tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1198629951037494295.post2478317186531298332..comments2023-11-22T03:32:31.513-05:00Comments on Mostly Harmless: More Star Wars Blogging--and BleggingThe Constructivisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07242149985581771922noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1198629951037494295.post-49384251469235970282007-01-24T18:27:00.000-05:002007-01-24T18:27:00.000-05:00I think people in Japan must be as disappointed in...I think people in Japan must be as disappointed in the last 3 "Star Wars" as Americans are, so they'd probably love it. <br /><br />For "Simpsons" clips, make sure to go to the YouTube <i>Simpsons</i> specialist named "Gorlap". He's always got the best quality <i>Simpsons</i> video as far as I can tell.<br /><br />"Gorlap" has a lot of subscribers for his YouTube clips, and he recently sent out a message saying someone was trying to steal his YouTube identity. Be sure you find the original "Gorlap".Oaktown Girlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00811331454878606058noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1198629951037494295.post-65419031394938096812007-01-24T17:31:00.000-05:002007-01-24T17:31:00.000-05:00A very fast thank you to the MH crew for brilliant...A very fast thank you to the MH crew for brilliant suggestions and comments--this is why you all are so much fun to play with. Do you think I'd lose all credibility with my audience if I showed about a minute from Oaktown Girl's <I>Simpsons</I> clip to help bring out the multiple ironies of the poster?The Constructivisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07242149985581771922noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1198629951037494295.post-24297848018374563932007-01-24T16:40:00.000-05:002007-01-24T16:40:00.000-05:00Hi, C. Thanks for inviting me to join you blog.
...Hi, C. Thanks for inviting me to join you blog. <br /><br />Equating Democrats with that ramshackle valorous crew of heroes from Star Wars is amusing in an ironic sort of way, I suppose. Who wouldn't like to believe that present circumstances have thrown together a disparate bunch of characters who, acting together, somehow manage to overturn the dire hegemony enforced by the likes of Darth Cheney? (We have to suppose he's the one behind the mask, don't we?) <br /><br />Hoping for Democrats (Democrats!) to take on that role, to act valorously, heroically, is like hoping they behave like Han Solo, whose protective cloak of seeming cynicism is gradually shed to reveal his incorrigible and natural goodness. Of course, by B movie conventions, Han Solo is (you'll excuse the expression) always already going to turn out to be the good guy. I've long since tempered my optimism about Democrats in this regard. Still, it's a fun idea.<br /><br />But I think it hints at something I'm sure you've already noticed: there's almost no place for the rest of the world in America's myth of itself. It's always all about America. Here in the poster the whole galaxyspanning Star Wars empire is equal to America, and those cast as valiantly resisting it are all Americans, too. <br /><br />So I think there's an opening for you to discuss how difficult it is for discourse in America about East Asia not to bend back toward the gravity well of its own self-regard, something your audience probably has plenty of experience with.peter ramushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10068538576177904899noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1198629951037494295.post-7177849485480996042007-01-24T07:11:00.000-05:002007-01-24T07:11:00.000-05:00Hmmmmm . . . This is a tough one. I suppose what ...Hmmmmm . . . This is a tough one. I suppose what you're looking for is something that's obvious to an American with no particular expertise in politics, but a certain amount of sophistication about culture and such things, and not obvious to a Japanese who might, however, be very knowledgeable about American foreign policy, etc. <br /><br />Provisionally, I think the image is fine. There's enough going on that you can go anywhere from it. <br /><br />People's intuitions about things start locally. If the nature of political parties is different in Japan than it is in America, then your Japanese audience may well be building their knowledge on mistaken hidden assumptions. What would they be and what are the consequences?<br /><br />And now I free associate. What's the significance of the fact that Clint "Dirty Harry" Eastwood has just made two movies about Iwo Jima, one from an American POV, and one from a Japanese POV (and based on Japanese texts)? This sort of thing seems almost unprecedented in film history.<br /><br />Do you know about Mayors for Peace? It's an international organization of mayors who want to eliminate nuclear weapons by 2020. It was started by the mayors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. What's this about city governments meddling in foreign policy? Would Democrats in power be more favorable to this sort of thing than Repubs? This organization has a website, which lists the cities that belong.<br /><br />And, on general principle, you ought to look at Eiko Ikegami, Bonds of Civility: Aesthetic Networks and the Political Origins of Japanese Culture. It's the most interesting book I read last year. Given your interests, etc. I figure this book would interest you. And it might even suggest a hook or two for your talk.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1198629951037494295.post-28950511138810304832007-01-23T19:57:00.000-05:002007-01-23T19:57:00.000-05:00Ah, YouTube didn't like the invisible space I adde...Ah, YouTube didn't like the invisible space I added to the end of your link when I copied it. Having erased it, I see we found the same one after all. A foreshadowing of a convergence on our opinions of golf?The Constructivisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07242149985581771922noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1198629951037494295.post-11416406861796605932007-01-23T19:47:00.000-05:002007-01-23T19:47:00.000-05:00YouTube didn't like your link, but this one is eve...YouTube didn't like your link, but this one is <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ioQwExS4hA">every department meeting you ever wanted to avoid in 3 minutes</a>! Same or different than yours, Oaktown Girl?The Constructivisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07242149985581771922noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1198629951037494295.post-12012411306781568572007-01-23T18:22:00.000-05:002007-01-23T18:22:00.000-05:00One of my favorite Simpsons bits of all time is th...One of my favorite <i>Simpsons</i> bits of all time is this <br /><i>Star Wars</i> parody:<br /><br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3YX4QhGakYOaktown Girlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00811331454878606058noreply@blogger.com