Now appearing at…

http://jujube.tumblr.com

From the Runway to Hack Day

Although she didn’t make it very far in last season’s Project Runway, Diana Eng is still keeping herself busy, most recently as part of the winning team at Yahoo’s Hack Day. More info at TechCrunch. Go Diana!

含羞草 Shy grass

In Taiwan there is this plant that grows all over the place called hanxiucao (the shy plant) Mimosa pudica that folds up when you touch it. I had always thought that it was native to Taiwan, but according to Wikipedia, it actually originates from Brasil. Then I heard on the POV documentary The Tailenders (a disturbing documentary about American missionaries who have made it their mission to bring “the Word” to everyone in the world in their mother tongue – I’ll save my rant against the evangelical impulse for a later post) that during the Pacific War, the US military introduced it to the Solomon Islands as a way to visually track the movements of Japanese soldiers in the forest. Fascinating.

A guide to Japanese gadgets for the confused

Link. Lol.

Social Isolation and the Rise of Neoconservatism and Christian Nationalism

The WPost has an interesting article on social isolation in the United States. According to the results of the National Science Foundation’s most recent General Social Survey, published yesterday in the American Sociological Review, the number of socially isolated Americans (those who do not have a close relation in which to confide personal matters) has more than doubled since 1985. The data, gathered from survey last conducted in 1984 show that only half of respondents had someone close to talk to.

I think this is a major trend underlying the popularization of neoconservative ideology and Christian nationalism. People who feel alone are vulnerable to ideologies that preach individualized morality and discipline and strict adherence to supernatural authority as perceived antidotes to the alienation of living alone in a “dangerous world.” More than any other political movement, the Right has been able to capitalize on this feeling of isolation among the exurban residents that comprise the majority of the US population. For the US left/progressive movements I believe addressing this suburban American loneliness is one of the critical steps towards turning the tide in this country. It’s not just about defending the social safety net of goverment programs such as Social Security, public education, etc. but also about reinvigorating the idea of the social itself, the importance of friendships and community that intertwine and extend beyond the nuclear family unit. The Right provides a false atrophied version of this in the Church, but I think it’s up to the Left to articulate a vision of a social America that includes Churches, but also other community formations as well.

So how can the US Left do this? How do we take on the challenge of reinvigorating social life in the sprawling exurbs?

“Hillary, you’ve become part of the Vast Rightwing Conspiracy”

No article here. I just felt like pointing that out. Her support of the Iraq invasion, pandering to religious fundamentalists, cozying up with the Zionist lobby. It’s really too much. 

Olive Trees

This is a great idea: Innovative Olive Farmers. I wonder if this model could be applied to the olive trees in Palestine. Especially those under threat from crazy Zionist settlers. It would generate badly needed income for West Bank farmers while at the same raise awareness about the direct impacts of occupation.

Best.Anagram.Ever

Weapons of mass destruction:
US team swoops. Finds no trace.

More from Sternest Meanings. 

Cool Flickr Groups

Just a roundup of interesting groups on Flickr:

Foldingfreaks Origami No scissors!
The Folk Typography Pool Found fonts.
Hito Moji Photos of individual kana. Someone needs to write an API mod for this…

Arabic Typography suwar al-kelimat al-arabiyyat

Then and Now See the passage of time and history in pictures. A version of this for mainland China would be amazing.

The Jumping Project People jumping.

Flickr API Hacking and modding Flickr.

GTD – Getting Things Done or Getting Too Dumb?

A great posting on the GTD mania: Link