Blood Buzz
- So I'm thinking of getting rid of my sideburns pretty soon. I've gotten a lot of compliments about them (in a previous entry, I mention how a random kid at college said they reminded her of Wolverine), but there are a number of reasons why. Mainly I've had them for three years now, so they've overstayed their welcome. Plus, I don't really take good care of them -- if I want to look good with them, I have to take care of them every daily, get haircuts every four weeks, and generally not have them look like muttonchops from the 1800s like they do now. And if I want to be more mature and an Independent Adult™, it wouldn't hurt to start looking like I am. :P
- Heard that Walter Cronkite died this evening. Out of all the famous deaths this past month, his affected me the most, not because I was familiar with anything he did directly (I was born long after he stopped doing the nightly news on CBS), but because of what it represents. People like him and Edward R. Murrow represented the best of what journalism could be, represented a sort of integrity you don't really get to see today. Speaking in measured tones, putting all personal biases aside, no sensationalizing, no useless "human interest" stories, just the news, told to inform and educate rather than obfuscate. There's no way someone like him could survive today. There are many more news outlets to choose from than ABC, CBS, and NBC, especially "24-hour news channels" that try to pad their schedules with useless material because they spend too much time focusing on American news and not news outside the U.S. unless it's ~dramatic~ or directly relates with the lives of "everyday Americans." And when they found out they could get more money -- the bottom line of any business -- by airing screaming matches and commentary that gives people want they want to hear and not what they need to hear, integrity and accuracy fell by the wayside. And the Internet, in some ways, has made things worse: there are so many blogs out there, airing the opinions and biases of anyone (even people who know absolutely nothing about how the world works), that it only makes people go for the same select few sources, which don't expand their horizons and therefor confirm their own biases and opinions. It's also hard to tell which "independent" journalists and sources outside the mainstream have integrity and which have their own agendas, and someone who does have integrity won't be able to compete with everyone else and get the recognition they deserve. I still have hope that things will get better -- this could very well be "growing pains" before we learn how to use these relatively new technologies the right way -- but people need to know what's wrong with the media today and figure out ways to fix it before things do get better. People like Rachel Maddow are great, but they will never compare to Walter Cronkite, and for that he'll be missed.
- Speaking of the news, here's an interesting article about seeing the mainstream media and news blogs as part of an "ecosystem" rather than a dichotomy. Pretty interesting stuff, with equally interesting implications.
- Here are the latest news from Iran: July 17th (most recent); July 16th; July 15th. It's great to see millions of people still protesting, but considering that this revolution might take years, I won't follow it very closely unless something really big breaks. :P
Leave me a comment and I will give you a letter. Then, write 10 things that you like starting with that letter. Post the list in your journal. Give out letters to your commenters in return.
I got the letter D.
- Dirty Three
- Depressing movies
- Death Note
- Decepticons
- Delgados
- Dolci (sweets, especially chocolate XD)
- Digital cameras
- Depeche Mode
- Drake, Nick
- Dreams