Kipple

Is it any wonder why I pirate...

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 06:19:26 GMT

Two examples:

A few weeks ago sucideluvkitty and I were listening to an MP3 of one of Paul Oakenfold's Urban Soundtracks. Basically they are audio books which have music mixed in throughout them. They are really very pretty. Since the copy of the one we had was incomplete, and since there were others out there, we decided we wanted to purchase, them.

I emphasize this point purchase... I mean, we now have enough income that we can do this. Support the work of various artists. But guess what? We could not find them for purchase. Sure the "buy" option off imeem directed us to iTunes and Amazon, but his Urban Soundtracks were nowhere to be found.

We were, however, able to fine a nice torrent of all but one of his Urban Soundtracks.

So in other words, it's easier to torrent something we were perfectly willing to purchase, because there was no option to purchase.

It gets better.

There is a very pretty song Oakenfold uses in a few of his soundtrack pieces. I decided I wanted to own it so I could listen to it on my MP3 player. After a little bit of research I was able to track down the title of song, and I was even able to find it on Amazon.

And I purchased it.

And I placed on my MP3 player.

It would not play.

I tried deleting and reloading it to my MP3 player a couple of times. Same result.

I found a torrent which contained the song I purchased. Since I am using one of those nice, sophisticated pieces of software, I was able to download just that one song.

I put it on my MP3 player.

It plays.

Is it any wonder why I pirate, when pirating actually gets me working results more easily and more consistently than trying to legitimately purchase?

Shepard Fairey, Plagerist?

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 19:03:46 GMT

In the politicartoons group, capthek posted a link and brief discussion about the accusations of plagiarism surrounding the artist Shepard Fairey. Fairy is the artist accredited with making the famous Hope posters for President Obama's 2008 campaign, as well as the person behind the Obey marketing campaign*

Link to the politicartoons post

The original article: Obey Plagiarist Shepard Fairey: A critique by artist Mark Vallen

TD;DR summary: It appears to various artists that Shepard Fairey is plagiarizing and making a great deal of money off it. In particular he seems to be appropriating images from various activist and revolutionary movements, twisting or distorting the messages they putting fort, and making money off them. And doing so while refusing to give credit to where these images originally came from. My suspicion is that Fairey might have thought he could get away with it because most of the images date from the first half of the 20th Century; from places like China, the Soviet Union, and Latin America; and/or come from movements which have become unpopular or carry a lot of misconceptions about them.

* When some one starts aligning oneself with Levi's, Nike and Times Square, I have difficulty calling it anything more than a marking campaign.

thoughts

Sat, 17 Oct 2009 14:23:55 GMT

Woke up this morning thinking about a former lover. I hope she is okay. I have no way of contacting her.

Blogging and product endorements

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 16:28:28 GMT

For those of you out there who like to write about products in your posts, you might want to check out some of the new guidelines coming down the pike from the FTC:

FTC Votes to End "Blogger Payola"

flu paranioa

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 15:30:50 GMT

has hit our office because one person was sick

*sigh*

this means I'm going to have to be breathing in the toxic fumes of lysol as the germaphobes spray everything down

Wii

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 02:22:24 GMT

sophia_daniels got a Wii recently. Our friend code is: 0424 0275 3852 9924

She also got WiiFit. My Wii age is 30. hehheh *smiles*

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 06:58:36 GMT

Annie Lennox - No More I Love You's
by hushhush112

little pig little pig, let me in!

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 13:32:18 GMT

Mmmmm, vortex cannon...

some pictures of me

Tue, 18 Aug 2009 05:03:46 GMT

since recent photos of me are long overdue, I took some tonight. sophia_daniels did well enough considering the subject...
anyway, onto the pics

TSA BS

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 22:52:56 GMT

The Transportation Security Administration is now requiring airlines to supply gender information - along with legal and name and date of birth - of passengers. This is supposedly to help streamline the watch list matching process and reduce the number of errors.

However, ir brings up a number special concerns to transsexual and transgender people looking to book flights.

From the TSA Blog entry Secure Flight Q&A II

TSA requires you to provide your full name, date of birth, and gender for the purpose of watch list screening, under the authority of 49 U.S.C. section 114, the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 and 49 C.F.R parts 1540 and 1560. You may also provide your Redress Number, if available. Failure to provide your full name, date of birth, and gender may result in denial of transport or denial of authority to enter the boarding area.

and

Q: What effect will the requirement to ask about sex ... What effect will the requirement to ask about sex have on transgendered persons? I can see many incredibly humiliating scenarios coming forward where someone's biological sex (appearing on their gov't issued ID) seems not to match their visible gender markers or how they'd like to be identified.

A: Under Secure Flight, passengers will be required to provide their name, gender, and date of birth when making a reservation to fly. The gender provided when making the reservation should match the gender indicated on the passenger’s government-issued identification.
Once the passenger has made the reservation, their information will be sent to Secure Flight to perform watch list matching. If the passenger is cleared, there will be no further need to provide gender information from that point forward for purposes of the Secure Flight program. While the passenger may be required to provide an ID at the security checkpoint, this process is not a part of the Secure Flight program. (See last paragraph

In the event that the individual is deemed a potential match to the watch list, that individual will need to go through the resolution process which occurs at the airport. At the ticket counter (or in some cases at an airport kiosk), name, date of birth, and gender information are taken directly from the passenger’s government-issued ID and submitted to Secure Flight.

But what happens if the gender presentation of a person does not match their government-issued identification? What happens if different government-issued identification has different genders listed? What happens when a person changes the gender makers on their government issued identification?

What a mess.

Suggestions for PDF and doc readers?

Sun, 16 Aug 2009 19:05:07 GMT

I want some suggestions out there about hand held devices that can read PDFs, read and edit document and text formats and view image files. If it were at all possible, I would love something I can load with a cbr or cbz veiwer as well. But I realize that might not be doable.

So what is out there people like?

Passing a message along

Sun, 16 Aug 2009 15:57:27 GMT

Michelle Grissom, formerly ani Dechen Drolma and also known as Longchenpa, wishes the world to know of her regret for and retraction of her lies about and unkind words toward her teacher, Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo, and the Kunzang Palyul Choling temple.

If you would like to help her spread this word, please link to her post with all of the above names so that people who Google them will find her retraction and apology.

Craven Cowardice

Fri, 14 Aug 2009 01:47:29 GMT

On July 29th, 2009, the science fiction writer johncwright wrote a post entitled "More Diversity and More Perversity in the Future!" in which he bemoans the Sci-Fi Channel's intent of including more homosexual characters in their programming and spewing forth all sort of same old, tired hate speech about homosexuals, homosexuality, liberals, and so forth.

After getting like eight or nine pages of replies today, which included some fantastic, well written rebuttals by folks such as bifemmefatale, lupabitch and circuit_four, John C. Wright deleted and blocked the comments to the entry, and proceeded to add further friend only comment restrictions on his journal.

I am only posting about this because fandom has had long history of white male heterosexual conservative asses. Do we need to give any more of them more play or attention? For those who are involved with the convention scene or have the ears of con chairs, please consider the sort of attitudes and views this author brings with him, and ask are these the attitudes we want to promote in fandom?

Anger

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 02:16:38 GMT

a lot of scary anger issues today
dont know where it is coming from
:(

awkward moments in exercise products

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 18:33:14 GMT

Shake Weight Commercial

Call for Submissions- Double Edge: The Intersection of Transgender and BDSM

Sun, 19 Jul 2009 21:47:35 GMT

This was posted by passionandsoul. I am passing it on as well. This call is from Raven Kaldera - contact info below

Call For Submissions:

Double Edge: The Intersection of Transgender and BDSM

I’m looking to interview transgendered perverts of all sorts for this book, over email if we can’t meet face to face. I’m looking for people who openly identify as transgendered in the BDSM communities they move in, and how that identity affects their partners and their activities. I’m looking for people who shapeshifted their bodies and transitioned their identities, and how that changed their BDSM relationships and fetishes. I’m looking for people who publicly hold third gender space in BDSM contexts, and how they interface with the demographic. I’m looking for transpeople in power exchange relationships who are willing to talk about how their perception of gender affects their perception of dominance and submission. I’m looking for FTMs and MTFs, fat and thin, old and young, all sorts. Those who end up with featured interviews will need to submit a photo of yourself, and yes, your face needs to be in it. Those who don’t submit photos will be quoted throughout the work, but not get featured interviews.

I'm looking for articulate people who are willing to write or speak thoughtfully about things, not just give me one-line answers.

I’m also open to hearing from partners of transfolk who contribute to this book.

I’m also looking for photos of transfolk doing kinky things, faces or no. The photos don’t have to be professional quality, they just have to show us as the sexy and passionate and creative people we are.

If you’re willing to contribute to this book, please email me at cauldronfarm@hotmail.com and put “Double Edge” in the caption and I'll send you the email questionnaire.

Thanks,

-Raven Kaldera

hmmmm...

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 15:32:12 GMT

Been having this song play though my head all morning. To the point of interrupting the order of my asanas. It started some time last night, I could hear it all through my dreams. I know what associations my mind links to and brings up with this song. And it needs to stop.

Thank you.

sensitivity

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 21:27:40 GMT

wow, I am suddenly very sensitive to every sound around me. to the point that many are almost painful and irritating
*sigh*

Emilie Autumn

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 18:13:34 GMT

progeer lead me to this artist. I rather enjoy the mixing of instrumental styles in some of her pieces

Emilie Autumn - How to Break a Heart (poem)

Emilie Autumn - Liar

Emilie Autumn - Ancient Grounds (instrumental)

Emilie Autumn - Opheliac

Emilie Autumn - Goodbye (poem)

Call for action: www.tranny-alert.com

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 23:40:38 GMT

thank you to progeer for pointing this out to me.

www.tranny-alert.com is a blog that thinks it's great to post images of ID or suspected trans women. They don't seem to have a clue about the concept of appropriation or the risks they are exposing trans women to.

gudbuytjane has a post about it: Call for action: www.tranny-alert.com

sigh

Sat, 20 Jun 2009 16:40:53 GMT

Got into a bit of discussion about the character dynamics of the Twilight series. It seems the point I am attempting to make is entirely lost on the people involved with the thread, and now it seems that for some of the people the energy in invested how Edwards actions really are not that creepy, that it's okay because he's a vampire and human laws wound not really apply, or that times have changes and laws are transitory things, etc.

And over all it seems they are entirely missing the point of what I am attempting to say. Beyond that, it's like it's purposefully being ignored or glossed over. I still have so much more to say on this topic, but since the discussion seems to be getting nowhere, I am not going to clutter my the comments page.

Which is: Why is Edward still in high school, claiming to be a high school student? And why is this okay?

My issue is not the age differences between the characters. I could not care less about the age differences. And even though I did point out the dynamics of age of consent, I honestly don’t care about those laws.

My issue is that non-youth individual invading youth space, claiming to be a youth. Why does Edward Cullen, who has theoretically learned everything they can from high school, still need to pass himselves off as a high schooler? And when one takes it into context the series my well be inspired by and exemplify many aspects of the LDS faith, particularly the concept of pre-ordained love, the only conclusion I can come to is that Edward Cullen was hanging around a high school to meet his per-destined mate.

What sort of messages is our society celebrating with the popularity of the series here?

I’m not sure if I can adequately convey the politics surrounding youth space to really explain why there is a huge difference between cross generational dating and passing oneself off as a youth for the sake of entering youth space and engage in cross generational dating. And why I feel one is perfectly acceptable and the other is not.

The wrongness, the wrongness...

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 20:02:41 GMT

I so need to see now...
Images with Pedobear's head overlapped on images of Edward Cullan...
And a splice up video of Tim Hansen interviewing Edward Cullen...
*laughs*

Duran Duran - The Chauffeur

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 16:10:24 GMT

Duran Duran-The Chauffeur
Vezi mai multe video din Muzica

better

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 15:29:31 GMT

it's amazing what a single phone call with the right words can do sometimes.

Yes… wait a minute… no.

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 16:15:22 GMT

So on the one hand I’ve recently meet some really neat people. Like really amazing neat people. And the timing of so much and the similarities and connection we have felt for one another has been… disturbingly serendipitous. I really want to dig around and figure out for certain the connections. I have some strong feelings about the matter and am attempting to take it all one piece at a time. I feel very strongly that there is a lot we can mutually support and assist one another with.

And I want everything to hurry up and get through what, at this point, feels like this quant but time worn initial procedural introduction process. Like we've done this before. Now can we acknowledge "it" and be done with it so we can get onto the rest of the work we need to be doing right now. Ah but procedure...

On the other, and despite all this really amazing stuff going on, there continues to be a background gloom permeating everything right now. All I can say is my heart can stop with this now. I’m done. It's accomplishing nothing and being a nuisance and distraction. And I could used it to be focused and have the energy for things that are actually within reach at this time. I would rather not have to resort to self experimentation to achieve this, thank you.

Also, my allergies have been totally kicking my ass this past week. My system is worn out, and I think I need to hole up somewhere soon. Sadly, this weekend is not the weekend to do so. And the flow of my room has been disrupted. I am annoyed, but there is little I can do. I mean is it not my house *shrug* The disruption of past few weeks has been frustrating. Again, I know I should be grateful and I am, but I will also be glad when I am in a space that I can more fully declare to some degree is mine.