The result? Tens of thousands of guinea pigs died instantly. Hundreds of thousands would die over the next several decades. Thousands more continue to suffer. Heck of an experiment. Cheers, Patrick. From: Patrick Jennings To: Duffie Smith Sent: Friday, April 16, 1999 12:33 PM Subject: Re: Oh, meant to add. Yes, Clinton and all of NATO need to seriously reconsider their policies. Cheers, Patrick. I'm willing to be Duffie hasn't passed his advice on to Bush. p. /" target="_blank">" hspace="4" align="right" border="0">Presently listening to:Put Down That Weapon - Midnight Oil - Diesel And Dust (04:38)&keyword=&mode=music">/" target="_blank"> ]]>

request for reprint

2004-01-04T18:03:28-08:00

" hspace="4" align="right" border="0">Presently listening to:One Of These Days - Pink Floyd - Meddle (05:56)&keyword=&mode=music">/" target="_blank"> ]]>

RE: where will Microsoft be in the next few weeks?

2004-01-03T23:48:05-08:00

I've lost the original feedback, but you can get the gist of it from my reply. From: "Patrick Jennings" To: "A Bearse" Sent: Friday, December 17, 1999 7:46 AM Subject: RE: where will Microsoft be in the next few weeks? MSFT has, over the long haul, annually doubled in value since I began holding it in 1991. You can do the math.

" hspace="4" align="right" border="0">Presently listening to:Time Stand Still - Rush - Hold Your Fire (05:08)&keyword=&mode=music">/" target="_blank"> ]]>

Beautycrat?

2003-12-27T23:13:24-08:00

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Lamed Mufnik (Lamed Vav?)

2003-12-25T20:54:47-08:00

" hspace="4" align="right" border="0">Presently listening to:Firth Of Fifth - Steve Hackett - Genesis Revisited (09:37)&keyword=&mode=music">/" target="_blank"> ]]>

Re: eJournal 4.010 :: Shanghai'd in Shanghai.

2003-12-23T19:53:16-08:00

I was near the beginning of a 6-month, 6,000 km cycling tour across China, and beginning to feel comfortable enough about the political/social/cultural landscape and history to make some observations. The result eventually became Shanghai'd in Shanghai, an entry in my travelogue. But first it was posted to my travel mailing list, and a friend responded to it.

China Daily publishes NHL results, and usually recaps two or three of the games (though NBA and European Football got the column space this week. However, I didn't know the outcome of the Sunday games. Gotta love those early round upsets. Baseball doesn't count until September. It's not really worth watching until October. I'm trying to lay off the politics and history--my constituency has spoken. I'm saving up for "Mao's Little Red Book" which will be coming in a couple more weeks. In any case, your analysis differs very little from mine, or Orwell's for that matter. As for intrusiveness, I have been pointedly asked to *not* write about certain events in personal histories. Apparently, some members of the CPC still care what is said by the population, enough that the population is concerned for reprisals. Not, as you say, a bullet in the brain, but unpleasantry nonetheless. I've also spoken with several people who were present at Tienanmen in 1989. Most of them now consider the demonstration a 'waste of time' and energy. Politics and struggle do not interest them. So, when I am told "Let bygones be bygones" it means several things: the past is too painful to recall; the past is not safe to recall; the past proved nothing could be done to alter the future. Under these conditions, a bullet is hardly necessary. I haven't been in South America yet, but I've been all over South-East Asia. The living conditions of rural Chinese are quickly being surpassed by the rural Vietnamese. That in itself is a strong statement. Cheers, Patrick. From: "Jim" To: "Patrick" Sent: Monday, May 04, 1998 12:45 PM Subject: Re: eJournal 4.010 :: Shanghai'd in Shanghai. Ya gotta just love high tech sometimes. Here we are swapping emails within an hour, me in an office in Vancouver and you on a portable in Beijing! From: "patrick jennings" To: "Jim" Sent: Tuesday, May 05, 1998 3:43 AM Subject: Re: eJournal 4.010 :: Shanghai'd in Shanghai. <'grin> Sure beats postcards. The other Jim and I once debated the relative merits of bell hooks' and Naomi Wolf's versions of feminism. I was in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysian Borneo and he in Vancouver. We traded about 3 or 4 emails each over the course of the day (my evening, Jim's day) and a few more over the next couple days. Kewl. Patrick. /" target="_blank">" hspace="4" align="right" border="0">Presently listening to:Secret Song - Linkin Park - Reanimation (02:41)/" target="_blank"> ]]>

Spirit and Energy

2003-12-18T12:45:29-08:00

Below is a conversation begun by a visitor to Are You Afraid of the Dark, an eJournal entry written in Japan, 1995. The entry is an East-meets-West discussion of the difference between western science's view of energy, and that of the eastern mystics.

The other possibility is that the levels of energy of the "spirit" are such > that our present equipment cannot detect them; I believe that it is naive to > assume that scientists "know" all the forms of electromagnetic energy. About > 100 years ago, scientists might have told a person Possible, but electromagnetism is spectrally continuous. The higher wavelenghts of electromagnetism are increasingly destructive to biological chemistry, and the longer wavelengths posess infinitesimally small capacity for carrying energy or information--and it's quite possible to detect wavelengths approaching 0 degrees. The measurable spectrum is extraordinarily wide and if "spirit" energy is, in fact, electromagnetic, it seems the only wavelengths available to it would be so short as to be potentially lethal...which seems to me more than paradoxical. It is perhaps equally possible that the levels of energy of the "spirit" are such that our present equipment cannot detect them; it may be naive to assume that scientists have discovered the entire spectrum of sonic energy. The question is, what is plausible given our current level of understanding. > The bottom line is (and this may be too nitpicky for you, but I am > scientfically educated and believe that all statements regarding scientific > phenomena should be stated as plainly and factually as possible ) that one > should say : > > "spirit energy does not emit either any of the types or levels of > electromagnetic energy that scientists of today are able to measure, or > understand" That is a clear statement of the current scientific consensus. It's a restatement of my own position, too: if spirit energy is electromagnetic in nature it defies measurement by current instruments. We can detect radio frequencies which are miles long and nearly energyless. We can detect high energy radiation which would cause irreparable damage to our bodies within seconds of exposure. So far, we have not detected wavelengths of any length or energy under conditions in which spirit energy is apparently manifested. There seems very little lattitude for discovery in this area. Higher energies than we can detect, given it's even possible to generate them 'naturally' outside a laboratory, would likely kill us. Lower energies would likely be swamped by the noise of all other energies, unless we can discover some sensory organ tuned to such low energy/frequency radiation. I wouldn't rule this out. Was it just this decade or last that medical science discovered a neglected organ in the nasal passageway? This one detects pheromones and is wired to the brain in such a way that we are unconscious of its affects on our psyche. Still, it seems more plausible that spirit energy is likely to represent a variation of the manifestations of energy that will necessarily differentiate it significantly from electromagnetism. It's not reasonable to ignore the possibility that Chi is electromagnetic in character, but it's reasonable to doubt it and look to potentially more promising models. > > In addition, scientists believe that there is only one "kind" of energy - > i.e. energy itself; there are various *manifestations* of energy (heat, > light, movement, etc.), some of which are visible; energy itself is an > abstract property, and is not visible or physical in any sense. Actually, it's more profound than that. Einstein showed that matter and energy are two manifestations of the same thing. We're just stuck with the baggage of outdated language and its accompanying conceptual framework. Matter is an equally abstract property, and is not visible. We do not "see" an object but rather detect the energy in the form of photons which it's atoms reflect, refract or produce. Even after detection, there is much post-processing of the detected signals in order to fix the information in a sensible mental image. Matter is physical only in the sense that energies are detected through sensory receptors for pressure, heat, vision, scent, taste. Some of these senses are decidedly chemical in nature, but what is a chemical compound--or molecule--but a particular organisation of energies? And what is pressure but the resistance of forces, of energy? And we have not even opened the can of worms--only read the label. We don't know yet what constitutes a 'particle' of matter. We keep finding 'smaller' particles. > In any case, I would be interested to know about any serious scientific > research done to determine exactly what it is that Kirlian photography > measures (it may be electromagnetic, since the basis of Kirlian photography > is the "interference" of strong imposed electromagnetic fields with whatever > "field" living things give off.). You run a small current through a piece of photographic paper and place a biological object on its surface. The electricity could be inducing the apparent field. The electricity could be signalling some internal mechanism to produce a "field". As long as we're being particular about language, 'basis' is the wrong word here. What you have given is but one *unproven* model attempting to explain the results obtained through the process. Still, Kirlian photography definitely seems to give the scientific community the willies. As do psycho-kinetics, poltergeists and the like. Hell, I myself have confounded my own basis for scientific rationalisations by experiencing prescient dreams every now and again. The scientific understanding of time provides no clue as to why I've been able to quote, verbatim and two words in advance of their speaking them, long sections of my high-school teacher's lectures. "I dreamed it a couple weeks ago," just doesn't fit any acceptable model. What's more interesting to me is "Since Kirlian images defy current explanation, and imply conditions in the physical world which defy long established and accepted scientific understandings, why does there appear to be so little serious inquiry?" This question applies equally to psychokinetics, apparent manifestations of Chi in martial arts masters and monks, why teenage boys can dream the future, and any other experience or observation which defies common scientific knowledge. > > Anyway, as a matter of interest, in what area does synaptic :: grey matter > media ltd publish ? Someday, I'd like to earn a living selling my content to various commercial media outlets. Cheers, Patrick. Presently listening to:Wild Horses - The Sundays - Blind (04:46)/" target="_blank">/" target="_blank">" hspace="4" align="right" border="0"> ]]>

re: Kwai ruminations

2003-12-14T21:13:50-08:00

The following feedback is a response to On the River Kwaii which I wrote in Konchanaburi, Thailand, site of the Death Railway, immortalised with precise innacuracy in the film The Bridge on the River Kwai, and where I had opportunity to ruminate on evil and whatever else it is that motivates man to level holocaust upon fellow man. (See How far would you go?)]]>

> What is not frequentlly noted is that many "millions" of non-Jews also died; any > undesirable ethnic or disabled/disenfranchised were subject to WWII and the > "final solution" in death camps. > > So to were the approx 8 million native North American Indians. Pres Jackson > and his men rode slaughter on thousands of helpless Indian women & children. > Their use of Indian flesh to serve as grease in cooking is well documented; he > and many other Presidents (and Pres hopefuls, ie Custer) did reap "genocide' > well before Hitler. But they are not "evil" or held accountable. I live in a State (Calif) > where the "death camps" ie Calif Missions are major tourist attractions, despite > the mass graves of Indian slaves, who's uprisings have not been documented > in our schools and their wholesale slaughter is given tribute of being X'd out of > history. Father Serra (the "Hitler" who 'signed the order' here in Calif) is often > found on County and STate Seals, statues of him grace the Mission towns of > Ventura and Santa Barbara. An American Hero ?? !! > > Good luck with your writing that makes an attempt to put into focus what is > seen by some of us as certainly a convenient history that no one dare call > into question (ie witness the heat that Brando felt for his statements) > p.s. - I've been to Thailand several times and enjoyed your descriptions of the > beauty some of that country still retains. > Alpha_60@.... There's an old joke I first heard in junior high: Q: What's the difference between Communisim and Capitalism? A: In Communism, man oppresses man. In Capitalism, it's the other way around. I think it's safe to say, man oppresses man regardless of the system. Under the right conditions, with very little encouragement, it could be any of us on either side of that oppression. Mostly, I needed to respond to your message to thank you for affirming what it is I'm trying to do. I know a little of that heat Brando felt from some of the responses to my postings. Not so much of the world's attention is focussed my way. I wonder what it must be like to have the mainstream media reviling you on primetime. It's also good to hear you feel my writings on Thailand do it some justice. Thanks, Patrick. I let it slide at the time, but the claim "Their use of Indian flesh to serve as grease in cooking is well documented" shouldn't be left in a post without at least providing some sort of documentary evidence. Unfortunately, I can't find any on the 'net. Gads! What am I saying! Fortunately, I can't find any documentary evidence on the 'net. Presently talking about:The Bridge on the River Kwai/" target="_blank">/" target="_blank">" hspace="4" align="right" border="0"> Presently listening to:My December - Linkin Park - Reanimation (04:17)/" target="_blank">/" target="_blank">" hspace="4" align="right" border="0">

This Just In: United States to become 11th Canadian Province

2003-12-14T16:34:37-08:00

> hey fucko, how long until Canada makes it official and becomes the > fifty-first state? Well, in our quiet, unassuming, conciliatory Canadian way, we're holding out to make the USA our 11th province. That would vault the USA into the UN's top-10 list of best countries to live in, though it would probably drop Canada out of the #1 spot it's enjoyed the past several years. Keep your fingers crossed, Patrick. Alex, if you're still listening, you'll be happy to learn that the US has now made the top 10 -- and Canada has slipped to third -- all without the merger of our two fine countries, as reported by the BBC p. /" target="_blank">" hspace="4" align="right" border="0">Presently listening to:No Woman Around - The Philosopher Kings - The Philosopher Kings (03:33)/" target="_blank"> ]]>