Nobody cares how you pronounce Ubuntu.
February 18, 2008 – 5:37 pmThis semester is defined by waiting. Waiting on grad schools, waiting to hear if my abstract was accepted … it’s getting old.
Marylin Manson performed last weekend in Salt Lake City. Not that this is at all surprising or novel, but he burned a Bible and Book of Mormon on stage. Let me say this: I disapprove of the burning of any book ever written to make a statement against its contents. Burning a Bible to make a statement against Christianity would be like burning Das Kapital to condemn Marxism. The only difference is the former is more likely be considered free speech (which it is), while the latter would be considered a fascist action.
Books, whatever they are, are sources of ideas. Burning them is a simple way of condemning their contents violently, while avoiding confronting them with logic and persuasion. Be a champ. Don’t burn books.
I’m done with today’s dose of moralistic indignation. I just turned in an abstract the the University of Utah linguistics department student conference. It’s amazing how long a 500-word summary of your experiment can take to complete. It underwent more revisions than I can remember, and it’s still far from perfect. I’m posting it in the new documents section of this website for anyone to read. Feel free to comment, though keep in mind that it won’t mean anything now that I’ve submitted it. Also, if anyone is interested in participating in my experiment follow-up (and haven’t already), follow this link and click on ’sign up for experiments.” I need people.
3 Responses to “Nobody cares how you pronounce Ubuntu.”
MM burned a Bible, and a BoM - after this many years you would think he’d come up with something new… Sorry, but juvenile outbursts, are just so damn… juvenile.
My kingdom for a good delta blues bar.
J.
By J. on Feb 20, 2008
J - I assume you mean a good delta blues bar in Salt Lake City. Great idea - how big is your kingdom? Perhaps you could start one. There are plenty of empty buildings which defunct clubs used to fill. Then you would only have to find some local delta blues talent to fill the club when the talent from out-of-state wasn’t here. (Is there any local delta blues talent?) My only other question: would the experience be the same without the smoky ambience? I just can’t imagine it without blue-smoke filled semi-darkness and a lone spotlight on the crummy little stage.
By Lon on Feb 21, 2008
Lon - having spent some years in the deep south (Georgia, Arkansas, Low-Country South Carolina, Mississippi) I regret to say that outside of a few places in Harlem and some less than reputable establishments in Chicago - good blues doesn’t exist north of the Mason-Dixon line, except when Buddy Guy plays the House of Blues. Even then nothing beats someone who learned the blues, playing a guitar whose strings were made of bailing twine. It just doesn’t work any other way.
Otherwise it is a brilliant idea!
J.
By J. on Feb 22, 2008