Psybertron Asks

It really is amazing how Sir Bob can whip up the media and entertainment industry into action, and how that spurs those with political power into being seen to do something. And it’s great to see Live8 put it’s weight behind Make Poverty History, rather than become a separate campaign. It would have been a great pity if Live8 had just been another fundraisingathon for charity handouts, as my world-wise 19 year old pointed out the day the event was first announced.

Actually, one interesting point has been the reaction to the megalomaniac call for a million to march on Edinburgh. The Lothian chief constable couldn’t miss a justification to get his budget increased. Walking to Edinburgh from where ? Hyde Park, London, the Channel Ports ? How far ? How many ? Get real Bob, but I wonder. If anyone could make it happen.

Never hopeful about international committees meeting to agree anything. But if the leaders at the alternative summit at the Scottish Parliament could work out some practical mechanism to turn the declarations of commitment (and funding) into reality, then never mind Sir Bob, scrap the conclave, we have our next Pope.

Seriously though, I hope the outcome is not simply waiving third-world debt – something more subtle needed to reward those who attempt to improve their lot, national governments or any other constituencies. The problem would be to have a transparent allocation of funding (or debt waivers) to avoid any kind of corruption, cynical or well intentioned.

I know, just give Bob the money, (everything the fundraisers raise, everything governments pledge, in money and debt relief), oh, and a camera crew ….

There’s your reality TV for the next decade. A panel of celebrity judges, third-world banana-republic leaders (official or rebel) invited in to make their case for a handout for their pet project, the judges mock, the public votes, and next month we send Alan Titchmarsh and his mob round to check how your looking after our money. The spin-off shows rake in the advertising income (with a contribution to the shows coffers). Seriously, it’s a winner, surely ?

Update … this BBC Story contains plenty of figures, countries and issues around African debt relief, and proposed “deals” based on policies moving forward … I still say the Reality TV / I’ll take a Billion Bob / game show approach is the only way to organise the transparancy of how the benefit is deployed.

Actually, on the same Wired page as “Narcipost” is “Open Loop” – The incomplete tasks and projects in your life that constantly cycle through your head, leading to anxiety, stress, and creative constipation. Popularized by David Allen’s work-flow management book, Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity.

I needed to know that. Back to the “rocket science” of time management.
(Now that is a post to self. I’ll consider myself told Chris.)

[Funny thing is, last time I made a reference to simple time management rules not being rocket science – it was a reference to David Allen’s book too. Oh well another on the reading list pile.]

Thanks to Wired for Narcipost, via Georganna. A post (apparently) of no interest to anyone but the poster. A kind of vanity publishing.

I do a bit of this, but I think, what the heck, it’s my blog, no-one is forced to read it – so I do post my personal diary / “hold that thought” type entries for my own future consumption / organisation. Who knows someone else might find it interesting. I have this know the man, know the work outlook too. The narciposts probably say something about the poster, whatever the post says to the poster or the reader. The medium is the message ‘n’all that.

Blues club here in Perth, 174 James Street, Northbridge. Blue To The Bone. Hope they make a success, ‘cos they have some talented acts. Every band I’ve seen there plays a version of Dylan’s Watchtower – some after Dylan, some after Hendrix – should make it their signature tune. Hope they draw in newer rock acts with blues roots in their souls.

Paul Felton and Pete Romano – The Gators – lead guitar and rhythm/vocals/harp respectively, years together – four-piece, with drum / bass pair / combo varying the times I’ve seen them. Relaxed, improvised links, wide range of electric blues, more than competent professionals also slotting in around guest jams with ease, humour ever present. Paul is a natural, a real unsung hero. Another guitarist who lubes his strings and neck before kicking off – no gap too short for a casual lick – and all styles of bridges and solos, slow sustains and blistering arpeggios, bottlenecking with standard and open tunings, retuning one Strat all night. Pretty well all effects from fingering / pinching / bending / tapping, strings and whole body / neck bends, both hands, airborne feedback sustain control. Stunning without flash, emotion without fuss. A real joy. Particularly memorable covers – Chris Rea’s “Working On It”, Animals “Misunderstood”, Fleetwood Mac (Peter Green’s) “Oh Well”, and a drivin’ version of Mercury Blues, not to mention Heaven’s Door, I Left My Woman, Cocaine and more. Must see – currently Thursday (later) residency.

Rick Steele, blues acoutsic, vocals and harp with assorted supporting cast, including euphonium – Marc on lead, Travis on ivories, Ace on drums and assorted guests (All hail to Kenji – you’ll believe a Jap can play the blues – knockout natural). Originals and standards, Rick in particular a great interpreter of his repertoire of Dylan, plus two faves of mine, Dixie and Big Yellow Taxi. Mark’s piece de resistance is the Allmans’ Jessica, Travis does a great line in Donald Fagen-esque electric piano riffs and jazzy vocals that give upstart Jamie Cullum a run for his money. Must see – curently Wednesday all night, guest night, and Thursday early set.

John Meyer’s Blues Express – three-piece with John on Lead, Pete(?) frontman on bass, and Ric on skins. I like John almost, but not quite, as much as Paul (Felton). I guess the difference is John is holding a three-piece together with less space for improvised licks and frills. John’s signature is the tremelo arm deep bends controlling feedback, releasing at solo ends to drop ringing into the next or final chord, plus all the fingering skills. Set is purer blues rock style, and a large proportion of the material is original – on their 100% original CD – full price too, nice touch. Crowd pleasers include the ubiquitous Watchtower as well as Little Wing. Definitely worth catching – currently Saturday (early) residency.

Lindsay Wells – another three-piece with Lindsay on lead. Blues rock ? Well yes, but a different kettle of fish. Technically very competent, but altogether more flash, centre of attention vocals and lead. Don’t get me wrong, good at it and entertaining. Hear all your favourite heavy rock on request, dominated by Hendrix, extending from the obvious favourites to Fire, but sadly not to Izabella, complete with picking behind the head and with teeth. (For sheer quality of interpretation, without the flash, check out Slim Hamster) Entertaining – currently Saturday late set. [Talking of Phish (Chris) this Saturday was Freo band The Fish – four-piece, bassist frontman plus keyboards – straight in with Bad to the Bone, Honky Tonk Women, and Louie Louie.]

Forgot to mention Fridays ? – Rockabilly night. Good quality musicians, just not my scene. Ted’s, bobby-sox and jiving – like stumbling into the set of Grease.

All together now ..

There must be some (kinda) way out of here, said the joker to the thief
There’s too much confusion, I can’t get no relief
Businessmen, they drink my wine, plowmen dig my earth
None of them along the line know what any of it is worth.

No reason to get excited, the thief he kindly spoke
There are many here among us who feel that life is but a joke
But you and I, we’ve been through that, and this is not our fate
So let us not talk falsely now, the hour is getting late.

All along the watchtower, princes kept the view
While all the women came and went, barefoot servants, too.

Outside in the (cold) distance a wildcat did growl
Two riders were approaching, the wind began to howl.

Moving post over at Enlightened Caveman, where Chris announces his intention to write fiction to get his message across. A man after my own heart as regular readers will recognise. The plot thickens.

(My thoughts are in the comments to that post.)

Must log a link to Cormac McCarthy’s recommended “All the Pretty Horses“.
Added to the list. Sigh.

Old news to anyone in the know technology-wise, and old-hat to anti-Microsoft geeks and long-standing converts to open comms standards, but I think it’s significant that this story reaches mainstream news at the Beeb.

From 2006 ALL files generated by MS-Office products will be XML, not just optional, not just some. Oh for some meta-schematic structuring / patterning standards too, as well as file formatting. Yes I know – standards – so good, you can never have too many, but here’s hoping for sensible convergence to continue.

Also Johnnie Moore, this time posting an analysis of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman.

But, apart from that moment of immediate experience, do we ever have any non-interpreted experiences on which to base our life and business decisions ? (See my comment on Johnnie’s post.)

Says Dave Snowden, with apologies to the autistic everywhere. [via Johnnie Moore]

“The only humans who analyse all the data and then make a rational choice are autistic, but economists insist this is the way we all work.”

But how do you turn the “non-rational” into something manageable, predictable, justifiable, etc …

One day.

Noticed this meme (sic) circulating – “Name 5 books you’re embarassed to admit you’ve not actually read”. Will Wilkinson’s response is interesting and very reminiscent of my own predicament. In response to one particular book, not important here which, he says ” [introducing] this helpful category: Books I’ve read, but not by myself. I’ve read so much secondary literature about [it], that it seems like I’ve read it. I consider it among the books I’ve read, but just not by myself. But I suppose I should actually work my way through it. ”

I probably have a dozen books in that category – some I realy should read, but some I’m happy I’ve simply got the (second hand) gist. I also have a list of “Books I’ve only read part of, but still feel they are important enough to complete ….. sometime”. I may create those lists, in the spirit of the “meme”.

Actually, one of the reasons my habit is to post book “reviews” in stages – once at the start (exposing my objectives and prejudices), once after introductory chapters (exposing my prognosis), again after about 20% or so, and again on completion (if I ever get there) is so I can (a) capture the value of what I did read, and (b) diagnose afterwards why I did or didn’t complete it, without the post-rationalising filter of hindsight.

[The use of “meme” here is kind of specific to this “chain letter” idea – a suggestion circulated with the explicit suggestion that you pass it on, rather than an idea or implied assertion, that simply gets passed on in the course of other communication – the “less is more” in me says if you have to say “this is a meme” and invent a communication specifically to communicate it, it probably isn’t really one, but that’s a side issue here. I am after all, passing it on – the game theorists meme – a double double bluff.]

One of my subjects recently has been “quality of explanation”, and alternatives to “psuedo-logical rationale” in misplaced circumstances. Interesting quote from Neil Kinnock today, commenting on the EU needing to start from scratch on its future strategy syaing it’s “got to do what it should have done for years past … go for a propaganda-free, explicit, factual strategy of tireless explanation.”

Transparent politics – now there’s an idea.