Let's Do It (Let's Fall In Love)
Written by: Cole Porter
With Shirley MacLaine
Arranged By: Nelson Riddle
From the Show: Paris (1928)
Label: Capitol Records
Recorded: September 22, 1959
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Why even in France the best upper sets do it, Lithuanians and Letts do it
Let's do it, let's fall in love
In old Japan, all the Japs do it, up in Lapland little Laps do it
Let's do it, let's fall in love
The Deutch in old Amsterdam do it, not to mention the Fins
Folks in Siam do it - think of Siamese twins
In shallow shoals English souls do it, goldfish in the privacy of bowls do it
Let's do it, let's fall in love
The chimpanzees in the zoos do it, some courageous kangaroos do it
Let's do it, let's fall in love
I'm sure giraffes on the sly do it, even eagles as they fly do it
Let's do it, let's fall in love
Electric eels I might add do it, though it shocks `em I know
Why ask if shad do it - garcon de "shad roe"
The world admits bears in pits do it, even Pekingeses at the Ritz do it
Let's do it, let's fall in love
The royal set sans regret did it, and they considered it fun
Marie Antoinette did it - with or without Napoleon
Parliament pleasure bent did it, mam'selles every time they're short of rent did it
Let's do it, let's fall in love
Never think today's songs are more sexed up than songs written 80yrs ago.
But I like this Cole Porter song, even though it's so politically incorrect. At least it's fun and cheeky, and it makes me laugh. Songs nowadays never make anyone laugh. I particularly like the electric eels line.
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Sunday, February 25, 2007
jay - tui hou
Anyone wants to know why I love making fun of Jay? Check out his 'hooligan' behaviour in this MV. Hilarious stuff.
Friday, February 23, 2007
First paper over!
I used to like exams because they meant relatively little work (compared to writing essays).
Now I hate exams because it's too little work and too much of a disaster. (I know it's personal choice. Let me whine.)
I read 3 articles from 3 chapters about 3 different countries.
I had 10 chapters in this course. Each chapter consists of about 7 compulsory readings, including books. This means that if I had studied the whole module, I'd have 70 readings, out of which I read 3.
Of course no one studies the whole module for exams. Let's do it this way:
I have to answer 2 questions during the exam. I know that each question will mean I need to refer to 2 countries. That makes a minimum of 2 countries (because I can repeat the countries for the 2 questions) and a maximum of 4 countries.
Of the 10 chapters I have to study, 6 of them are country studies. This means that 4 of them are theoretical chapters.
I know that each question will make reference to at least one theoretical concept in any one of these 4 theoretical chapters.
Assuming I'm an average risk-taker who wants to make sure she can do at least 2 questions, I'd spot about 3 countries and half the theory chapters. That makes 5x7 = 35 readings.
I read 3 out of 35 readings. I'm taking about 11 times more risk than the average risk-taker.
This is what happened during the exam:
I referred to 4 countries altogether, dregging my memory for a handful of facts (relevant or not, I don't know) about each. Out of these 4 countries, I didn't study 1 of them at all. I didn't study 2 countries in relation to the question I was answering. Therefore, really, I could only analyse one country properly - and then, given I only read 1 article about that country, I don't think 'properly' is the appropriate term - which is equal to slightly less than half a question, which is equal to slightly less than 12.5% of my grade.
I didn't know any theory.
(oh shit, I just remembered I forgot to define my terms.)
Too little work done for exams. I hate exams. My stress threshold is too high until too late. At least the essays make me stay up all night.
I apologise to all who had to bear with my whining on MSN.
...................................................................
In other news, LSB has become extraordinarily corny, possibly because of thesis fever. (those of you who know how corny he usually is should be properly shocked now.)
Now I hate exams because it's too little work and too much of a disaster. (I know it's personal choice. Let me whine.)
I read 3 articles from 3 chapters about 3 different countries.
I had 10 chapters in this course. Each chapter consists of about 7 compulsory readings, including books. This means that if I had studied the whole module, I'd have 70 readings, out of which I read 3.
Of course no one studies the whole module for exams. Let's do it this way:
I have to answer 2 questions during the exam. I know that each question will mean I need to refer to 2 countries. That makes a minimum of 2 countries (because I can repeat the countries for the 2 questions) and a maximum of 4 countries.
Of the 10 chapters I have to study, 6 of them are country studies. This means that 4 of them are theoretical chapters.
I know that each question will make reference to at least one theoretical concept in any one of these 4 theoretical chapters.
Assuming I'm an average risk-taker who wants to make sure she can do at least 2 questions, I'd spot about 3 countries and half the theory chapters. That makes 5x7 = 35 readings.
I read 3 out of 35 readings. I'm taking about 11 times more risk than the average risk-taker.
This is what happened during the exam:
I referred to 4 countries altogether, dregging my memory for a handful of facts (relevant or not, I don't know) about each. Out of these 4 countries, I didn't study 1 of them at all. I didn't study 2 countries in relation to the question I was answering. Therefore, really, I could only analyse one country properly - and then, given I only read 1 article about that country, I don't think 'properly' is the appropriate term - which is equal to slightly less than half a question, which is equal to slightly less than 12.5% of my grade.
I didn't know any theory.
(oh shit, I just remembered I forgot to define my terms.)
Too little work done for exams. I hate exams. My stress threshold is too high until too late. At least the essays make me stay up all night.
I apologise to all who had to bear with my whining on MSN.
...................................................................
In other news, LSB has become extraordinarily corny, possibly because of thesis fever. (those of you who know how corny he usually is should be properly shocked now.)
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Cargo Cults
Cargo Cults
Must... Not... Laugh... Must... Respect... Differences... Must... Respect... Their... Culture...
You have no idea how difficult this is for me. This world is such a strange place.
BUT (and this is a very significant 'but') this BBC write-up smacks of The Gods Must Be Crazy in that the humour glosses over very serious issues - marginalisation, poverty, discrimination. The article also plays up stereotypes of 'ignorant natives' who are superstitious, technologically incompetent and therefore very very different from the 'rational white man'. Look at how the one personality given much coverage, Yali, is portrayed as a shrewd, opportunistic (but still ignorant and backward and therefore 'ridicule-worthy') petty cult leader (petty in the sense that he falls into the 'authoritarian leader of small region who does not pose a real threat and therefore can be treated with amused tolerance' category).
And the article co-opts the reader into this 'white man cult' too. Note how they assume that readers have a general understanding of what "a book which showed a succession from monkeys into humans" is about, and that readers know that Rome is not in Australia. Of course these assumptions are probably not too far off (we should never take things for granted though), but the way everything is phrased just makes the article into an 'insider joke', which quite naturally makes these islanders ridiculous outsiders to be laughed at.
So I should stop laughing. Now!
Belief in cargo reflects long-standing beliefs in Melanesian cultures. The exchange of goods and objects of wealth are a fundamental way in which communities and social relationships are maintained. Through generous giving, individuals gain power. The 'big man' is the one who has the most to give, who is followed by his community and may even become a local prophet. This focus on wealth was linked to a belief that the ancestors continue to have influence over a community long after their death. Melanesians believe that ancestors speak to them in dreams, providing instructions for 'proper living' and foresight of the future. They further believe that their ancestors will one day come back to life, bearing unimaginable wealth and secure the long-term future of their community.
...
They [European missionaries] found the natives highly resistant, however; they were not content with hymns and stories, and wanted to know why the white men were hiding the secret of cargo from them. The missionaries were being stingy big men, and stinginess was number one on the list of bad qualities for a big man to have.
...
Tribal councils were held, and the people of Madang decided that the cargo was not created by the Europeans, who were not actually ancestors. The actual ancestors made cargo far away, but the Europeans kept it from getting to the natives. Maybe if they learned the Europeans' rituals they could learn the secrets of cargo and convince their ancestors to send cargo to them instead. Thus, without any warning that the missionaries could understand, the natives began converting to Christianity in droves. Under the guidance of their tribal leaders, they willingly adapted Christian behaviour and clothing, and became models of Christian obedience.
...
While in Brisbane, Yali made another startling discovery: the Australians kept hundreds of animals in the Brisbane Zoo, which they carefully fed and tended. He also noticed the large number of dogs and cats kept as pets in homes. It wasn't until a conference in Port Moresby5 that he was able to solve this puzzling behaviour. The solution came when he witnessed a book which showed a succession from monkeys into humans. It became clear the depth to which the missionaries had lied: they had claimed Adam and Eve were men's ancestors when they clearly believed that their ancestors were animals who needed to be treated with respect. It was obvious the missionaries had made up such lies in order to hide this truth from the New Guineans, who had held such beliefs before their arrival. Upon returning home, Yali was convinced by the prophet Gurek that the Queensland Museum was actually Rome, that the gods had been taken captive there, and that in order to lure them back the natives had to stop their foolish acceptance of the lies of Christianity.
Must... Not... Laugh... Must... Respect... Differences... Must... Respect... Their... Culture...
You have no idea how difficult this is for me. This world is such a strange place.
BUT (and this is a very significant 'but') this BBC write-up smacks of The Gods Must Be Crazy in that the humour glosses over very serious issues - marginalisation, poverty, discrimination. The article also plays up stereotypes of 'ignorant natives' who are superstitious, technologically incompetent and therefore very very different from the 'rational white man'. Look at how the one personality given much coverage, Yali, is portrayed as a shrewd, opportunistic (but still ignorant and backward and therefore 'ridicule-worthy') petty cult leader (petty in the sense that he falls into the 'authoritarian leader of small region who does not pose a real threat and therefore can be treated with amused tolerance' category).
And the article co-opts the reader into this 'white man cult' too. Note how they assume that readers have a general understanding of what "a book which showed a succession from monkeys into humans" is about, and that readers know that Rome is not in Australia. Of course these assumptions are probably not too far off (we should never take things for granted though), but the way everything is phrased just makes the article into an 'insider joke', which quite naturally makes these islanders ridiculous outsiders to be laughed at.
So I should stop laughing. Now!
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Flowers for Valentine's
After 2.5 years of begging and whining and complaining, LSB finally grudgingly presented me with a pink rose. (When I got home I took about 70 pictures of the rose. I have been that deprived.)
Walking home about midnight on Valentine's, I pluck a few bruised petals off the rose, and think about love, romance and all things silly.
Halfway home, I pass by a Chinese funeral, with the unmistakeable white, lighted tent and people seated around tables chatting and laughing. The sharp sweet scent of chrysanthemum and jasmine is now overpowering, and all too familiar. There is a forlorn line of yellow and white flower wreaths outside the tent. It feels as if they're Valentine's bouquets that have arrived too late.
"Apparently the mingled thread in the web of their life was so curiously twisted together that there could be no joy without a sorrow coming close upon it."
- George Eliot, The Mill on the Floss
I walk past the tent. The pretty pink petals, now warm and crushed in the palm of my hand, still smell soft and delicate and reassuring.
..................................................................................................
I didn't have a very good tutorial on Friday, perhaps because I was feeling lethargic and bored. Perhaps I was too harsh in my feedback to the group presenting because after the tutorial, they sent a representative to explain that they really had put in a lot of work, and they faced time constraints during the presentation, so would I please take that into account.
Argh.
It's always been a fault of mine, even when I was working in the Centre. It's all too easy for me (especially when I'm not thinking properly) to ramble on, picking out all the faults in the essay/presentation. And then I look up, and I see the wee lil' lambs on the verge of tears, convinced that they're going to fail their assignment. So much for EQ.
..................................................................................................
In other news, Kenneth Rufo from Ghost in the Wire, one of my favourite blogs, has been here! *jumps around excitedly* Hi there hi there! *waves* Many many many thanks for the songs! Very bluesy indeed! And I'm still insecure about posting any part of my dissertation anywhere... *cries* It just seems so very half-baked...
And did I mention I love his blog? Even though I don't understand what he's saying half the time?
(Those of you who were there when I was squealing and screaming over getting a comment from "Kenneth Rufo! From Ghost in the Wire! Can you believe it!?", you're not supposed to tell anyone.)
I couldn't seem to post a comment on his blog, so I hope he gets to see this! *jumps around excitedly some more*
..................................................................................................
And Happy Lunar New Year to all! *muackzes to all my darlings*
Walking home about midnight on Valentine's, I pluck a few bruised petals off the rose, and think about love, romance and all things silly.
Halfway home, I pass by a Chinese funeral, with the unmistakeable white, lighted tent and people seated around tables chatting and laughing. The sharp sweet scent of chrysanthemum and jasmine is now overpowering, and all too familiar. There is a forlorn line of yellow and white flower wreaths outside the tent. It feels as if they're Valentine's bouquets that have arrived too late.
"Apparently the mingled thread in the web of their life was so curiously twisted together that there could be no joy without a sorrow coming close upon it."
- George Eliot, The Mill on the Floss
I walk past the tent. The pretty pink petals, now warm and crushed in the palm of my hand, still smell soft and delicate and reassuring.
..................................................................................................
I didn't have a very good tutorial on Friday, perhaps because I was feeling lethargic and bored. Perhaps I was too harsh in my feedback to the group presenting because after the tutorial, they sent a representative to explain that they really had put in a lot of work, and they faced time constraints during the presentation, so would I please take that into account.
Argh.
It's always been a fault of mine, even when I was working in the Centre. It's all too easy for me (especially when I'm not thinking properly) to ramble on, picking out all the faults in the essay/presentation. And then I look up, and I see the wee lil' lambs on the verge of tears, convinced that they're going to fail their assignment. So much for EQ.
..................................................................................................
In other news, Kenneth Rufo from Ghost in the Wire, one of my favourite blogs, has been here! *jumps around excitedly* Hi there hi there! *waves* Many many many thanks for the songs! Very bluesy indeed! And I'm still insecure about posting any part of my dissertation anywhere... *cries* It just seems so very half-baked...
And did I mention I love his blog? Even though I don't understand what he's saying half the time?
(Those of you who were there when I was squealing and screaming over getting a comment from "Kenneth Rufo! From Ghost in the Wire! Can you believe it!?", you're not supposed to tell anyone.)
I couldn't seem to post a comment on his blog, so I hope he gets to see this! *jumps around excitedly some more*
..................................................................................................
And Happy Lunar New Year to all! *muackzes to all my darlings*
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Mood Indigo
I just realised my last 3 post titles ended with 'woes'. Amazing how cheery my life can be, oui? *makes slow and slippery descent into melodrama*
I'm now the proud owner of Robert Jervis' The Logic of Images in International Relations for SGD39.00 just because I took a detour in school today to avoid the rain. Which, all things considered, is a very good buy. But I've read it (very carefully) before, and it's probably going to sit untouched on my shelf till the end of time anyway. Along with every other book I've bought on impulse. (I also bought a book on the politics of culture and theatre in Singapore) I'm way too prone to big impulsive purchases these days.
I bought Corrine Bailey Rae's CD, which is really quite good.
I also bought (and watched!) Gershwin's Porgy and Bess! I watched it in Coffee Bean, where I was supposed to do some substantial work, but oh well. It's a really sad smooshy opera, and watching it for the first time spoilt my day (or what was left of my day at the end of the 3hrs). Sad movies do that to me.
AND I bought Maria Callas' Hamburg concerts of 1959 and 1962! (big impulsive purchases anyone?) And being the philistine that I am, what really struck me was how much a difference make-up makes. Her make-up for the 1959 concert was HORRIBLE. She looked about 70. In contrast, she looked gorgeous in 1962. And much younger.
I had violin lesson this (or rather, yesterday) morning, and my exam piece was stuck in my head the whole day. How irritating is that. Especially since I still can't quite grasp the freaking music. It's like a little itch that won't stop itching, and won't allow itself to be scratched... *trails off into incoherence*
I'm in a bluesy mood now, but I don't have enough music for this mood. Shoots.
Hmmm. I need after-midnight music. More specifically, I need music for the closing minutes at the bar, when cigarettes and empty glasses are being cleared, and chairs are being put up, and the whole place suddenly smells of detergent.
I can't believe I don't have Sinatra's "One for my baby". And I can't believe I don't have any Billie Holiday. There is a big empty hole in my life that is waiting to be filled. My life is not complete!
Please don't let me forget how broke I am.
I'm now the proud owner of Robert Jervis' The Logic of Images in International Relations for SGD39.00 just because I took a detour in school today to avoid the rain. Which, all things considered, is a very good buy. But I've read it (very carefully) before, and it's probably going to sit untouched on my shelf till the end of time anyway. Along with every other book I've bought on impulse. (I also bought a book on the politics of culture and theatre in Singapore) I'm way too prone to big impulsive purchases these days.
I bought Corrine Bailey Rae's CD, which is really quite good.
I also bought (and watched!) Gershwin's Porgy and Bess! I watched it in Coffee Bean, where I was supposed to do some substantial work, but oh well. It's a really sad smooshy opera, and watching it for the first time spoilt my day (or what was left of my day at the end of the 3hrs). Sad movies do that to me.
AND I bought Maria Callas' Hamburg concerts of 1959 and 1962! (big impulsive purchases anyone?) And being the philistine that I am, what really struck me was how much a difference make-up makes. Her make-up for the 1959 concert was HORRIBLE. She looked about 70. In contrast, she looked gorgeous in 1962. And much younger.
I had violin lesson this (or rather, yesterday) morning, and my exam piece was stuck in my head the whole day. How irritating is that. Especially since I still can't quite grasp the freaking music. It's like a little itch that won't stop itching, and won't allow itself to be scratched... *trails off into incoherence*
I'm in a bluesy mood now, but I don't have enough music for this mood. Shoots.
Hmmm. I need after-midnight music. More specifically, I need music for the closing minutes at the bar, when cigarettes and empty glasses are being cleared, and chairs are being put up, and the whole place suddenly smells of detergent.
I can't believe I don't have Sinatra's "One for my baby". And I can't believe I don't have any Billie Holiday. There is a big empty hole in my life that is waiting to be filled. My life is not complete!
Please don't let me forget how broke I am.
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Humour woes
JR: (blahs)... in the Q&A session feel free to express yourself... but speak, don't sing.
*deathly silence*
JR: Never mind....
*a few nervous chuckles in the background*
Is it me? Tell me it's not just me.
...
I was watching some crappy movie on AXN (AXN's full of crappy stuff. That's why I watch it.) where they had Russians running around in some snowy place (Siberia?) trying to catch some American spies.
Nothing new, except a comment made by one of the 'Russians', presumably in Russian.
The subtitles (in old-movie white font) read: "Stalin's butt, he tricked us!"
Stalin's butt. Stalin's butt, he tricked us. Hahaha that's the funniest thing I've heard in a long long time. This time it's not just me right?
*deathly silence*
JR: Never mind....
*a few nervous chuckles in the background*
Is it me? Tell me it's not just me.
...
I was watching some crappy movie on AXN (AXN's full of crappy stuff. That's why I watch it.) where they had Russians running around in some snowy place (Siberia?) trying to catch some American spies.
Nothing new, except a comment made by one of the 'Russians', presumably in Russian.
The subtitles (in old-movie white font) read: "Stalin's butt, he tricked us!"
Stalin's butt. Stalin's butt, he tricked us. Hahaha that's the funniest thing I've heard in a long long time. This time it's not just me right?
Monday, February 05, 2007
Dissertation woes
A very uncharacteristic email that I sent off a few minutes ago:
That just about says it all.
Dear Prof,
I've just submitted my paper on ASEAN and international society, and I'm afraid it's not very pretty. I'm truly apologetic, largely because the preceding sentence is a gross understatement. Unfortunately, the entire dissertation project has also degenerated into similar ugliness. I am trying very hard to give some structure to my ideas, but I can't seem to get past the theoretical chapter. Would you be able to make it for consultation this Wed or Fri afternoon? Thank you.
Regards,
Elaine
That just about says it all.
Sunday, February 04, 2007
Essay woes
I just spent 7 hrs playing a repetitive, brainless online game. 7hrs! This from a person who deleted minesweeper from her computer because she just used to sit there and play for hours without realizing. So that's not too surprising. I hate online games.
Oh my precious 7 hrs... *groan* I really really really needed those 7hrs for my essay. I'm going to die, and there's no essay god I can pray to, so I'm definitely going to essay hell... *buries face in hands* Why? Why do I do this to myself?
And to my dearest LSB, in response to the question you asked over MSN (I didn't answer because I was busy playing my all important game. I didn't even eat dinner today!), we'll probably have to spend it doing work... *poor poor us*
Oh my precious 7 hrs... *groan* I really really really needed those 7hrs for my essay. I'm going to die, and there's no essay god I can pray to, so I'm definitely going to essay hell... *buries face in hands* Why? Why do I do this to myself?
And to my dearest LSB, in response to the question you asked over MSN (I didn't answer because I was busy playing my all important game. I didn't even eat dinner today!), we'll probably have to spend it doing work... *poor poor us*
Friday, February 02, 2007
News and Persuasion
Putin 'not running away' from Russia
"In my day, I did judo, not athletics. I'm not planning to run away anywhere."
This irritated me, largely because it was an inept, unsophisticated attempt to make the argument that Putin does not intend to leave Russian politics. I might not disagree with the conclusion, but presenting a half-ass reason like "Putin used 'we' instead of 'they'" is silly. If you want to say something like that, there's plenty of ammunition you can muster from Russia's history, Putin's history, whatever. Trying to end the article on an ominous/fortune-telling note just sounds clumsy. It's as if all readers are supposed to gasp collectively at Putin's tendency to use 'we' instead of 'they'. It's not like he promised the return of Communist Russia or anything. Please. There're many much more intelligent ways in which you can conclude.
The Discovery/National Geographic programmes that (always!) end in a similar 'and-dark-clouds-loom' fashion never fail to irritate me.
Oh the intoxicating pleasure I get from telling people what to think.
"In my day, I did judo, not athletics. I'm not planning to run away anywhere."
Listing Russia's achievements, Mr Putin also admitted its shortcomings.
"We still have a lot to do in the social sphere," he admitted in his opening remarks.
The "we" intriguingly suggested that if he no longer remained a member of the team, he would still be close to it - whether the game was athletics, judo, or running Russia.
This irritated me, largely because it was an inept, unsophisticated attempt to make the argument that Putin does not intend to leave Russian politics. I might not disagree with the conclusion, but presenting a half-ass reason like "Putin used 'we' instead of 'they'" is silly. If you want to say something like that, there's plenty of ammunition you can muster from Russia's history, Putin's history, whatever. Trying to end the article on an ominous/fortune-telling note just sounds clumsy. It's as if all readers are supposed to gasp collectively at Putin's tendency to use 'we' instead of 'they'. It's not like he promised the return of Communist Russia or anything. Please. There're many much more intelligent ways in which you can conclude.
The Discovery/National Geographic programmes that (always!) end in a similar 'and-dark-clouds-loom' fashion never fail to irritate me.
Oh the intoxicating pleasure I get from telling people what to think.
Thursday, February 01, 2007
The Milgram Experiment
Obeying and Resisting Malevolent Orders
Would you obey orders to hurt an innocent individual-even when the authority issuing them has no coercive means to enforce his or her commands? On the basis of one of the 20th century's most important and controversial pieces of research, chances are that you would. In the early 1960s, Yale social psychologist Stanley Milgram, PhD, conducted an experiment whose purpose was supposedly to study the effects of punishment on learning. The experimenter told the subject that his job was to teach a learner in an adjacent room to memorize a list of word-pairs, and every time the learner made an error, the teacher-subject was to punish the learner by giving him increasingly severe shocks by pressing levers on a shock machine. There were 30 levers whose shock values ranged from a low of 15 volts to the maximum of 450 volts. (In actuality, no electric shock was involved. The "learner" was an actor who only pretended receiving them, but the subject did not know this.) Despite the learner's increasingly pitiful screams and pleas to stop, a majority of subjects (over 60%) obeyed the experimenter's commands to continue and ended up giving the maximum "shock" of 450 volts.
Would you obey orders to hurt an innocent individual-even when the authority issuing them has no coercive means to enforce his or her commands? On the basis of one of the 20th century's most important and controversial pieces of research, chances are that you would. In the early 1960s, Yale social psychologist Stanley Milgram, PhD, conducted an experiment whose purpose was supposedly to study the effects of punishment on learning. The experimenter told the subject that his job was to teach a learner in an adjacent room to memorize a list of word-pairs, and every time the learner made an error, the teacher-subject was to punish the learner by giving him increasingly severe shocks by pressing levers on a shock machine. There were 30 levers whose shock values ranged from a low of 15 volts to the maximum of 450 volts. (In actuality, no electric shock was involved. The "learner" was an actor who only pretended receiving them, but the subject did not know this.) Despite the learner's increasingly pitiful screams and pleas to stop, a majority of subjects (over 60%) obeyed the experimenter's commands to continue and ended up giving the maximum "shock" of 450 volts.
The Stanford Prison Experiment
The Stanford Prison Experiment: A Simulation Study of the Psychology of Imprisonment
Excerpts from the slide show:
Excerpts from the slide show:
What suspects had done was to answer a local newspaper ad calling for volunteers in a study of the psychological effects of prison life. We wanted to see what the psychological effects were of becoming a prisoner or prison guard. To do this, we decided to set up a simulated prison and then carefully note the effects of this institution on the behavior of all those within its walls.
Our study of prison life began, then, with an average group of healthy, intelligent, middle-class males. These boys were arbitrarily divided into two groups by a flip of the coin. Half were randomly assigned to be guards, the other to be prisoners. It is important to remember that at the beginning of our experiment there were no differences between boys assigned to be a prisoner and boys assigned to be a guard.
...
Most prisoners believed that the subjects selected to be guards were chosen because they were bigger than those who were made prisoners, but actually, there was no difference in the average height of the two groups.
...
As soon as I realized that #819 could hear the chanting, I raced back to the room where I had left him, and what I found was a boy sobbing uncontrollably while in the background his fellow prisoners were yelling that he was a bad prisoner. No longer was the chanting disorganized and full of fun, as it had been on the first day. Now it was marked by utter confomity and compliance, as if a single voice was saying, "#819 is bad."
I suggested we leave, but he refused. Through his tears, he said he could not leave because the others had labeled him a bad prisoner. Even though he was feeling sick, he wanted to go back and prove he was not a bad prisoner.
...
when we ended the hearings by telling prisoners to go back to their cells while we considered their requests, every prisoner obeyed, even though they could have obtained the same result by simply quitting the experiment. Why did they obey? Because they felt powerless to resist. Their sense of reality had shifted, and they no longer perceived their imprisonment as an experiment. In the psychological prison we had created, only the correctional staff had the power to grant paroles.
During the parole hearings we also witnessed an unexpected metamorphosis of our prison consultant as he adopted the role of head of the Parole Board. He literally became the most hated authoritarian official imaginable, so much so that when it was over he felt sick at who he had become -- his own tormentor who had previously rejected his annual parole requests for 16 years when he was a prisoner.
...
Prisoners coped with their feelings of frustration and powerlessness in a variety of ways. At first, some prisoners rebelled or fought with the guards. Four prisoners reacted by breaking down emotionally as a way to escape the situation. One prisoner developed a psychosomatic rash over his entire body when he learned that his parole request had been turned down. Others tried to cope by being good prisoners, doing everything the guards wanted them to do. One of them was even nicknamed "Sarge," because he was so military-like in executing all
commands.
By the end of the study, the prisoners were disintegrated, both as a group and as individuals. There was no longer any group unity; just a bunch of isolated individuals hanging on, much like prisoners of war or hospitalized mental patients. The guards had won total control of the prison, and they commanded the blind obedience of each prisoner.
...
At this point it became clear that we had to end the study. We had created an overwhelmingly powerful situation -- a situation in which prisoners were withdrawing and behaving in pathological ways, and in which some of the guards were behaving sadistically. Even the "good" guards felt helpless to intervene, and none of the guards quit while the study was in progress. Indeed, it should be noted that no guard ever came late for his shift, called in sick, left early, or demanded extra pay for overtime work.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Typical LSB-Justareed (JR) MSN Convy
JR: LSB!
LSB: ????????// yes dearie?
JR: i missed u today cute(
LSB: haha tat's so sweet
LSB: have u bn doing work
JR: an itsy bitsy teeny little bit
JR: u say me sweet?
JR: yes? u say me sweet?
LSB: erm........
JR: u say me sweet?
JR: yes? sweet?
LSB: yes yes
JR: hehehehehehehehehehe
JR: snigger
JR: so shy
LSB: erm diao
LSB: ????????// yes dearie?
JR: i missed u today cute(
LSB: haha tat's so sweet
LSB: have u bn doing work
JR: an itsy bitsy teeny little bit
JR: u say me sweet?
JR: yes? u say me sweet?
LSB: erm........
JR: u say me sweet?
JR: yes? sweet?
LSB: yes yes
JR: hehehehehehehehehehe
JR: snigger
JR: so shy
LSB: erm diao
Respect and Resistance
A1one: 1st generation Graffiti in Iran
Iran… what do we really know about it? And which of all these facts are actually true? What kind of image do we have? And would we include something like ‘Iranian Graffiti’ or ‘Street Art from Tehran’ in this image?
If so, what would that look like? Do we expect any strong Anti-American messages? Or do we think of a strong form of expression against the government maybe? Or could it be sympathizing with a local party? Or what if it was not about any official statement at all, but what if Iranian street art was simply a form of personal expression? Or maybe it is even all of the above, still testing out what ’street art’ could possibly be in this particular environment… PingMag interviewed A1one, the one who started graffiti in Tehran.
I just discovered PingMag, and I'm falling head over heels in love with it.
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
I amaze myself
It's essay time again!
No matter how long I have to research and write, I always end up doing all the work in less than a day.
I'm freaking amazing I tell you.
This is 40% of my grade!
And I'm feeling complacent.
Because guess what, I've got 800+/4000 words at 12.45am the day the essay is due, and you know, that's kind of better than my usual 'holy shit it's 4am, I'd better start, but what am I to write about' situation.
So I'm doing all these mental calculations in my head, and I'm like, I've gotta be in school by 2pm tomorrow, so let's say I have till 1pm. Factor in 2hrs for stoning + the inevitable 'pls-wake-me-up-in-1hr-but-failing-that-just-give-me-3hrs-more' sleep, that gives me 6 hrs to write 3000 words.
Not bad at all dude. That's about 1/4 of a day.
Oops I forgot to count the 30mins for random incoherent blogging. Slightly less than 1/4 of a day.
Oh yeah, I haven't done any research, so I shall have to search for articles online. Minus another 2hrs.
WTH it's 40% of my grade! Why do I insist on screwing myself over like this? I need therapy.
No matter how long I have to research and write, I always end up doing all the work in less than a day.
I'm freaking amazing I tell you.
This is 40% of my grade!
And I'm feeling complacent.
Because guess what, I've got 800+/4000 words at 12.45am the day the essay is due, and you know, that's kind of better than my usual 'holy shit it's 4am, I'd better start, but what am I to write about' situation.
So I'm doing all these mental calculations in my head, and I'm like, I've gotta be in school by 2pm tomorrow, so let's say I have till 1pm. Factor in 2hrs for stoning + the inevitable 'pls-wake-me-up-in-1hr-but-failing-that-just-give-me-3hrs-more' sleep, that gives me 6 hrs to write 3000 words.
Not bad at all dude. That's about 1/4 of a day.
Oops I forgot to count the 30mins for random incoherent blogging. Slightly less than 1/4 of a day.
Oh yeah, I haven't done any research, so I shall have to search for articles online. Minus another 2hrs.
WTH it's 40% of my grade! Why do I insist on screwing myself over like this? I need therapy.
Monday, January 29, 2007
Gender and Games
Game Boys for Play Girls! games & gender by Babsi
Barbara ‘Babsi’ Lippe enjoyed a typical postmodern childhood filled with cartoons, action figures, comics and video-games. The latter in particular had a great impact on her life: she has just finished a 1000 page PhD thesis about Games and Gender! PingMag interviewed the cheerful Austrian expert about why Japanese game esthetics are more appealing to women in the West and how the market in Europe is slowly changing.
Sometimes you just have to live and let live. I've been told that my place is like a jungle, not because it's untamed, messy and uncivilised - even though it IS all of the above, but because of the numbers of non-human wildlife that coexist with my more genetically-related family. There're times humans and non-humans just have to live with each other in harmony. *zen* *sings Circle of Life*
There's a spider that lives on the window-sill next to my study-table (or rather, my dad's table, which I've claimed as my own by choping it with my notes).
Another spider lives in my bathroom, though I haven't seen it recently.
Baby grasshoppers regularly frequent my laptop because of the heat and light. (The baby grasshoppers probably came from the plants in my balcony, where there're bigger grasshoppers. Yeah, my mum the gardener lives and lets live too.)
Baby lizards, or rather, young lizards (the one that visited last night wasn't that small) come to my laptop, probably for the same reason. The really small ones are cute though, because they're prone to acrobatics, jumping up and down for no apparent reason. (Sorry, Joyce)
Usually I'm less tolerant towards bigger/grosser forms of wildlife, and my human family members are tasked with chasing them away. These include cockroaches, BIG grasshoppers, moths/butterflies (but only when they fly into the house), beetles (esp. the stinky ones!), hairy spiders.
I'm also tolerant of wildlife insofar as they don't actually crawl on to me.
Barbara ‘Babsi’ Lippe enjoyed a typical postmodern childhood filled with cartoons, action figures, comics and video-games. The latter in particular had a great impact on her life: she has just finished a 1000 page PhD thesis about Games and Gender! PingMag interviewed the cheerful Austrian expert about why Japanese game esthetics are more appealing to women in the West and how the market in Europe is slowly changing.
Sometimes you just have to live and let live. I've been told that my place is like a jungle, not because it's untamed, messy and uncivilised - even though it IS all of the above, but because of the numbers of non-human wildlife that coexist with my more genetically-related family. There're times humans and non-humans just have to live with each other in harmony. *zen* *sings Circle of Life*
There's a spider that lives on the window-sill next to my study-table (or rather, my dad's table, which I've claimed as my own by choping it with my notes).
Another spider lives in my bathroom, though I haven't seen it recently.
Baby grasshoppers regularly frequent my laptop because of the heat and light. (The baby grasshoppers probably came from the plants in my balcony, where there're bigger grasshoppers. Yeah, my mum the gardener lives and lets live too.)
Baby lizards, or rather, young lizards (the one that visited last night wasn't that small) come to my laptop, probably for the same reason. The really small ones are cute though, because they're prone to acrobatics, jumping up and down for no apparent reason. (Sorry, Joyce)
Usually I'm less tolerant towards bigger/grosser forms of wildlife, and my human family members are tasked with chasing them away. These include cockroaches, BIG grasshoppers, moths/butterflies (but only when they fly into the house), beetles (esp. the stinky ones!), hairy spiders.
I'm also tolerant of wildlife insofar as they don't actually crawl on to me.
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Recollection
I wonder if LSB remembers the night we danced at the bus-stop at his house while it was raining. He thought it was stupid of course, and even I felt a bit embarrassed even though I was the one who coerced him into it. He'll probably kill me for speaking about this in public.
Saturday, January 27, 2007
New battleground
US plans to 'fight the net' revealed
A newly declassified document gives a fascinating glimpse into the US military's plans for "information operations" - from psychological operations, to attacks on hostile computer networks.
Woah this is some crazy shit. But it's hardly surprising that people in the security sector would see the Internet in this light.
Americans have been notoriously bad at soft power, something that's perhaps not entirely their fault, since people like to pick on the big boys. It's funny though, how they see soft power in such militarized terms. 'Fight the net'? What happened to 'promote cultural awareness and understanding'? It makes it seem like they see everyone else as a potential enemy instead of a potential friend. (or at least the article makes it seem so, and we know how much the BBC likes US foreign policy these days)
Of course now that the document's out in the open, that means more bad press for them. Nobody likes Big Brother propagandists. They should have stuck to the wimpy cultural exchanges.
I also have to say that I don't like the idea of propaganda and surveillance of the Internet being institutionalized and legitimized as part of a 'war'. (I know it happens all the time already.) Netizens unite! (haha)
A newly declassified document gives a fascinating glimpse into the US military's plans for "information operations" - from psychological operations, to attacks on hostile computer networks.
The operations described in the document include a surprising range of military activities: public affairs officers who brief journalists, psychological operations troops who try to manipulate the thoughts and beliefs of an enemy, computer network attack specialists who seek to destroy enemy networks.
...
It seems to see the internet as being equivalent to an enemy weapons
system."Strategy should be based on the premise that the Department [of Defense] will 'fight the net' as it would an enemy weapons system," it reads.
Woah this is some crazy shit. But it's hardly surprising that people in the security sector would see the Internet in this light.
Americans have been notoriously bad at soft power, something that's perhaps not entirely their fault, since people like to pick on the big boys. It's funny though, how they see soft power in such militarized terms. 'Fight the net'? What happened to 'promote cultural awareness and understanding'? It makes it seem like they see everyone else as a potential enemy instead of a potential friend. (or at least the article makes it seem so, and we know how much the BBC likes US foreign policy these days)
Of course now that the document's out in the open, that means more bad press for them. Nobody likes Big Brother propagandists. They should have stuck to the wimpy cultural exchanges.
I also have to say that I don't like the idea of propaganda and surveillance of the Internet being institutionalized and legitimized as part of a 'war'. (I know it happens all the time already.) Netizens unite! (haha)
Have you read the papers?
First tutorial today passed by in a fog of drowsiness. 10am is not a good time for me.
I was looking over LSB's (long-suffering bf) shoulder as he was scanning through microforms of newspapers from the late 1950s and early 1960s.
I never knew the papers were so interesting!
There were the priceless nuggets like 'Cat gives birth to squirrel,' and 'Englishman possessed by spirit of lama.' A lady divorced her husband because he refused to give her money for lipstick and cigarettes. A writer was horrified by homosexuality in prisons. People were to watch out for an injured man-eating tiger. Rubber prices were down. Chantilly lace was debonair (yes, the article used this word!) this summer. Lolita was all the rage among liberals in America, and we weren't certain at all if it was indeed pornography. Dulles had passed away, and the Russians were wrangling in a most uncivilised manner with the Americans. People were struggling with issues of language and culture, and students held emergency meetings to pass resolutions on governmental misdeeds. Algeria and Congo were in the news, as was merger, and Scottish dances were all the fad with 'blood-curdling screams' from the men and 'twirling skirts' attached to girlish waists (yes, actual quotes).
I love the papers.
ed: Just a note, these were local papers.
ed2: LSB just notified me that Malay Mail (the paper we were looking at) was actually a Malayan publication, and therefore not really 'local'. Not that anyone cares, but historians are anal retentive like that.
I was looking over LSB's (long-suffering bf) shoulder as he was scanning through microforms of newspapers from the late 1950s and early 1960s.
I never knew the papers were so interesting!
There were the priceless nuggets like 'Cat gives birth to squirrel,' and 'Englishman possessed by spirit of lama.' A lady divorced her husband because he refused to give her money for lipstick and cigarettes. A writer was horrified by homosexuality in prisons. People were to watch out for an injured man-eating tiger. Rubber prices were down. Chantilly lace was debonair (yes, the article used this word!) this summer. Lolita was all the rage among liberals in America, and we weren't certain at all if it was indeed pornography. Dulles had passed away, and the Russians were wrangling in a most uncivilised manner with the Americans. People were struggling with issues of language and culture, and students held emergency meetings to pass resolutions on governmental misdeeds. Algeria and Congo were in the news, as was merger, and Scottish dances were all the fad with 'blood-curdling screams' from the men and 'twirling skirts' attached to girlish waists (yes, actual quotes).
I love the papers.
ed: Just a note, these were local papers.
ed2: LSB just notified me that Malay Mail (the paper we were looking at) was actually a Malayan publication, and therefore not really 'local'. Not that anyone cares, but historians are anal retentive like that.
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
WTH?
The ES does come close to Wendtian constructivism on one point: materialism vs idealism. Both are in-between positions here, the ES somewhat more materialist than all/most constructivists. But they differ on a whole complex of other questions (notably the view of language, rationality, analysts role, and IR theory/theories) and this brings the ES closer to classical realism and post-structuralism, than to constructivism.
- Ole Waever, 1999.
ARGH! Stop screwing with my mind! That was NOT what I thought the ES was! And how can you mention classical realism and post-structuralism in the same breath? How?!?! How could you? Now what am I supposed to do? Now I know nothing!
------ (edited)
Ok, now that I've calmed down somewhat.
It seems I always get stuck on the theory, esp. the definitions... largely because I still believe that half the argument is won by definitions and categorization. I never seem to get to the application of theory. Ok I admit, it's also partly because I prefer theory to application.
This was exactly what happened to my HT, which was supposed to be an application of theory, but ended up being a meaningless 10,000 word exposition on a minor theoretical point that I could have dealt with in 2 sentences. Oh the benefits of hindsight.
I have to stop reading these theory-related articles and actually get down to application. Soon. As soon as I've got this latest bit figured out.
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