Diary of the Mad Pigeon

Protesters 1,758; China 0

This just warms my heart...

China says it foils Olympics terrorist plot
REUTERS - Chinese authorities foiled plots to kidnap foreigners and carry out suicide attacks around the Beijing Olympics, police said on Thursday, in a fresh blow to the image of harmony China has sought to promote before the Games.  The European Parliament, meanwhile, voted for a possible boycott by EU leaders of the Olympics opening ceremony if China fails to talk to the Dalai Lama, raising pressure on Beijing over its handling of unrest in Tibet and neighboring areas.  CONTINUED

US: Olympics protestors have rights
AFP - The White House on Thursday shrugged off concerns about US protests targeting the Beijing Olympics flame and vowed to keep pushing China on human rights, and holding talks with the Dalai Lama.   "People around the world deserve the right to express themselves freely and peacefully," spokeswoman Dana Perino told reporters when asked about the demonstrations in San Francisco on Wednesday.  CONTINUED

European Parliament Urges EU Nations To Boycott Olympics Opening Ceremony
RTTN - On Thursday, the European Parliament has adopted a resolution urging EU leaders to boycott the Olympics opening ceremony to be held on August 8 if China fails to enter into a dialogue with the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama by that time.  The European Parliament resolution, passed with a large majority, urged EU leaders to adopt a united stance on Tibet. A meeting of the European lawmakers, held in Brussels, firmly condemned "the brutal repression" by China in last month's crackdown on Tibetan protests.  CONTINUED

Seeing China get poked in the eye with a torch?  Priceless.

Great. Just great.

Just as the Air Force is asking for a record-busting budget increase, we lose one of these.

Looks like we can expect another RIF.

Oh, and Sean Young is hot.

How to close out a topic

As far as I'm concerned, nothing more needs to be said on Vietnam on this blog, ever.  Certain lines and passages highlighted, all emphasis is mine. And because I'm not interested in hearing "the other side of the story" because that's all we've been hearing about these past 30 or so years, comments will be moderated for this one.  This is about taking apart one of the most preciously-held myths of the past century, and while I disagree with the blanket statement by the author that the "war was stupidly fought" (in some ways yes, but that also undercuts and denies the validity of things that worked like the Marine's Combined Action Platoon strategy), but at least the author acknowledges his deficiences and his ignorance, unlike much of his generation - MOGS

From The American Thinker

February 16, 2008

Boomers and the Vietnam Shrug

By Frank Dudley Berry, Jr

Back in 1963, when I was a junior in high school, summer jobs were not so easy to come by -- the negative aspect of Baby Boomer demographics. Finally, a friend managed to line me up with a job busing tables at a local Catholic retreat house. I served breakfast, lunch, and dinner, washed dishes, and did my best to keep a  low profile. It wasn't much, but the start of my career of gainful employment.

A strict rule of silence was enforced then on Catholic retreats. The participants, entirely male, did not speak to each other, and particularly at meal time. Instead, they listened to a tapes on a variety of thematic topics.  These were not all religious talks, which might surprise some. There was a considerable amount of diversity. There were not all that many, and so I heard the same speech over and over again that summer. One of the most striking, so striking that it has stayed with me these 45 years, was a speech that Dr. Thomas Dooley had given to a group of nuns, reporting on his experiences in Southeast Asia between 1954 and 1960.

The Kingston Trio had made the name famous back in 1958, with a superb arrangement of an old Civil War song. But the flesh-and-blood Tom Dooley was well known before that. He was the author of three solid books about conditions there, the most well-known being 'Deliver Us From Evil', published in 1956. He'd been dead prematurely dead two years (of cancer) when I did that repetitive listening. So what I was hearing dated back to 1961 at the latest, probably earlier, long before there was any political baggage attached to discussions of Southeast Asia.

If you did have to listen to a talk over and over, that was a good one to hear - light and entertaining (though the subject was very serious), and leavened with a lot of humor. The subject was the same as the books, Dooley's first-hand impressions of the refugee camps in Haiphong  and the repulsive cruelty of the the Stalinist regime from  which they fled. I still remember him describing the exact meaning of the title 'Deliver Us from Evil' , which only indirectly referenced the Scriptural passage.  The direct reference had to to do with an incident which Dooley had personally witnessed and in which he even participated.

Three young Vietnamese children had been brought to the border by the  police of the North Vietnam. Their vocal cords had been cut  (or tongues cut out, I forget which) as punishment for treasonable speech. When Dooley asked the guard how children so young could possibly have committed treason, the guard asked him, Dooley, to recite the Lord's Prayer. When Dooley reached the phrase, 'And deliver us from evil', the guard stopped him.
   

"That is the treason", he declared, "for there is no evil in the People's Republic of Vietnam."

The Vietnam debacle was the second greatest trauma in the history of the United States. (First is the Civil War, without any serious contender, and we may all hope to God that it remains unrivaled on the list.)  One respect in which it was not a disaster, however, was the moral perspective. The Vietnam War was colossally unwise. It was never immoral. Anyone who heard Tom Dooley once, let alone all summer long, knew -- or should have known --  that reality. At base, after all the heat, after all the millions of words, after all the sound and fury, what the war was about was a frightened, even terrified, people resisting the imposition of a relentlessly tyrannical and inhumane regime. The moral judgment should always have been weighed in their favor, and to their allies by association.   

But as the 60's lengthened, and Vietnam became more controversial with each passing year, that base insight was lost. There is no question that the tactics and posturing of the Johnson Administration had much to do with this. The War should never have been fought primarily by the American military. The rationale should never have been expressed in the Cold War grandiosity language of the Kennedy inaugural address. Vietnam was a sideshow to the major East-West conflict, if it was a part of it at all. The issues were local, Vietnamese resistance to Vietnamese oppression.  But as South Vietnam came to be perceived as an American client state, awareness of the elementary justice of the basic cause -- small, but anything but trivial -- became obscured by the superheated rhetoric.

The war was fought by the wrong army. It was also fought by the wrong type of army. If it was to be fought by the US, it should have been fought by a professional military, and not sullen and discontented draftees. (Popular armies perform wonderfully well in wars of national survival, or great causes, as Victor Hanson Davis has convincingly pointed out. But the Vietnam War was neither.) The military tactics were the wrong tactics. The war was sold to the public on the wrong basis, duplicitous if not outright fallacious. But none of this accounts for the complete reversal in the moral polarity that occurred in the late 60's and early 70's, in which the Stalinist thug Ho Chi Minh was somehow transformed into the a native Populist, the actually elected South Vietnamese government perceived as a repressive state, and the assistance of the United States as some sort of imperial venture. It does not account for the vehemence, the shrill, shrieking hysteria that became the dominant tone of war opposition. The reasons for that lie elsewhere.
   

They have to do with the determination of the New Left and its fellow traveler draft resisters to characterize the opposition as a moral issue, a crusade, a matter of good versus evil. It was not sufficient simply to question the practicality, the wisdom, the sensibility of the military approach to Vietnam. To wax philosophical for a moment, arguments of that type address the means only and leave the end intact. Accepting the justice of the end (resisting the tyranny of North Vietnam) would not do for the war opponents, and particularly not for draft opponents. Success on that limited basis would not lead to an end to the war, but only an alteration in the manner in which it was conducted. Above all, it would not lead to an end to the draft.   

 
Full disclosure must be made here. I did not serve in Vietnam or in fact in the military at any time. When I began college in 1964, I enrolled in ROTC, fully expecting to complete the course and do my service as a ROTC officer. I was not particularly looking forward to it. I am not militaristic. I did think it would be a valuable maturing experience. But fate intervened in 1965, in the form of the first episode of mild rheumatoid arthritis with which I have coped without too much difficulty my entire adult life. Almost the first words out of the mouth of the internist who diagnosed it  was, "at least you won't be going into the Army." 

So when I opposed the War in those years -- and I most certainly did -- it was not because I had anything personal at stake. I believed the war was foolish because it was wasteful. I did not buy completely into the New Left dogma, with its endless misquotation of Eisenhower about Ho Chi Minh's likely success in a referendum in 1956. But it was also the case that my memory of Tom Dooley and all he had seen and reported was a long time in the past.   

But even for a fervent war opponent, the extent to which the war opposition had at base the self-serving interests of the Boomer generation was unsettling. Everyone mouthed the sentiments -- moral language is as easy to mimic as any other -- but the bottom line for a huge percentage of resisters, maybe the majority, was a resentment of being inconvenienced by two years military service, with kp, field drill, and master sergeants with their own view of the world. Simply insisting the war was badly conducted would not do -- it didn't avoid that inconvenient two years. So the war became an impassioned moral cause, a crusade. 'Hell, No, I Won't Go' became a slogan that was chanted with blazing eyes and an even more blazing self-righteous indignation. The United States Army was recast as an invading army, and the defense of South Vietnam as an imperialist venture, a Western power imposing its will on a Third World people, as so often in the past. America thus became Amerika in those years of mass insanity.

Insisting that the issue was a moral one, rather than simply a matter of political alternatives, neatly linked draft resistance to war opposition. Obviously, if the war was evil and immoral, to participate in any form was to become complicit in the immorality. That inconvenient two year obligation thus disappeared. Consistency with that transparent rationalization is also the reason why Vietnam soldiers were treated so disgracefully shabbily in those years. To the extent that one acknowledged that the troops in Vietnam were not acting immorally, one had to acknowledge that maybe the righteousness of war opposition was in some doubt. Maybe -- perish the thought -- some of the protest was motivated by selfishness and moral cowardice. That was not a notion that could even be entertained as a thought at that time, let alone spoken aloud. So the troops were vilified and the motives of the protesters never questioned.

This transformation of the dialog from a limited political issue to a great, sweeping moral condemnation that was absurdly blind to the actual facts of Vietnam has had huge repercussions. It was catastrophic for the people of Southeast Asia.

Persuaded by all the inflamed rhetoric that the United States was interfering with the popular will of a distant people, Congress not only withdrew troops, but cut off aid to South Vietnam, at a time in 1974 when many military historians believe that nation might have been able to withstand the assault with reasonable support. The successors to Ho Chi Minh, as Stalinist as he was, overran Saigon in 1975 and imposed the same brutality as they had in Hanoi two decades earlier. Deliver us from evil.

In Cambodia, the Khmer Rouge took advantage of the power vacuum the West had left behind to perpetrate the most appalling genocide since World War II, maybe in history, in the killing fields. (In 2005, filmmakers trying to make a documentary about the massacre found too few survivors to contribute.      

In the United States, the war protest gave birth to the Great Sacred Cow of the demented Left -- that it had taken to the streets and, by heroic measures, brought an unjust and immoral war to its knees. For many Boomers, participation in the anti-war movement is the most significant moral action of their lives. For many, these are life episodes too precious to rethink critically -- and they don't. But the protests didn't stop the war. What it brought to a halt was the draft, which ended in 1971, as did the protests -- for it is hard to deny that had been the real point all along.  The war went on until 1975.  And the events that followed? The repugnant atrocities of Pol Pot and the concrete demonstration that North Vietnam had intended all along a ferociously tyrannical Communist regime? 

In one of the great acts of collective rationalization in recorded history, the Baby Boomers -- my generation -- shrug their shoulders. Not our problem. 

But the fact was that Tom Dooley had been telling the plain, unvarnished truth.  The Vietnamese people -- the real flesh-and-blood kind, that live and die, suffer and hope (not the mythic 'People' of immemorial Leftist cant) -- began running from Ho Chi Minh in 1955. They kept running for the next two decades, as far south as the land would take them, then into boats and the open sea when the land ran out. The war was a dumb war, unwisely formulated, stupidly communicated, even more stupidly fought. But it was a just cause and a moral undertaking. It was the protest, with its utter contempt for the actual human reality, that was immoral.

Tom Dooley had it right. I heard him clearly enough back in 1963. But by 1968, I'd stopped listening. So had everybody else.

Frank Dudley Berry, Jr is the author/editor of Wordplay, a weblog dedicated to an on-going examination of language and attitudes in political speech.

Holy Repression, Batman!

There's a new repressive Communist police state on the block: http://www.wired.com/politics/security/magazine/15-11/ff_chinafirewall

I don't know what's more disturbing: the fact that we're selling them the gear to do this, or that no-one seems to care, caught up in the flurry of an opening market.

Crazy Ivan!

Sign number 2,345,697 that the Cold War is back on.  That, along with the recent dismissal of the Russian PM in favor of a political nobody, seems to imply that Vlad will be around for quite a while. (The new guy is seen as a "placeholder" so Putin can sidestep the term limits in effect, and return to office after a short hiatus.) Russia does have its fair share of problems, like the incredibly low birth rate.

However, what always gets me is the persistent anti-American, anti-NATO paranoia. Why don't they realize that we--for the most part--don't care too much about Russia/the CIS? (Conversely, should we care more?) There's a bunch of other stuff going on, the likes of which makes Russia look like a rather well-functioning nation-state. No-one's going to invade, so what's with all the saber-rattling?

It could have something to do with the idea of a multipolar world to counter US influence, and the idea of being a "regional power". Heck, I'll call it right now: Cold War Part Deux will be something like RIMPAC vs. the SCO--in contrast to NATO vs. the Warsaw Pact. Any thoughts?

New Seven Wonders of the World to be Unveiled

The Great Wall of China, the Colosseum in Rome and Peru's Machu Picchu are leading contenders to be among the new seven wonders of the world, as a massive poll draws to a close with votes already cast by more than 90 million people, organizers say.

As the 8 p.m. EDT Friday voting deadline approaches, the rankings can still change. Also in the top 10 are the Acropolis in Greece, Chichen Itza pyramid in Mexico, Eiffel Tower in Paris, Easter Island, Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Taj Mahal in India and Jordan's ancient city of Petra.

The winners will be announced on Saturday in Lisbon, Portugal.  CONTINUED

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Fair enough.  But some "wonders" listed seem out of place.

You see, in my humble pigeon opinion anything built with technology greater than a compass, levers, blocks, tackle, and strong backs shouldn't make the cut. 

In other words, the Great Pyramids of Giza are engineering marvels, but a monkey could've assembled the Statue of Liberty.  I mean, I love what the statue stands for; but come on, how many artists does it take to come up with a statue, let alone during the coal-fired industrial revolution?  I'd drop the Eiffel Tower, Sydney Opera House, and maybe The Kremlin.

I'll let the Statue of Christ Redeemer and Neuschwanstein Castle slide, since it looks like it was a pain in the [PIGEONEDx2] to haul supplies up their respective terrain.

But to hell with the official site:  let's see what the mad pigeoneers have to say!  I've created a poll listing 20 of the 21 wonders eligible for voting; since I couldn't build a 21-question poll I've retired the Great Pyramids jersey, since I'm adamant ANY list of world wonders must list 'em!  List your write-in candidates in the comments section (sorry Alex, but the Amsterdam Red Light District isn't eligible), or contribute acidic commentary slamming any official picks.

By the way, you can find pictures of the sites here

>> CLICK HERE TO VOTE!

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Trackposted to Outside the Beltway, Perri Nelson's Website, Blog @ MoreWhat.com, 123beta, Right Truth, Adam's Blog, Stuck On Stupid, Webloggin, Leaning Straight Up, Cao's Blog, The Amboy Times, , third world county, Faultline USA, Woman Honor Thyself, The Crazy Rants of Samantha Burns, stikNstein... has no mercy, The World According to Carl, Pirate's Cove, Blue Star Chronicles, The Pink Flamingo, Dumb Ox Daily News, Right Voices, and Church and State, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

Always in motion, the future is

The World of Tomorrow....perhaps....

No, the picture doesn't really have all that much to do with the article, but it does help inspire that sense of foreboding doesn't it?  :)

Of course I've often wondered why the future couldn't be a little more...like...well, this View this photo

Can China come out and Play?

This just in from the Indo-Asian News Service:  "China said Saturday that it hoped for stability in Iraq, in its first reaction to the hanging of Saddam Hussein.  Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Qin Gang said that the Iraqi people should themselves decide the affairs of Iraq.  China hopes Iraq can establish stability at an early date, he said."

Great... then how about ponying up some [PIGEONED] troops and money for the effort, Beijing?

Kim Jong Il: not just a 'Nut with a Nuke'

Barbara Demick, Los Angeles Times:  Kim Jong Il is neither insane nor stupid.  From the CIA's psychological profilers to his many biographers, experts who have studied the North Korean leader believe that beneath the glaring eccentricities -- the bouffant hair-do and the oddball Mao suits -- there is a shrewd operator at work.  Despite an image as a "nut with a nuke," as some bloggers have disparaged him, Kim appears to have carefully orchestrated his country's path to nuclear sovereignty. If the announced test is confirmed, one of the world's poorest and most dysfunctional countries will have become an unlikely gate-crasher in the exclusive club of nuclear powers. That is an achievement that Kim apparently believes will insure the top item on his agenda -- maintaining power.  In Kim's eyes, a nuclear weapon should prevent the United States from attempting to topple him in the manner of Iraq's Saddam Hussein. And the indomitable mystique of nuclear capability could in part substitute for the charisma that Kim Jong Il, unlike his late father, Kim Il Sung, is lacking.  CONTINUED

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A funny thing happened on the way to the classroom last week--what started as a basic lesson plan on rational acting duly turned into a discussion on kim Jong il--irrational from the average Newsweek reader's perspective but certainly not irrational in mine (after all, it takes a certain level of Kahunas to wear pajamas to work every day like the Chonger does.  But I digress).

What do I think?  I don't know for certain whether or not NK detonated a nuclear weapon; back at my last job I'd of had better... "news access"  than I do here.  But just based on past experience it would've had to have been a Kimchee load of TNT to register on a seismograph.  But what I told my students--or rather, asked--was, "does is matter?"  Lets say it was just a big hole full of high explosives:  it still got the world's attention, just as every other shake of his fist has drawn the ire of the world body.  But you know what?  No one's ever done anything about it before.  In fact, such actions in the past have resulted in concessions!  Food, oil, power--it's simply cheaper to buy him off than go to war.

But let's say he DID detonate even a basic nuclear device.  Well, admittedly that's bad news.  But as in the past, even with a potential smoking gun (warhead?), the UN couldn't look the facts in the face and come to a deal.  But why should they?  Does China want additional US influence on the peninsula?  Does the US want additional Chinese influence?  Or is anyone mentally ready for Japan to have a bigger influence?  It's hard to come to agreement when you're wondering what the other country is hiding behind it's back.

But it does seem Kim's latest bombast--bluff or not--might mushroom cloud in his face!  Check this blurb out:

William Foreman, Associated Press: North Korea appeared to slip further into isolation on Monday, as China — under intense pressure to enforce new U.N. sanctions — inspected cargo trucks bound for its communist ally and stepped up construction of a border fence.  Japan — once a major trading partner with North Korea — said it was considering further sanctions, and Australia banned the North's ships from its ports.  The United States confirmed the underground explosion in North Korea last week was a nuclear blast, reporting that air samples gathered last week contained radioactive materials.  The Chinese inspections at a border crossing with the North came amid concerns that Beijing would ignore the new U.N. sanctions leveled against the reclusive communist country for its nuclear test. China is a major trader with North Korea and its support is key to the success of the new U.N. measures, which call for nations to check cargo leaving and arriving from North Korea.  CONTINUED 

Perhaps everyone will cooperate this time after all...

And whatever you do, DON'T CLICK THIS LINK!!!

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Posted at Outside the Beltway and Basil's Blog,

The Weekly Retort: 9-15 July

inI see my readership--at least as reflected by RSS readers--keeps churning, which I find disturbing.  Are there issues with the layout?  The content?  I'm always open to feedback to improve reader experience; in fact, most of my site design is based off of reader recommendations!  So please, of you have any questions, comments, praises, or thinly veiled threats please pass 'em along to me at thebigpigeon-at-yahoo-dot-com.

With that, it still was a lively week comment-wise.  As mentioned before, I've officially declared "The Gorgeous Trilogy" closed, since even I'm tired with the topic and want to move on.  In addition, barring an unusual geopolitical event I think you'll like the upcoming OPEN TOPIC OF THE WEEK.  Let me just say it's a topic you'd never expect if you've been a long time reader!

Finally, I won't be posting Friday through Sunday (well... I might be able to get a post in on Friday).  I've got my last house project to finish and I expect it to take many hours to finish and many years off my life.  In other words, not conducive to rational discourse.  What I might do to break up the weekend monotony is post some additional OPEN TOPIC links for you to gnaw on in my absence.  But I digress...

9 July:  Kim Jong Il on Candid Camera

Canuckistani writes:  "It's also really scary that these people subordinate themselves to the state so passionately because one day when Kim is gone, they will be unable to think for themselves. With such a lack of autonomous thought, they will have a hard time adapting to our competitive global world.  This will leave a vacuum that it will be interesting to see who moves in."

The Mad Pigeon:  I've pondered your scenario many a time; look how long it took to assimilate East Germany into the West (and some will argue they still haven't meshed).  Even if North and South unite peacefully it's going to be ugly economically.  And if they DON'T unite peacefully... well, let's not go there.

DFresh writes:  "...I'm the smartest, most crever, most physicawry fit / but, none of the women seem to give a sh*t / Maybe someday, they'wr awr notice me / And untiwr then, I'wr be ronery / Yeah, a rittle ronery / Poor rittle me..."

The Mad Pigeon:  See the cartoon to the left from The Economist! (Click it to enlarge)

10 July:  (MOGS) Better Late than Never

Canuckistani writes:  "I really just don't get it. Interacting with a computer game for hours just doesn't appeal to me. It doesn't have that human exchange I like.  I guess what concerns me most is how behaviour online might carry over into real life. It is a fantasy environment with no consequences for behaviour. I believe children at a young age who play for hours can be seriously affected. Since their brains aren't fully developed, I wonder how the wiring is affected by such constant exposure to the video games. I think it has a mutative effect that deadens the young to violence or agression that we see manifested in overall society. Although not completely to blame nor are these affects reflected in all young, it may be a contributing factor."

The Mad Pigeon:  For this very reason we limit the amount of TV and computer game time our kids get.  As mentioned a number of months ago, my kids don't read several grades ahead of other kids by watching Spongebob all day.

Chairman Tao adds:  "I see online gaming as just like any other hobby (like blogging).  So, if entered into in the right spirit then it's probably very rewarding. If taken too seriously it becomes way too obsessive and nerdy.  Personally it's not my cup of tea and therefore there are references in your post which have gone waaay over my head. But I agree with the general thrust of your argument.  Having said that, you seem overly defensive about the fact you enjoy the hobby - feeling the need to explain and repeat yourself a number of times.  Perhaps a bit of self doubt?

MOGS replies:  "People who lack the ability to distinguish reality and fantasy are not people we ought to embrace and hold up to the world and say "hey this is us." I think most folks into fantasy, into it for fun, whether it’s the SCA, or community theater, or D&D or video games probably do end up spending a hell of a lot less time and money that would otherwise go into a shrink’s pocketbook, but just because we got our stuff together, doesn’t mean we need to celebrate those who won't, and it’s time to stop allowing them to speak for the rest of us.  There's plenty of room for "weird", "eccentric" , but not for being a grade-A creep. The Japanese word (because geeks love all things Japanese) for the obsessive fan with stalkerish tendencies and a lot of pent up rage is "otaku" and it's NOT a term of endearment...They are outcasts at least partially because of their own actions, attitudes, and beliefs, i.e. the way they treat others, and engage with the world around them, and not only because society is so mean and cruel and philistine and too stupid to "appreciate their art.” Of course there is some degree of that. Kids and adults are cruel. But, when gamers adopted the "victimhood" mantle, when you build that tent, you invite in a lot of riffraff you otherwise wouldn't bother with. It's just that few have called a spade a spade, and it seems to me that only recently have "we" decided to stop hitching our wagons to lowlifes who have really been using us all along."

The Mad Pigeon:  Thankfully MOGS is a renaissance man:  in between bouts of Warcraft pwnage he writes speculative fiction, reads the classics, mixes tunes, plays bass guitar, hits the museums and galleries, crushes enemies of the state betwixt thumb and index finger on behalf of the Air Force.... you know, has a life.  He can put down the mouse and turn off the monitor--he's disciplined.  There's something to be said about making positive friendships online and enjoying it with moderation just like any other recreational interest, but it's another thing entirely when someone's trying to find all their life's fulfillment inside a computer screen.

11 July:  (MOGS) Bloody Shame, and SOTD #9

MOGS writes:  "I  know though...most people don't think Floyd existed before Dark Side of the Moon or The Wall.  I happen to like Meddle, the live LP from Ummagumma, and Piper as well.  Though "interstellar overdrive" is a little...much...for my tastes, "See Emily Play" and "Arnold Layne" are good Syd-era pieces."

The Mad Pigeon:  I wrote one of my finest undergrad papers while a radio station played, "Wish you were Here," in entirety, with no commercial interruptions--needless to say, I went out the next day and bought it, only learning later it was a Syd tribute album.  As an aside, I've always thought a triple-billed Pink Floyd, Yes, and Rush concert would be a mint show, especially if they all played older material.

14 July:  The Extinction of Mass Culture

MOGS writes:  "Also, might I recommend the book "The Rise of the Creative Class" - I don't know if I buy into the whole thesis, but it's useful for starting debate at least..."

The Mad Pigeon:  Excerpt from Amazon.com:  "[The author] explains the rise of a new social class that he labels the creative class. Members include scientists, engineers, architects, educators, writers, artists, and entertainers. He defines this class as those whose economic function is to create new ideas, new technology, and new creative content. In general this group shares common characteristics, such as creativity, individuality, diversity, and merit. The author estimates that this group has 38 million members, constitutes more than 30 percent of the U.S. workforce, and profoundly influences work and lifestyle issues. The purpose of this book is to examine how and why we value creativity more highly than ever and cultivate it more intensely. He concludes that it is time for the creative class to grow up--boomers and Xers, liberals and conservatives, urbanites and suburbanites--and evolve from an amorphous group of self-directed while high-achieving individuals into a responsible, more cohesive group interested in the common good."

I also noticed Mr. Florida has another text, Flight of the Creative Class

Violence Worker writes:  "The internet, for better or for worse, has walled off a great many people into those niches and I count myself as one. I haven't been a regular watcher of tv or movies, even before the interenet. Now, its's even less."

The Mad Pigeon:  I can't imagine how I'd find enough time in a day to pursue all my interests if I sat around watching sitcoms all night!

Chairman Tao writes:  "The real fear behind the "mass of niches" is the corrosive effect on corporate profits."

The Mad Pigeon:  Unfortunately, Madison Avenue always finds a way to farm for ad revenue, even in niche sites.  Hell, I'm no exception:  even I had to grudgingly "monetize" my site to help defer costs.  But I like to think I do it tastefully:  I dropped a blog from my blogroll because it became so covered in text ads I couldn't find the actual content anywhere.  But blogs, of course, aren't the only culprits--how about advertisers putting billboards in video games?  Even with niches, everything's just another billboard. 

By the way, check out one of the Chairman's recent posts.

15 July:  The Intrinsic Worth of a Janitor

Violence Worker writes:  "There is an assumption within the left-wing elite that military people, especially enlisted, are in the armed forces for one of two reasons. The first is that they are there avoiding some kind of criminal penalty. In other words, go in the Army or go to jail. Their second premise is that they are mostly poor kids (mostly minorities) that have no hope or future outside of the military. They aren't bright enough or have the money to go on to college.  Nothing could be further from the truth. You and I know different. When I went in in 1971, the army and the marines would take you without a high school diploma. Not any more. No service will take you without that diploma or GED in hand. Most senior NCO's have degrees, many have graduate degrees or are working on them. You can't be a senior NCO in the USAF anymore without a degree or seriously close. Officers are already college grads. Those that wish to go beyond Captain probably better have their masters or be seriously pursuing it.  I work with these folks and so do you. Yeah, you have the occasional twit. It's inevitable, but by and large, these kids are pretty high caliber. You don't have dumbies working on some of the most advanced weapons systems in the world and expect those systems to be mission ready with the safety and dependability that war demands."

The Mad Pigeon:  Concur.  Yes, I've seen my fair share of meat heads in the military, but most eventually get weeded out (highlight "most").  But most of the folks I've worked with have been bright men and women of all educational levels and backgrounds.  I've even seen the stereotype "kid leaves the projects and makes a name for himself in the Army,"  such as an artillery fast-burner who made Sergeant Major in 12 years.  I've seen folks who performed poorly in liberal academic setting bloom with a technical military education.  I've seen professionals with graduate degrees enlist in the military just to do something different and say they did something worthwhile (note I didn't say, "become an officer," I said, "enlist").  We're talking stock brokers giving up 6-figure salaries.  Even I enlisted with a degree, and don't regret my time--I think it made me a better officer.  All that said, I'll back up VW's statement that to really succeed in today's military, you've gotta have some smarts about you.

Canuckistani writes:  "I'm struggling these days with not having the image of success, i.e. a high paying job, vs. doing what interests me, i.e. there isn't a lot of money in it. I'm just at the point in my life where I don't see the importance of Things to justify myself in the eyes of others. I don't need a fancy vehicle, or even a vehicle at all as I prefer public transit. I don't need a house as I'm single, I don't need the latest gadget going nor do I want the stress that comes with a high paying job that would allow me to afford it all...you can't take any of the money or things with you when you croak so why not live a life where you can do what you enjoy even if you're not making a lot of money. I don't want the stress and I want to enjoy my time here. A part of me feels guilty, that I should be working harder, etc. But I'm no good to anyone when I'm under stress so I'd rather avoid it. I'll probably be working til I kick off, but at least it will be something I enjoy."

The Mad Pigeon:  Don't feel guilty, Canuck; I'd rather you see doing something mentally, physically, and spiritually rewarding than slave away for a dollar at the cost of quality of life.  Not wanting useless baubles is a positive step:  if you died in a horrible locust accident tomorrow, what would you want to be remembered for, owning a Lexus SUV or the impact made on a student? 

Personally, I don't want riches, just financial freedom; that is, being able to do what I want with the money I have, while remaining debt free.  Since my wants are fairly minimal, though, I think I'll be able to achieve my goal on a military retirement, with a hobby job on the side.  I do want fame, though... not for my wealth, but for my works.  I want to be remembered for something tangible--a book, this blog, a piece of metal art.  But as you were a teacher, if I do my job well here at the Academy I can leave a mark with my students, as well.

OPEN TOPIC OF THE WEEK:  THE LEVANT

Chairman Tao writes:  "As Amal says, it is a disaster for Lebanon. I presume that the UN will sit on the sidelines as normal and allow this illegal attack on a sovereign state.  Israel, like America, seems to work on the principle that "might is right" - and if there is a sniff of a terrorist in a building (or country) then it is their prerogative to blow the whole thing to smithereens.  On another note, I presume that the JPG is taken from a US newspaper?  What is it with the media and their childish graphical representations?  Here's a map of Lebanon and a nice big picture of a war plane to help you get the idea.  Oh - and because you are all dumb-asses - we'll add two more maps to give you a hint as to where in the world Lebanon is. I'm surprised that there isn't a third larger map, showing how far from the USA it all is."

The Mad Pigeon:  Heh... the picture is merely the result of the Mad Pigeon being in a hurry.  But since there are Americans who can't find their own state on a map your argument's still valid.

Violence Worker writes:  "Most of the world is calling for Israel to act with "restraint". What a crock.  If Mexican soldiers kidnapped an American soldier, the US would have every right to do what is necessary to get their soldier back. If Mexico then upped the odds by firing on us, we'd be in Mexico city by week's end...If we are to win the GWOT, America will need to understand the kill or be killed nature of our enemy. We all want peace. Israel wants peace. The entire western world wants peace, but as long as we have islamo-fascists lined up to kill us and they are willing to do so, we must kill them. It is the only thing they understand. It's the only option we have."

Amal replies:  "Destroying a whole country because of the actions of a few is wrong too. What people in the West don't understand about Hizbullah is that it is more than the violence you see on TV. If we tried to forcibly demand that Hizbullah disarm, there would be a civil war unlike anything anyone has ever seen. Their followers are many and disarming them would cause a bloodbath. Our only hope is to try to integrate them though talks. That is not a good solution but the only solution"

The Mad Pigeon:  I'm mad at every side. In the case of Israel, I can conceptually understand that because of her lack of territorial depth she must make up for it with forward projection--that is, take the fight to the enemy before it gets too far in Israel's back yard.  But Israel's not going to make any friends with the moderates when they drop the hammer on an entire population because of the violence of the relatively few.  Does Israel think strangling Palestine will help?  Maybe in the short term, but it'll just keep breeding contempt in the long run.  And as much as I hate to say it, if Hamas is the legitimately elected majority of the Palestinian government, accept it.

As for the militant groups, get a friggin' life.  Israel is here to stay, whether you like it or not.  Do you want opportunity for yourself and future generations?  Then put down your arms, stop feeling sorry for your damn selves, and instead of wishing for the past with automatic weapons bring it about with your own works.  I can appreciate your anger and discontent with perceived western slights, but you will not solve your problems through arms.  How about opening up your narrow religious views and returning to the glory days of Islam?  The art, the philosophy, the sciences?  Otherwise the Western perception of Islam will always be based on the violent acts of the minority.  So spaketh the pigeon.

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