~C4Chaos

Obama Charisma

Whether you like Barack Obama or not, there's no denying that the guy looks awesome in front of a camera. Of course, X-factor alone won't win him the Presidential election. But it helps a lot. Hopefully, Obama's policies would be as effective as his charisma.

In-World Photography

There are tons of creative practices that residents can do in Second Life. My favorite practice is to combine my passion in photography with my in-world exploration. This way I could hone my photography skills by practicing in-world. Check out this photo-illustration.

It's so easy to do. All you need to do is explore in-world. Once you find a place that tickles your creative eye just play with the camera angles and take a snapshot. Use Photoshop for additional effects, filters, and lighting.

For more tips on in-world photography, see SL Photography: The Basics. And for advanced snapshot magic, check out this video tutorial by Torley Linden. (Thanks to Happiness for the heads up!)

In-world photography rocks!

First Filipino Album Released Under Creative Commons License

Congratulations to DRIP for releasing the first full-length album in the Philippines under Creative Commons license.

"DRIP's 2nd album launch - IDENTITY THEFT - makes a CREATIVE COMMONS historic first - as the FIRST full-length ALBUM released in the PHILIPPINES under a CREATIVE COMMONS license...

"This album introduces a first in the Philippines—the enhanced CD contains shared files of some of the song’s elements that DJs and remixers can use to create their own remixes of the songs. The DJs and remixers from all over the world can now use these songs in their sets and can claim them as their own remix provided that they provide a share-alike attribution to the original DRIP songs that they are remixing." [read more]

Hataw! Wishing you more trip hop hits.

Now check out DRIP in action.

10 Reasons Why I'm a House M.D. Junkie

(House art - serendipitously snapped from an art exhibit in Sligo General Hospital in Ireland)

House M.D. is crack! For the past couple of weeks I watched it every night before I went to sleep. Last night I've finished all episodes (Seasons One to Three on DVD). That's 72 hours of programming (including the bonus features)! This makes me a bonafide House M.D. junkie. And I'm proud of it. Who wouldn't? House M.D. is the most intelligent and funny medical drama ever.

Here are 10 reasons why watching House M.D. is not only entertaining but also informative, and most importantly, self-reflective.

1) Hugh Laurie is an amazing actor. I want to hug him and whack him on the head with his cane at the same time. Not many actors have that cognitive dissonance effect on people.

2) Three letters: M.R.I. - One more reason to avoid implanting metal objects and having tattoos on our bodies.

3) Lumbar puncture sends a tingling sensation up and down my spine.

4) Reminder of impermanence and physiological intelligence - The cool CGI effects in each episode reminds me how intelligent the human body is. Diseases remind me how fragile life is.

5) Differential diagnosis is more of an art form than science. The best way to understand how diseases work is through metaphors.

6) Everybody lies.

7) House refers to God as "imaginary friend." Cracks me up every time.

8) Watching House is like witnessing the voices in Big Mind. House is the Controller, Fixer, Skeptic, Innocent Child and the Damaged Self. Dr. Wilson is the Protector. Dr. Cuddy plays the Controller and Fixer. Dr. Foreman, Dr. Chase and Dr. Cameron are the Skeptics and Innocent Children. And most of the time Dr. Cameron and Dr. Wilson are the voices of the Big Heart -- they are the conscience of House.

9) You can't always get what you want. But breaking into patients' homes would get you what you need.

10) If I get sick with a rare disease I prefer a mad doctor like House to treat me. But I'd like a hottie doctor with good bedside manners during recovery.

Bonus question: Is death a symptom or a disease? I say both.

How to Write a Pop Song with Catchy-Nonsense Lyrics

Leave it to Uncle Scott, his loyal readers, and a groovy band in Germany to demonstrate the art of remixing nonsense. The result is somewhat amazing. See She Amazed Me - The Music Video.

So to all aspiring pop stars, go ahead and use your social networking blogs and rip-mix-burn lyrics with your "friends". Combine this with basic knowledge of the Circle of Fifths and some catchy beats and viola! You'd amaze even yourself!

RETICULUM REX rules!

Copyright and Reflections on Ultimate Blog Detachment

Transitioning and re-branding a social networking site is never easy. There are technical, business, legal, and social challenges that we have to tackle simultaneously. But, ultimately, as a service provider, it's our responsibility to see to it that the transition goes smoothly. Yesterday we had an issue with Gaia's Terms of Use which our members had vigilantly (and rightfully) brought up. We apologized and acted accordingly -- another lesson to charge to experience of running a community. We owe our members deep gratitude for keeping us honest.

That learning experience triggered this personal reflection...

As a long time blogger and supporter of Creative Commons, I could see where our members are coming from. I take the issues of copyright, creativity and free culture seriously. But I have a more "detached" attitude towards it. This attitude is an influence on me by the Buddhist philosophy of non-attachment. But philosophy is one thing, how do I put this into practice? That's where Creative Commons comes in handy.

Case in point: The license of my online content (blogs, photos, videos, music) is under Creative Commons (Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.5 Generic). This means that anyone could share and remix my work with or without my permission as long as they provide attribution, use it for non-commercial purposes, and redistribute the work under the same share alike license. Personally, I think this is the best way to go to protect my rights as a content creator, but at the same time not get too attached with the content I put out on the internet. In principle this reasoning is sound, but in practice I don't know if people, organizations, businesses, and governments around the globe would respect the Creative Commons license once I put out my content out there.

In short, although Creative Commons provide me with the feeling of security and creative freedom, I still operate on the principles of detachment and uncertainty. Once I put out a content on the internet, it's no longer mine to seize and control and obsess about. Welcome to the digital age of RETICULUM REX where copy-pasting, remixing, caching, open source, wikis, and feeds are the norms of creativity and information sharing.

However, as much as I would like think of my attitude on copyright as liberal and enlightened, Zen Habits comes along to teach me a lesson on ultimate blog detachment. Here's the attitude of Zen Habits when it comes to copyright.

Open Source Blogging: Feel Free to Steal My Content

"I get a lot of emails asking me for permission to reprint Zen Habits articles on other blogs, in newsletters, in conferences and in classrooms. I get requests to translate certain posts, or my entire blog, into dozens of languages. I get requests to translate Zen To Done or republish it in another format.

"Until now, I granted limited permission, mostly for non-commercial use.

"Now, I’m granting full permission to use any of my content on Zen Habits or in my ebook, Zen To Done, in any way you like.

"I release my copyright on this content.

"From now on, there is no need to email me for permission. Use it however you want! Email it, share it, reprint it with or without credit. Change it around, put in a bunch of swear words and attribute them to me. It’s OK. :)"

[read more]

Whoah! Now that is radical! Even my "enlightened" attitude on copyright looks pale in comparison. It reminded me of U.G. Krishnamurti's philosophy on non-copyright. Here's U.G.'s introduction in his book, Mind is a Myth.

"My teaching, if that is the word you want to use, has no copyright. You are free to reproduce, distribute, interpret, misinterpret, distort, garble, do what you like, even claim authorship, without my consent or the permission of anybody. U.G."

And that book was written way before Creative Commons.

To take this even further, serendipitously, the oldest known printed book (about 587 years before the Gutenberg Bible), The Diamond Sutra embodies the philosophy of non-attachment, thousands of years before U.G. and Creative Commons. Here's what's written on the colophon.

"Reverently [caused to be] made for universal free distribution by Wang Jie on behalf of his two parents on the 13th of the 4th moon of the 9th year of Xiantong (i.e. 11th May, CE 868)."

So I'm back full circle to the influence of Buddhist philosophy on me when it comes to copyright and creativity. Obviously, the level of detachment I practice is still not at par with the principles I strive to live by.

So what's my point? My point is that I've been planning to re-design my blog for a while now. Unfortunately, I don't have the time to tweak it. I'm more interested on putting out content than making it pretty. But when I do get the chance to redesign and take my blogging to the next level, I'm considering to follow the example set forth by Zen Habits.

What about you? What's your philosophy on copyright and creativity? I'd love to hear your perspective.

The Davos Questions: My Answer

"Every year many of the world's top leaders attend the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, to discuss how to make the world a better place. This year, you get to join them. First, submit a video answering The Davos Question:"

"What one thing do you think that countries, companies or individuals must do to make the world a better place in 2008?"

Here's my idealistic and hyper-utopian answer.

For countries and companies:

Remember the nuclear arms race during World War II wherein the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada joined forces on what was to be known as the Manhattan Project? We need a friendly Manhattan-style research program to develop cheap (or even free), clean, inexhaustible energy source. The economic impact of the success of this research program will solve the issue of poverty, health, global warming, environmental degradation, peak oil, and then some.

This effort would go beyond 2008. I told you my answer is idealistic :)

For individuals:

Get more sleep. Drink plenty of water. Eat a balanced meal. Exercise. Meditate. Pray. Watch funny movies. This would put you in a good mood and good health and you'll be more likely to spread the good feelings around you :)

Thanks to Albert for the heads up!

Happy Thanksgiving! Here's to Creativity!

I'm spending Thanksgiving here in Ireland. So no turkey dinner with friends and family. I don't eat turkey anyway :) But I'm still grateful because I'm with ~myDakini. That's all that matters to me at this time.

On second thought, creativity and free access to knowledge and information mean a lot to me. So this Thanksgiving Day, allow me to express my gratitude to all you readers and visitors of this blog by sharing this video: Lawrence Lessig: How Creativity is Being Strangled by the Law. Thanks to Ottmar for the heads up!

Happy Thanksgiving! Here's to creative freedom and then some.

Lessig: Is Google (2008) Microsoft (1998)? (aka Supercapitalism)

Last night me and my good friend Dave attended a lecture by Lawrence Lessig at the University of Washington. The title of the lecture: Is Google (2008) Microsoft (1998)?

As usual, Lawrence Lessig delivered another brilliant and insightful presentation. He deserved the standing ovation. He more information in one hour of lecture than I can digest. Good thing I took some notes. Here are some bumper sticker notes:

-- "the data is the platform"
-- "comedy of the commons"
-- "lawyers are not innovators"
-- "silly to moralize a corporation"
-- "Microsoft is not evil"
-- "support the competition"
-- "politics diverted"

I hope that Lessig posts a video of that presentation so I can share it with everyone. Really good stuff.

In the meantime, allow me to share some of the nuggets of wisdom I got out of that lecture.

First, the title of the lecture is a bit misleading. It's more like a hook to get people to pay attention. Mention Google and Microsoft and heads would turn immediately. But I'm not disappointed one bit. In fact, Lessig delivered more than what was promised by the title. Here's my attempt at summarizing the lecture.

Lessig started his trademark Powerpoint presentation with the story of how Microsoft lost its "coolness." And then he proceeded with the story of how Google now dominates the tech industry, while still maintaining its "coolness" factor -- the data is now the platform. In his storytelling he covered his usual topics such as copyright, creative commons, read-only/read-write culture, economies of culture (e.g. hybrid companies), and corruption. But those topics, as interesting and fascinating as they were, were only ingredients to the meat of the lecture.

The real meat of the lecture is: the eroding of trust by the public on the government and the misplace of this trust on "good" corporations undermine our democracy.

Lessig concluded his lecture by pitching the book Supercapitalism by Robert Reich. The arguments in this book (which Lessig agrees with) go contrary to the popular idea of Corporate Social Responsibility. Here's an excerpt on Lessig's blog:

"The problem, from Reich's (and my) perspective, is that the other half of us - the part that thinks not as an actor in a market, but as a citizen - has atrophied. That is, the half of us (again, of each of us - Reich's point is that each of us has these two parts) that demands that government set sensible and efficient limits on private action has atrophied. Deep skepticism about government has made most of us turn away from it as a tool of sensible policy making. We instead (and this is a truly brilliant part of the book) turn to corporations to make good policy in government's stead. We push for "corporate social responsibility" and praise corporations who agree to do the "good" thing, imagining that this means something other than the "money making" thing. This, Reich says, is "politics diverted" - trusting companies to do good policy rather than getting government to set good policy, imagining "corporate social responsibility" will produce something different from corporations maximizing profits."

....

"Corporations are not more efficient governments. They are instead increasingly efficient money making machines. And while there's nothing at all wrong with money making machines -- indeed, wealth and growth depends upon them -- there is something fundamentally wrong with trusting these machines to restrain the drive for profits in the name of doing the right thing."

And this, for me, is the most important nugget of wisdom from that lecture. As much as I support and love the idea of Corporate Social Responsibility and Conscious Capitalism, I also admire Lawrence Lessig's brilliance so I pay attention to his arguments. So I'll be adding Supercapitalism to my reading list. It would be interesting to see how I can hold these opposing views and still manage to do the right thing, at least in my own sphere of influence.

For more info on Supercapitalism, keep watching this bookmark tag:
http://coolmel.zaadz.com/bookmarks/tagged/supercapitalism

I now leave you with this excerpt from a Robert Reich interview on Forbes:

---

Forbes.com: Doesn't the increase in consumer power allow the average American a greater opportunity to act as a citizen both of the U.S. and of the world?

Robert Reich: If consumers were willing to sacrifice good deals for the sake of some social goal they believed in--for example, paying more for a garment with a label guaranteeing it's not made by children in a poor country or for a book that's made with recycled paper--then you're right: Supercapitalism, as I've called it, would serve the interests of us both as consumers and as citizens. But the overwhelming evidence shows that consumers are not willing to make such sacrifices. If items are priced the same, consumers will choose the one that better matches their personal ethics, but they won't pay more for one that does.

Consumers are acting logically, because they have no guarantee that other consumers would make the same choice--meaning that their sacrifice would be pointless. The only way to make sure any such economic sacrifice is effective is to seek laws and rules that match one's ethical values.

That's where citizenship and democracy come in. It's through the democratic process that the economic "rules of the game" are determined--rules that all consumers and all private-sector competitors have to play by.

I Hire Dead People

After seeing this ad on Jim Callahan's website, I now understand why Criss Angel acted like a jerk on live TV during last night's Phenomenon.

---

JOB OPENINGS FOR THE DEAD
(Sign up now before it's too late!)
Possible $1,000,000.00 Here.

I am currently searching for persons who would like to work with in my future productions and experiments.

I have openings starting as early as December 1st when rehearsal for my new show begins. You will receive billing as being part of the show and compensated for your assistance.

I am in need of people who are interested in employment after their deaths. You must fill out the employment form found here.

.....

Those who commit suicide are not eligible for a position in this current show and will not be considered for inclusion in our data base nor are those who are murdered by those wishing to get someone into the show (though we have found this ad being forwarded to those who wish their coworkers the best of luck in finding a new job with us!).

Those who will be dead as a result of capital punishment or euthanasia will be considered on a case by case basis.

Read more.

---

Whoah! You mean I can be employed after my death? Wow! Do I have to pay taxes too? This is just plain silly to me.

As much as I want to believe in psi and the paranormal, I'm with Criss Angel on this one.

Anyway, I don't care too much about this altercation at this point because it takes away the attention from the other contestants who are more entertaining.

Case in point: Angela Funovits gets my vote. See her emotional performance in this video.

Work with Love

(image ripped, mixed, burned via Altas Shrugged image by Nick Gaetano.)

And what is it to work with love? 

It is to weave the cloth with threads drawn from your heart, even as if your beloved were to wear that cloth. 

It is to build a house with affection, even as if your beloved were to dwell in that house. 

It is to sow seeds with tenderness and reap the harvest with joy, even as if your beloved were to eat the fruit. 

It is to charge all things you fashion with a breath of your own spirit, 

And to know that all the blessed dead are standing about you and watching.

~ The Prophet: On Work

Happy Labor Day!

DRM is Toast!

I don't like buying music from iTunes. On the rare occasion I bought a music track, DRM got to me when I switched computers. Sooo not cool. Why do I have to buy that freakin' Billy Joel song again just because I switched to a Mac? I haven't bought a music track since then. That's why I prefer buying CDs and ripping them into my iPod to circumvent the stupid DRMs.

So, I definitely agree with Jon Bischke that DRM will die within 5 years, the sooner the better. Even Steve Jobs sees the light:

“The third alternative is to abolish DRMs entirely. Imagine a world where every online store sells DRM-free music encoded in open licensable formats. In such a world, any player can play music purchased from any store, and any store can sell music which is playable on all players. This is clearly the best alternative for consumers, and Apple would embrace it in a heartbeat. If the big four music companies would license Apple their music without the requirement that it be protected with a DRM, we would switch to selling only DRM-free music on our iTunes store. Every iPod ever made will play this DRM-free music.

“Why would the big four music companies agree to let Apple and others distribute their music without using DRM systems to protect it? The simplest answer is because DRMs haven’t worked, and may never work, to halt music piracy. Though the big four music companies require that all their music sold online be protected with DRMs, these same music companies continue to sell billions of CDs a year which contain completely unprotected music. That’s right! No DRM system was ever developed for the CD, so all the music distributed on CDs can be easily uploaded to the Internet, then (illegally) downloaded and played on any computer or player.”

It's interesting to see how this would fair for movies and videos. That is another uphill battle in the making.

In a related topic, I also agree with Steve Pavlina on the issue of Copyright and Intellectual Property and the Truth About Piracy.

"Who knows where ideas come from?  Do we invent ideas from somewhere within our brains?  Do we tap into the collective consciousness? Are ideas divinely inspired?  I think you’d agree it seems a bit unfair for someone to claim ownership of an idea.  Fortunately, the law says we don’t own ideas.  Ideas aren’t anyone’s property.

"What is considered property is the unique expression of an idea.  By default the creator of that expression owns it, and copyright law gives that creator certain rights that aren’t automatically shared.

...

"With respect to sharing copyrighted files, I think we also have to look within and question our intentions.  Are we downloading movies with scarcity-based thinking like, “Cool, this will save me money” or “Why should I pay for it when I can get something for nothing?”  Are we resonating with greed or selfishness?  Or is there truly a more noble purpose at work?  When you look within, quiet down for 30 seconds, and just listen for a while, what do you hear?  How do you feel about yourself?"

But while I fully support and respect copyright and intellectual property, DRM is a losing battle. So, die DRM, die!

RETICULUM REX rules!

What happens to people when they get old?

So, what happens to people when they get old?

This question was asked to a bunch of preschoolers. Check out their answers. Here's my favorite.

Happy Earth Day to the Shores of the Cosmic Ocean!

Happy Earth Day to everyone!

To celebrate Earth Day I'll be devoting my blogging on topics related to the environment, ecology, climate change and green things, not just for today, but for the entire week! During this time I'll do most of the blogging on my Zaadz blog. Here are the tags to watch out for:

Earth Week @ ~C4Chaos:

http://coolmel.zaadz.com/blog/tags/earth+week

The Zaadz Team and other eco-aware Zaadzsters are going to be blogging about Earth Day too. So keep watching these tags:

http://search.zaadz.com/for/earth+week 
http://search.zaadz.com/for/earth+day

Feel free to also join zPod:Earth Day and share your eco-awareness with other people on Zaadz.

Finally, to kick off Earth Week, I'd like to take everyone on a flashback journey into the cosmos as Carl Sagan had explored it. So sit back, watch, relax, reflect, and enjoy, while we skinny dip along the shores of this Cosmic Ocean.

P.S. Man, even Google is playing the Climate Change dice. Hot! Er, I'm mean, cool!

Random Obituaries: Kurt Vonnegut @ Ice 9

Kurt Vonnegut died on April 11. I wanted to give him a tribute on my blog. I wanted to do it with style, but I wasn't sure how. To be honest, I haven't read any of his works. But I understand how influential he was. He influenced a lot of the people who have influenced me, so I'm indebted to him just the same. So allow me to pay him a tribute, not with words, but with a rockin' out of this world music from my favorite guitar god. Here's Ice 9. Take it away Joe!

Thanks Mr. Vonnegut. Godspeed and keep on surfing...

Get Naked and... Change the World

cover of WIRED APR07
Uploaded by ANAKi on 27 Mar '07, 4.24pm PDT.

Check out the latest issue of Wired, Get Naked and... Rule the World. It's about smart companies, RADICAL TRANSPARENCY, and See-Through CEOs.

Steve Frazee of The Chief Good has an excellent blog post about it, see Transparent versus Translucent. I think he made excellent points. I agree with him that conscious business should strive to be more translucent rather than 100% transparent. A good observation on his part too that, "Wired put a nude woman on the cover of its magazine and then only quoted male CEOs in the article..." Ahh, well, that's because most Wired readers are geeky men. It won't do Wired any good if they used Leonidas and his army of sexy half-naked men on the front cover :)

So why is translucent better than 100% transparent?

To use a crude testosterone flavored analogy: Most men get more excited by almost-naked women on Sports Illustrated and freebie Victoria's Secret catalogs (read: translucent) rather than the nudity and free sex for all visuals of hard core porn magazines (read: 100% transparency and then some). Like I said, crude analogy.

Does Your Workplace Suck?

So does your job suck? Is your workplace like a hive of cubic hells? Don't worry, the Chief Happiness Officer will help you out. According to the CHO, happy hour should be from nine to five. I couldn't agree more.

So If you work in an unhappy workplace, you're eligible for a FREE copy of the book, Happy Hour is 9 to 5. Too bad I don't qualify because I'm already happy with what I'm doing right now :)

But don't despair. There's always hope you could land that job which would make you happy. So here are some killer questions to ask in your next job interview. If this doesn't work, you can always pray to Saint Dogbert to take those workplace demons away.

(image via Dilbert.com, United Media Comics)

Speaking of happiness at work, here's our buddy Strong Bad talking about his dream job. Thanks to ~Matthew for making me laugh and for giving me the chance to taser the gnome!  Man that was addicting. Now back to work.

O America, Where Art Thou?

What da?! This book confuses me even more.

Thanks to Uncle Zaady for this welcoming gift! :)

Searching for "No Place"

Just got my latest issue of What is Enlightenment? magazine. The main theme for this issue is Searching for Utopia. I'm still reading it, but I can already say that this is another must-have issue. It contains an interview with Fritzie Manuel, one of the authors of Utopian Thought in the Western World.

Here''s a blurb on the featured article:

"HUMAN BEINGS, BY NATURE, ARE UTOPIAN. We dream and we hope, and since the dawn of civilization, we have conjured notions of an ideal and perfect existence. From the bucolic realms of the Garden of Eden to Plato's republic of philosopher-kings, from the island paradise of Thomas More's Utopia to the libertarian collectives of nineteenth-century America to the counterculture communes of the 1960s, the ways in which utopia has been envisioned have changed dramatically over time. But whatever forms they have taken, utopian ideals have helped drive forward an unfolding process of reinvention, a process whereby humankind has sought, through visions and experimentation, a new and better life. Indeed, utopian visions, and the social experiments they inspired, are a product of our most freely creative faculty, the human imagination. They are an expression of the universal impulse to create the new--to reshape culture and even consciousness itself."

Check it out and let me know what you think.

Speaking of utopia, there's also an article on Zaadz in this WIE issue entitled, This Revolution Will Be Digitized. The WIE peeps interviewed Brian, Christiana, Siona, and David. Here's one of my favorite parts in the interview:

---

"WIE: What does the word 'community' mean to each of you? Because in a sense, Zaadz is a utopian community. So how does your ideal of community actually manifest between you? In other words, what are the values that you are sharing together as a team that you're trying to bring to Zaadz itself?"

"Siona: For me, a community is a group of people who, despite their backgrounds, have come together to transcend and embrace their differences and communicate openly regardless of what might get in the way. Whether or not there's a goal to strive for, I think that building community itself is an admirable goal, and not just an admirable one, but sort of the goal of the planet right now--how to be in community with people whom you don't necessarily share things in common with. I see Zaadz as being a place for people to build those tools."

"Christiana: You referred to Zaadz as a utopia. Utopia actually means 'no place,' which I think is really interesting. A topia would be a place but a utopia means no place, and so I think it's kind of ironic that you referred to Zaadz as being a utopia. It is really a non-place.

"As I worked on the film on ecovillages, I was traveling around kind of looking for the perfect community. What is the perfect community? It was my own personal adventure. Where can I find people who share exactly my ideals, and think what I think, and eat what I eat, and want to raise their kids the way I want to raise my kids? And literally, there is no place like that. But there's something beautiful about that "no place" in cyberspace that is actually the convening of people in many places."

---

Well said. All I can say is that, I'm deeply honored to work (and play) with these people.

Wanna be a Star?

Got that Sanjaya mojo within you but you don't care too much for American Idol?

No problem. You too can be a star.

Here are a couple of ways:

1) Send Ken Wilber your AQAL Essays.

But if AQAL is too geeky for you. No problem.

2) You could still be in a Zaadz commercial. Just contact Obi.

That is all.

God Debate on Good Friday Makes Me Cranky

I just finished reading the God Debate between Rick Warren and Sam Harris. Thanks to Julian for the heads up.

Today is Good Friday. I'm not gonna pull punches because I'm cranky. I'm cranky when I'm hungry. I'm hungry because I fast every Good Friday, not because I want to atone for my sins, but because it's my own way of observing the Holy Week. Instead of just abstaining from meat like practicing Catholics do, I choose to abstain from food altogether. I prefer it that way. It's my own way of doing physical tonglen within the realm of the Christian tradition.

Having said that, here's my politically incorrect take on this so-called God debate. I'll comment on some of the key quotes which, I think, summarize the essence of this debate.

---

Sam wrote that without death, the influence of faith-based religion would be unthinkable.
WARREN: Because we were made in God's image, we were made to last forever. That means I'm going to spend more time on that side of eternity than on this side. If I did not believe that there is a Judgment, if I believed Hitler would actually get away with everything he did, that would be a reason for great despair. The fact is, I do believe there will be a Judgment Day. God is not just a God of love. He is a God of justice. So death is a factor. On the other hand, even if there were no such thing as heaven, I would put my trust in Christ because I have found it a meaningful, satisfactory, significant way to live.

HARRIS: How is it fair for God to have designed a world which gives such ambiguous testimony to his existence? How is it fair to have created a system where belief is the crucial piece, rather than being a good person? How is it fair to have created a world in which by mere accident of birth, someone who grew up Muslim can be confounded by the wrong religion? I don't see how the future of humanity is in good care with those competing orthodoxies.

---

Judgment Day?! Are you serious, Rick? Gah! Personally, I find the concept of Judgment Day as very naive. I find more solace on the concept of Karma, or the Ethic of Reciprocity. I think Rick Warren needs to revisit ancient Greek philosophy to see that morality and ethics can be "evolved" without belief in Jesus Christ, or even the Christian concept of God.

---

Rick, let's be blunt. Is Sam's soul in jeopardy, in your view, because he has rejected Jesus?
WARREN: The politically incorrect answer is yes.

HARRIS: Is that the honest answer?

WARREN: The truth is, religion is mutually exclusive. The person who says, "Oh, I just believe them all," is an idiot because the religions flat-out contradict each other. You cannot believe in reincarnation and heaven at the same time.

---

Rick Warren is correct that religions are mutually exclusive, especially if we just look at the exoteric differences. We have to go "deeper" to the esoteric level to even have a starting point of integrating all major religions. But saying that people cannot believe in reincarnation and heaven at the same time is stretching it. In fact, even other religions, like Buddhism, have their own version of heaven which is still compatible with reincarnation. C'mon, Rick, you said that you've studied other religions. Jeesh!

And yes, Rick can count me with Sam as one of the damned, not because I reject Jesus, but because I don't share Rick's projection of divinity on Jesus.

---

How would the ideal world work, in the Sam Harris view?
HARRIS: Right now, we have to change the rules to talk about God and spiritual experience and ethics. And I'm denying that that is so. You can have your spirituality. You can go into a cave and practice meditation and transform yourself, and then we can talk about why that happened and how it could be replicated. We may even want, for perfectly rational reasons, to say we want a Sabbath in this country, a genuine Sabbath. Let's realize that there's a power in contemplating the mystery of the universe, and in reminding yourself how much you love the people closest to you, and how much more you could love the people you haven't met yet. There is nothing you have to believe on insufficient evidence in order to talk about that possibility.

WARREN: Sam, do you believe human beings have a spirit?

HARRIS: There are many reasons not to believe in a naive conception of a soul that kind of floats off the brain at death and goes somewhere else. But I do not know.

WARREN: Can you have spirituality without a spirit?

HARRIS: You can feel yourself to be one with the universe.

WARREN: OK, then why can't you just take the next step? Because right now you're talking in extremely nonrational terms.

HARRIS: There's nothing irrational about it. You can close your eyes in meditation and lose the sense of your physical body, totally. Many people draw from that the metaphysical conclusion that "I'm just spirit, and I can transcend the body." That's not the only conclusion you have to draw from that experience, and I don't think it's the best conclusion.

WARREN: You're more spiritual than you think. You just don't want a boss. You don't want a God who tells you what to do.

HARRIS: I don't want to pretend to be certain about anything I'm not certain about.

---

Is it just me, or between Warren and Harris, it is Harris who sounds more like a sage? I'd leave that for you to contemplate on.

---

Rick, last thoughts?
WARREN: I believe in both faith and reason. The more we learn about God, the more we understand how magnificent this universe is. There is no contradiction to it. When I look at history, I would disagree with Sam: Christianity has done far more good than bad. Altruism comes out of knowing there is more than this life, that there is a sovereign God, that I am not God. We're both betting. He's betting his life that he's right. I'm betting my life that Jesus was not a liar. When we die, if he's right, I've lost nothing. If I'm right, he's lost everything. I'm not willing to make that gamble.

---

While I somewhat agree with Rick that there should be no contradiction between faith and reason, the reality is, there is a fine line between the two, and we have to draw that line depending on what mode of knowing we're talking about. Faith has no place in the rigorous domain of scientific discipline (eye of flesh--empiricism and eye of mind--rationalism), while reason has to be jettisoned (albeit temporarily) in the domain of mysticism (eye of contemplation). To me, it's not about whether there should be no contradictions; it is living with contradictions and being able to apply them accordingly, in theory and in practice.

To sum it up, I have no doubt that Rick Warren is a good Christian and that he is doing an excellent service of giving people meaning and purpose in the context of the Christian tradition. But in this debate Rick Warren is no match for Sam Harris. I think Rick Warren is still trapped in mythic membership and the mythic idea of God. Rick's Cosmology and his eye of contemplation could use more polishing.

For a more insightful debate, I recommend watching the debate between Reza Aslan and Sam Harris. That's a more even match up.

What I want to see next is a debate between Harris and Wilber. I take that back. What I want to see next is Harris+Dawkins+Dennett versus Wilber. Now that's a more even match up. Ah well....

~C (for Cranky on Good Fridays)

Zaadz Flexibility Experience

(via Zaadz Team Blog)

'Nuff said.

An ordinary Zaadzster discusses his experience switching
from the dreaded myspace to Zaadz. (video link).

Today (March 30) is "Stop Cyberbullying Day"

Andy Carvin said: "This Friday - March 30th - has been declared Stop Cyberbullying Day - by me. I’m hoping to get as many people, bloggers and nonbloggers alike, talking about cyberbullying, because it’s spinning out of control. Just ask blogger Kathy Sierra."

...

"The sad thing about all of this is that it took this long for so much of the blogosphere to be talking about cyberbullying. Apart from the education community, you don’t often hear bloggers condemning the practice. In fact, if you were to judge the Internet purely on the discourse that takes place on certain political blogs and social news sites, you might be excused if you drew the conclusion that we’re just a bunch of cruel barbarians."

...

"Perhaps the most constructive response is to talk about it. To get everyone talking about it. We only seem to talk about cyberbullying in education circles or in the aftermath of a school shooting. But between the headlines, it happens every day, probably thousands of times a day. And it has to stop."

...

"For starters, we need this to be a bigger conversation. That’s why I decided to unilaterally declare this Friday as Stop Cyberbullying Day. What does it mean? I leave that up to you. Generally, though, I think we should all set aside some time that day to address cyberbullying."

Read more.

Exactly. So, let me echo Dogbert, and say:

(via: Dilbert.com Wallpaper)

Thankfully, in my three+ years of blogging, I haven't encountered a cyber-bully. I'd like it to stay that way.

Hmmm. Since To Catch a Predator is all the rage now, maybe someone out there could do, To Catch a Cyberbully (and then slap them silly).

Seriously, cyber-bulllying is no joke. So let's all be mindful of the things we do in cyberspace, as much as we can.

For more resources on how to stop cyber-bullying see:

http://www.cyberbully.org/

http://stopcyberbullying.ning.com/

http://wiredsafety.org/

http://www.stopcyberbullying.org/

P.S. But I agree with Michelle Malkin,

“'There is a time to be tolerant and there is a time to draw lines. If you don't draw those lines, bullies will be emboldened.'”

"That is my unsolicited advice to those now cowering in the face of anonymous commenters and assorted nutballs who will never go away."

"Keep blogging. Don't cut and run.”

So, if (ethical) blogging is your passion, let no demons of stupidity stop you.

Twitter Oxymoron

see link for context...

Working at Tully's

(Crossposted from zBlog:~C4Chaos)

One of the best things I like about my work (aside from working with the most amazing team in the world and interacting daily with the most groovy community) is that I can virtually work from anywhere there's internet connection, and coffee.

I'm getting bored working from home already so I decided to go out and work from my new favorite coffee shop. Yep, I love Tully's because they have free wi-fi connection and the coffee is good too. I'd probably go to Starbucks if they have a free wi-fi connection, because there's Starbucks in every corner here in Seattle.  But ironically, they don't. Phooey! Starbucks still continues to suck.

So there. I'll be working from Tully's and other independent coffee shops from now on. Can't wait for summer…

~C (for Coffee and wi-fi for free, perfect harmony)

Web 2.0: The Machine is Using Us and Vice-Versa

This amazing video has already reached the vast expanse of cyberspace. While people are still debating the definition of Web 2.0, this video captured its essence in just five minutes. Ahh, the power of moving pictures. Check it out if you still haven't seen it.

And here's an interview with the creator of that wonderful video via John Battelle:

“How did you end up making such a compelling video, one that resonates so deeply with folks like, well, those who read Searchblog?”

“For me, cultural anthropology is a continuous exercise in expanding my mind and my empathy, building primarily from one simple principle: everything is connected. This is true on many levels. First, everything including the environment, technology, economy, social structure, politics, religion, art and more are all interconnected. As I tried to illustrate in the video, this means that a change in one area (such as the way we communicate) can have a profound effect on everything else, including family, love, and our sense of being itself. Second, everything is connected throughout all time, and so as anthropologists we take a very broad view of human history, looking thousands or even millions of years into the past and into the future as well. And finally, all people on the planet are connected. This has always been true environmentally because we share the same planet. Today it is even more true with increasing economic and media globalization.”

Very fluffy! Read more.

Maybe someone can do a similar video on YouTube to explain the essence of “social media” instead of just debating over it.

Speaking of YouTube videos, violence seems to be ok, but boobs ain't. Ah, well.

Affirmation of Religious Freedom: Save Tibet and Then Some

I rarely participate in campaigns. I'm not the activist type. But for some reason, when I opened my mail yesterday, I felt an overwhelming impulse to sign a petition for the Affirmation of Religious Freedom via the International Campaign for Tibet. Upon further reflection I realized that my impulse was due to the following reasons:

– violation of basic human rights.

– Tibetan people are generally peaceful.

– Tibetan Buddhism is a rich culture that deserves to be preserved and allowed to evolve naturally on its own.

– Buddhism in general, and Tibetan Buddhism in particular, is very close to my heart. I've learned a lot from its culture, religion, and spirituality. Its philosophy and teachings continue to serve as my guide in my life's journey.

So I went ahead and took the liberty to type the original letter that I received. Additional hyperlinks are mine.

Please take the time to read it so you can be aware of what's at stake.

Kick ass and be still…

—–

Dear Friend of Freedom:

I hope you will use your right of free speech to help stand out for the people of Tibet who can not speak out for themselves without risking imprisonment, torture and possible death.

The beautiful prayer flags I've enclosed for you are an expression of Tibetan culture and identity.

Sadly, this unique culture is under assault by the Chinese government.

That is why I'm writing to urge you to take two urgent actions:

First, take a moment to unfurl the Tibetan Prayer Flags I've enclosed for you and display them in a prominent place. 

Second, please sign the enclosed Affirmation of Religious Freedom to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and return it to me.

Through this actions you can help the International Campaign for Tibet, the citizens group which has worked for more than 18 years on behalf of human rights and self-determination for the people of Tibet.

Let me explain.

As a Buddhist, a student of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and as Chairman of the Board of the International Campaign for Tibet, I'm writing to inform you that the Chinese government has taken two outrageous actions in arrogant disregard of the religious customs of Tibetan Buddhism and the culture and identity of the Tibetan people:

1) First, defying the Dalai Lama's recognition of the Panchen Lama, one of Tibetan Buddhism's senior-most leaders, they picked their own Panchen Lama.

THEN to add insult to injury…

2) The Chinese government detained the boy recognized by the Dalai Lama as the reincarnation of the Panchen Lama. Born on April 25, 1989, he and his family have been in detention since May 17, 1995 at an unknown location. The boy, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, has now spent more than ten years in the custody of the Chinese government and remains that way today.

China's agenda is no secret: If they can choose the next Panchen Lama, they think they will be able to choose the next Dalai Lama.

AND … if they choose the next Dalai Lama, that will be a blatant interference in the culture, religion and heritage of the Tibetan people. This may also lead to the demise of the Tibetan cultural tradition as we know it.

To many, the issue of the Panchen Lama may seem esoteric in a world filled with so many problems.

But, the fact is that this controversy is a symbol of a campaign to persecute a people and to destroy its culture.

Under China's occupation, all but 13 of the country's 6,254 monasteries were destroyed or damaged and tens of thousands of monks were killed or sent to internment camps.

Today, they are still hitting the Tibetans where it hurts most: in the heart of their religious beliefs.

But the world is becoming alert to this religious persecution. And, caring people like you are taking action.

Our intensified efforts to restore religious freedom in Tibet began at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. when the Dalai Lama and a group of religious and moral leaders from all faiths rededicated themselves to securing for all the world's people the right to cultural survival.

Today, we are engaged in a peaceful, prayerful and nationwide campaign designed to help win freedom for the people of Tibet.

There's no question in my mind that the tide can be turned in Tibet's favor. But, we need your help. 

The International Campaign for Tibet is launching a major effort to mobilize all Americans who believe in the right of a nation, that harbors one of the world's great ancient spiritual cultures, to survive.
 
And that's where the enclosed Tibetan Prayer Flags and the Affirmation of Religious Freedome come in. And why I hope you will take time out of your busy schedule to help. Here's how.
 
Take Action. Get Involved.

… … … <snipped> … … …

Please let the brave people of Tibet know they are not alone.

Sincerely,

Richard Gere
Chairman of the Board of Directors
International Campaign for Tibet

Paranormal Smackdown: Jaime Licauco vs. James Randi

It has come to my attention that Jaime Licauco (Philippine's foremost authority on paranormal phenomena) just had a cyber-smackdown with James Randi (the notorious debunker of the paranormal). Nice.

The smackdown was sparked by an article written by Licauco, Two Ways to be fooled. In it he wrote:

“RECENTLY, a group of students from a well-known private college for women in Quezon City called me in connection with a research paper they were doing on telekinesis.

“They had heard of my course on ESP (extra sensory perception) that covered telekinesis, among other psychic abilities. Their teacher, who did not believe in “such psychic stuff,” told the students to look up a certain website on the Internet about an offer of US$1 million to anyone who could prove telekinesis (or any other psychic powers, like telepathy, clairvoyance, etc.) was true.

“They asked if I was aware of such a website. I told them I was aware of such an offer but had not seen the website. They must be referring to the challenge American magician James Randi (who calls himself the Great Randi) made to anyone who could prove that telekinesis was true. 

“I told the students not to pay attention to James Randi because he was just a de-bunker of psychic phenomena. When somebody comes up to prove telekinesis, Randi changes the rules. Randi always finds loopholes so that, in the end, he concludes nothing has been proven.”

Randi had read the article so he responded to Licauco.

"1. He claims that, as a magician, I was known as “The Great Randi.” I have never used that name, even when I was residing in the Philippines and performing on the nightclub circuit."

Licauco responded to Randi in the following articles:

Setting the Record Straight (Part 1)

“All Randi needs to do is go over the numerous scientific papers written about these phenomena in several countries including the United States, Canada, Germany and Russia to know there is such a thing as psychic ability and paranormal phenomena.

“But I doubt if he will ever do that. It is much more sensational to debunk psychics in the media than do solid research.”

Setting the Record Straight (Part 2)

“4. Randi: “I have never said that Uri Geller was a ‘fake psychic.’ Geller never filed any harassment suit against me. In the one case he did file, he lost and had to pay $150,000 in sanctions.”

“He may not have called Geller a fake psychic, but he certainly hounded him for years, saying what Geller was doing was plain trickery that he could duplicate anytime….

“As to the lawsuit Geller filed against Randi, my source was no less than Geller himself who personally told me that story in Düsseldorf, Germany, in 1994 during an international conference I attended where he was one of the speakers. Either Geller was lying or I misheard what he said. But between Geller and Randi, whom should we believe?”

Normally, I'd refrain from picking sides on controversial lemon-eating debates. But in this situation, I'm biased in favor of Jaime Licauco. Why? Because I consider Mr. Licauco as a mentor. I've met and talked with him personally and had attended his Inner Mind Development seminar years ago. He strikes me as a very honest researcher and teacher. He's my biggest influence on matters relating to the mind, religion, spirituality, and other mysterious things when I was still in the Philippines. He's the most intelligent and open-minded skeptic that I know of. Maybe that's why I share Licauco's optimism and skepticism on the “paranormal.”

“I am not really interested in proving to skeptics that psychic powers and paranormal phenomena exist. This is not my job or my intention. I only want to share with interested people and readers strange but true events that are normally and routinely ignored by established science and the academic community.”

Well said, Jimmy. Well said.

Serendipitiously, I also just had a discussion with a fellow Zaadzster regarding psychic phenomena. See Z-Bate: Faith, Reason & The Four Quadrants.

Speaking of paranormal smackdown, check out this scene from the classic movie Scanners. Eeew but cool :) Warning: Not for the faint-hearted.

Greatest Guitar Solos Ever (so they say)

“Every guitarist has opinions on what some of the greatest recorded guitar solos are. While there are many that are commonly regarded as “great”, there are lots of others that don't get as much attention. Not too long ago, the editors of Guitar World magazine put together a reader's poll, to find out what their readers considered to be the best guitar solos of all time. The results surely reflect the magazine's demographic (no jazz guitar solos, for example), but no one can argue the following 100 selections boast some great guitar work.”

via About: Guitar

Picking the best guitar solos is like voting for American Idol. It's very subjective and mostly based on popularity.

Most of my favorite guitar solos are included in the Top 100 selection. But if I am to pick a favorite, I'd go for November Rain by Guns N' Roses. I don't know why. I just love the imagery of Slash whipping out romantic melody in the middle of nowhere and then shifting into a melancholic “mad hatter” guitar licks at the end of the song. Ahh, those were the good ole days…

Anyway, I still can't believe why one of my all time favorite Joe Satriani tunes is not included in the list. Like I said, it's very subjective. So here it is. I think this classic Satch tune should be way up there on the list. Check out the video, pump up the volume, and weep. Joe used to have hair back then.

Thanks to Happiness for the heads up. Also check out Ursi's Blog for the videos of the Top 20 guitar solos.

~Meta-post: Colbert, O'Reilly, The Secret, What the Bleep, New Age, Integral Peeps

Too lazy to cross post. So there.

Stephen Colbert and Papa Bear (aka Bill O'Reilly)

The Secret, What the Bleep, Integral Peeps, Let's Get It On!

~Omni-Peephole: Colbert on Cingular, I Mean AT&T

exactly!

Seahawks Went Down, 24 Begins

I'm very disappointed! The Seahawks blew it. Better luck next season. Congratulations to the Chicago Bears.

But anyway, my favorite series starts today. 24 hours of non-stop action and drama. Jack Bauer never disappoints! W00T!