|
|
Thursday, December 29, 2005
One thing I've never been able to get is how a singer who doesn't write their own songs is pretty much beneath contempt as an artist. Granted a singer/songwriter provides a full experience by giving voice to their own words, but that's not the be all and end all of music. If it was, we wouldn't have opera or musical theatre.
This came up because I recently purchased a Dean Martin CD with a Christmas gift card, and somehow it came up that he didn't write his own songs. So what? Bing Crosby wasn't a songwriter either. Neither was Sinatra, Elvis, Streisand, Rosemary Clooney... Well, the list goes on and it's not restricted to crooners and early rock and rollers.
The fact is there have always been people with incredible voices who couldn't write a song to save their lives and vice versa. That doesn't make them less credible or worthy of respect than those who do both.
Except for Britney and the boy bands, of course.
posted
by Tabby at 12/29/2005 01:17:00 p.m.
|
Monday, December 26, 2005
Season's Greetings!
So it seems there's a "War on Christmas", and being the liberal atheist I am then I must be a frontline soldier. Except there is no friggin' war anywhere other than in the fevered imaginings of conservative Christians. On a personal level I renounced Christmas in my own life some time back, and have since come to enjoy the Winter Solstice as my holiday of choice, but I don't expect others to have to follow suit. If Christmas is part of your life, enjoy it!
Where they are getting really bent out of shape though is the inclusion of other beliefs in the form of "Happy Holidays" and "Season's Greetings" by commercial establishments (which is odd considering how hard the Religious Right seemed to be fighting to put "Christ back in Christmas" and to get away from the commercialisation of it) and by governments, both local and federal. Never mind that those salutations date back well before secularism reared it's godless head, they have now become part of the War on Christmas!
Heh. I do find it amusing that they want to keep the commercial activity connected to Christmas connected to Christmas while still denouncing the commercialisation of the holiday. It's the same thing with school prayer. It has nothing to do with their rights being infringed and everything to do with keeping their religion in the spotlight and in the eyes of the non-believers. All the better to convert us, you see. Besides, inclusion doesn't sit well with people who have the power, because they fear it dilutes their power.
And that really ties into the weird thing about the alleged "War on Christmas". This battle is taking place in countries like the United States and Canada where Christians are in the overwhelming majority. So how can there be any real attack on Christianity in nations where Christians have the power? There isn't. They are free to worship as they please.
Why then do Christians go on about not just this War on Christmas, but a War on Christianity in general? To be fair, not all of them do. It's conservative Christians, the born-again evangelical variety that feel beseiged. You see, they used to have the power, they used to shape society so that the filty sinners like atheists and other non-Christians would shut up and know our place, that they could preach to our children, and never mind the dirty sodomists who could be locked up like the degenerates they are. Now non-Christians are ensuring their children can't be forced to pray (because Christian children can still pray in school, but because it's not teacher-led non-Christian children aren't forced to decide whether to join in or feel ostrasized) and gays and lesbians in Canada are free to marry (for now, so damn it Canada, keep Stephen Harper out of the PMO's office).
But there's more to it than just power. Christians have to expect persecution. It says so right in the Bible, telling them that they will be persecuted for their beliefs. The problem here is if you're the religion in power, how is it you're going to be persecuted? Well, you pretty much have to make it up by seeing persecution every time someone disagrees with you or doesn't let you force your beliefs on others. I'm not saying there aren't Christians in the world who aren't seriously persecuted. There are. Just as there are Jews, Muslims, atheists, Buddhists, Hindus, people of all sorts of ethnicities, and of course gays and lesbians being persecuted. All good minded people should stand up and denounce real persecution. Evangelical Baptists in Ontario aren't being persecuted. Neither are Pentecostals in New York. Let's not even get into Alberta or Arkansas (which is, by the way, one of the states that has laws on the books that don't allow atheists to hold public office, a few more you can easily find by a little Googling, so you have to ask who really isn't getting justice).
The fact that there is real persecution in the world with real people dying makes you wonder how anyone in Canada or the US could, in good conscience, call themselves persecuted. Hey, I'm talking about people who deny gay citizens full social equality and human beings in chronic, terminal pain the right to end their lives on their own terms. Of course they don't have a good conscience.
Oh well. What can one do but keep fighting the good fight? So it's back to War I go! Happy Holidays, one and all!
posted
by Tabby at 12/26/2005 01:10:00 p.m.
|
Wednesday, December 14, 2005
I'm not sure if I'm mentioned this before, but my memory sucks. The reason I'm mentioning it now is that after this recent dry spell, I keep thinking of things I'd like to write about. "Oh! This would be good for my blog!" The problem is that by the time I actually get around to being able to write it, I forget what the brilliant idea was. And I'm sure they were all brilliant. You know, the kind of... stuff... that would put this little blog of mine on the map!
Speaking of which, I read something on the number of blogs in the world the other day. I can't remember the numbers quoted, of course, but it's in the tens of millions. That alone makes me happy that every so often someone drops by to read this one. Hi! Yeah, you! Hello! Thanks for reading this!
But I digress. Quite frequently in fact.
posted
by Tabby at 12/14/2005 12:31:00 p.m.
|
Sunday, December 11, 2005
Oh, hello there! Thank you for dropping by. I haven't had many visitors lately, but it's all my fault, what with me not doing anything to entice anyone to come spend some time here. I'll be frank with you - I've got nothing. Nothing that's inspired me to write, no more drive to write, just... nothing.
It's not just that either. It's been a while since I've picked up my camera. It's like I'm in a creative hibernation. Not that we have hibernation weather here. Other than a brief cold snap, it's been unseasonably warm. "Climate change is junk science" my ass.
Ummmm... We have a federal election campaign again. The ruling Liberals have been toppled, but it looks like they'll win another minority, so nothing will have changed other than a few seats and a bunch of wasted money. I'll be voting for them again, but once again not as an endorsement of them or their policies, but because I really don't want to see a Conservative government in our Parliament. Ah, the good old days when I voted Liberal because I liked what the party stood for.
posted
by Tabby at 12/11/2005 01:48:00 p.m.
|
The
critics are calling
I
Was an Atomic Robot Jungle Vixen...
"Very
cool!" "Awesome!" "Good times!"
"Inspires
me..." A Critic - I
respect
"Cool.
And miles more exciting..." Someone Else -
You
might not know
"I
totally love it!" Whoo hoo! -
Posted
somewhere
"All
I have to say is... Cool!" Another Critic
"I
like the look..." An Opinion - YACCS
Comments
"You
think I have time to give you a quote? You're out of your
mind!" Wil Wheaton -WWfreakin'DN!
|
|
|
January 2002
February 2002
March 2002
April 2002
May 2002
June 2002
July 2002
August 2002
September 2002
October 2002
November 2002
January 2003
February 2003
March 2003
April 2003
May 2003
June 2003
July 2003
August 2003
September 2003
October 2003
November 2003
December 2003
January 2004
February 2004
March 2004
April 2004
May 2004
June 2004
July 2004
August 2004
September 2004
October 2004
November 2004
December 2004
January 2005
February 2005
March 2005
April 2005
May 2005
June 2005
July 2005
August 2005
September 2005
October 2005
November 2005
December 2005
January 2006
February 2006
March 2006
April 2006
May 2006
June 2006
July 2006
August 2006
September 2006
October 2006
November 2006
December 2006
January 2007
February 2007
December 2007
October 2008
November 2008
December 2008
March 2009
February 2010
July 2010
current |
