Net-Neutrality

Money, money, money! There’s a whole lot of talk about money these days. With new media burning on the tongues of the in-the-knows, would-be entrepreneurs are scratching their heads on how to extract green bills from the honey of the rapid advancement of technology. With [post-] postmodern day society on the threshold of the digital age, and analysts and critics discussing the forecast of a paradigm shift just ahead, which Fast Company Editor Daniel H. Pink is referring to as the new “Conceptual Age,” every one seems to be clamoring to ignite the engine of the new frontier in conceptualizing a business model designed for the future. This is what’s probably keeping the folks over at company giants such as AT&T, Comcast, and Verizon up at night, as they’ve spent obscene amounts lobbying and campaigning against Net Neutrality. This, my friends, is their lottery ticket into the unknown, and as such, profit over public interest marches on to the future, unless we take action.


we are the web

So, what on earth am I talking about? And why does this concern you? Actually, in all honestly, I’m new to this hot debate as well. As I’ve been too preoccupied on school projects and surfing the web for my own personal interests, I’ve completely neglected myself from pressing matters that could ultimately effect how I feed my virtual needs. This, of course, perked my ears as should those King Kongs get their way, they’ll be getting their bananas, and our voices and choices would be stifled yet again.

The jist on Network Neutrality and why it should behoove web surfers in becoming more aware of the subject matter is that right now, our freedom of online choice is in jeopardy. Even though the term Net Neutrality has just been recently coined, the principle has been around since the conception of the Internet with the underlining tenet of maximum user control and choice. The non-discrimination provisions, similar to Net Neutrality, has governed our nation’s communications networks since the 1930s, and it’s what the inventors of the World Wide Web, Vinton Cerf and Sir Tim Berners-Lee had envisioned and intended for Net Neutrality to be about - equal access to all content, and sites online. This means you can go here and there and everywhere without running into signs that say ‘No. Don’t Touch.’ Do you remember when you were a wee-of-a-toddler, and you kept getting slapped on the hand for disobeying your parents’ demands on keeping your paws off the china or the television set? It wasn’t so fun for your young and curious mind was it? It’s pretty much the same thing.

As how censorship and capitalism goes, the giants of the telecom industry foresee the future of the Internet with dollar signs and control. Meaning, they want to puppeteer your consumption choices by determining which sites you can access faster, and which you will access slower, if even at all. They want to discriminate against your wishes based on their own search engines or their own business interest, and block out competitors.

It would also be wise to be aware of what AT&T and others of similar interest alike have been up to in misinforming the public of their plans and doings. They’ve funded a behemoth misinformation campaign, which is, needless to say, full of misleading or deceptive advertising. This includes “Astroturf” groups like Hands off the Internet and NetCompetition.org.

So, by all means, if you want to preserve your voice and your choices, please take a moment of your time and read up on this debate and take action. As without Net Neutrality, our consumption will no longer be according to how and what we consume but rather curtailed to what these titans dictate.

For a brief overview, take a look at this:


Then follow one of the links below for more info:

Straight Talk on Net Neutrality
Free Press Fact vs. Fiction
PBS: Net Neutrality

Food For Thought

"Every moment is a golden one for him who has the vision to recognize it as such. "
- Henry Miller

Recipe for Reflection:

1 lb. of experience
1 cup of full-bodied wine
3 tbs. of buttery desire
½ cup of enthusiasm
½ cup of diced thoughts
1 tbs. of organic sweetness
1 oz. of bitters
1 pinch of human connection

Garnish (Suggested but Optional)
Strips of humor

First you’ll want dice up a half a cup of thoughts and put it aside. Then take your organic sweetness and pour it in with the bitters. Let the mixture sit while you dice up a half a cup of thoughts. Take a big, deep bowl, as you want to make sure that you don’t spill a drop during the process of preparation, and combine 2 tablespoons of your buttery desire, and your cup of full-bodied wine, and stir until you get a nice smooth consistency of both ingredients. While stirring slowly, pour in your sweet and bitter concoction making sure to add in a little at a time.

Next, take your pound of experience and brush both sides evenly with your remaining buttery desire. After that, you are ready to layer your diced thoughts on top of your experience. Take your bowl of mixture and slowly pour over the layers of thoughts, making sure that the mix seeps into every part of the surface. Let it sit and marinade until your dish is tender. Then throw it into the fire and let the heat work its magic! Keep a close eye on your dish, and after some time and poke at it to gage its tenderness. My suggestion is to take a piece and let your senses be the judge.

Once ready, pick a platter which best highlights your dish, and garnish accordingly to your preference. With a pinch of human connection your dish is ready to be savored and served. This can be easily shared and relished with another. However, if you prefer to consume the pleasure of your creation all by yourself, just make sure you that you enjoy it to the last bite. Bon Appetit!

I’m always searching for ways to improve this recipe, so any ingredient suggestions would be much welcomed. Also, if you have a recipe you’d like to share, please don’t hesitate to do so.



Disclaimer: As I am not one to endorse particular brands, choose your ingredients' brand of choice accordingly to your will. The recipe outlined above is merely the basic suggestion for reflection, which follows the limits of a Healthy State of Being Guide. Should you be prone to tendencies which borders over-consumption, which I myself am often guilt of, please be mindful of your own limitations. It has been to my experience that too much of what could be a good thing can lead to brain flatulence, over-consumption coma, and other consequences that may interrupt your habits of routine.

Flow: Being In The Moment

"When I'm performing, I don't know where I am . . . it's about being there in the moment." - Joe Orrach

The state of flow has been a pre-occupation of mine for some time now. I would often find myself entranced, in the midst of engaging conversations, after a lapse of time working on a project, and simply, moments in which my sole focus and energy exist without the constricts of time, the surrounding environment faded off somewhere in the backdrop. It was a process that always fascinated me, but could never quite grasp.

Mentioning this to a few friends of mine, and describing it to the best of my ability, half of them only stared back as if I’ve just spoken to them in a foreign language - complete gibberish. The other half intrigued, but nonetheless, indifferent. Frustrated by this, I sought out a personal project. In striving to understand this state of flow and develop it further, I immersed myself in reading material on the subject of autotelism. I observed my surroundings, I listened carefully, I watched my thoughts, and I waited patiently. Waited for what? At the time, I couldn’t name it other than a desire springing forth from deep within me. But nonetheless, I waited silently.

Sometime two weeks back, I was enveloped by an unexpected occasion during a field production. In the midst of shooting an interview, as our sound designers were working out some techno-kinks, I began conversing with our interviewee, Joe Orrach , about passion, and being in the moment. That moment, in itself, became an extraordinary friction and flow of energies. I watched a flickering flame turn into a fire - enraptured by passion itself. The room vibrated with magic. And in that time, from the peripheral scope of my vision, I watched our photographer set his camera down, our videographer viewing intently through his lens, and other crew members drink in the moment. It was a soulful communication regardless of profession. It became apparent, that we were not just there to work on a project, but rather we were all there to experience the heat of an autotelic state: a magical unison of subject, story, and storytellers.

I don’t know if I can properly define what flow is, although I’ve gained a keener sense for it. To my understanding, flow is a progression of creation, an arrest of heart and desire to exist without reason. In looking back, the passion for storytelling weaved us all together at that small fraction of time, and I think we all walked away inspired. In the words of Joe, “it’s from my center, my groin, my heart.”

Photo Credit: Rai Popquiz, Shot On Location.

Marcel,

It’s been ages since I last visited. You know as well as I do that life could come at you like a speeding bullet train without warning. So, I hope you do not mistake my absence as abandonment, as such is far from the case. Rather, bouts of melancholia persist to invade my peace of mind. Perhaps, this is one of the main reasons as to why I’ve turned to other men who could somehow aid in shedding light into the state of mind I’ve been in, this infection which claims hours of my time. Do not be angry with me.

However, you’ll be happy to hear that I’ve managed to revisit your infamous questionnaire. Thus, I’ve enclosed a copy for your own amusement. For future reference, do not be surprised if you receive more questionnaires from others, as I have forwarded them to colleagues of mine. Be rest assured that I will find my way back to Swann’s Way, and perhaps we can spend a year together In Search of Lost Time.

Warmest wishes,
Sharon

Ps. should you decide to send me a letter, please forward your post to my current residence: tranceofcircumstance.blogspot.com

(Edit: Questionnaire Image currently misplaced. Will relink tonight)

Marcel,

It’s been ages since I last visited. You know as well as I do that life could come at you like a speeding bullet train without warning. So, I hope you do not mistake my absence as abandonment, as such is far from the case. Rather, bouts of melancholia persist to invade my peace of mind. Perhaps, this is one of the main reasons as to why I’ve turned to other men who could somehow aid in shedding light into the state of mind I’ve been in, this infection which claims hours of my time. Do not be angry with me.

However, you’ll be happy to hear that I’ve managed to revisit your infamous questionnaire. Thus, I’ve enclosed a copy for your own amusement. For future reference, do not be surprised if you receive more questionnaires from others, as I have forwarded them to colleagues of mine. Be rest assured that I will find my way back to Swann’s Way, and perhaps we can spend a year together In Search of Lost Time.

Warmest wishes,
Sharon

Ps. should you decide to send me a letter, please forward your post to my current residence: tranceofcircumstance.blogspot.com

Every so often, when faced with a writing journey ahead, I turn to Billy Collins. Daunted by the task, I look to him as I stumble with my words and some find comfort in his "Winter Syntax.” Introduced to me by a mutual friend, Karl, Billy has over the years become a close friend of mine. Yet Karl, a poet in his own right, is who I think of today. Questions flood my thoughts of him - the usual roundabout of how he is, what he’s doing now, if he still finds time to write, and if he has finally tramped his way down to South America; maybe even the tip of Patagonia.
Nostalgia floods me as I sit here with Billy perched on the corner of the coffee table, and Patti Smith howling around the room. I try to recapture the faded memories of summer afternoons, driving along the coast, purposely getting lost in the winding canyons of Malibu, and eventually finding ourselves looking out the Pacific Ocean, feet buried in the ground. No matter how desperately I try to recall sentences we exchanged, all I can come up with are the blurry lines of thought and subjects; a broad range of topics that inevitably turned a casual friendship into a bond of kindred spirits. How many other kindred spirits have come and gone? Many it seems, as I flip through the scrapbook pages of my mind. Some faces etched more pronouncedly than others, some whose names I never found out. Nevertheless, the warmth of their memory blankets around me. They all individually, and collectively have helped shape who I am today, and who I will become tomorrow.

Afterthought: When I get silly, I sometimes questions as to whether or not I'm in the right place. Yet, moments like these, I think of my BECA community, and I know exactly that this is where I need to be. Isn’t this why we tell stories? To document our encounters, our experiences, our voices, which somehow, in the grand scheme of things, becomes a mighty chorus of the human spirit.

FLUX WITH ME

Ideas are born out of circumstances; moments that cannot be simply defined nor be fully expressed through sheer language and symbols.

Inspired by the fluxus state of being, this blog project is conceived by a mixture of interests which I hope to further explore this upcoming semester. Part experiment, part amusement, part curiosity, it serves to be a stomping ground for BECA students, and other creative minds alike, to share and to explore inspirations, musings and reflections. From lyrical mediums composed by structures of sentences, shapes, musical notes, let us all spontaneously collide ideas!

In essence, by allowing sparks of creative association to flow, this is a place where (I hope) we can all get to know each other a bit better on various levels (be it whimsical, serious, sentimental, etc. ). Free associate! Express! Inspire and be inspired. (Image: by me)