A Youthful Form of Plasticity

Somehow the wires got crossed
Communication's lost
Can't even get you on the telephone
Just got to shout about it
I'm losing you
I'm losing you
("I'm Losing You", John Lennon)
Not anymore, John. Not anymore...

High-low Brow

Batman Versus Fyodor Dostoevsky... Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov must be twisting in his grave.

Social Distortion Extended

There is a sardonic expression here in Brazil that makes negative presumptions about a book or a film: I did not read (or watch) and I did not like it. This is exactly my position concerning the new local cultural frenzy, Tropa de Elite, a flick that literally have entailed new "national heroes" embodied by Blackwateresque militias (although they are not private). It only have been increasing the Schismogenesis, inspiring fascist pigs and worsting desperado actions, as police officers spraying pepper gas in the eyes of people complaining about some robbers (Hey, I'm captain Nascimento! Go bother another one!). Sheeesh!

Life Imitates Art

Oh! Doesn't it recall those peevishness Al Jaffee usually did for MAD magazine?

Sensory World

"The Ney is a poison". Jelālu-'d-Dīn Muhammed Er-Rūmī.

New Toy

Finally, I've found a new toy to dive into. Mr. Pynchon has made a favor to write a book as good as the previous ones, a book with a scent of The Hardy Boys, The Rover Boys and Punch, or the London Charivari. Yet, the book has a blog.
UPDATE (11/2): Way better than the (honorable, but not constantly updated) blog, is Thomas Pynchon Wiki: Against the Day.

DIY Chopter

The Nigerian home-made helicopter was extensively boingboinged and slashdoted, but very few know about Mr. Tran Quoc Hai, a 44 year old mechanic of Tay Nienh province, in Vietnam, who in 2004 has created a similar beast to help evacuate people in emergency situations and farming usages. This story turned into a 15 min documentary (and a 3 channel video projection installation) named The Farmers and the Helicopters, directed by Dinh Q. Lê who, in his youth, witnessed the AH-1 Cobras burn entire peasant villages.

Factoring the 300

History repeats itself first as tragedy and then as farce. But sometimes, the tragedy is recursive, as so the farce. Take for instance the history of Treinta y Tres, a kind of Uruguayan Thermopylae remake. Its past is backed on the history of the thirty and three privates who, commanded by Juan Antonio Lavalleja, insurrected against the ruling coalition that was in charge of Provincia Oriental (today Uruguay). Not that there was a farce in the historical narrative, be it counted by the ones who triumph or not, but the controversy is about the number of men who really were there in the Latin fight.

Princess of Benin

Xeni Jardin, cyber-starlet, is in West Africa. Some readers have made some appropriate traveling suggestions.

The Munster from Minnesota

This service really creeps me the hell out! I don't know exactly what drove me to write THAT name and THAT last name...

Young Landis

Dr Arnie Baker, a friend of Tour de France winner Floyd Landis, has the proof that the French anti-doping lab may have "mislabelled" the champion urine sample. I've seen this flicker! What was the name? Abby Normal. You gave me a brain that's abnormal!?

Lovely Lovely Lovely Singers

Hanne Hukkelberg

Henriette Sennenvaldt

Stina Nordenstam

Sarah Assbring

Natasha Khan

Joanna Newsom

Anja Garbarek

Ane Brun