19.12.09

Defacing Money as Protest

If you thought that the opposition protests in Iran were all over and done with... just know it continues. It appeared after the first weeks of major clashes with the police the demonstrators turned to continued pacifist (think "Gandhi did not bring down the British Empire with cannons or armies: he did it with a pinch of salt and a spinning wheel") protest. One aspect in the defacing of money by stamping or writing political slogans, such as the large green victory V or printing Neda's photo with "death to dictator", or throwing in a swastika to make sure the point is getting across. Pretty intense. Apparently there are so many notes that the government has stopped trying to control them.

Example:

Top: Death to Khamenei is crossed out/colored
Bottom: Shame can not be erased by crossing out/coloring


I love the idea of hand delivering this messages to the masses, continually and obstructively, it's in the same vein at the vegetarian argument I wrote about earlier

Full article at Payvand (via Adbusters, I also stole that Gandhi quote from Adbusters)



Three Wondrous Answers



I first read this story by Thich Nhat Hanh in the Fall 1996 issue of Parabola, a magazine whose tagline was "Myth, Tradition, and the Search for Meaning". It's now the more descriptive "Where Spiritual Traditions Meet". It was appealing to me back in 1996 and it still is, so kudos to them for maintaining the same format all these years. Anitya who? Basically the magazine chooses a topic every for every issue (Fall 1996 was Peace, others included Fear, Ecstacy, Nature, Birth and Rebirth, The Ego and the I, The Garden, Fate and Fortune, etc. etc.) and explores it from the perspective of various spiritual traditions by essays, poetry and stories. To be honest I think the magazine could use some sprucing up to attract readership, but if they are doing well, then I'm happy to continue reading.

This story is called Three Wondrous Answers. The three questions are:
  • What is the best time to do each thing?
  • Who are the most important people to work with?
  • What is the most important thing to do at all times?
It is credited to The Miracle of Mindfulness: A Manual on Meditation from 1975. The idea of live as it if was your last day really doesn't sit well with although I can understand the live in the moment message behind those kind of sentiments. This story is along the same lines but strikes a deeper chord with me, it's not just about living in the moment, but about embracing that moment, not because it may be you last, but because it's there here and now- so love it.


8.12.09

Frog. Dissected

Adam Voorhes makes incredible photographs of dismatled/dissected objects/organisms. Like this frog, for instance:



It's Nice That has the interview.