Moveon.org--A Bunch of Crazies?

The biggest thing that struck me as I was doing the assigned readings was how completely reasonable and inspiring MoveOn.org appeared. Although I'm a conservative, I thought that the leadership of MoveOn.org (and specifically Tom Matzzie, Wes Boyd, and Eli Pariser) was portrayed as very thoughtful and well-intentioned.

So, I was thinking, why did I think of MoveOn.org as such a bunch of crazies? Somehow, that is the way they have been portrayed in the media.

Basically, the only thing I used to think of when I think of MoveOn.org is the General Betray Us ad.

Oh and hey look--Stephen Colbert interviewed Eli Pariser almost 2 years ago (gosh! I love Colbert!). The interview is in three parts so make sure you click on them all. ONE TWO THREE

So, the book has given me newfound respect for MoveOn.org. I feel bad that I discounted them without actually listening to what their leaders had to say. Although I'm not about to sign up to be on the email list (I'm still a conservative, after all), maybe they aren't the crackpots they were made out to be.

Maybe the democratic nature of MoveOn.org is the reason it has a slightly crazy image. I mean, how about that guy Chuck Fazio who seemed (at least to me) to have very poorly constructed arguments? MoveOn.org leaders have admitted that their biggest challenge is to move members beyond a general hate for Bush and toward something more constructive and positive (like what they actually stand for).

Regardless of whether MoveOn.org is crazy or just has that image (for some people), you can't deny that it has had a great amount of success because it utilized new technologies and tapped into an effective medium for our society. And that is, after all, the point.

Our New News Source

The New York Times had an article this morning about how young people are becoming more active in politics (voting, campaigning, etc.), but how they are doing it on their own terms--via media like facebook and YouTube as opposed to traditional CNN broadcasts or newspapers (notice they mentioned the Washington Post as the outdated new medium and not the NYT--that was funny).

I really thought this article rang true. A lot of times when "old school" media try to comment on what "kids these days" are doing, it sounds kind of out of touch. But I felt this article was an apt description of how I get my media (except I do start each day with a hard copy of the New York Times and Sundays with the Washington Post too). I read blogs which link to other stories and include both images and video clips. I also get my news from The Daily Show and The Colbert Report, which they mention in the article as well. (The only difference is that I watch the shows online--I can't seem to fit the actual television version into my schedule.)

One girl is quoted as saying, 'If the news is that important, it will find me.' That flies in the face of previous generations scouring the newspapers for the pertinent stories and maybe it's not the most effective way to ensure I'm getting the news I need, but that's the way I feel. I guess I'm very much a part of my generation and culture. I have embraced all these new news sources.

Too Much Information

For everyone out there who either:

a) enjoys solid funny writing

OR

b) is interested in the effect of the media on its listeners

I would highly recommend an article in yesterday's Washington Post Magazine called "Cruel and Usual Punishment". It's by Gene Weingarten who is a very good writer and, I think, an American Studies student at heart. (He also wrote this article which is one of my favorites in the whole world and this one which is actually applicable.)

Anyway, I thought the article sort of ties in with our class because it speaks to the way that too much media (in this case punditry) actually detracts from the quality of the media and makes the public immune to it.

I think that this phenomenon occurs a lot when it comes to blogs and other easy-to-create online media. There are so many blogs out there that it is hard for one to become super popular. A lot of times a blog will have a specific readership that it is going for. So blog readers can be spread thin over many different blogs. And the poorly done blogs often disillusion internet-goers from picking random blogs to follow without any credentials. The overwhelming noise of blog chatter can be a big turnoff so that no one really cares anymore.

It seems today to be a problem with too much information...

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Check Your Time

What is most important to me:
faith
family
friends
education

Within a week, I probably allot my hours thus:
faith--7 hours
family--30 hours
friends--10 hours
education--45 hours

I was really proud as I completed this activity because I discovered that I basically do practice what I preach (though I could put in a few more hours when it comes to faith). I think that meaning does not necessarily have to change what we do, but it does change the motivation behind it (thereby giving it meaning). So, two people could do the exact same things and one could find meanings within her life that coincide with her value and the other person might not. So, while I'm driving to and from work (and that takes up a great deal of my life), I'm finding meaning in the traffic jams and hours of listening to talk radio. Those hours in the car are steps toward accomplishing my educational and vocational goals. Because I realize this, I'm able to go through more difficult times knowing that they will only make me a better me.

Follow the Links

I began at Alabama.gov, a website found for me by U Roulette. I clicked on the education link, and learned that Helen Keller was from Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Within a few clicks, I was at the official website for Faulkner University, a Christian university in Montgomery, Alabama. From there, I began reading about Faulkner’s Master of Liberal Arts Degree which attempts to teach liberal arts by in-depth discussion of “Great Books”. There I hit a dead end.
Next, I began at the Stanley Kubrick Collection Official Authorized site, which I also found through U Roulette. I clicked on the Eyes Wide Shut link and was shown clips from the flim. Although there were no further links, I decided to type Eyes Wide Shut into Wikipedia and see what popped up. From there, I clicked on the link to Sydney Pollack, who played Victor Ziegler in the film. From Sydney Pollack, I went to Michael Clayton, a film that Mr. Pollack produced and acted in. There, I clicked on a link to the Michael Clayton score on allmusic which proceeded to freeze up my computer.
In a final attempt, I began at the Official Site of Pez Candy, which I also found through U Roulette. Though I went all over the site and learned about a lot of different Pez characters (Bratz, Shrek, Sully from Monsters Inc.), I found no links to outside sites. Disappointing.
I also went to a number of dead-end sites not even worth mentioning. The symphonic relationships online were very interesting, but not particularly fruitful. More than anything, I was struck by how difficult websites have made it for people like me to follow random links. Maybe companies are behind the times. Or maybe they purposely do not want me to be going to websites other than theirs’. I think it would benefit all of the companies, however, if they cooperated and added more off-site links to the websites. That would help those of us trying to develop r-directed thinking.

On Classroom Discussions: A Right Brained Tribute

“Humanities major!” they scoffed and they sneered,
“that major’s a joke if you’ve a brain ‘tween your ears.”
But Jill, a right-brainer determined to try,
Had faith in her classmates and held her head high.

Jill entered the classroom one blustery eve
Took a front seat and sat down prepared to receive
A bombardment of knowledge of the internet
But mostly what she got she would rather forget

For, you see, Jill’s classmates had a different thought
That humanities are for saying whatever you want
“To hell with the readings! I’m too cute for that!”
They said as they gave their own shoulders a pat.

As the girl raised her hand with a well-thought out phrase
The classmates in the corner, their hands did not raise
They just hollered and yelled and overpowered poor Jill
And Jill, with good manners, why, her hand is up still.

The moral of the story, kids, it’s sad but it’s true
If you major in humanities, they’ll overpower you too.
They are inconsiderate and cocky and just flat out rude
They put the studious ones in a terribly foul mood

Unless someone stands up for the ones who “can’t hang”,
Discussions will be dominated by the voices that clang.
A response’s quality will be subject to its volume
And trivial anecdotes will fill our classrooms.

The rude ones don’t do homework so they won’t read this at all,
But a person’s a person no matter how small.

Of Two Minds

The purpose of this post is really just to prove that, yes, I do the readings. In fact, I did this reading far ahead of time (it's a pretty interesting read).

Above all, I was hoping that this book would help me decide whether I am left or right brained. Reading the title, I prayed that I was one of the right brainers who "will rule the future".

What I decided, since reading the book, is that I am relatively ambi-brained. Though my left brain is likely dominant, I can make the decision to build my right-brained abilities (like counseling and relating)so as to become more successful.

This is how I know that I am inherently left-brained. Figure 3.1 (on page 49) made perfect sense to me. The diagram (and the chapter surrounding it) made me a believer in what Pink had to say. Figure 3.2 did less for me; it struck me as less persuasive, less substantial.

I had planned on being a lawyer after college. Basically it seemed to be the most lucrative way to manifest my more right brained likes (intercultural communication). Now, having read the first part of this book, I think that I believed it to be the most lucrative way because it was the most left-brained way. Maybe I don't have to have left brained credentials to make my way in this world. Maybe I should focus more on creating and empathizing and I'll be just fine.