Author: Ruby Sinreich

… in our borders!

I didn’t know it wasn’t done when I took the last picture of this mural.

Dave doesn’t take comments or trackbacks, so I’m writing to him here.

It’s good to be a Taurus on the cusp, no?

Thanks for the thunderstorm podcast. Tropical weather is one of the few things I miss about living in Florida.

Now don’t be greedy with the Technorati rankings, Dave… 😉

I had pretty high expectations going in to see The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, and they were exceeded in every possible way. This movie is BRILLIANT in both the British and American sense of the word.

So clever, so funny, so creative, so entertaining! I was a little concerned when I saw a number of kids at the screening, but by the end the grownups were laughing a LOT more than they were.

I don’t know why Spike Jonze passed on the opportunity to direct this, but I’m glad he did as the world will benefit from this previously-unknown director being recognized for the genius he is.

But of all the incredible talent poured into this film, none surpasses the late Douglas Adams. I read this book about 20 years ago(!) and seeing it realized on the screen made me realize what a profound impact it had on my world view. Thank you Douglas Adams, it makes me sad you couldn’t be here to see such a fantastic expression of your visionary work.

Special shouts out to Mos Def and Martin Freeman (of The Office) for excellent acting. They really shined (shone?).

I am eagerly awaiting a sequel…

The ever-brilliant Doc Searls gave a talk at Les Blogs  <whine>I wish I was in Paris too!</whine>  about What blogs are vs. What they are not. Doc’s a great teacher in the way he helps you understand an idea, then connects it to another, then connects that to another, and so on until your mind is blown.

Doc makes the crucial case that blogs should be seen as writing, and not as content delivery systems, places, or entertainment. This distinction has huge implications for free speech, commercialization, and regulation of blogs.

Take a look at his presentation. It only takes 5 minutes and you will be smarter when you’re done.

Is anyone else watching this “presidential news conference?” The president is getting killed by reporters. Did they switch the seating chart on him? I think he’s wearing make up.

Same old same old. But people are buying it less and less.

Support for Bush’s proposal to add private accounts to the Social Security dropped to 45 percent from 56 percent in mid-March, according the latest Washington Post-ABC News poll published on Tuesday.

Fifty-one percent now oppose the accounts, up from 41 percent in March.

Bush’s overall job approval rating was 47 percent, matching his all-time low in Washington Post-ABC News polls, while half disapproved of his performance.

The president’s ratings on other major issues were at or near new lows, the poll found. Less than half of respondents supported Bush’s handling of the economy, energy policy and Iraq.
– Reuters

I just keep liking Clint Eastwood more and more. He’s aging well. Recently he said this to Time Magazine:

Extremism is so easy. You’ve got your position, and that’s it. It doesn’t take much thought. And when you go far enough to the right, you meet the same idiots coming around from the left.

Quotation via Jerry Brown’s blog. (Yes that Jerry Brown.)

This is a friendly reminder for us to avoid dogmatism, no matter how strongly we believe our ideas. Or as the Buddha said, always question what others preach. Test it yourself, and base your beliefs on your own clear experience.

Do not be misled by report or tradition or hearsay. Do not be misled by proficiency in Collections [of Scripture], not by mere logic and inference, not after considering reasons, nor after reflection on some view and approval of it, nor because it fits becoming, nor because the recluse [who holds it] is your teacher. But when you know for yourselves: These things are not good, these things are faulty; these things are censured by the intelligent; these things, when performed and undertaken, conduce to loss and sorrow — then do you reject them.

Check out this graphical visualization. My physicist friend Mike says “it shows the time evolution of a colored (nonabelian) plasma in the presence of a particular type of plasma instability, bottom is time=0 and top is time=end.” This is his post-doctoral research.

I don’t know what it means, other than Mike is really smart and science can be really beautiful.

The Raw Story has uncovered Secret Service records showing that cub–reporter-by-day/prostitute-by-night Jeff Gannon spent a lot of time hanging around the White House when there were no press conferences.

Everything I know about this story tells me he was sleeping with someone in the West Wing. It’s only ever been a question of who. I hope the American people find out soon.

Guckert made more than 200 appearances at the White House during his two-year tenure with the fledging conservative websites GOPUSA and Talon News, attending 155 of 196 White House press briefings. He had little to no previous journalism experience, previously worked as a male escort, and was refused a congressional press pass.

Perhaps more notable than the frequency of his attendance, however, is several distinct anomalies about his visits.

Guckert made more than two dozen excursions to the White House when there were no scheduled briefings. On many of these days, the Press Office held press gaggles aboard Air Force One—which raises questions about what Guckert was doing at the White House. On other days, the president held photo opportunities.

Via Susie Bright’s Journal.

This week I’ll be watching Morph, the Media Center‘s blog, where Brian will be posting updates from the Mobile Media conference in Los Angeles.

I’m curious to see if Brian can stomach all the corporate crap. It otherwise promises to be quite interesting.

This executive seminar demystifies mobile and wireless broadband, exploring the business opportunities, emerging technologies and new consumer behavior quickly evolving at the crossroads of media, technology and society. At this Media Center event, you will get the foundations for new revenue, new partnerships, new products and new audience acquisition.