More design shizzle.

Hopefully soon I will have some Lightmare T-shirts for sale. I will let everyone know so they can buy one for each and every person they know. No but seriously...they won't be crap. I'll keep you updated!


Joshua

GOOD NEWS!!

Stars and Scars is now running...go look at the nifty little piece I put together. And once again...if you have any web or design needs, let me know. :D


Joshua

Where are you, Dan?

To my dear friend Daniel Steinmetz,

I looked for your blog this morning. Where is it? I have no idea where to find you. You know where to find this, and if you didn't you wouldn't be reading it now would you? Comment so I will be connected to you internet ranting.

Sincerely,


J. John Moorhead

I HATE INTERNET EXPLORER

Microsoft is the enemy. I have been working for WEEKS to fix errors on this site to make it work in Internet Explorer 7. Apple won't even support Internet Explorer...and rightly so. It's terrible. Everybody please download Mozilla Firefox and use that instead. MSIE is a nightmare and should be phased out by humanity.

Thus ends my software critique of the height of my current frustration.


Joshua

Shameless plug.

I would like to direct your attention to a little link over in the "LOOK HERE" section of 3AC that says "Lightmare." That would be my fledgling little one-man design studio that from which I am trying to make some loot. I am currently looking for projects, so if you know of anyone looking for a logo, a website, a t-shirt, a flyer, a sticker, a postcard, or just some savvy advice on a color scheme, send them my way and I'll gladly work with them.

Thanks!


Joshua

Orwell's 1984=China's 2008: The Golden Shield Project and the "Great Firewall of China"

Thanks to this article in Rolling Stone (of all places) I learned a little about what China is up to these days in preparation for the Olympics and beyond. If you've ever read the book 1984, you know who Big Brother is. But even if you haven't, you probably have a general pop-culture concept of it due to mind numbing programming reality TV. It basically means that everything we're doing is being watched. In China, this is fast becoming reality.

For the big picture read the article, for the short story, pay attention.

Thanks to a "special economic zone," the Chinese government is experiencing the best benefits of capitalism without losing their communist grip on every living being in their borders. They basically turned a muddy farm town into a city of over 12 million people in the span of thirty years, and have set up the hot-spot for CCTV and facial recognition experimentation. They have used this technology to spin the March Tibet riots in their favor within their own nation, and are planning on using it to monitor even rural areas.

I don't want to be painted as a whistle-blower, or a liberal, or an armchair politician, or a conspiracy theorist, or an alarmist, or even an activist for that matter. I just want people around me who may not already know what is happening in the world see a little bit outside the borders of our country. We need to realize that we have the sweet life here, and we need to really work to remember that, as well as to help others far away realize it as well.

We all know that sanctions and laws and treaties and cease-fires and alliances and peace talks really do very little in the long run. What we need to do is have a heart soft enough to realize these aren't just articles that we can read while having our Starbucks Grande Macchiatto and then go back to our nine-to-five. We need to think outwardly...first to those around us everyday, then those around us in our region, then even farther than that...who knows how far God wants us to look as individuals. Maybe that may not stretch farther than the city you're in, but it may spread to China, where people fight for so much and may not realize they have One who fights for them.

America is amazing. Let's keep it that way by not supporting this crud. If you want to spread the word, do that. If you want to not buy anything made in China, definitely do that. But most importantly...realize that the faces and names are souls...souls that need a Savior, just like I do, everyday.

I leave with this verse, on how our perspective should reflect toward the world:

He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."

Acts 1:7-8, ESV (emphasis mine)

Joshua

Who Reads The Watchmen?

So last week I went and saw The Dark Knight. I will cut this short and just say that so far, barring any debacle with the Wolverine film, this is the best super-hero movie made. It stands alone as a work of art as cinema, and then you consider what justice it did in translation of the characters and stories from the comic book.

But that's not what I'm writing about right now.

There was a trailer for the next big DC comic movie, coming out in March, based on the mini-series/graphic novel Watchmen entitled...you guessed it...Watchmen. My friend Mark at work gave me this book to read sometime in May and I brushed it off while trying to read literary classics in my Attempt At Culture. But the trailer intrigued me and I got to reading.

What I found was a story both typical and uncommon for comic books: a sparce few actual super-powered heroes, with the majority of the cast being costumed normal people. Not aliens, not para-dimensional beings. Just people. I also found out that Alan Moore, writer of the Watchmen, also wrote the one-issue comic The Killing Joke, which was given to Heath Ledger as a guide for his performance as the Joker. One of his other works, whether you already know it or not, was V for Vendetta. I have yet to read the comic, but the movie was great.

What I liked about Watchmen:

• A non-serial storyline allowed for closure. People die, irreversible events occur...it's not something that can be rehashed into an ongoing title to capitalize on its success.
• Aside from the handful of fanciful elements (a single "I got powers from an atomic accident" guy, an engineered monster, and teleporting) the story was largely based in reality. It was written in 1985, so a lot of the action was set against the fear created by the Cold War.
• It provided an interesting alternate reality version of the 80's, in which Dr. Manhattan (the previously mentioned atomic fella) actually helped us win Vietnam decisively. This had many interesting consequences.

What I didn't like:

• The old post-modern views of "is there a God, and if so how do you explain science?" I've read Vonnegut, and Palahniuk, and by now it's simultaneously blasé and very sad. Blasé for the reason that so many people say that type of stuff as if it's original and intelligent, and sad for the fact that so many people say that type of stuff.
• The portrayal of sex as love was annoying. But once again...it's a dystopian/post-modern story...it was bound to be in there somewhere. It is not graphically depicted at all in the book, but watch out what you're reading...you'll want to skip a few frames in certain parts to avoid that stuff.

Overall, I do recommend it, especially if you were intrigued by the trailer. And if you haven't seen the trailer, it's here for your viewing. More on Batman later, and possibly more stuff that will hopefully make you think.

Joshua

Sudan: Beautiful Country in Danger of China's Greed, or Plagued by Darfuri Rebels?

It came out this week that The International Criminal Court (ICC) is going after Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir for three counts of genocide, five crimes against humanity, and two counts of murder.

For the long story, go here. I'll try and give the quick history lesson on what this means:

In Sudan, The Western region of Darfur is primarily non-Arab in it's ethnicity. While none of the country is purely Arabic, and most of the country is in fact Islamic, there is the ethnic separation between Arab-African Sudanese and Darfuri peoples that is mainly on a tribal level. In 2003 a rebellion broke out due to what was considered oppression of non-Arabs. It has incorporated many smaller groups together over the past five years, but was begun mainly by the Justice and Equality Movement and the Sudan Liberation Movement. The government struck back with their own forces, as well as endorsing militia groups known as the Janjaweed. The result: a death toll of 400,000 and climbing seeded by rapid desertification in the region and then made worse by the serial rape, murder, and displacement of thousands and thousands of native Darfuri people.

So what does this mean for China then, and why do we care?

China, obviously, is hosting the 2008 Olympic Games this year in Beijing. The only frighteningly Red spot on the globe is hosting the international festival of peace through sports.

This is a farce.

China recently showed how much they loved their fellow man by continuing their oppression of Tibet, but that's for another day. Their Sudanese connections are just as nefarious, if not worse, for the simple fact that they are driven by money.

In 2005, 90 percent of Sudan's small arms were sold to them by China. In 2006, 90 percent of all oil that left Sudan went to China. Isn't a country that funds the violation of civil rights guilty by association? And if so, is it really anything more than a show for them to hold a ceremony showing how much they love global peace and harmony?

Not even Sudan can trust China, as their ally to the east is playing middle ground to keep the coffers full. In 2005, when Sudan was undergoing investigations by the ICC approved by the UN Security Council, Big Red refused to vote against the approval with their veto power. Sounds like somebody wants Beijing to be all smiles come August.

Why am I saying all of this?

Because I want to do my part to make it known that we shouldn't be afraid of China. Oppose the Olympics in any way you can...don't support the companies that sponsor the games. Is this in an angry way, or a rebellious way? No. I'm supporting Darfuri people by NOT supporting the Olympics. It's not something negative or hate filled...I'm trying to do my small part through keeping money out of their pockets, as well as educating others on the reasons that they should do the same. The important thing to remember is that their are people everywhere dying before they hear the name of Christ, and at the risk of sounding all new-age-y, we need to support life, not death.


Joshua

Welcome to the Thunderdome

So I think this means I'm switching from Xanga...ah well. I think it was a bit of a dead zone for me there anyway. Liz and I barely wrote anything at all, and Katie hasn't been on in ages. And they were the only folks of whom I really kept track. Onward and upward we go...I will later today post my happiness for news I heard about Sudan this morning. Until then, stay classy.


Joshua