- Right aim, sort of, but wrong direction, Pope Francis. The
pontiff lashed out at in-shape, pretty people over the weekend, claiming that
what he calls the pursuit for perfect bodies leads to society hiding away the
disabled to avoid offending sensibilities of what he terms "the privileged
few." Pope Frank celebrated Mass Sunday in St. Peter's Square in an event
dedicated to disabled people and their caregivers and while advocating for
disabled folks is never a bad thing, saying that "the world does not
become better because only apparently 'perfect' -- not to mention 'made-over'
-- people live there," but when solidarity and mutual acceptance and
respect increase misses the point entirely. Simply put, people with physical
disabilities are not the ones who are put in a bad position by people trying to
get six-pack abs and toned legs, butts and arms. In fact, the ones who are
crapped on by the fit, muscled segment of society are those who are not
disabled, but rather flabby and out of shape. The obese aren’t disabled, just
saddled with poor eating habits and a lack of dedication to exercise. Frank is
missing the point when he complains that "care for one's body has become
an obsession" and "big business” because while those things are true,
they do not led to "anything imperfect" being hidden away since
"it threatens the happiness and serenity of the privileged few and
endangers the dominant model." Whatever evils befall people with
disabilities, it isn’t because of the dudes down at the gym pumping iron to
Slayer or the women doing CrossFit in tight-fitting clothing. Keep championing
the cause of those marginalized in many societies, but leave the toned and
athletic out of it……..
- Look at Icelandic indie rock icons Sigur Ros, doing what
high-minded Icelandic indie rock bands do. Specifically, Sigur Ros are teaming
up with London’s Tate Modern museum on a new collaboration featuring an
interactive video experience as well as new music. Titled 'States of Matter',
the project is split into four "visual journeys" – plasma, air, solid
and liquid – and in true high-minded, art-museum form, they will explore the
“past, present and future of Tate Modern, the Bankside building that hosts it
in London and its new extension.” Included are videos featuring original music
composed by band members Orri Páll Dýrason and Georg Hólm. “With ‘States of Matter,’
we wanted to explore more experimental and textural options. Splitting the
track means that each stem had to have its own subtleties, its own identity
while being part of a cohesive piece,” the band said in a statement. Sigur Ros
are clearly big into multimedia at this point, with drummer Orri Páll Dýrason
announcing in December that he was working on “Jurassic Bark,” a new film
successor to his 2014 release, which "follows two space dogs as they
traverse galaxies and time in search of the elusive bone of enlightenment.” Not
exactly the sort of project that belongs at the Tate Modern, but Dýrason has a
history in the movie industry and his 2014 project, “The Three Dogateers Save
Christmas,” was released with help from bandmate Georg Holm. At this pace,
Sigur Ros are going to have no time left to make melodic, instrumental indie
rock that only the coolest of hipsters enjoy………
- When you live in a Podunk town in Indiana with very little
to do, these are the sorts of activities you come up with. You find yourself
looking at your farmer wife and saying, “Hey honey, remember that forgotten
silo we have on our farm, the one we never use and could probably tear down?
Why don’t we turn that into a 25-foot-tall homage to a trademark-protect
cartoon movie character?” And so it is that Kathy Stark and her husband came to
transform their family farm silo into the image of an oversized Minion. The Ossian, Indiana native has lived at the home
for 37 years and decided that the silo needed to be repainted. Her husband
channeled his inner creative genius and came up with the decorative idea
because he thought their grandchildren would love the idea. Earlier this year,
the Starks put their plan into action, painting the silo and welding together 6-foot-wide
eyes for the Minion. Amazingly, it took just two days to complete the project. “We’re out here in the middle of nowhere, but
we have traffic jams,” Kathy Stark said. “People are just stopping to take
pictures. A lot of the silos are shaped a little different. They almost have
the Chinese hat on top of them or they’re too tall. This one was just the right
size, the right shape.” When you have something large and freaky on your
property, word gets out and now, people from all over town drive by hoping to
get a glimpse of it. There have been helicopters, losers on lawn mowers and
even visitors from the local nursing home coming by to see the spectacle and it
makes sense because in a place like Ossian, there isn't much for the elderly to
do to amuse themselves. Credit to the Stark family for stepping up to fill that
entertainment void for the town……..
- Keep being you, soccer. It may be one of your biggest
events of the year and virtually the entire world may be watching, but far be
it from you to act with a semblance of class and dignity. No, you live to loot,
riot, pillage and try to burn the stadium to the ground whether your team wins
or loses, so it only makes sense that UEFA, the governing body of football in
Europe, has opened disciplinary proceedings against the Russian Football Union
after its fans clashed with England supporters at the Euro 2016 championship in
Marseille. The opening game in the tournament for both teams was highlighted by
ugly scenes of hooliganism before, during and after the match in the southern
French city's Stade Velodrome and now, Russia faces charges for crowd
disturbances, racist behavior, and setting off fireworks during the contest. "UEFA expresses its utter disgust for the
violent clashes that occurred in the city center of Marseille, and its serious
concern for the incidents at the end of the match inside Stade Velodrome,"
UEFA said in a statement. "This kind of behavior is totally unacceptable
and has no place in football." Right, but that’s who you are, soccer. If
you don’t throw lit road flares at players during games and attempt to
asphyxiate opposing fans in the stands, then you’re not being true to yourself.
Oh, and there’s the lovely twist that no action has been taken against
England's Football Association, whose fans were also involved in the clashes on
the third straight day of football-related violence in the port city. Three
straight days of riots led to at least 35 people being injured four of them
seriously. It was truly an international affair, as eight people were arrested,
including British, Russian and French citizens. FIFA, the sport's thoroughly
corrupt international governing body, also released a statement condemning the
violence, presumably in between bribe-taking sessions and steam room jaunts…….
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