A question to ponder

I don't think it would be a stretch to assume most people like music. Sure, there would be varying tastes of music as you go along, but in general most people enjoy having their ears stimulated.

So my question is this - what makes humans so partial to music? And more specifically, certain types of music? Is it a case of Nature vs. Nurture? Personal taste? Genetics?

Or is it that humans need to have all their senses stimulated, and music simply fits the bill for the hearing sense? And if that is the case, why do we need this stimulation? Would personalities be radically different if there were no music in the world?

[post composed listening to "Skeletons" - Yeah Yeah Yeah's]

No I did not plan this

Most of you, I assume, have heard of people seeing religious imagery in their food - Jesus in toast, etc.

Well today, it happened to me. Here is the pic.

What does that look like to you? Cause to me, it looks like Golgothan, the shit demon from the movie Dogma.

Random things I sometimes do

- hear a phrase that sounds similar to a song lyric, and then start playing that song in my head. or, hear a phrase that sounds like a movie quote, and then think of the movie quote.
- start thinking in a narrative, memoir-ish voice, mainly after i have an idea that i think might make it big. (ex: this was the moment he realized he was onto something)
- make random noises at animals in hopes of somehow communicating with them.
- play out possible scenarios to things in my head (like after having an animal speak to me, what kinds of shenanigans we could get in to)
- when i listen to a song, sometimes i will mimic the timing of my actions with the music (so i can shut a door when a cymbal crashes, or step in rhythm with the bass pedal, etc)

thats all i got for right now, but i will definitely have sequels to this post.

[post composed listening to "Ocean" - John Butler]

Why I don't care for Bob Dylan

Ok, I had this discussion the other day. What draws me to a song is a mixture of the sound of the music and the sound of the singer - NOT what they are singing, but how they are singing it.

So, I am not a big fan of Bob Dylan. Sure, I respect the guy. Apparently he has been a big influence on just about every musician since he came around. But I really don't care for his voice, and his guitar playing (on the few songs I've heard) just doesn't cut it for me. There are songs I like where the singer is so-so but the music is awesome, or the music is so-so but the singer is entrancing. Bobby D, unfortunately, is a so-so musician and singer (to my ears).

When I pointed out this view to my friend, she said "but his lyrics are poetry!". To this, I respond: "if I want to care about what someone is saying, I'll read their words." I dig music for the feeling it gives me, and sometimes words can't deliver.

[post composed listening to "Wake Up" - Arcade Fire]

Why does a democracy need journalism and the 1st Amendment?

Why does a democracy need journalism and the First Amendment?

To answer this question, we must first define "democracy" - Abraham Lincoln, in his Gettysburg Address, defined it as "a government of the people, by the people, and for the people."

Thus, for a democracy to truly remain a democracy, the common citizens need to be aware of their government's inner workings, and also be able to interact and influence said government. Journalism is an excellent vehicle that citizens utilize to remain in the fray; journalists (assuming they are professional, place the truth above all else, and refrain from putting a spin on the story) provide a transparent view of the government, wording their reports in a way that helps us common folk understand what exactly is taking place. Journalists also often ask the questions that are on the public's mind, providing the "little guys" with a voice to be heard (now, making the government actually heed these voices is another issue).

An important aspect of journalism is their freedom from the government, stated in and protected by the First Amendment. Journalists have the power to say what they want about whatever they want (as long as it isn't libel), and this freedom can keep the governments in check. The First Amendment also helps provide and protect democracy by allowing citizens the right to speak their own minds, to practice any religion, to assemble for any reason, and to petition any issue.

I believe good journalism and democracy go hand-in-hand. If journalists are ever "taken over" and ordered what to write about, democracy will shift closer to communism or totalitarianism; inversely, if democracy is replaced with communism/totalitarianism, you can be sure good journalism will soon disappear.

[post composed while listening to the album "Tubthumper" - Chumbawamba]

Living to learn

We are living in a peculiar time - never before have people had the ability to communicate with others as quickly or as frequently as we can now, and this has resulted in a global population that is arguably the most diverse ever in terms of individual knowledge, personal beliefs, and the amount/type of information at our fingertips. The main reason for this revolution is the Internet, one of mankind's crowning achievements (though some will say it's also one of our worst - I would then argue that religion and science would fall into the "best/worst" category).

In the past, if one was inclined to learn about something, one would have to visit a library or ask someone who knew what they were talking about. Now, all you have to do is Google it or Wikipedia it, and you have your information. Whether it's correct/incorrect is another matter; the sheer speed it now takes to research any number of topics is almost mind-boggling. I feel it almost robs humanity of one of its greatest assets: curiosity.

Now, let me explain what I mean: of course, people are still curious (I said so myself earlier, when you want to know something you can usually find out about it online). However, I believe our level of curiosity has diminished. Our sense of wonder about things unknown is brief, when all it takes is a few minutes to "discover" something. I remember being young and wondering how the hell those lightning bugs glowed like that (which in turn makes me remember that Calvin & Hobbes comic where Calvin sees a lightning bug, and then tries to make his own butt glow) - was is magic? Maybe some mad scientist had put tiny light bulbs in all those insects? A wandering mind produces fanciful ideas.

Kids today merely have to search "Why do lightning bugs glow?" to discover that "the secret is nitric oxide...in a complex arrangement between nerve cells, light-producing cells, and an enzyme-assisted reaction, the lightning bug's lantern emits that greenish glow" 

Boring, ain't it? (I apologize to those that may find this interesting, but I'm guessing the general population doesn't).


Now this is pure speculation, but it's my feeling that children are growing up way too fast in today's society. That child-like sense of wonder and amazement is being lost at an earlier and earlier age, which will result in adults that are apathetic and essentially sheep. The livestock that composes the general public may cry out to the world when their governments start to clench it's fist around their rights and privacy's, but by then it will be too late.

We expect a just world; we just expect someone else to give it to us. And I trace that statement back to the fact that life's questions have become too easy for most of us - we no longer need to bust our mind's ass in order to learn something, when the answer is a few keystrokes away.

[post composed while listening to "So Bad" - Eminem]