It's Time.

This video perfectly, and without a single word, describes the emotion that fuels my fight for gay marriage.

Tearing Marriages Apart.

It's a federal duty...

The Top 1%

A great article that's worth a read. An excerpt:

"The upper 1 percent of Americans are now taking in nearly a quarter of the nation’s income every year. In terms of wealth rather than income, the top 1 percent control 40 percent. Their lot in life has improved considerably. Twenty-five years ago, the corresponding figures were 12 percent and 33 percent. One response might be to celebrate the ingenuity and drive that brought good fortune to these people, and to contend that a rising tide lifts all boats. That response would be misguided. While the top 1 percent have seen their incomes rise 18 percent over the past decade, those in the middle have actually seen their incomes fall."

My Piano Teacher

Learning Piano All Over Again

I've touched piano or organ keys since I was about 5 years old. My grandfather, who was a professional organ player, probably thought it was cute but I don't think I crossed a level of interest that caused him to try to teach me. He got me started, but he didn't really teach me the fundamentals. Things like reading sheet music, proper hand and sitting position, fingering, etc. Despite not having this training, I taught myself how to play pretty well. In high school, I took a music theory class and I remember what an awakening it was for me in terms of writing music and playing. I even had a brief stint in a band (didn't everyone?)

But I've been stuck at that spot since. For the past 22 years (omg I'm old), I've done nothing formal to improve my skills. To spur me to do so, I spent an unGodly amount of money on a new Disklavier upright piano last year. As much as many people spend for a car... a good car. But things took a turn downward for me financially right afterwards and I was unable to begin piano lessons as I'd planned. Today that changed. In addition to a refresher music theory class in college that begins next Tuesday, I've also hired a piano instructor. Judging from the wall in his studio and the personal recommendations of both my piano tuner and a friend, I've hired a *very* good piano player. My friend tells me that I'll learn more from him in 3 months than I'd learn in a year from any other teacher.

If you want to hear him playing, click here:

http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/klavierstucke-op-118-iii-ballade/id252688138?i=252688668

Tonight I began doing some of the exercises he assigned me and I can tell you that my sight-reading of the bass clef is notably better already! Over the next few months, I'm going to have to get ready to get my hands slapped with a ruler until I get the basics down but this is stuff I wished I asked for from my grandfather way back then when he was alive and could have taught me. I'm taking a big step backwards in the hopes that I can make leaps forwards later. I'm not stopping until I get good enough to sit down and start playing a piece directly from the sheet music. My goal is also to begin writing music and recording for my own enjoyment - ultimately combining my two hobbies (computers and piano) to create some nice orchestrations.

I'll close this post with a link to someone I want to sound like someday. Enjoy!



If you want to hear a portion of this song with orchestral background (amazing), click here:

http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/a-beginning/id274847281?i=274847400

A Mind Changed

I've noticed, as I've gotten older, that the moments where someone can get me to see something in an entirely new light are becoming increasingly rare. I honestly do not believe this is because I'm becoming more stubborn with age - though I suppose it's a possibility. No, instead I think it's because as I get older, my positions have become more reasoned. Facts and research have whittled away at the parts that were perhaps a bit shaky to begin with. It's true that there is always the danger of confirmation bias but I've worked pretty hard to keep my mind open and to challenge my reasoning with opposing opinion.

So it was with a pleasant surprise that I watched the video below of a speech given by Jonathan Rauch about why we have free speech. For the first part of the video, I had my doubts that I was going to end up agreeing with him. In the end, he had me thoroughly convinced. This lecture is about 30 minutes long, but I encourage you to grab a cup of coffee and sit down with it. I think you'll have an entirely different context on free speech when it hurts minorities.

Jonathan Rauch - FIRE's CFN 2010 from The FIRE on Vimeo.

This is Amazing

Kleptones - Come Again (Beatles vs Rare Earth vs Beaties vs Daft Punk vs Cypress Hill vs Boston) Video by Crumbs Chief from The Videotones on Vimeo.

Confirmation Bias

I loved this article.

http://youarenotsosmart.com/2010/06/23/confirmation-bias/

Television is a Drug

Watch a lot of TV (or surf a lot of Internet?) Check this out...

Television is a drug. from Beth Fulton on Vimeo.

Greatest Daily Show Clip

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Appholes
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

Power Increases Hypocrisy

Funny how I would stumble onto this article right after my Apple rant.

The Dangers of Marinating in Your Own Bullshit

When a cow is fed the ground up remains of another cow in with her normal grains, she can get Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) - commonly known as Mad Cow disease. I think we can similarly go "mad" if we continually feed ourselves ground up versions of our own bullshit. I've often said that I don't want friends who always agree with me. I want my friends (and my partner) to call me out and challenge me to see things differently.

Recently, I made a comment on one of my Facebook friends' postings that poked fun at a decision he made that didn't work out too well and he deleted the comment. This is not the first time he has deleted comments that he doesn't agree with or that make him look bad in front of others. This form of censorship is a way of ensuring that all those who post are in agreement or are supportive and, when taken further, can be dangerous. Literally surrounding yourself with "Yes" men makes you increasingly out of touch with reality over time. I've subsequently removed him from my friends list. If he can't take it, he won't dish it out either and I count on both in my friends.

Google just illustrated this by rolling out Google Buzz. It generated so much negative "buzz" so quickly by the outside world, that it's clear that Google didn't run this past anyone outside of their organization (or at least past anyone who would feel free to criticize it). In this way, Google is becoming just like Microsoft and (dare I say) even Apple lately. When you become so big and powerful, you stop listening to others and start feeling that the "right" way is your way and suddenly shut yourself out of all kinds of helpful criticism which would steer you away from a mistake. The iPad is a great example of this. Apple is probably shocked that it's not finding a receptive audience for the product. Had they actually reached out to find out what people wanted, they may have made iPod v1 much, much better.

Companies are run by people and people are susceptible to this problem if they don't make a conscious effort to stay balanced. For example, if you're deeply religious and you join a church and befriend people only from your church and your social gatherings, reading lists, and lectures all come from people in your church, you're literally marinating in your church's doctrine and sheltering yourself from any viewpoints which are counter to those your church endorses. Over time, you will become so out of touch with mainstream society that you'll rigidly form beliefs and close your mind even further. Rinse and repeat until madness sets in.

Similarly, if you watch only Fox News or MSNBC or only read right or left wing blogs, you're likely to lose track of what's actually happening. It's dangerous to think that what you're seeing in these places is what is actually happening because what you're seeing is really just a position dispensed with the goal of getting higher ratings - not getting to the truth.

So perhaps instead of working to find others (on TV or otherwise) who make us feel more "right" all the time, perhaps we should all consider having a few detractors in our midst and keeping an open mind. If we all did this, the world would truly become a better place.

The Evolution of Blogging

All things evolve. In fact, if they don't evolve they usually die. Blogging is no different. It isn't dying, but it is evolving. I've recently learned that I'm quite the dinosaur for keeping a blog the way I do. As you look through my blog, you will notice three basic types of posts. 1) Posts where I'm sharing a link or a video, etc. 2) Posts where I'm giving you a brief update and 3) Posts where I'm sharing deeper thoughts or longer updates with more background.

It seems that blogs are evolving the first two types of posts over to Facebook and reserving the last for blogs. It makes sense in a way. Facebook is a more ADD version of blogging. The updates are short so you can get short blurbs of people's lives that you care about on a daily basis if you choose. Usually they are funny moments, quick video clips and good links around the Internet.

I've started to get more into Facebook and am understanding how to configure it to not bug the crap out of me. Once you get it configured right, it's actually quite pleasant! So this dinosaur, fearing extinction, is going to evolve this blog. I'll still post here, but my posts will generally center around my deeper thoughts, rants, and challenges/accomplishments. My more banal minutia will go to Facebook. If you don't have a Facebook, I suggest you get one - and it doesn't matter how old or young you are. You might be surprised how many people have one that you know.

If you're a daily reader of this blog, add me to your Facebook. You can look me up by using my gmail address or by looking up the username "thirdwaver". Then you can transition your daily looking at this blog to a daily look at facebook along with a weekly look at this blog. In fact, if I post something really amazing here, I'll likely link to it inside my facebook so you wouldn't miss it if you checked facebook alone.

You'll also notice that I've added a share button to the bottom of each post. This is used to post one of my blog entries to your facebook (or blog or whatever) if you really liked something I wrote and want to share it.

Social networking is getting more and more powerful. It's becoming the tool that does everything from keep friends in touch to make dictatorships quiver. All aboard! This train is leaving the station.

Huh?

Cute kid. But what the hell does it mean? (no pun intended)...

As I Was Saying...

Keep it calm about the swine flu. David Rothkopf calls it an infodemic.

Money Quote:

Once again, the media is reacting to a potential threat with its usual calm, responsibly recognizing that sensational coverage of diseases can have far worse consequences than the diseases themselves. Or not.

Remember SARS? Fewer people died of SARS than choked to death in the United States on small objects that year. But estimates of global economic losses exceeded $40 billion. Back then, I wrote an article called "The Buzz Bites Back" for the Washington Post about this phenomenon dubbing it an "infodemic." And it was clear at the time that the progress of the information revolution was amplifying the impact of these information epidemics and accelerating their spread. Yet, still hysteria reigns again.

File This in the "I Wonder Why" Dept.

Health Officials Urge Against Flu Overreaction

As swine flu has spread to most Bay Area counties over the past few days, worried residents have been descending on hospitals and clinics at the first sign of ill health, to the chagrin of the region's public health officials... [Read More]

They spend headline after headline telling people all of humanity is in danger of dying next week from a pandemic and then wonder why people flock to the doctor when they get a tickle cough? Really. Have you figured out that the mainstream media is about selling stuff and not about informing you yet? What will it take?

On a Lighter Note

And I needed one. Here is someone who spends waaaaay too much time making noises...

Conservative Sense of Humor

A study was done and both conservatives and liberals watched Stephen Colbert (that's pronounced Colbair for those of you French-hating O'Reilly fans). Somehow, I don't find this surprising:

...there was no significant difference between the groups in thinking Colbert was funny, but conservatives were more likely to report that Colbert only pretends to be joking and genuinely meant what he said while liberals were more likely to report that Colbert used satire and was not serious when offering political statements.

Why I Want Drugs Decriminalized...

Read this article from Glenn Greenwald.

Money quote:

Few political orthodoxies have more of a destructive impact than our approach to drug policy. Our harsh criminalization framework results in the imprisonment of hundreds of thousands of American citizens, breaks up families, burns tens of billions of dollars every year, erodes civil liberties, turns our police forces into para-military units, and spawns massive levels of violence and criminality -- all while exacerbating the very harms it seeks to address. If a measured, rational debate over America's extremist drug policies can take place in Time Magazine, then it can take place anywhere.

Uh... Remember When...

Remember when you thought learning to do a bunny hop on your bike was a big deal?

Times they are a changin'