Saturday, October 18, 2008

Send me a link for a wake ?


On twitter @ 1.45pm (GMT) today, received an interesting tweet in my stream from one of the apparent stars of the Irish Blogosphere. Whether 'in jest' or in partial seriousness; he mentioned that he'd be offering the following advice to some multimedia students on Monday next:

" My message: TV is dead, newspapers are dead, quit your course."

Now perhaps not what you'd expect to hear if you were one of the aforementioned multimedia students, after all (at least when I lectured to multimedia students approx 10 years ago) the 'discipline' isn't specifically focused on either TV or Journalism, but that's exactly the thing about today's asynchronous web communication technologies - by design, they demand immediate responses, not disciplined, mediative, considered or meticulously planned replies, rebuttals or slow... grinding.. to... a..... halt, next day, ponderous yabber yabber, two weeks to script, six weeks to schedule - trying to catch up on what's already gone - old slow as a one legged donkey media - so whether joking or serious, in my view, in terms of his spontaneous twitter advice to students, the blogger could be correct.

However for me it becomes a little bit wider, College educations were once upon a time about, creating critical thinkers, producing independently minded individuals, equipped with specific life skills and knowledge (back in the days when the book was the only accepted repository of knowledge). However now it's all about bits and bytes and bits of stamped paper or specific skillset fits - ironic that the area of criticism flourishes on-line yet withers in the classroom. Just check out any of the active criticism in the guise of video responses/replies/comments available everywhere on the web, personally I don't think it is any longer acceptable to just say: (as it did several times yesterday in the ticket film reviews) "It might be worth crossing the road to see this film."

I mean ok, we may come to respect the 'informed' opinion's of individual critics but such a 'critical appraisal' of a film is just god damn lazy at least and space filling at best. I remember reading Anthony De Mello's awakening several years ago, and it's central tenant was very simple: Wake up, to what's actually around you. - I think web apps like twitter encourage that, encourage those of us connected by the web, to wake up and stay awake.

It also encourages each of us to, do a TED and 'spread ideas worth spreading,' the trouble for the blogger and I is, when it comes to twitter, we're preaching to the converted, the vast majority of those in the stream already recognize the stuff I'm waffling on about, but it's genuinely empowering - to someone like me, who grew with the evolving, 'electronic business equipment revolution' to see Bill gates 'A PC on every desk 'become 'A PC desk in every home' but by far the most exciting and independently liberating aspect of today's web culture is the potential and probability for 'active criticism' i.e. forget the crossing the road or passive opinion, the ability to make things, to build things, to 'create' in response to the work, and opinions, of others..... and all within a couple of hours.

my image above based on
FUNERAL © Higyou | Dreamstime.com

Thursday, October 16, 2008

Friday, October 10, 2008

Getting write away for the day - with the wonderful Carysfort press & IWC


I'm spending my occasional day away from my PCs tomorrow, off meeting some people in the flesh in Dublin. I'll be attending another of the excellent 'OUT TO LUNCH' series of readings in the Irish Writers Centre. John F Deane. poet, novelist, founder of poetry Ireland, general all round good guy and solid source of inspiration to many Irish Writers for a number of years, will be reading his latest work. John's site simply doesn't do justice to his vibrantly textured talent, he is a uniquely gifted wordsmith not a webmaster. Increasingly today IMHO writers should consider embracing the web, new media and all the new media tools available if they are to reach the widest audience possible. John's IWC event is open to the public but if you are around town and thinking of heading to Parnell street, then best call Ian first to ensure you can grab a seat.


Later in the evening I'll be in The AbbeyTheatre with my very good Friend Lillian Chambers and her colleagues from Carysfort press. The Carysfort Press will be launching some of their latest titles but will also be celebrating ten years of really terrific and unique support for Irish Theatre Writing - Dan Farrelly and Lillian are really to be commended on their wonderful contribution to Irish Cultural Life. Their collective foresight, generosity and commitment to Irish Theatrical heritage should be applauded and more appreciated - The event is 'invite only' and I'll update this blog with any developments etc over the weekend.

It's the moleskin and ink for days like this - I refuse to bring my laptop (having hauled it half way round the world altready) also I have just set up twitter txt with my phone so if any of the great and good of the Irish theaterazzi or media offer me a descent quote, I'll stick it on twitter straight away (-: or record it for later podcasting.

Friday, October 03, 2008

Gov. Palin and Sen. Biden Debate



I watched the Full Vice Presidential Debate with Gov. Palin and Sen. Biden on Youtube, all 92.5 torturous minutes of it, even though I’m not American and can’t influence anything got to do with the election. It's just that 'car crash watcher' mentality in me, fighting to get out.

I wonder what 'Matt' thinks now ? Probably - 'Hey she didn't even mention the dinosaurs."

I am compelled to share the planet with Americans. The vast majority of Americans I have personally met here and on both coasts of the USA are the salt of the earth, great people, superb professionals, intelligent individuals, good guys and gurls with their heart in the right place, filled with the ethos of the American dream, which they have successfully exported across the globe.

However ‘Reaganomics’, competitive greed, government ineptitude, a totally self interested, insular attitude, with only condescendingly occasional glances outside to see what can be grabbed, have soured that American dream and turned it into a Global nightmare, and now these two political puppets strive to be ‘as straight up as they can’ on TV & the web.


It was like watching a couple of middle class kids, argue in the schoolyard while trying to behave in front of parents.

A couple of things:

Drilling for oil in the ocean is not an option – when Americans pollute the ground, I’m forced to live with that, it’s their ground and they have to live with it, when they pollute the air, the Atlantic ocean actually goes someway towards absorbing that pollution and Sarah Palin wants to start messing about taking chances, drilling underwater, drilling for profits and more greed.

Her Ha ha, a team of mavericks and clean green natural gas !! was almost as funny as his grasp of ‘boz knee acks’. She is so artificially sweet n slick she’s transparently duplicitous, he’s so generous and steady and such a professional, making sure he adheres to best NPL practices, making sure that repetition, and focus and his best presentation techniques….. even though nobody apparently got his joke about never being the VP.

Tough to watch the warbling, difficult to digest the duplicity, hard to endure the sheer egotistical ignorance. It was actually dispiriting to watch of two professionally polished politician, dummy dueling, ultimately prompting nothing in this viewer only despair right now.

Thursday, October 02, 2008

Pratronise the paddy's like this for the Lisbon rerun ?


Our most famous, internationally famous advocate 'Bono' tells us, that in these times of credit crunchiness, we should all ensure that our Irish government adheres to it's development Aid pledges, we should make sure that a very tiny portion of our national tax is given to international worthy causes that, without doubt, deserve support. I will give outside that mechanism anyway - and still what Bono says appears to make sense. I will also gently recommend to friends that they do it also. The whole five friends idea in the above video is great isn't it.

That touch at the End with Mr. Dustin Hoffman (respect) seemingly ad libbing is very effective. In a subtle way it enforces the idea of "do as I do not as I say", which is kind of where the whole Bono ranting begins to fall down, I mean Bono tells everyone what everyone else should be doing, while also transferring the commercial operations and profit machine of his band U2 to the Netherlands- merely a very effective tax efficiency measure. Ensuring his company doesn't pay tax on profits here - but remember - make sure the government gives a portion of your tax to development aid as promised - hmmm quite disappointing and duplicitous there Bonio.

I kinda remember Bono, back in the eighties on the Late Late show that far off time when people under 55 used to watch RTE TV, telling Gaybo the difference between success in Ireland and success in America. The jist was something like this:

In America a walking man, looks and sees a mansion of a house on the top of a hill, complete with cars, designs, pool and the trappings of wealth, He says "Look at all that wealth and how successful that man has become, some day, if I work hard, pursue my dream, dedicate myself, I may make enough to have what that man has."

An Irish man passes in similar circumstances in Ireland and says "how did that gobshite manage to get all that, what stroke did he pull ?"

An illustration of 'classic Irish begrudery' or 'in-built cynicism from 800 years of oppression by forces of occupation' - or just Bono playing to the crowd, whatever about it, the story retold is now more like, look at that man preaching form afar, does he really, truly believe he has a higher spiritual understanding than those of us, happy with obscurity, modest incomes and quite conscience?

A couple of posts down this blog, I have a clip of Jim Corr, ranting on about international conspiracy theories and the need to vote no to the Lisbon referendum, despite, rather than because of, it most Irish people voted NO. Could a video campaign with well known Irish celebrities, advocating a yes vote, have worked ? Emm, I don't think so, it's a trust issue, we Irish just don't trust anyone who chooses to live on a hill, either metaphorically, physically or otherwise, we don't like condescensions of any type, after our failed love affair with the church, when someone does start preaching he just strikes us as a prat - and all he's doing is simply trying to Pratronise us.

Wednesday, October 01, 2008

A blank check (sic) for Irish Banks: Questions.


The good ole Irish taxpayer, in the form of our wise and creative government, decided we will be collectively going guarantor for six Irish Banks, something worth four hundred Billion euro.

Is that 400,000,000,000,000 Euro ?

Which would be approx 565, 627, 000,000,000 Dollars then.

Ahh ok …. Go ahead.

Hold on, wait, erm that’s way more than half what the USA package is, isn’t it ? Seems a tad disproportionate in terms of, what we’ve been assured is a ‘fundamentally sound system’ in a tiny country. ‘The banks’ assets outweigh their debts’ assures Irish Mary, based on what valuation ? their own 100% mortgage repayment percentiles ?

Yes Irish Mary from the international hub of high finance that is count-y Donegal, our beloved minister for enterprise, will be bringing her considerable intellectual weight to the debate, or to paraphrase her morning appearance at Leaders’ questions: ‘ I dunno, Lenihan is the money man, he’ll have plenty of excuses dreamt up by this afternoon to pawn you off’

So we're sort of ‘waiting for Gobshite’, on the main stage, which might mean seeing sideline senators in the Seanad again getting up, repeating media analyst’s comments and passing them off as original representative comments yet again today ? my own ‘borrowed’ favorite being; ‘privatization of profits and nationalization of debt – with sufficient outrage as to make it seem original, what a performance Ivana, how much are you paid to recycle again?

I need someone to explain to me why we are protecting and preserving what appears to me like a flawed greed system, why are we guaranteeing the debts as well as the deposits of banks that dug their own position ? Do they really expect the Irish public to take all this seriously, it might help the banks, its doing nothing for politics or politicians.

Is ‘in labour Eammo’, finally getting a context for his pained oratory delivery, “ I want to know if the foreigners here are now putting their money in our six banks ? Am I guaranteeing them too Mary ? – erm… Brian the brain will be along shortly Mr labour, he’ll answer that question too, did you know his Dad was a great Irish Politician, who CharlieH tried to financially de-liver ? BTW, thanks for alerting them udders on national TV.

“Can I be part of a committee to oversee the blankness of the cheque ?” asked Enda the road of 'Fine slight breeze', “ Ahh go on will ya, do you not know I was nearly tee-shuck one time ?, I could’ve been just as irresponsible as the rest of you, but I have charisma and it’s not a two litre Toyota, guffaw guffaw, mammy, where's mammy ?”

So who will oversee this rushed, panicked, pieced together, slapped up, get our mates outta trouble bit of bed feathering legislation, what’s the exact parameters, can we really do what we want with a gazillion guarantee ? I mean budgets are designed to be over spent aren’t they, surely this is the same thing, a gazillion, a squillion, a half a trillion, 400 billion, what diffierence do the numbers make to ordinary people on under 30k a year ? Let's get this through -- and quick !!

" Hoi’ liddle Irish Paddypeople, don’t forgets, even though you don’t like the lisbonians, you sthill in Europe, talking to da commishon is what you will be doing, don’t be sinking you can do your own dance at our EU funding party liddle paddypeople, you gotta talk to us too you know" – so sayeth EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes, whom I'm sure will need to consult with our very own EU Charlie on big matters.

So maybe the EU will police this whole thing, I certainly hope so, despite their own internal questions about checks and balances and wider trust issues, I think the old better the devil you know attitude is as redundant as the idea that politicians always put 'the peoples' interest first.