Ouch. That’s Hot.

The Economist recently ran the above illustration on the cover, launching a look at the ways in which China does (and does not) have us all on the hook.

According to the article, in China there is a new mindset which is catching on around the globe.  The meme is that “geopolitics is now a bipolar affair, with America and China the only two that matter.”  In other words, the recent G20 meeting would be more accurately christened the G2.

The article goes on to explain how this is not entirely true, that the EU is still the world’s biggest economy (although I still think it’s cheating to lump all ‘em wee li’l countries together like that) and that India is also rising nicely as well.  However, for a Cold War Kid like me, this is paradigm-popping stuff.  Glad I married in when I did.   Whew!

“Have you met the Compliment Guys?”

That’s the question bouncing around the ivy-covered halls and cinder-blocked walls of Purdue University these days.  Every afternoon, these two determinedly upbeat kids get their kicks by sticking a smile to winter-chapped collegiate lips.

The formula?  Just saying something nice.  Read more, be inspired, spread the cheese.

I had never heard of him until he died.  The Economist ran this obituary, and I’d encourage you to take a moment to read it.

Christopher Nolan was not just a writer.  He was a maestro attuned to the melody of language.  But, unable to speak due to a crushing case of cerebral palsy, the only instrument he was able to master was a stick taped to his forehead enabling him to poke out a word here and there on a custom keyboard.  Sometimes it went as slowly as just a few words an hour, and that with the help of nerve-spasm dampening drugs and braces and lifelong love from selfless parents.

There are times when the efforts of the disabled, the downtrodden, and the otherwise less-advantaged are rewarded because they show stamina and strength despite the odds.  Every parent knows this first-hand as we praise our children’s attempts to create and learn.  Life is full of sliding scales and context counts; there is nothing wrong with this.  But Christopher Nolan is doubly unusual, and thus doubly tragic.  There is the first tragedy of the diseased disruption of  any afflicted life.  And then there is the second tragedy of the many body-bound works that will never be published.   The briliance trapped in his brain, unable to find a vessel to mark the words, could have filled volumes.  His writing stands on its own.  As the obituary pointed out, I wouldn’t want to be Christopher Nolan.  But still, I think I’d give a lot write like that.  I think.

I love the Twentieth Century.  Not only were we all famous for 15 minutes, a whole nation could exist for only a day.

Case in point:  Ruthenia, which shone gloriously free on March 15th, 1939, the day after the Nazis left and the day before the Soviets rushed in.  How does Mr. Warhol fit into this?  He was the son of two Ruthene immigrants to the New World.  Though born in Pittsburgh, he is the one-and-only famous son of the Sub-Carpathians.

Despite the Man with the Can, the Ruthenians are currently without a plan.  And that seems to be just fine by them.

My good buddy Jason C. sent this my way a few days ago.  Phenomenal!  Check out the rest over here.  I love the graphic deisgn on the site too, perfect static-graphic play on the dynamic-video content.  Worth a peek!

This interesting photo just popped up on the interwebs showing a fit-as-a-fiddle Vladamir Putin posing as a camera-happy tourist who just happened to bump into Reagan and Gorby touring Red Square.

Truth be told, he was a KGB plant, assigned to keep an eye on the propaganda machine which was in full swing as the leaders summited to great heights of love and understanding.

Golly, I miss those days.  When I was a youngster, the good guys were grandfatherly ex-cowboys who thrilled my imagination with talk of Star Wars Missile Defense and a steadfast belief in Truth, Justice, and The American Way.  The bad guys were part of an Evil Empire that was probably run by Darth Vader, though I assumed he never left his gulag-surrounded lair in deepest Siberia.

When we had to fight it out, we were polite about it.  Discretion was always in order.  Sometimes we’d send Ollie North to move a few guns into the swarthy hands of our simple, yet trustworthy friends south of some border or another.  For more delicate tasks involving the French or other suspiciously-accented Europeans, we could count on our ally James Bond to drop in leaving things shaken, not stirred.  Jack Nicholson really did need A Few Good Men.  And when it came down to it, I was pretty sure that the whole G.I.Joe thing was just a little too perfect not to have a root in a top-secret reality where they were poised to strike if the Commies came a-knockin’.

And Red Dawn?  No, not just a movie.  Rather, it was a warning and a guide as to what to do when your country really needed you.  Wolverines!

To anyone over the age of 45, please don’t tell me I’m wrong about any of that.  M’kay?  I’d hate to have to send the ninja’s after you.

I’m catching on to this guy, thirty years too late.  Hey, I was only a wee little three when the Two Sevens Clashed, so cut me some slack.  I stumbled across this SNL performance that makes me wonder how much I’m still missing:

Many thanks to the fine Melvillain Blog for turning me on to this.  Take a minute and read up on his write up.

But these battle-bugs are way more fun, don’tcha think?

Check them out in action here.   The guy that put them together seems very interesting, and the rest of his site features some more serious if more disturbing cultural mashups and intriguing graphic design.   But the bugs are fun, too.

Thought this quiz was imaginatively assembled.   It’s by Rob Kyff, who gives me a good reason to read past the funny pages of the Sunday paper.  Enjoy!

___________

Giving Usage Its Just (Desserts, Deserts)

Once again, it’s time to test your Usage I.Q. Can “U” select the correct word that “I” placed in each sentence?

1. When the prankster himself ended up slipping on the banana peel, everyone felt that he had received his just (desserts, deserts).

2. The bodies of the Civil War soldiers were (interred, interned) on the battlefield.

3. Larry broke down the small machine into its (discrete, discreet) parts.

4. The kayaker steered toward the narrow (chute, shoot) between the two rocks.

5. No one had ever mapped the area where Captain Klagelheimer was headed, so he knew he was sailing into (unchartered, uncharted) waters.

6. The police (apprised, appraised) Melanie of the situation at the school as soon as she arrived.

7. Recent financial setbacks have put George through the (ringer, wringer).

8. During the autumn, the leaves begin to (whither, wither) and die.

9. The cold front will bring some (wintry, wintery) weather our way.

10. As a conscientious competitor, Audrey always tried to follow the rules (prescribed, proscribed) by the International Olympic Committee.

11. Several celebrities attended the (premier, premiere) of the movie.

12. One of many (prerequisites, perquisites) given to the new vice president was a corner office.

13. General Cooper moved up heavy (ordnance, ordinance) to bombard the city.

14. After hours of hiking, the girls had worked up a (hardy, hearty) appetite.

15. The basketball team (exalted, exulted) when the buzzer-beater went in.

16. Not being a werewolf, Mickey was not (fazed, phased) by the changes in the moon.

17. The king’s decision to tax thatch led to a (hue, hew) and cry among the peasants.

18. The pirates’ (hair-brained, hare-brained) scheme to find the treasure by draining the lagoon proved disastrous.

19. The police discovered a (cache, cachet) of drugs beneath the sink.

20. Dumping a cooler full of ice water on the coach’s head was really going beyond the (pail, pale).

Answers: 1. deserts 2. interred 3. discrete 4. chute 5. uncharted 6. apprised 7. wringer 8. wither 9. wintry 10. prescribed 11. premiere 12. perquisite 13. ordnance 14. hearty 15. exulted 16. fazed 17. hue 18. hare-brained 19. cache 20. pale

Scores: 16-20 correct: Paramount; 11-15 correct: Paragon; 6-10 correct: Paraprofessional; 0-5 correct: Paradox

Interesting article tying rapid thought with happiness, mental stagnation with depression, and repetitive just-can’t-Let-IT-GO! thought patterns to anxiety.  Much of this would be simple common sense, but the interesting thing here is the Cart/Horse (aka Chicken/Egg) conundrum.  That is, does our mood affect our thoughts or do our thoughts affect our mood?

The advice: if you’re down, do a crossword and get the noggin noodling with something new.

I know that when I’ve got A.N.Ts. running up and down my brain (that’s Automatic Negative Thoughts, ‘natch) the best thing for me to do is drop to my knees and ask God for something else to think about.  Most recently the answer was:  “Just think about Jerry playing guitar.”  So I did, and now I’ve got the opening riff of “Lovelight” wedged in my head.  I think this is a blessing.  It sure as hell works!

(… without a warning…. you broke my heart…)

Article via BoingBoing