A Heineken commercial that inspires more than a drink

My friend, Amanda Bedford, posted this the other day, and ever since, I can't stop thinking about it.

I think what I love most about this is the brutal honesty of showing the videos. It's one thing to work together, in a simulation, and to discover, over time, someone's differences and, perhaps, modified views. But when the video is shown, of their unadulterated and perhaps even puffed up ultra views, there is nothing to hide behind. They are bare, and they are open. 

And still, they are chosen. I love that.

What this video also points to is this: one person cannot change the situation. When the bald guy walks off and the transgender mother sits down, for a moment, we see just how awful it can be. But then, just as quickly, how a stiff "solemn" man can also be instantly funny, and turn an awkward situation into a communal one. 

God I love this. Because, if only.

 

Related links . . .

Solution: #EatTogether  :  Diversity makes us Smarter  :  Let's just talk - Maya Angelou  :  Walking to Listen

 

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The Great Wall Lovers reunite 22 years later . . . for one minute.

In 1988, after 12 years of love and collaboration, the notorious performance artists Marina Abramović and Ulay decided to take a spiritual journey that would culminate in the ending of their relationship. The project was called “The Lovers: the Great Wall Walk.”  

Starting from the two opposite ends, each of them walked half the length of the Great Wall of China. After three months, they met in the middle, and ended their relationship.

(via).

The performance was recorded by Murray Grigor for the BBC (16mm film, transferred to video), which resulted in the documentary The Great Wall: Lovers at the Brink.

Twenty two years later, they reunited for one minute.

In 2010, as part of her MoMA retrospective, Abramović sat in a chair under bright spotlights opposite an empty chair, where members of the public could sit as long as they wanted, gazing into her eyes. A seemingly endless number of people lined up for the opportunity to sit with her, many sitting multiple times on different days, several for as long as ten hours, some even after waiting all night. 

Unannounced, Ulay showed up.

One of Marina's "most daring and notorious performances (named Rhythm 0) was to test the limits of the relationship between a performer and his/hers audience. Abramović placed on a table 72 objects that people were allowed to use in any way that they chose. Some of these were objects that could give pleasure, while others could be wielded to inflict pain, or to harm her. Among them were a rose, a feather, honey, a whip, olive oil, scissors, a scalpel, a gun and a single bullet. For six hours the artist allowed the audience members to manipulate her body and actions." At the end, she stood up and started walking toward the audience. Everyone ran away, to escape an actual confrontation (via).

In 2015, Marina Abramović, the world’s best-known performance artist, was sued by her former collaborator and romantic partner, the German artist Ulay, in a dispute over works they created jointly (via).

This frustrates the hell out of me, because it taints and smears the idea of Love. Two people, equally passionate about life and expression and beauty of humanity, and neither can get beyond their own skin and fully love another more than themselves. 

What's the point of it all? Of the walks and exhibits if, at the root of it all, is self? 

It seems empty, and fully unfulfilling. As is most things that begin and end with thy self. 

 

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The Language of Love : When English words just aren't enough

Sometimes ‘I Love You’ just doesn’t cut it. Here’s a collection of untranslatable words, gathered from around the world, that may help voice your heart’s desire when the English language can’t.

Often, when trying to express some deep emotion, words aren't enough. When we find ourselves in these situations, when our incomprehensible longing or deep despair become too much to bottle up, we sigh, scream, and often cry. Because any word used is insufficient.

For the English language, "love" is one of those words.

“The Language of Love is a collection of clever illustrations that define specific romantic words and idiomatic expressions from around the world, each of which are expressed in such a unique way that they have no direct English translation" (via).

2-gigil.png
Disney called this "Twitter-pated" which I actually like  better.

Disney called this "Twitter-pated" which I actually like  better.

I think we call this "petting," which is FULLY incomplete . . . and a bit wrong sounding.

I think we call this "petting," which is FULLY incomplete . . . and a bit wrong sounding.

For an expat, this is perfect.

For an expat, this is perfect.

(sigh). Or as my students would say I say, "Hm."

 

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Two great clips that celebrate May 4th

Music can make a movie. Sometimes great soundtracks can live on without the script or the people, but the people can never live on without the music. When it's taken away, when the power and fullness of the music is absent, the movie becomes ridiculously awkward, and boring. The ambiance lost. Like this:

Chewbacca's screams are hilarious though, and I love the coughing in the background. I wonder if the filming was similar to this. If so, respect!

 

The script is important though. If the dialogue is weak, or the monologues empty and fake, the movie will fall, and fall hard.

Except if it is so terrible, it becomes pure genius. 

Star Wars, translated into Chinese, then poorly translated back into English is toes the line. "Most likely, the broken English is the result of being machine translated from the Chinese script. Curiously, the subtitles were translated from a Chinese translation when the original English script could have been used" (via). Not quite genius, but still, fully entertaining (CAUTION: F-word is used).

"Send these troopseses only." Brilliant.

"Put the Gold of the D of two together very dangerous." Shakespearian. 

You can see more Backstroke of the West Highlights here.

 

Happy Star Wars day!!! May the wish power are together with you!

 

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Syrian Artist Creates Sculptures From Remnants of War

Abu Ali al-Bitar, a 45-year-old house painter who collected dozens of rocket debris and spent ammunition casings, flattens bread dough using a leftover rocket in the rebel-held town of Douma, on the eastern outskirts of the Syrian capital Damascus, on April 20, 2017. Eastern Ghouta, a besieged opposition stronghold east of Damascus, has been battered by regime air strikes and shelling since Syria's conflict erupted in 2011. Since then, children have grown accustomed to warnings not to play outside -- but the grown-ups are finding creative ways to make sure kids can still have fun (via).

In spite of pain, like a clawing and kicking against the dark, art and beauty and the human spirit survive. Perhaps even thrives, because we're made for it. Not to kill and break and destroy, but to create and cultivate. To rise above, and for holding flowers.

 

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Tom Thum might be the best thing you'll see and hear all day.

"Coming out of the small Brisbane, Australia, hip-hop scene, Tom Thum has become a world presence with his unhuman beatboxing sound. In 2005, he and Joel Turner won the team battle in the World Beatbox Championships, and Thum came second at the Scribble Jam Beatbox Battles, America’s most prestigious hip-hop competition, in 2006. He's a cast member in the hip-hop/circus performance troupe Tom Tom Crew, appearing on Broadway and London's West End.

Thum is also committed to teaching hip-hop, and travels throughout Australia sharing the positive message that music preaches" (via).

 

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"All the Ladies Like Whiskers" : how an 11 year old helped Lincoln become president

"Having recently seen a picture of Abraham Lincoln and the man who would become his vice-president, Hannibal Hamlin, eleven-year-old Grace Bedell decided in the autumn of 1860 to write to the Republican candidate and future U.S. president with a a single suggestion that would surely win him the affections of the voting public. To her amazement, she met him in person a few months later, as he traveled victoriously to Washington, DC by train - and he had taken her advice."

The letter reads:

For those hard of seeing, here's some help:

Hon A B Lincoln
Dear Sir
My father has just home from the fair and brought home your picture and Mr. Hamlin's. I am a little girl only 11 years old, but want you should be President of the United States very much so I hope you won't think me very bold to write to such  great man as you are. Have you any little girls about as large as I am if so give them my love and tell her to write to me if you cannot answer this letter. I have got 4 brothers and part of them will vote for you any way and if you let your whiskers grow I will try and get the rest of them to vote for you you would look a great deal better for your face is to thin. All the ladies like whiskers and they would tease their husband to vote for you and then you would be President. My father is going to vote for you and if I was a man I would vote for you to but I will try and get every one to vote for you that I can I think that rail fence around your picture makes it look very pretty I have got a little baby sister she is nine weeks old and is just as cunning as can be. When you direct your letter direct to Grace Bedell Westfield Chautauqua County New York.
I must not write any more answer this letter right off Good bye.
Grace Bedell

 

Grace met President Lincoln soon after. "He climbed down and sat down with me on the edge of the station platform," Grace later recalled. 'Gracie,' he said, 'look at my whiskers. I have been growing them for you.' Then he kissed me. I never saw him again." (via).

"With great power comes great responsibility." I wonder if one of the many responsibilities of those in power is kindness, and not taking oneself to seriously.

 

 

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Gorillaz : Damn fine artists

I first fell in love with Gorillaz, like millions of others did, when I heard the "Cling Eastwood" my junior year of high school. A few weeks later I saw the video and I remember sitting on my friends living room floor, completely absorbed.

They have a new song and video out, "Saturnz Barz" and just like the first time I heard 'em, over ten years ago, I'm all in, mainly because I love the community of artists they've been. The collaboration is instructive and inspiring of what Art should be.  

And they make some damn fine work. 

Gorillaz were created in 1998 by musician Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett. The band consists of four animated members: 2-D (lead vocals, keyboards), Murdoc Niccals (bass guitar and vocals), Noodle (guitar, keyboards) and Russel Hobbs (drums and percussion). These members are fictional and are not personas of any "real life" musicians involved in the project. Their fictional universe is explored through the band's website and music videos, as well as a number of other media, such as short cartoons. In reality, Albarn is the only permanent musical contributor, and the music is often a collaboration between various musicians (via).

Clint Eastwood

I ain't happy, I'm feeling glad
I got sunshine in a bag
I'm useless but not for long
The future is coming on
I ain't happy, I'm feeling glad
I got sunshine in a bag
I'm useless but not for long
The future is coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on

Yeah, ha-ha
Finally, someone let me out of my cage
Now time for me is nothing 'cause I'm counting no age
Now I couldn't be there
Now you shouldn't be scared
I'm good at repairs
And I'm under each snare
Intangible
Bet you didn't think so I command you to
Panoramic view
Look, I'll make it all manageable
Pick and choose
Sit and lose
All you different crews
Chicks and dudes
Who you think is really kickin' tunes?
Picture you gettin' down in a picture tube
Like you lit the fuse
You think it's fictional?
Mystical? Maybe
Spiritual
Hero who appears in you to clear your view when you're too crazy
Lifeless
To those the definition for what life is
Priceless
To you because I put you on the hype shit
You like it?
Gun smokin' righteous with one toke
You're psychic among those
Possess you with one go

I ain't happy, I'm feeling glad
I got sunshine in a bag
I'm useless but not for long
The future is coming on
I ain't happy, I'm feeling glad
I got sunshine in a bag
I'm useless but not for long
The future (that's right) is coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on

The essence, the basics
Without, did you make it?
Allow me to make this
Child-like in nature
Rhythm
You have it or you don't, that's a fallacy
I'm in them
Every sprouting tree
Every child of peace
Every cloud and sea
You see with your eyes
I see destruction and demise (that's right)
Corruption in disguise
From this fuckin' enterprise
Now I'm sucked into your lies
Through Russel, not his muscles but percussion he provides
For me as a guide
Y'all can see me now 'cause you don't see with your eye
You perceive with your mind
That's the inner
So I'ma stick around with Russ' and be a mentor
Bust a few rhymes so motherfuckers remember where the thought is
I brought all this
So you can survive when law is lawless (right here)
Feelings, sensations that you thought was dead
No squealing, remember that it's all in your head

I ain't happy, I'm feeling glad
I got sunshine in a bag
I'm useless but not for long
The future is coming on
I ain't happy, I'm feeling glad
I got sunshine in a bag
I'm useless but not for long
My future is coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on
My future is coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on
My future is coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on
My future is coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on
My future is coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on
My future is coming on
It's coming on
It's coming on
My future

Saturnz Barz

Haha, woii yoii!
Done know how di ting go, a the Unruly boss
Don'?
Hahaha
Press the button to begin

Cho
All my life
Mi ever have mi gun so mi haffi move sharp like mi knife
All my life
Mi pray say when mi get wealthy a ma a mi wife
All my life
The system force mi
Fi be a killer just like Rodney Price
All my life
No, all my life

Wah happen to you Cobe, some bwoy doh know mi
To how me ruff dem cah believe a grandma grow mi
Know few Popcaan song doh, and feel dem know mi
Four mile mi used to walk guh school, dem know man story?
Ha! Now mi gain up all those glory
The world is mine, the whole a it mi taking slowly
Happy days mi call it now mi bun sad story
Anyway mi deh inna the world mi dawgs dem round mi
Hahaha mi laugh and collect those trophy
Because mi deserve everything weh music gives mi
Bwoy, unruly nuh light like Frisbee
The dream, family live that wid me
Oh, oh, oh, oh
All my life mi dream fi own house, land, cars, and bikes

All my life
I'm in the stakin' bar
I got debts, I'm a debaser
All my life
Saturnz about to make love
And I'm just a heartbreaker
All my life
And I won't get a take in
'Cause I'm out when I'm stakin'
And the rings I am breaking
Are making you a personal day

With the holograms beside me
I'll dance alone tonight
In a mirrored world, are you beside me
All my life?
Distortion

All my life
I'm in the stakin' bar
I got debts, I'm a debaser
All my life
Saturnz about to make love
And I'm just a heartbreaker
All my life
And I won't get a take in
'Cause I'm out when I'm stakin'
And the rings I am breaking
Are making you a personal day

 

These guys will make your palms sweat.

It's not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves.

- Sir Edmond Hillary

"ALEX HONNOLD is a professional adventure rock climber whose audacious free-solo ascents of America’s biggest cliffs have made him one of the most recognized and followed climbers in the world. A gifted but hard-working athlete, Alex “No Big Deal” Honnold is known as much for his humble, self-effacing attitude as he is for the dizzyingly tall cliffs he has climbed without a rope to protect him if he falls. Honnold has been profiled by 60 Minutes and the New York Times, featured on the cover of National Geographic, appeared in international television commercials and starred in numerous adventure films including the Emmy-nominated “Alone on the Wall.” (via)

He also has a new book out, Alone on the Wall which "recounts the seven most astonishing achievements of Honnold's extraordinary life and career, brimming with lessons on living fearlessly, taking risks, and maintaining focus even in the face of extreme danger" (via).

"Chris Sharma’s preternatural climbing ability and visionary first ascents have earned him an enduring reputation as one of the world’s best rock climbers. This American professional athlete, ambassador and entrepreneur from Santa Cruz, California, has been on a global odyssey, now two decades in the making, in search of the planet’s most difficult and beautiful rock climbs. Sharma has dedicated years of his life to discovering and climbing singular, aesthetic and seemingly impossible routes—always with his humble, meditative approach and powerful, dynamic style of movement. Today he continues to climb at the world standard, pushing the limits of what’s possible and always reimagining the direction of his remarkably storied climbing career (via)."

 

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What is Literature for?

Kottke wrote this, and I like it better than what I was thinking:

"The School of Life on four uses of literature. I especially liked this bit:

We’re weirder than we’re allowed to admit. We often can’t say what’s really on our minds, but in books, we find descriptions of who we genuinely are and what events are actually like described with an honesty quite different from what ordinary conversation allows for. In the best books, it’s as if the writer knows us better than we know ourselves. They find the words to describe the fragile and weird special experiences of our inner lives: the light on a summer morning, the anxiety we felt at a gathering, the sensations of a first kiss, the envy when a friend told us of their new business, the longing we experienced on the train looking at the profile of another passenger we never dare to speak to. Writers open our hearts and minds and give us maps to our own selves, so that we can travel in them more reliably and with less of a feeling of paranoia and persecution. As the writer Emerson remarked, “In the works of great writers, we find our own neglected thoughts.”

I would argue these points also apply, in one degree or another, to not just literature but to any artful endeavor: film, TV, comics, theater, painting, etc" (via).

 

But I'll add this, "Literature is a tool that will help us live and die with a little bit more goodness, wisdom, and sanity."

 

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Fanfare for the Common Man - Aaron Copland

I've always loved this song. I love it's repetition, its building and its falling - like it's an essay. Everytime I hear it, I'm moved. 

"Fanfare for the Common Man" was certainly Copland's best known concert opener. He wrote it in response to a solicitation from Eugene Goosens for a musical tribute honoring those engaged in World War II. Goosens, conductor of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, originally had in mind a fanfare "... for Soldiers, or for Airmen or Sailors" and planned to open his 1942 concert season with it.
Aaron Copland later wrote, "The challenge was to compose a traditional fanfare, direct and powerful, yet with a contemporary sound." To the ultimate delight of audiences Copland managed to weave musical complexity with popular style. He worked slowly and deliberately, however, and the piece was not ready until a full month after the proposed premier.
Aaron Copland on an American street, Ossining, New York (?), Victor Kraft, photographer (n.d.).  Used by permission of Mrs. Victor Kraft. Music Division
To Goosens' surprise Copland titled the piece "Fanfare for the Common Man" (although his sketches show he also experimented with other titles such as "Fanfare for a Solemn Ceremony" and "Fanfare for Four Freedoms"). Fortunately Goosens loved the work, despite his puzzlement over the title, and decided with Copland to preview it on March 12, 1943. As income taxes were to be paid on March 15 that year, they both felt it was an opportune moment to honor the common man. Copland later wrote, "Since that occasion, 'Fanfare' has been played by many and varied ensembles, ranging from the U.S. Air Force Band to the popular Emerson, Lake, and Palmer group ... I confess that I prefer 'Fanfare' in the original version, and I later used it in the final movement of my Third Symphony."
Aaron Copland, said the composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein, was the one to "lead American music out of the wilderness." Copland's musical opus, for which he received the 1964 Medal of Freedom, also included such masterworks as "Piano Variations" (1930), "El Salon Mexico" (1936), "Billy the Kid" (1938), "Fanfare for the Common Man" (1942), "Rodeo" (1942), "Appalachian Spring" (1944), and "Inscape" (1967). (via)

Artist creates the world’s smallest cup of coffee, with a single bean

Paulig asked Luca Zannoto to make the smallest cup of coffee, out of one bean.

Music and Sound Design: Ulrich Troyer

Lucas Zanotto was born in the Alps of Northern Italy but is currently based in Helsinki. He speaks four languages, creates faces out of nature, and started YATATOY - a website that makes high quality simple apps for kids. 

 

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Top ten most viewed music videos equals 22.27 billion views

Last night, me and a couple of friends were reminiscing about VH1 Pop-Up Videos and it got me thinking about music videos again, because I don't watch them all that much anymore. Just every now and then, with my kids. 

So I thought I'd catch myself up on a few and found this list from Thrillist.com.

10. "Katy Perry - Roar (Official)"

1.94 billion views

 

9. "Adele - Hello"

1.94 billion views

 

8. "Major Lazer - Lean On"

1.99 billion views

 

6. "Taylor Swift - Blank Space"

2.02 billion views

 

7. "Enrique Iglesias - Bailando (Español) ft. Descemer Bueno, Gente De Zona"

2.04 billion views

 

5. "Taylor Swift - Shake It Off"

2.07 billion views

 

4. "Mark Ronson feat. Bruno Mars - Uptown Funk"

2.37 billion views

 

3. "Justin Bieber - Sorry (PURPOSE : The Movement)"

2.43 billion views

 

2. "Wiz Khalifa - See You Again ft. Charlie Puth [Official Video] Furious 7 Soundtrack"

2.65 billion views

 

1. "PSY - GANGNAM STYLE(강남스타일) M/V"

2.82 billion views

If you watch them all, it's 41 minutes of musical entertainment. 

If that 41 minutes is watched by the 22.27 billion viewers, that's 913.07 billion hours of musical entertainment.

That's a lot.

On Playing Devil's Advocate

After the invasion of Cuba, now known as the CIA's 'Perfect Failure', President Kennedy asked his brother Robert to "argue majority opinions and consider every idea" because he wanted to make sure the advice he was receiving from the CIA and others was, without a doubt, the best and most accurate. 

Kennedy wanted his brother to play the "Devil's advocate" a practice which dates back to 1587 and Pope Sixtus V, and which is, at times, misunderstood for arguing. But as with President Kennedy and Pope Sixtus V, the purpose of playing devil's advocate isn't simply to dispute, but to find and promote truth.

When Pope Sixtus V instituted a new process for vetting candidates for sainthood in the Roman Catholic Church, he assigned a promotor fidei, or promoter of the faith, to appose canonization by critically evaluating the character of candidates and challenging claims of miracles they had performed. The promoter of the faith argued against the advocatus Dei, God's advocate, and became known as the devil's advocate (via).

The devil's advocate wasn't seen as an enemy or competition that needed to be overcome, they were an ally, and one who would promote the faith. They probably argued and fought and and got pretty emotion, but at the end of the day, they embraced, shared a beer, or laughed about old times because, at the end of it all, they, the devil's advocate and God's advocate, were on the same side, heading in the same direction and wanting the same thing: the promotion of the faith, and of Truth.

So they argued like they were right, and listened like they were wrong. 

 

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These numbers actually mean something . . . kind of.

One of my math professors at University once told my class he could tell us where we were all born, just by hearing their first three digits of their SSN. And then he did. It was pretty cool.

He then told us a story about how he had done the same thing years earlier and when he told one young lady she was from Florida, she argued. "No," she said, "I'm from New York."

"No," my professor argued back, "You're from Florida," and she argued back, insisting she was born and raised in New York.

Turns out she was from Florida because she was adopted and her parent's never told her.

Whether this story is true or not I don't know, but here's what I know is true: those seemingly random numbers mean something.

In 1935, following Social Security Act, the US government had to "devise a method for uniquely identifying the earnings records for the millions of persons covered by the new law." Because "Social Security and the benefit amount were to be determined from a person’s earnings over many years, a method was needed for maintaining permanent and accurate earnings records for each person."

The Social Security number (SSN) consists of nine digits divided into three parts, with each part usually separated by a hyphen:

xxx - xx - xxxx
Area number - Group number - Serial number

Until 1972, the urea number indicated the location (State, territory, or possession) of the Social Security office that issued the number. When the Social Security numbering system was developed, one or more area numbers were allocated to each State based on the anticipated number of issuances in the State. Because an individual could apply for an SSN at any Social Security office, the area code did not necessarily indicate where the person lived or worked. . . The area code now indicates the person’s State of residence as shown on the SSN application.

Area Number:

There are several exceptions to these rules. Before 1964, area numbers 700-728 were assigned by the Rail- road Retirement Board to workers covered by the Rail- road Retirement Act.’ Area number 586 is divided among American Samoa, Guam, the Philippines, and Americans employed abroad by American employers and, from 1975 to 1979, it was also used for Indochinese refugees. Area number 580 is assigned to persons applying in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
Virtually all railroad workers had been assigned SSN’s by 1964; therefore there no longer was a need to have a separate numbering system. 

 

Group Number:

The group number has no special geographic or data significance. It is used to break the numbers into blocks of convenient size for SSA’s processing operations and for controlling the assignments to the States.

 

Serial Number:

The last four digits, the serial number, represent a numerical series from 0001 to 9999 within each group. The order in which the SSN’s are issued is as follows: For each area number, the group number follows an odd and even sequence starting with odd numbers 01 to 09, even numbers 10 to 98, even numbers 02 to 08, and finally odd numbers 11 to 99. The serial number begins with 0001 and continues in sequence,2 except every fifth
For all practical purposes, the serial numbers are random. The use of numbers from the 2000 and 7000 series for every fifth issuance per- mits scientific sampling of workers and beneficiaries, For example, see Warren Buckler and Creston Smith, “The Continuous Work History Sample: Description and Contents,” Economic and Demographic Statistics: Selected Papers Given at the 1980 Annual Meeting of the American Statistical Association in Houston, Texas, November 1980.
SSN is given a serial number from the series 2001-2999 and 7001-7999. The last three serial numbers issued are 9998, 9999, and 7999. Serial number 0000 is never used. Each State goes through all of its area numbers with group number 01 and serial numbers 0001-9999 and 7999 before using group number 03. Thus, 989,901 SSN’s can be issued for each area number.
The g-digit number provides the capacity for assigning nearly 1 billion SSN’s. To date, approximately 277 million numbers have been issued, leaving about 75 percent still available. Only Florida has used up its original allotment. Several other States (Arizona, California, and Mississippi), and Puerto Rico are expected to exhaust their original allotment within the next 2 decades. Additional area numbers have been designated for these locations. About 5-7 million new numbers are issued each year, but even at this rate there will be sufficient numbers available for several generations to come (via).

 

I hope none of you just found out you were adopted. If so, blame my math professor. He started it.

 

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An Oxford Comma worth millions . . . or lack there of

The New York Times recently published an article, entitled, Lack of Oxford Comma Could Cost Maine Company Millions in Overtime Dispute, By DANIEL VICTOR, March 16, 2017.

It states that, "A class-action lawsuit about overtime pay for truck drivers hinged entirely on a debate that has bitterly divided friends, families and foes: The dreaded — or totally necessary — Oxford comma, perhaps the most polarizing of punctuation marks." 

. . .

In 2014, three truck drivers sued Oakhurst Dairy, seeking more than four years’ worth of overtime pay that they had been denied. Maine law requires workers to be paid 1.5 times their normal rate for each hour worked after 40 hours, but it carves out some exemptions.
A quick punctuation lesson before we proceed: In a list of three or more items — like “beans, potatoes and rice” — some people would put a comma after potatoes, and some would leave it out. A lot of people feel very, very strongly about it.
The debate over commas is often a pretty inconsequential one, but it was anything but for the truck drivers. Note the lack of Oxford comma — also known as the serial comma — in the following state law, which says overtime rules do not apply to:
The canning, processing, preserving, freezing, drying, marketing, storing, packing for shipment or distribution of:
(1) Agricultural produce;
(2) Meat and fish products; and
(3) Perishable foods.
Does the law intend to exempt the distribution of the three categories that follow, or does it mean to exempt packing for the shipping or distribution of them?
Delivery drivers distribute perishable foods, but they don’t pack the boxes themselves. Whether the drivers were subject to a law that had denied them thousands of dollars a year depended entirely on how the sentence was read.
If there were a comma after “shipment,” it might have been clear that the law exempted the distribution of perishable foods. But the appeals court on Monday sided with the drivers, saying the absence of a comma produced enough uncertainty to rule in their favor. It reversed a lower court decision.

. . .

The language in the law followed guidelines in the Maine Legislative Drafting Manual, which specifically instructs lawmakers to not use the Oxford comma. Don’t write “trailers, semitrailers, and pole trailers,” it says — instead, write “trailers, semitrailers and pole trailers.”
The manual does clarify that caution should be taken if an item in the series is modified. Commas, it notes, “are the most misused and misunderstood punctuation marks in legal drafting and, perhaps, the English language.”
“Use them thoughtfully and sparingly,” it cautions.

. . .

Varying interpretations of a comma in the Second Amendment have figured in court decisions on gun laws, including a Federal District Court overturning a Washington gun ordinance in 2007. (The Supreme Court later overturned the law in the case known as District of Columbia v. Heller.)
Most American news organizations tend to leave the Oxford comma out while allowing for exceptions to avoid confusion, like in the sentence: “I’d like to thank my parents, Mother Teresa and the pope.”
Reporters, editors and producers at The New York Times usually omit the comma, but Phil Corbett, who oversees language issues for the newsroom, wrote in a 2015 blog post that exceptions are sometimes made:
“We do use the additional comma in cases where a sentence would be awkward or confusing without it: Choices for breakfast included oatmeal, muffins, and bacon and eggs.”
The Associated Press, considered the authority for most American newsrooms, also generally comes out against the Oxford comma.
But the comma is common in book and academic publishing. The Chicago Manual of Style uses it, as does Oxford University Press style. “The last comma can serve to resolve ambiguity,” it says.
A 2014 survey of 1,129 Americans by FiveThirtyEight and SurveyMonkey Audience found 57 percent in favor of the comma and 43 percent opposed.
Mr. Webbert, who said working on the case recalled his boyhood grammar and Latin lessons, scoffed at the idea that he was representing all those in favor of the Oxford comma. He was only representing the truck drivers, he said.
The drivers, who earned between $46,800 and $52,000 per year without overtime, worked an average of 12 extra hours a week, Mr. Webbert said. Though three drivers filed the class-action lawsuit in 2014, about 75 will share the money.
Oakhurst, a longtime family business that was acquired by Dairy Farmers of America in 2014, employs about 200 people and has annual sales of $110 million, selling dairy products throughout New England, according to its website.
Its president, John H. Bennett, said in an interview on Thursday that “our management team values our employees and we take employee compensation seriously.”
“We believe we’re in compliance with state and federal wage laws, and we’ll continue to defend ourselves in this matter,” he said.
Mr. Webbert declined to take a personal position on the broader debate of using the Oxford comma. But he sounded like a lot of English teachers and writing coaches who offered an alternative suggestion: If there’s any doubt, tear up what you wrote and start over.
“In this situation, it did create an ambiguity, which means you have to either add a comma or rewrite the sentence,” he said.

I'm an oxford man myself, and a avid supporter of the middle class worker being paid for his work. 

This, for me, is a win-win-win. It was entertaining, supportive of my views, and helpful to the working class (see what I did there?). 

 

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-N- Stuff 

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Ken Robinson : Do Schools Kill Creativity?

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Great watch, whether you're an educator or not, because his thoughts on creativity and intelligence apply to us all. Plus, he's just truly entertaining.

I love his thoughts on intelligence, that it is "is dynamic and wonderfully interactive." And that it's diverse, dynamic, and distinct. 

Creativity, he says, "is having original ideas that have value."

Sir Ken has also published, "The Element: How Finding your Passion Changes Everything."

 

 

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-N- Stuff  :  TED talks  :  Inspiration

 

Russia's history is more complex than we know

In the past two days I've listened to two podcasts, somewhat unconsciously. That is, I unconsciously chose them, not unconsciously listened to them, because that would be reckless. 

Both podcasts, one from Stuff You Missed in History Class and the other from This American Life told stories with Russia as their focus. One podcast entitled, "The Other Mr. President" fit my ideas and understandings of Russia perfectly, and also injected a whole lot of steroids into my stereotypes of a scary, harsh country - Vladimir Putin's rise to power is a CRAZY STORY!!! 

The other injected life into their bigger picture. Entitled "Three Nuclear Close Calls" this podcast told of three different stories where Russian generals, single handedly, prevented all out war against the US and saved thousands of lives. And they did so in almost direct opposition to their superiors. These are even CRAZIER stories!!! 

There's a couple films about on one of the men, Stanislav Yevgrafovich Petrov. 

Here's the latest one.

Portrait Photography : Martin Schoeller

I first came across portrait artist Martin Schoeller when he published his "Faces of America," and I've since seen him pop up in various places. 

What I love about his work is that, as he says on his About page, the people he is photographing "are treated with the same levels of scrutiny as the un-famous. The unknown and the too-well-known meet on a level platform that enables comparison, where a viewer’s existing notions of celebrity, value, and honesty are challenged." 

And I just love that.

You can see more of his work on identical twins, close ups of famous people who are still on the same level as the rest of us, female bodybuilders, and portraits.

"Schoeller’s close-up portraits emphasize, in equal measure, the facial features, both studied and unstudied, of his subjects— world leaders and indigenous groups, movie stars and the homeless, athletes and artists— leveling them in an inherently democratic fashion" (via).