Tuesday, February 21, 2006
Well, the Muslim cartoon thing has finally moved off the front page, I think, in the last day or two. I think my feelings on it are summarized in a way that's been done by many people many times: While I may disagree with what you may say, I'll defend to the death your right to say it.
And while I imagine most Muslims to be like the ones I knew from my time in the middle east -- kind and decent people -- until they as a whole rise up and denounce the kind of violent response to things like the Danish cartoons, they run the risk of having Muslims in general being viewed as violent and uncivilized. I believe the phrase for it is this: Police your own.
At the same time, in Austria, a Historian named Irving just got three years in prison for Holocaust denial. What gives with that? This seems badly inconsistent given current events. Either you support free speech or you don't.
I finished "The Female Man" by Joanna Russ the other day. I liked the writing style and the concept of the story. The message of the book felt a bit dated -- it was published in 1976 -- Stridently feminist to point of male hatred. I couldn't quite tell if that was simply the character or Russ herself. It's the only book I've ever read that made me want to scream "That's not fair. We're not all like that!" Having said that, I'd still recommend it as very good writing, and I can admire her skills along those lines.
And while I imagine most Muslims to be like the ones I knew from my time in the middle east -- kind and decent people -- until they as a whole rise up and denounce the kind of violent response to things like the Danish cartoons, they run the risk of having Muslims in general being viewed as violent and uncivilized. I believe the phrase for it is this: Police your own.
At the same time, in Austria, a Historian named Irving just got three years in prison for Holocaust denial. What gives with that? This seems badly inconsistent given current events. Either you support free speech or you don't.
I finished "The Female Man" by Joanna Russ the other day. I liked the writing style and the concept of the story. The message of the book felt a bit dated -- it was published in 1976 -- Stridently feminist to point of male hatred. I couldn't quite tell if that was simply the character or Russ herself. It's the only book I've ever read that made me want to scream "That's not fair. We're not all like that!" Having said that, I'd still recommend it as very good writing, and I can admire her skills along those lines.
Enjoyed some wonderful anime lately, all directed by Hayao Miyazaki: My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, Laputa: Castle in the Sky, Spirited Away. He also did Princess Mononoke. All wonderful. "Spirited Away" takes the cake as the most bizarre movie I think I've ever seen, but hangs together beautifully. They're all on a set of Studio Ghibli DVD's, along with Grave of the Fireflies, directed by Isao Takahata. If you like animation, you may like these.
# posted by goldpython @ 8:54 AM 
