Tom Wolfe's Radical Chic, an example of great writing

I've only recently discovered the writings of Tom Wolfe. I've known about him for some time – mainly because of his appearances on The Simpsons – but now I've finally got to actually reading him.

For starters I've chosen his 'Radical Chic' (1970) which describes a party hosted by Leonard Bernstein and his wife Felicia for raise money for the Black Panthers.

In the beginning of Radical Chic is this paragraph that I just have to share – because I'm a fan of great writing, and this is (I believe) great writing, a description of the clashing of worlds that is radical chic:

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. These are nice. Little Roquefort cheese morsels rolled in crushed nuts. Very tasty. Very subtle It's the way the dry sackiness of the nuts tiptoes up against the dour savor of the cheese that is so nice, so subtle. Wonder what the Black Panthers eat here on the hors d'oeuvre trail? Do the Panthers like little Roquefort cheese morsels rolled in crushed nuts this way, and asparagus tips in mayonnaise dabs, and meatballs petites au Coq Hardi, all of which are at this very moment being offered to them on gadrooned silver platters by maids in black uniforms with hand-ironed white aprons . . . The butler will bring them their drinks . . . Deny it if you wish to, but such are the pensées métaphysiques that rush through one's head on these Radical Chic evenings just now in New York. For example, does that huge Black Panther there in the hallway, the one shaking hands with Felicia Bernstein herself, the one with the black leather coat and the dark glasses and the absolutely unbelievable Afro, Fuzzy-Wuzzy-scale, in fact—is he, a Black Panther, going on to pick up a Roquefort cheese morsel rolled in crushed nuts from off the tray, from a maid in uniform, and just pop it down the gullet without so much as missing a beat of Felicia's perfect Mary Astor voice . . .

You can read a longer excerpt at TomWolfe.com.

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Published:
January 12, 2012 – 4:13 pm
Author:
By The Open Mode
Category:

Ode to @barcastuff, a new media Twitter phenomenon

As some – or a lot – of you may know, I'm quite the Barça fanatic. Barça being FC Barcelona which one of the best (if not the best) football clubs, ever. Yes, I wrote 'ever'.

Since I'm following FC Barcelona through everything, I also need to follow the club in the news. To stay updated. Read reactions from the players. What did Guardiola (the coach) say after the game? Etc.

Usually this is done by traditional means. You either read a sports magazine, newspaper, website, newsletter – whatever. And you read what they write about your club. Maybe you even search the website for news about, in this case, FC Barcelona.

That changed for me some time ago, because I came across a channel, that utilizes what Twitter (the micro-status-update-service) really is all about. I can't really remember when I started to follow @barcastuff on Twitter, but it was certainly while the number of followers what three-digit (it's 44,526 as I'm writing this).

But it seems that the (quite comfortable) victory over Manchester United in Saturday's UEFA Champions League final is a good opportunity to express my gratitude.

Since I started following, @barcastuff has brought me close to non-stop news and updates about FC Barcelona. They are (among) the first with the line-ups. They search the news and tweet the headlines, so that I can go to, for instance, sport.es and Google-translate the article and read about Messi or the latest transfer rumours. This means what the news about FC Barcelona travel a lot quicker, I don't have to wait for Danish or English media to catch up on the story. And of course @barcastuff live-updates while the game is on. They even have post-match reactions, although I'm not quite sure how they do that.

As a matter of fact, I'm not sure, if @barcastuff is a 'he', a 'she' or 'they'. And I really don't care. As with The Economist, it's all about the message – not the sender. In fact I found The Economist's article about FC Barcelona via a @barcastuff tweet.

What @barcastuff does, is what the media landscape needs right now more than anything else. People who are searching and combing through the enormous amount of information and news out there and are selecting the best of it (or in this case the most, if not all, of it) to present it to us, the end users, in a clean and nice way. We may then choose to dig deeper, if we want the entire story.

For the media bosses and concerned media employees out there one question has to be asked: 'Whould you pay for it?' Yes, I would. But only because it's so damn good and about Barça. And if the service did cost money, the number of followers might still be in three digits.

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Published:
June 1, 2011 – 11:18 am
Author:
By The Open Mode
Category:

Charlie Chaplin's feeding machine comes to life in Denmark

First, take 6 minutes to watch this scene from Charlie Chaplin's 1936 comedy, 'Modern Times'. The clip shows a factory that is very keen on cutting costs and maximizing its effort.

Therefore, why waste precious time when the workers have lunch? Why not let them eat while they still work, keeping the output high:

(Notice how even the salesman has been replaced)

The above seen is, of course, a joke. But in Denmark a slightly less angry, and perhaps more useful, version of the feeding machine is now being used, as Chaplin's feeding device turns 75.

A nursing home in the city of Maribo has bought six robots to help the residents eat (and to safe money, of course). According to the reporter, the workers at the home are also happy that they can take a break now, while the residents eat. So it's win-win-win (residents can handle the process themselves, $$$, relief for the workers.

You can click on the link below and see the one-armed robots in action. Even if you don't understand the words, you'll get the picture.

TV 2 East: Robots to help with the food

These are modern times, indeed.

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Published:
May 14, 2011 – 8:47 am
Author:
By The Open Mode
Category:

Why you better believe in that Free Will of yours

Sometimes when I feel the need to broaden my horizon vis-à-vis the world of science, I pick up the latest copy of New Scientist. On the current cover is a story entitled 'Free will – the illusion we can't live without', something that instantly made me pick up the magazine.

The article itself, titled 'The free will delusion' was a bit disappointing to me, but there were some curious facts in it. It seems, that even though free will itself may not be of much importance, believing in it certainly is. Below are some key quotes from the article.

For now most of us are content to believe that we have control over our own lives, but what would happen if we lost our faith in free will? In recent years some psychologists have been trying to find out. In one study, Kathleen Vohs of the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis and Jonathan Schooler at the University of California, Santa Barbara, asked volunteers to read an excerpt from Francis Crick's book The Astonishing Hypothesis, which argues that "you are nothing but a pack of neurons", with your sense of free will a mere illusion, however persistent. After reading this passage, participants reported weaker belief in free will compared with those who hadn't read it. When given a mathematics test, which presented an opportunity to cheat seemingly without being detected, those whose belief in free will had been eroded were more likely to cheat (Psychological Science, vol 19, p 49).

Another example of the unsettling effects of shaking people's belief in free will comes from the work of Roy Baumeister of Florida State University, Tallahassee. His team asked participants to read either statements that bolstered belief in free will or ones that undermined it. For example: "I am able to override the genetic and environmental factors that sometimes influence my behaviour" versus "A belief in free will contradicts the known fact that the universe is governed by lawful principles of science". The volunteers were then asked how likely they would be to help another person in a range of scenarios, such as giving money to a homeless person or letting someone use their cellphone.

You guessed it: people whose belief in free will was challenged were, on average, less altruistic than the other group. The researchers also found that priming people with anti-free will statements made them behave more aggressively towards strangers, as measured by how much chilli sauce they added to a dish destined to be eaten by someone who had expressed a dislike of hot foods (Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, vol 35, p 260).

[...]

In a recent study, Tyler Stillman of Florida State University, working with Vohs, Baumeister and others, found that people who said they believed strongly in free will also tended to have more positive expectations about their career success. Is this just delusional thinking? Apparently not. When Stillman and colleagues asked supervisors to rate the work of their employees, those with a greater belief in their own free will were generally rated as performing better than those with weaker beliefs (Social Psychological and Personality Science, Vol 1, p 34).

(I snatched most of the the quote from 'When all things are permitted' at the BrothersJudd Blog.)

I am particularly fond of the chili sauce method.

Read the article at newscientist.com (requires subscription).

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Published:
April 24, 2011 – 10:28 am
Author:
By The Open Mode
Category:

2000 Haitian children are lost every year

In the past days the Danish media have been in a frenzy about a three year old boy, Holger, who was lost from his parents for 24 hours and found again. Even CNN joined in.

No doubt that it's a good story, but it lacks a bit of perspective.

Take for example Haiti. Karin Aaen from UNICEF Denmark (@karinaaendk on Twitter) has written a blog post (in Danish) on how estimates say that 2000 Haitian children are lost every year.

The numbers are from UNICEF and therefore to be considered credible. English speakers can read this article: 'UN: Children in Haiti Sold for $1.37':

Before the earthquake, it was estimated that 2,000 children in Haiti were kidnapped or trafficked every year. UNICEF recently estimated that 8,000 children were identified as being extremely vulnerable.

Or this article by UNICEF.

The problem is not new. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees' '2002 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor – Haiti' reads:

In 2002, a joint IOM/ UNICEF study found that between 2,000 and 3,000 Haitian children are trafficked each year to the Dominican Republic for work as beggers or in the agriculture and construction sectors.

Needless to say, sadly, 2000 children doesn't get 2000 times as much attention as Holger. Maybe they should, maybe they shouldn't. But it's too convenient to stop worrying about lost kids because Holger showed up.

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Published:
March 29, 2011 – 4:34 pm
Author:
By The Open Mode
Category:

Lebanon, a country divided on Hamas and Hezbollah

…at least to numbers from Pew Research Center.

I you haven't yet had the time, or opportunity, to read the Pew Global Attitudes Project December 2010 report on views on Hezbollah and Hamas among Muslim publics, read it now.

There are a lot of interesting numbers in there, some of them regarding Lebanon. I have pasted two quotes from the report below. I feel they give a pretty good picture of how Lebanon is a divided country regarding both Hezbollah:

More than nine-in-ten (94%) Lebanese Shia support the organization [Hezbollah], while an overwhelming majority (84%) of Sunnis in that country express unfavorable views.

…and Hamas:

In Lebanon, Muslim views of Hamas reflect a sharp sectarian divide.  About nine-in-ten Lebanese Shia (92%) express favorable views of the Palestinian group, although its membership is predominantly Sunni.

Among Sunnis in Lebanon, however, an overwhelming majority rejects Hamas; 86% have an unfavorable view and just 9% have a favorable opinion of the organization.

Christians in that country share the views of Sunni Muslims; 87% have a negative view of Hamas, while one-in-ten have a positive view.

Especially the Hamas situation is interesting, since Hamas is primarily Sunni but way more popular with the Shia Muslims in Lebanon than with the Sunnis.

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Published:
March 25, 2011 – 4:11 pm
Author:
By The Open Mode
Category:

The Great Chaplin

As the announcer said when Charlie Chaplin[1] received his honorary Oscar:

Chaplin has become more than a name. It is a word in the vocabulary of films, and anyone who has ever seen a movie is in his debt.

He left behind and impressive amount of movies and impressions and if you haven't seen the movie about his life from 1992[2], I suggest you do it.

In case you haven't seen them already, I here present you with some of my favorite Chaplin moments (in no particular order):

The boxing scene in 'City Lights'

The famous table ballet from 'Gold Rush' (1925)
(Chaplin used to perform this at parties)

Breaking and fixing windows in 'The Kid' (1921)
(the kid is played by Jackie Coogan)

The factory scene from 'Modern Times' (1936)

The speech from 'The Great Dictator' (1940)

Thank you, Charlie Chaplin.

Notes:
  1. Wikipedia: Charlie Chaplin [↩]
  2. Chaplin (1992) at IMDB [↩]

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Published:
March 11, 2011 – 4:04 pm
Author:
By The Open Mode
Category:

Recommendations, February 2011

Here is a list of various material worth recommending, I've come across in February 2011. The recommendations are listed in a chronological order, based on when I noticed them, the latest are at the bottom of the list.

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Published:
March 6, 2011 – 11:50 am
Author:
By The Open Mode
Category:

Who is the hypocrite, Mrs. Clinton?

If you've kept an eye on what's been going on in Egypt lately, you probably also noticed that the big cheese in Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, stated that he supported the demonstrators and labeled the revolution an Islamic awakening, not unlike what Iran witnessed in 1979.

Now Iran has protesters in their own streets (again), but this time the demonstrators receive less support from Mr. Khamenei. Actually, they receive none.

Hillary Clinton is not one to let this apparent self-contradiction go unnoticed. According to a BBC News article[1] she claims the Iranian Supreme Leader is a hypocrite:

"What we see happening in Iran today is a testament to the courage of the Iranian people, and an indictment of the hypocrisy of the Iranian regime – a regime which over the last three weeks has constantly hailed what went on in Egypt," she said.

Now, it's easy for Mrs. Clinton to make a statement like this, when we see the way the Iranian authorities are coming down on the protesters who want democracy, like they wanted – and got! – in Egypt.

But, isn't Clinton herself a hypocrite?

As most people know now, the US supported Mubarak for his entire reign. 30 years. 30 years where a huge amount of American dollars made their way to the Egyptian army, every year. 30 years where America had every option of "democratizing" the Egyptian system, but did not. 30 years where all that apparently mattered was the Egypt-Israel peace treaty from 1979.

And then, all of a sudden, the US administration comes out and supports democracy and free elections in Egypt, but only after the Egyptian people rose from their living grave.

And let's not forget how the Iranian people in 1978-79 threw out the Shah, the ruler loved by the US but loathed by the Iranians.

The question pops into one's mind: Who is the hypocrite, Mrs. Clinton?

Notes:
  1. BBC News: Clinton expresses US support for Iran protesters [↩]

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Published:
February 15, 2011 – 10:37 pm
Author:
By The Open Mode
Category:

Recommendations, January 2011

Here is list of various material worth recommending, I've come across in January 2011. The recommendations are listed in a chronological order, based on when I noticed them, the latest are at the bottom of the list.

  • Image | PSFK: '(Pic) An Infographic About Infographics' (look)
  • Image | PPCBlog: 'Lean How Google Works: in Gory Detail' (look)
  • TV miniseries | 'Holocaust' (more info)
  • Comment  | Michael Tomasky: 'In the US, where hate rules at the ballot box, this tragedy has been coming for a long time' (The Guardian) (read)
  • Article | Mohamad Bazzi: 'UN tribunal is not the source of Lebanon's political woes' (The National) (read)
  • Article | Michele Penner Angrist: 'Morning In Tunisia' (Foreign Affairs) (read)
  • Article | Jonathan Manthorpe: 'Lebanon tumbles towards civil war over allegations of Hezbollah terror murders' (read)
  • Article | Leila Fadel: 'Hezbollah picks up allies in parliament' (The Washington Post) (read)
  • Article | Emile el-Hokayem: 'Hizbollah's Enduring Myth' (Carnegie Endowment, Arab Reform Bulletin) (read)
  • Article | Emile el-Hokayem: 'Hizballah and Syria: Outgrowing the Proxy Relationship' (The Washington Quarterly) (read)
  • Article | Emile el-Hokayem: 'Iran and Lebanon' (United States Institute of Peace: Iran and Lebanon') (read)
  • Article | Michael Young: 'Letter From Beirut: Crime and Punishment in the Levant' (Foreign Affairs) (read)
  • Article | Rory Carroll: 'Palestinians condemn US plan to settle refugees in South America' (The Guardian) (read)
  • Article | Michele Penner Angrist: 'Morning in Tunisia' (Foreign Affairs) (read)
  • Article | Leslie H. Helb: 'Obama's Risky Path in Egypt' (The Daily Beast) (read)
  • Article | Ethan Bronner: 'Olmert Memoir Cites Near Deal for Mideast Peace' (The New York Times) (read)
  • Article | Massimo Calabresi: 'Is the Arab World Ready for Democracy? (TIME.com, Swampland blog) (read)
  • Article | BBC News: 'Mid-East: Will there be a domino effect?' (read)
  • Article | Naharnet: 'Berri: Miqati Should Have Week or 2 to Seek for March 14's Participation in Cabinet' (read)
  • Article | Bruce Riedel: 'Don't Fear Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood' (Daily Beast) (read)
  • Article | Curt Hopkins: 'Al Jazeera Releases Egypt Coverage Under Creative Commons' (ReadWriteWeb) (read)
  • Comment | Hisham Matar: 'Libyans are just as hungry as Tunisians' (The Guardian Weekly) (read)
  • Article | Leslie H. Gelb: 'Beware Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood' (The Daily Beast) (read)

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Published:
February 1, 2011 – 11:25 am
Author:
By The Open Mode
Category: