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And what happens to people as they grow up? All you have to do is observe children of about 6 or 7 and see how they conduct their lives. We should learn from them, rather than them learning from us grownups. They might ask awkward questions like “why is that person black, white, or where is God I can’t see him” but essentially they treat everybody regardless of creed, culture, religion, shape, size, colour the same. Their criteria normally is I like that guy/girl so I’ll respond to him/her or I don’t like him/her so I will keep away. End of story!

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I’m afraid both the christian and muslim extremists are just trying their damnest to increase the baggage that they want people carry. I further think that one day normal people will rebel against those twits and will be chased to the ends of the earth to rid the world of their awful pressure.

Mahmood’s Blog :: The new Al-Qaeda

Mahmood raises some good point’s in this blog entry. I don’t agree the yahoos he references are the American Al-Qaeda, the Taliban is better analogy. That makes them no less scary. The primary differentiator is they have yet to take violent action.

Regrettably, the US has more than it’s fair share of religious extremists who would love to dictate the way all Americans should live by defining what is moral and what is not. The most glaring example is the Klu Klux Klan, more familiar as the KKK. They would be the American equivalent of the Al-Qaeda.

Most folks know the KKK as old school racists best known for frequent lynchings of blacks in the old South. What most folks do not realize is that they have their roots in extremist Christian sects and, African Americans, while their primary target, were not their only target. The KKK also persecuted Jews, Catholics and anyone who was not a White Baptist.

So, religious extremism in any form is not only stupid and counter-productive, it is generally just the one head of a very dangerous hydra. I used to think it was best to ignore these jokers. I am not so sure any longer.

What is BookCrossing, you ask? It’s a global book club that crosses time and space. It’s a reading group that knows no geographical boundaries. Do you like free books? How about free book clubs? Well, the books our members leave in the wild are free… but it’s the act of freeing books that points to the heart of BookCrossing. Book trading has never been more exciting, more serendipitous, than with BookCrossing. Our goal, simply, is to make the whole world a library. BookCrossing is a book exchange of infinite proportion, the first and only of its kind.

BookCrossing - FREE YOUR BOOKS!

Here is an interesting idea. As a certifiable book junkie, an idea like this could save me some serious cheddar by both reducing the number of books I purchase and leveraging the knowldege/opinions of a much broader community of readers.

In contrast to Mahmood’s bad TV commercials, here is a powerful example of intelligent advertising. Jerry, a fellow videophile, sent me this commercial which was banned in Canada for being too graphic. Now, I like the avante garde commercial as much as the next person, particularly when they call out the cognitive dissonace that is America’s love/hate relationship with sex. Thinking I was getting a little tongue-in-cheek dig at American sensibilities, I fired up Windows Media Player.

No joking here. Instead, we get a very powerful statement about domestic violence with high production value. Be forewarned, the piece uses graphic language and violence to make a very clear point without being gory or exploitative. Normally, I would say "Enjoy!" But, you won’t.

Peace.

I’ve railed against demeaning adverts and promised to start uploading some that I find bad, offensive or downright unimaginative. All of these will have a common theme: that the Gulf Arabs are "stupid" and as such should either to talked at or down to from the creaters of these adverts.

Mahmood’s Den :: Bad Television Commercials

Mahmood is a fellow Xaraya developer and all around pleasant guy. So, when he takes issue with something, I tend to listen. I looked each of the six ads in question. I see where he is coming from with the general inanity; particularly in the pudding, KFC and LG commercials.

That said, I am not so sure I understand the cultural context that is offensive. I am no expert in the culture of the region and I speak no Arabic, so I take Mahmood’s word that they are culturally offensive. That said, I think MOST advertising (in any language or region) tends to be dumbed-down tripe that appeals to the lowest common denominator. Regretably, racial, ethnic and intellectual stereotypes are often used to evoke a feeling about the product or, more specifically a feeling about the viewer that will compel them to buy.

Most advertising appeals to our innate competitive nature. Want to be superior to you neighbor (whether he is across the street or across the Persian Gulf)? Then, buy our product! Unfortunately, these ads work because people respond to them and products sell.

Bottom Line: Stupid, insensitive ads will be with us until people stop buying the products they sell.

Peace.

Weblogs are often-updated sites that point to articles elsewhere on the web, often with comments, and to on-site articles. A weblog is kind of a continual tour, with a human guide who you get to know. There are many guides to choose from, each develops an audience, and there’s also comraderie and politics between the people who run weblogs, they point to each other, in all kinds of structures, graphs, loops, etc.

Weblogs.Com News : The History of Weblogs

A couple of friends have visited this site and asked "What the heck is up with this journal/blog thing?" As in … "What is the point?" This is a good question. The quote above is taken from a brief historical article about weblogs, better known as Blogs, by Dave Winer; arguably the grandaddy of blogging. It provides some historic context. As for why I blog, I’ll paraphrase a quote by friend and web savant, Gregor Rothfuss.

Some blog to increase their web visibility via Googling. Others blog to make their voices heard on the web. Still others blog as a way to draw attention to themselves. In any case, make no mistake, you blog for yourself. If others read your words, comment on them, link to them or just take them to heart, that is a bonus. But, you blog for yourself.

In one form or another, I’ve been actively blogging for about 6 months now. I am sold. I wish I had started this earlier. Like table-less layouts through CSS, blogging is another web technology I’ve learned to love through Gregor’s subtle influence. I’ve really got to listen to him more and act sooner.
As a writer by trade and developer by chance, I find blogging a a very valuable tool/outlet. Even though most of my entries are short, quick hits … often commenting on something I’ve read in another blog … the practice of blogging almost daily helps keep my skills sharp and my intellect focused.

Blogging also provides me an independent forum in which to vent my spleen. If you do not like what I have to say, do not visit my site. I kind of like that. If you think I’ve made a salient point, you are always welcome to read on and, if so desired, quote me (with attribution please) and share my POV elsewhere.

Moreover, blogging is not going away anytime soon. In fact, some folks are betting that it will be big business in the not-so-distant future. Early adopter that I am, I like being out on the lip of the wave.

Peace.