The Huffington Post has a blog by Sophia Jones, “’SNL’ Has Nothing On the Way The Middle East Mocks ISIS”. See http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/03/03/mocking-islamic-state_n_6790254.html. Many of the YouTube videos use the music from ISIS videos to mock ISIS.
Oh, yes, many are not anonymous. The poster’s name and picture accompany the YouTube snippet.
See also “Muslims do speak out. Are you listening?”
Showing posts with label murder. Show all posts
Showing posts with label murder. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 03, 2015
Wednesday, January 07, 2015
Wednesday, May 07, 2014
Shoot first, then call cops?
The latest incident of gun owners taking the law into their own hands happened in Missoula, Montana. A German exchange student was killed because he foolishly tried on a lark to snitch something from a garage. See “An Open Garage, a Dead Exchange Student and a New Debate on Self-Defense”, Jack Healy, New York Times, 2014-05-07
What is is about some gun-owners that they follow the supposed credo of the 20th Century Westerns to shoot first, ask questions second?
The most egregious killing was by Byron David Smith of Little Falls, Minnesota. He not only shot teen-age, unarmed invaders multiple times, but he waited three days before calling the police. He didn’t want to bother them on Thanksgiving!!! See “Bryon David Smith killings”. Smith was sentenced to life without parole.
Yoshihiro Hattori, killed in Baton Rouge in 1992 for going to the wrong house, didn’t receive similar justice. His killer, Rodney Peairs, was acquitted. He admitted at trial that he didn’t call the police first. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Yoshihiro_Hattori. His parents did receive a cash settlement that they used for funds for high school students to visit Japan and for gun control. Peairs had said that he would never own a gun again.
This same Wikipedia article has a couple other cases of foreign visitors being killed by guns, including one who knocked on a door to ask for directions.
Maybe it was the movie Westerns of the 20th Century that fostered this cult of “self-defense”. See “How the Gunfighter Killed Bourgeois America”, Ryan McMaken.
What is is about some gun-owners that they follow the supposed credo of the 20th Century Westerns to shoot first, ask questions second?
The most egregious killing was by Byron David Smith of Little Falls, Minnesota. He not only shot teen-age, unarmed invaders multiple times, but he waited three days before calling the police. He didn’t want to bother them on Thanksgiving!!! See “Bryon David Smith killings”. Smith was sentenced to life without parole.
Yoshihiro Hattori, killed in Baton Rouge in 1992 for going to the wrong house, didn’t receive similar justice. His killer, Rodney Peairs, was acquitted. He admitted at trial that he didn’t call the police first. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Yoshihiro_Hattori. His parents did receive a cash settlement that they used for funds for high school students to visit Japan and for gun control. Peairs had said that he would never own a gun again.
This same Wikipedia article has a couple other cases of foreign visitors being killed by guns, including one who knocked on a door to ask for directions.
Maybe it was the movie Westerns of the 20th Century that fostered this cult of “self-defense”. See “How the Gunfighter Killed Bourgeois America”, Ryan McMaken.
Thursday, March 20, 2014
Memorable Shakespeare
A comic’s picture appears every week in the Budgeteer. He has a silly hat and a silly expression. How does such a comic turn into evil incarnate? Brian Matuszak did it brilliantly in the Wise Fool Shakespeare production of Macbeth.
Matuszak portrayed Macbeth as moving from a loyal officer of the king to a wavering assassin to an indiscriminate killer, always torn between ambition and distrust of all who might stand in his way. Given that the costumes were of 1930s Chicago, I found it easy to compare Matuszak’s Macbeth to an ambitious but incompetent CEO. Rather than look at his own mismanagement he fires anyone who proposes contrary suggestions.
I was almost ready to walk out after the first act because the manic actions of Matuszak as Macbeth were almost unbearable. Fortunately, I knew the outcome and stayed to be mesmerized by the slow but inevitable approach of Macbeth’s doom. Matuszak brilliantly showed Macbeth’s rising fears with much pacing, quavering hands, and doubting “inner” voices.
I have been mesmerized by Shakespeare’s plays since at least the ninth grade in the Cleveland Public Schools. I think we read “As You Like It” in the ninth grade. I know we read “Julius Caesar” in the tenth grade and both “Macbeth” and “Hamlet” in the twelfth grade. I had the same English teacher, Miss Palmer, for the last three plays.
I hated the memorization parts but I liked the reading approach. We first read an act a day as homework and then reread the play a few scenes at a time. We would also read passages aloud in class.
I’ll never forget the Hi BA’er (High School Born Again’er) who refused to read Lady Macbeth’s “Out, damned spot!” I don’t know why it didn’t bother him to read the words of a murderer but it did to read that one curse word! Miss Palmer had to recite those words so he would continue.
About fifty years ago I ordered the Yale University collection of Shakespeare from the Book of the Month Club. When I received it, I discovered that the cover of the Sonnets was upside down. Or was the text upside down? I sent that book back with a sonnet. I got a “proper” copy back but no acknowledgment of my writing “skill” and I didn’t keep a copy of my sonnet.
I have yet to read all the plays, but every so often I pick out one from the long faded row and read one I haven’t read before or reread one.
Where has the space gone? I got so carried away with the above that I’ve used up half my space already. I’ll have to dash through some of my other Shakespeare experiences.
I’m sure I’ve seen several stage productions of Shakespeare’s plays, but a few stand out. We saw “The Tempest” at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis and more. We had season tickets and the Guthrie generally did one Shakespeare play every season.
One of the most interesting settings was “Much Ado about Nothing” on the shore of Lake Harriet in Minneapolis. The actors had to contend with the jets flying overhead.
The movie versions have stuck better in my memory.
One of the first is Roman Polanski’s “Macbeth”, which was financed by Playboy. I’ll let you look for more of the details in Wikipedia. Besides the nudity and violence, the scene that I remember best is Macbeth placing his feet in the deep-set footprints in a coronation stone.
I remember three movie versions of “Hamlet”, Laurence Olivier, 1948, Mel Gibson, 1990, and Kenneth Branagh, 1996. The difference that struck me was that Olivier was declaiming on stage and Gibson and Branagh were acting in elaborate movie sets. (Matuszak was acting on a very plain stage.)
Franco Zefferelli directed a very good version of “Romeo and Juliet” in 1968.
I remember seeing a black and white version of “Merchant of Venice”, but I don’t remember when or by whom. While looking up “Merchant of Venice”, I did find a Wikipedia entry for Lois Weber, an actress, screenwriter, producer, and director. Reading that entry was a fascinating diversion.
When the Plaza Mr. Movies closed, I bought a copy of Kenneth Branagh’s “As You Like It”. Bryce Dallas Howard plays a very perky and likable Rosalind. Her delivery of “I will marry no woman” has really stuck in my mind. I should watch it again one of these years.
How many operas have been based on Shakespeare? “Othello”, “Macbeth”, “Falstaff”, “Romeo and Juliet”, “Merry Wives of Windsor”, “Antony and Cleopatra”, and on and on. They have been in English, Italian, French, Russian, German, and probably more.
Then there are the spinoffs on stage and film.
“Kiss me, Kate” is a play within a play; the actors playing out the story of “The Taming of the Shrew” on stage and in “real” life.
Leonard Bernstein’s “West Side Story” is a retelling of “Romeo and Juliet”. At least in this version “Juliet” walked off after the death of “Romeo” rather than kill herself.
Akira Kurusawa’s “Ran” is a retelling of “King Lear” in a Japanese setting. It is a good telling of good intentions going very badly.
“All the world is a stage” and Shakespeare appears in all the world!
This was also printed in the Reader Weekly, 2014-03-20 at
http://duluthreader.com/articles/2014/03/20/3096_memorable_shakespeare
Matuszak portrayed Macbeth as moving from a loyal officer of the king to a wavering assassin to an indiscriminate killer, always torn between ambition and distrust of all who might stand in his way. Given that the costumes were of 1930s Chicago, I found it easy to compare Matuszak’s Macbeth to an ambitious but incompetent CEO. Rather than look at his own mismanagement he fires anyone who proposes contrary suggestions.
I was almost ready to walk out after the first act because the manic actions of Matuszak as Macbeth were almost unbearable. Fortunately, I knew the outcome and stayed to be mesmerized by the slow but inevitable approach of Macbeth’s doom. Matuszak brilliantly showed Macbeth’s rising fears with much pacing, quavering hands, and doubting “inner” voices.
I have been mesmerized by Shakespeare’s plays since at least the ninth grade in the Cleveland Public Schools. I think we read “As You Like It” in the ninth grade. I know we read “Julius Caesar” in the tenth grade and both “Macbeth” and “Hamlet” in the twelfth grade. I had the same English teacher, Miss Palmer, for the last three plays.
I hated the memorization parts but I liked the reading approach. We first read an act a day as homework and then reread the play a few scenes at a time. We would also read passages aloud in class.
I’ll never forget the Hi BA’er (High School Born Again’er) who refused to read Lady Macbeth’s “Out, damned spot!” I don’t know why it didn’t bother him to read the words of a murderer but it did to read that one curse word! Miss Palmer had to recite those words so he would continue.
About fifty years ago I ordered the Yale University collection of Shakespeare from the Book of the Month Club. When I received it, I discovered that the cover of the Sonnets was upside down. Or was the text upside down? I sent that book back with a sonnet. I got a “proper” copy back but no acknowledgment of my writing “skill” and I didn’t keep a copy of my sonnet.
I have yet to read all the plays, but every so often I pick out one from the long faded row and read one I haven’t read before or reread one.
Where has the space gone? I got so carried away with the above that I’ve used up half my space already. I’ll have to dash through some of my other Shakespeare experiences.
I’m sure I’ve seen several stage productions of Shakespeare’s plays, but a few stand out. We saw “The Tempest” at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis and more. We had season tickets and the Guthrie generally did one Shakespeare play every season.
One of the most interesting settings was “Much Ado about Nothing” on the shore of Lake Harriet in Minneapolis. The actors had to contend with the jets flying overhead.
The movie versions have stuck better in my memory.
One of the first is Roman Polanski’s “Macbeth”, which was financed by Playboy. I’ll let you look for more of the details in Wikipedia. Besides the nudity and violence, the scene that I remember best is Macbeth placing his feet in the deep-set footprints in a coronation stone.
I remember three movie versions of “Hamlet”, Laurence Olivier, 1948, Mel Gibson, 1990, and Kenneth Branagh, 1996. The difference that struck me was that Olivier was declaiming on stage and Gibson and Branagh were acting in elaborate movie sets. (Matuszak was acting on a very plain stage.)
Franco Zefferelli directed a very good version of “Romeo and Juliet” in 1968.
I remember seeing a black and white version of “Merchant of Venice”, but I don’t remember when or by whom. While looking up “Merchant of Venice”, I did find a Wikipedia entry for Lois Weber, an actress, screenwriter, producer, and director. Reading that entry was a fascinating diversion.
When the Plaza Mr. Movies closed, I bought a copy of Kenneth Branagh’s “As You Like It”. Bryce Dallas Howard plays a very perky and likable Rosalind. Her delivery of “I will marry no woman” has really stuck in my mind. I should watch it again one of these years.
How many operas have been based on Shakespeare? “Othello”, “Macbeth”, “Falstaff”, “Romeo and Juliet”, “Merry Wives of Windsor”, “Antony and Cleopatra”, and on and on. They have been in English, Italian, French, Russian, German, and probably more.
Then there are the spinoffs on stage and film.
“Kiss me, Kate” is a play within a play; the actors playing out the story of “The Taming of the Shrew” on stage and in “real” life.
Leonard Bernstein’s “West Side Story” is a retelling of “Romeo and Juliet”. At least in this version “Juliet” walked off after the death of “Romeo” rather than kill herself.
Akira Kurusawa’s “Ran” is a retelling of “King Lear” in a Japanese setting. It is a good telling of good intentions going very badly.
“All the world is a stage” and Shakespeare appears in all the world!
This was also printed in the Reader Weekly, 2014-03-20 at
http://duluthreader.com/articles/2014/03/20/3096_memorable_shakespeare
Friday, February 22, 2013
Solitary Confinement - George Will a Liberal?
I often disagree with George Will, but he generally shows a reasonableness in his writing and doesn't take an automatic dogmatic position on many issues. He did so with his column "The Torture of Solitary Confinement", Washington Post, 2013-02-20 and republished in today's Star Tribune.
Will points out how psychologically damaging solitary confinement can be. Ironically, it was the Quakers who were influential in creating solitary confinement as a way to help prisoners gain some penance (thus, penitentiary). The colloquial "pen" wound up being more descriptive. Will also compares the three known water boarding cases to the tens of thousands who are put in solitary confinement.
I used to think that the conclusion of "El Secreto de sus Ojos (The Secret in Their Eyes)" was quite appropriate for the crime. Now I have second thoughts, especially considering the number of people sentenced for crimes they did not commit.
Will points out how psychologically damaging solitary confinement can be. Ironically, it was the Quakers who were influential in creating solitary confinement as a way to help prisoners gain some penance (thus, penitentiary). The colloquial "pen" wound up being more descriptive. Will also compares the three known water boarding cases to the tens of thousands who are put in solitary confinement.
I used to think that the conclusion of "El Secreto de sus Ojos (The Secret in Their Eyes)" was quite appropriate for the crime. Now I have second thoughts, especially considering the number of people sentenced for crimes they did not commit.
Monday, March 12, 2012
Afghanistan - Cycle of violence continues
When you reach the end of this entry, you may feel that I could have written more. I agree, but I felt that anything more would dilute the message.
A single U.S. soldier goes on a rampage in Afghanistan killing 16 civilians. The Taliban vows to avenge the killings. When the Taliban attacks the U.S. military, more Afghanis will be killed. The the Taliban seeks vengeance again, and more Afghanis will be killed. Each act of violence by one side increases the resolve of the other side to continue the fight. And on and on it goes.
In the land of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, everybody becomes blind and toothless.
A better strategy to get the U.S. out of Afghanistan would for Afghanis to drop off single flowers at every U.S. base in Afghanistan and simply say, "Please go home." Every time an Afghani sees a U.S. soldier, he or she should say, "Please go home."
A single U.S. soldier goes on a rampage in Afghanistan killing 16 civilians. The Taliban vows to avenge the killings. When the Taliban attacks the U.S. military, more Afghanis will be killed. The the Taliban seeks vengeance again, and more Afghanis will be killed. Each act of violence by one side increases the resolve of the other side to continue the fight. And on and on it goes.
In the land of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, everybody becomes blind and toothless.
A better strategy to get the U.S. out of Afghanistan would for Afghanis to drop off single flowers at every U.S. base in Afghanistan and simply say, "Please go home." Every time an Afghani sees a U.S. soldier, he or she should say, "Please go home."
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