Saturday, July 23, 2011
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Amazement: Royal Technology and Canadian Identity
This is old news (currently it's all about Kate being anorexic and pregnant) but when the princely couple was on Canadian territory I couldn't stop ranting about how after coming up with the "How Canadian Are You, eh?" app in January, Citizenship and Immigration Canada launched their second digital tool the "Royal Tour” app for free on itunes. I too asked myself why the Ministry didn’t go straight for the “Tips on How to Reproduce in A Canoe” app, till I realised that the political answer to the Ministry’s first app's title was another of Canada’s idealised traditions: the Royal Family.
I know that the sense of belonging countries provide are not easily defined notions with clear inputs, straightforward mechanisms and direct results. And I have no qualms with the British monarchy particularly: if anything kudos to them for getting the Britons to perpetuate their feudal capitalistic family. Nor do I have qualms with the newly-wedded royal couple enjoying Canada; nor am I arguing that Canadians should deny the importance the British and the Crown played in shaping the country.
My qualms or rather amazement - I'm French originially so all of this royal stuff is amazing - stem more from the degree of pride Canadians and government took with this arrival and visit - as if Canada needed so desperately to be acknowledged by the royal gaze to feel valuable. And not only has the government taken pride in this, it's also done everything to subsidise the tools to encourage its people to believe that the level of this couple’s happiness in the country defines Canadians' worth.
If a star-savy US Weekly or another tabloid sponsored an app to stalk and discuss Kate’s outfits, this would have been another issue all together, but that an elected staff meant to focus on the delicate issue of heritage, collective memory and cultural identity, finds William’s white cowboy hat and the couple’s canoe trips worth a nationhood's attention - that seems ttally wrong or absolutely amazing.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
How the Financial Crisis is Rooted in Our Belief that Technology Offers a Freeing, Objective and Stable Utopia
This is a great BBC documentary on the philosophy behind the evolution of technology. It touches upon the rise, with Ayn Rand's 1950s writing, of an ideology encouraging self-interest, individual freedom and a decrease in State power that would bring about the happiest and most stable collective. Progressively technology was seen as a mean to achieve this. Through technology we all would have equal power and together create the most stable system.
The trusted objective object (technology) was seen as potentially erasing the risk, the unstablity and the helplessness of the human condition.
This leads into Sillicon Valley's new information technology, Clinton's new economy, the beginning of White House's lethargy, the Asian miracle, short term benefits, Goldman Sachs, the property bubble, nepotism, the attack on the World Trade Center, coorperate fraud and the incredible Alan Greenspan...
Monday, July 11, 2011
Facebook Death, Death by Facebook
About a month ago Facebook published a decrease of use in three of its first markets: 6 million Americans, 10 thousand Brits and 1.52 million Canadians commited Facebook Suicide during May 2011. Not much relative to the 700 million monthly Facebook users but still it launched a wave of 'Is this the death of Facebook?' debates - which were interesting since I still haven't understood how Facebook actually makes money.
Since then I've been receiving approximately 3 friend invites from people I do not know (and can’t complain about it to anyone) and if it weren't from a helpful hand I would still be logged on to fb's video chat; as a result I can add at least 2 reasons to why I hate Facebook.
But here's a great list of ten good reasons to:
1. babies
2. here is a picture of what i just ate
3. my mom is on facebook too
4. suggesting i 'like' something that benefits you
5. old cool friends have gone insane
6. getting gifts that are cartoon cows from moo-land
7. tagged in pictures where you look terrible
8. friend suggestions
9. default privacy settings
10. ......
Since then I've been receiving approximately 3 friend invites from people I do not know (and can’t complain about it to anyone) and if it weren't from a helpful hand I would still be logged on to fb's video chat; as a result I can add at least 2 reasons to why I hate Facebook.
But here's a great list of ten good reasons to:
1. babies
2. here is a picture of what i just ate
3. my mom is on facebook too
4. suggesting i 'like' something that benefits you
5. old cool friends have gone insane
6. getting gifts that are cartoon cows from moo-land
7. tagged in pictures where you look terrible
8. friend suggestions
9. default privacy settings
10. ......
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Monday, July 4, 2011
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