• Member Since 28th Sep, 2013
  • offline last seen Jul 4th, 2023

Big Brother is Watching


Big Brother is Watching You

May
6th
2021

I Missed May the Fourth · 12:55am May 6th, 2021

So alas, I must stay alert for the Revenge of the Fifth!

Star Wars was a big film phenomenon when it first came out; few believed it could take off the way that it did. It didn't even win many awards for direction when it first came out, but rather, for editing! & the first one was subperbly edited, BTW. Moreso than any of the prequels or sequels. Without such good editing, it was bound to fail.

Here is the story behind how good editing saved the day:

Read More

May
1st
2021

The Language Police: Censorhip from the Right · 2:59am May 1st, 2021

We shall now cover the actual censorship.  We will start with censorship from the Right.  Now we will be careful with the use of the word “censorship”, since teachers have a responsibility to select their textbook material carefully.

Read More

Mar
11th
2021

The Music of Halo: Eastern European Influences · 11:32pm Mar 11th, 2021

When I first heard the vocals of Halo: CE, I thought it was Hungarian folk music, but I was wrong.  It was just Marty making high pitched sounds.  However, Hungarian & Bulgarian folk music have played palpable roles in the shaping of Halo.

Here is the piece to which I refer:

Compare that to when they try an actual Bulgarian singing voice for Halo 4:

Read More

Mar
2nd
2021

The Language Police: The Testing Companies · 3:46am Mar 2nd, 2021

Not only has this impacted the publishing corporations, but this has impacted testing companies as well.  Ravitch explains that a “top official at the Educational Testing Service told me that his company and other testing agencies deleted test items whenever anyone complained about them; items might be dropped not only on grounds of bias, very broadly defined, but also if they make a student feel ‘uncomfortable’.” (Ravitch, pg 50)  The problem with this is, as Ravitch explains, is that “good

Read More

Feb
9th
2021

It's Black History Month · 9:28pm Feb 9th, 2021

So let's talk about the history of the color black!

Read More

Feb
7th
2021

The Language Police: Textbook Publishers · 3:57am Feb 7th, 2021

As we go on, we shall continue to prove “that’s what they say” wrong, because “if you are willing to accept unquestioningly what ‘everyone’ says, then the story is over before the investigation begins” (Ravitch, pg 31) Remember, in the Middle Ages, being unhealthily overweight was fashionable among the upper classes, people used to believe that there was absolutely no evolution, not even very basic natural selection-fueled micro-evolution, some black people believe that all white people have

Read More

Feb
1st
2021

An Introduction to the (Kaiju) Classics · 10:54pm Feb 1st, 2021

It has come to my attention that Godzilla vs. Kong has acquired a trailer.

Read More

Jan
28th
2021

The Language Police: The New Meaning of Bias · 3:50am Jan 28th, 2021

We shall continue our reading of The Language Police by Diane Ravitch. We shall further explore why the board recommended such bizarre standards, continuing on from our prior discussion.

Read More

Jan
27th
2021

Writing & Aristotle · 3:56am Jan 27th, 2021

Aristotle's known for his belief that rationale & understanding can be applied to all things, even storytelling. Because the very notion that reason, emotion, & imagination must conflict is a purely post-modernist invention, & most previous generations saw no such conflict, somebody as logical as Aristotle could easily appreciate a highly original, emotionally moving, awe-inspiring story, & his Poetics is not only him talking about what makes a good stage play, but also his gushing over the

Read More

Jan
21st
2021

The Language Police; a Panel's Bizarre Recommendations · 3:40am Jan 21st, 2021

I've been reading a lot of books lately, & one of particular interest is The Language Police, written by Diane Ravitch, a research professor of education. It is about how authoritarian voices on both sides have created bizarre censorship standards of education.

Read More