It was never my intention to turn this blog into some sort of grandiose cyber-journal. My life just doesn’t warrant a play by play account. Few peoples’ lives do.  However, it appears that I did precisely what I did not intend to.  Rather than fight it, I’m just going to go with it.  Besides, I’m one subject that I’m at least well versed in. (God, that sounds like I'm full of myself. Oh well)

Santa Barbara is…well, Santa Barbara. It’s a trippy town. There are a lot of really talented people in the arts community here. We have performers, native as well temporary guests, in a diverse range of endeavors. Some of them are actually pretty damn good. The annual film festival and other events seem to draw them.

Me, I’m not particular adept at anything. However, I do know resources; people much more knowledgeable in their particular fields than I. The on-line community is generally pretty helpful. This I guess would depend how big of an asshole you are. Smart people all over the world are going to quickly see if you walk the talk. That’s why I like these people. Almost everything I know about web design has come from sources on the net.

Like the rest of the community, I’ve been looking at the work that people have been doing with CSS3, Html5, and of course Javascript. I think the web may get real interesting in the next few years. People, myself included, need to get some skilz. 

Hell, I’m even going back to college. I’m fifty years old and haven’t been in a classroom for about 28 years. I’m getting old. I think it’s time to alter the career path. In a global economy you better be good at what you do. I’ve never taken a software or coding class, but like I said earlier, I know resources.

I went to my first classes today. The After Effects instructor presented a mash-up of his former students work and the stuff was pretty damn good. I immediately asked if it was hosted; wanting to link or embed it. Expect to see it* or some of my work in the future. This guy apparently knows a thing or two. So, I guess if I pay attention, lay off the bud, and generally behave myself I may acquire some of those skilz. Tomorrow is my first Flash class. Things should get really groovy in the future. Flash with After Effects has some cool possibilities. If you throw in a little Javascript canvas manipulation; a little WebGl, the possibilities get mind-boggling.

Here’s to the people that are going to blend all the elements of code, music, and graphics into some beautiful stuff in the near future The potential is actually quite awesome if you think about it. It’s going to take clever people from all over the world. I’d like to contribute. Ciao.

*Addendum 9-1-11 That video is available here.

 Elitism and Terrorism

The development of highly sophisticated technology for surveillance, espionage and thought control of entire populations have given more power to ruling elites than have ever existed before in history. These powers make the long-range survival and possible success of revolutionary groups extremely doubtful. The only kinds of groups which have shown themselves successful in the short range against this array of oppressive state power are terrorists. The emergence of world-wide terrorism in the latter half of the 20th century is a response to the altered balance of power between the rulers and the ruled. The absence of democratic means of dissent and/or the despair of oppressed groups at their inability to change the status quo and to instigate reforms which meet their demands leads to acceptance of terrorism as the inevitable price to be paid for justice for the oppressed. But, just like the use of mass violence, the use of and acceptance of terrorist means for revolutionary ends distort the persons and movements using such means. Even if we postulate the possibility, for which there is not much historical precedent, that terrorist groups can actually overcome well-established regimes, the former terrorists, now become established, would find it necessary and acceptable to oppress the group their have overthrown. The history of right-wing Zionism and the regimes in some of the new African states illustrate this tendency

A more frequent occurrence is the establishment of fascistic dictatorships in response to actual or perceived threats. Given the new technological means at the disposal of the ruling elites, the measures used against those seeking fundamental social change have often proved disastrous. The ability of such elites to terrorize and even physically wipe out their opponents has never in history been greater. Nor can we or should we doubt the willingness of ruling elites to wipe out revolutionary groups entirely.

-Gerda Lerner
Why History Matters

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