Independent Views of News from around The Social Networks.
Monday, 2 December 2013
Thursday, 15 August 2013
Claude Mckay If we must Die
I have known about Claude Mckay for a while now and feel intrigued by his accomplishments both in Britain where he was a well known journalist for left publications, during the 1920's
Here is the poem written after Red Summer
"If We Must Die"
If we must die, let it not be like hogs
Hunted and penned in an inglorious spot,
While round us bark the mad and hungry dogs,
Making their mock at our accursed lot.
If we must die, O let us nobly die
So that our precious blood may not be shed
In vain; then even the monsters we defy
Shall be constrained to honor us though dead!
O kinsmen! We must meet the common foe!
Though far outnumbered let us show us brave,
And for their thousand blows deal one death blow!
What though before us lies the open grave?
Like men we’ll face the murderous, cowardly pack,
Pressed to the wall, dying, but fighting back!
Source: Claude McKay, “If We Must Die,” in Harlem Shadows: The Poems of Claude McKay (New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co., 1922)
Thursday, 6 June 2013
Wednesday, 29 May 2013
Whatever Happened to Courtesy
Have you ever wondered why courteous behavior no longer exists?
The reasons are quite simple. Familiarity. We seem obsessed with celebrity and for no good reason, the stellar rise in social media has itself created new phenomena of social elites, otherwise known as the facebook and Twiterati.
Is this just a passing phase or will it morph into something more potent that makes our politicians rush to tweet their message rather than having it filtered through the denizens of the mediarati, who slant their responses accordingly.
This is raw news and therefore we take it in chunks and respond rapidly without any hesitation to give our immediate reactions. No longer do we need to shout at the medium we just type directly to the originator warts and all, no holding back while we indelicately rip the > 140 characters.
The recent Boston Bomber capture, was for all intents and purpose, partially played out in social and cable news media, the ultimate media connections, it appears that we are now better connected to news and information than many intelligence organizations of the past., and those of us that can disseminate reassemble and repackage these bits to our listeners, readers and followers will be the new media stars.
The reality is that the reality shows have shifted and we on social media are creating a new existence whether for good or bad remains to be seen, but at least it's not determined by the old paradigms. And certainly we don't need to follow the old protocols of behavior.
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The reasons are quite simple. Familiarity. We seem obsessed with celebrity and for no good reason, the stellar rise in social media has itself created new phenomena of social elites, otherwise known as the facebook and Twiterati.
Is this just a passing phase or will it morph into something more potent that makes our politicians rush to tweet their message rather than having it filtered through the denizens of the mediarati, who slant their responses accordingly.
This is raw news and therefore we take it in chunks and respond rapidly without any hesitation to give our immediate reactions. No longer do we need to shout at the medium we just type directly to the originator warts and all, no holding back while we indelicately rip the > 140 characters.
The recent Boston Bomber capture, was for all intents and purpose, partially played out in social and cable news media, the ultimate media connections, it appears that we are now better connected to news and information than many intelligence organizations of the past., and those of us that can disseminate reassemble and repackage these bits to our listeners, readers and followers will be the new media stars.
The reality is that the reality shows have shifted and we on social media are creating a new existence whether for good or bad remains to be seen, but at least it's not determined by the old paradigms. And certainly we don't need to follow the old protocols of behavior.
.jpg)
Tuesday, 30 April 2013
mainly macro: Why Inflation is not falling
mainly macro: Why Inflation is not falling: There has been considerable interest in the recent IMF study that found that the responsiveness of inflation to the output gap (or equiv...
Twitter and Debate
For a long time now, I have marvelled at the message board otherwise known as Twitter. It bring together a diverse group of like-minded as well as adversarial people. In the main the tweets are interesting and useful in many ways, and is possibly the best medium for unlimited inanity known to man, alongside some gems of brilliant insight and confessions. But why do people in their randomness like to explode with rage at the sign of a perceived slight or a point of disagreement?
All in all it is a useful way of gathering news from the many sources and developing a better idea of breaking news without an editorial slant.
Sometimes however there are occasions where the exercise of debate, becomes lost in personal attacks( political) rather than debating the matter at hand. And to me that's puzzling. The art of debate can be sometimes emotive, that is understandable, but when it degenerates into personal attacks it loses its lustre, and becomes self defeating. It immediately becomes a slanging match akin to two heavyweights exchanging verbal punches. Nothing is gained and everything is lost.
Anonymity can help explain some of this phenomena. Your typing away at one end of the ether, and some other random person is doing the same. There are no voice inflections or opportunities to correct or explain certain points, which can lead to reading blindness, or the inability to comprehend a 140 character sentence. So misunderstandings occur with rapid frequency. I guess knowing the other person would help but its not possible through Twitter to know everyone on your timeline. So it becomes one of those health and safety problems you are bound to encounter from time to time. Its definitely not good to get your ackers up, especially with hypertension.
With all its faults its a thoroughly entertaining choice,in both a passive and interactive way; more jaw jaw is better than flinging plates at the wall.
All in all it is a useful way of gathering news from the many sources and developing a better idea of breaking news without an editorial slant.
Sometimes however there are occasions where the exercise of debate, becomes lost in personal attacks( political) rather than debating the matter at hand. And to me that's puzzling. The art of debate can be sometimes emotive, that is understandable, but when it degenerates into personal attacks it loses its lustre, and becomes self defeating. It immediately becomes a slanging match akin to two heavyweights exchanging verbal punches. Nothing is gained and everything is lost.
Anonymity can help explain some of this phenomena. Your typing away at one end of the ether, and some other random person is doing the same. There are no voice inflections or opportunities to correct or explain certain points, which can lead to reading blindness, or the inability to comprehend a 140 character sentence. So misunderstandings occur with rapid frequency. I guess knowing the other person would help but its not possible through Twitter to know everyone on your timeline. So it becomes one of those health and safety problems you are bound to encounter from time to time. Its definitely not good to get your ackers up, especially with hypertension.
With all its faults its a thoroughly entertaining choice,in both a passive and interactive way; more jaw jaw is better than flinging plates at the wall.
Thursday, 25 April 2013
Thursday, 18 April 2013
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