Friday, February 29, 2008

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

21 ’Adhar Ri’shon 5768: International Polar Bear Day/Inconvenience Yourself Day

Greetings.

Useful thing of the day: Identifont, for when you need to identify an unknown font.

Today’s news and commentary:About two weeks ago, I posted a theological review of Tron. Today’s weird thing is “Bicycletron”, an attempt at implementing the lightcycle game from Tron in real life.

Enjoy and share the weirdness.

Aaron

Monday, February 25, 2008

19 ’Adhar Ri’shon 5768: Go Bowling Day

Greetings.

Today’s news and commentary:Today’s weird thing is Antonio Rioseco doing Star Wars music in a very detailed style on classical guitar:




He also does the Jaws theme, too:

Note that he extracted the music entirely by ear. Enjoy (and be impressed) and share the weirdness.

Aaron

Sunday, February 24, 2008

18 ’Adhar 5768: International Pancake Day

Greetings.

Today’s news and commentary:Today’s weird thing, submitted by Barry, is The Smigel Styrofoam Soprano Guitar. On the bright side, plywood is worse. Enjoy (or be scared or something) and share the weirdness.

Aaron

Thursday, February 21, 2008

15 ’Adhar Ri’shon 5768: International Mother Language Day

Greetings.

In observance of today’s quasi-holiday, today’s post will be in my native language: English.

Worthy cause of the day: “Ask The Presidential Candidates To Visit Africa”.

Today’s news and commentary:Today’s weird thing is Odd Music-Experimental music, unique unusual musical instruments, weird strange musical instruments,mp3s,music resources. Enjoy (or be scared or something) and share the weirdness.

Aaron

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

14 ’Adhar Ri’shon 5768: Purim Qaṭan

Greetings.

Worthy cause of the day: “Tell Congress: Support Permanent Wilderness Designation for the Arctic Wildlife Refuge”.

Today’s news and commentary:Today’s weird thing is “David Rivinus Violin Maker”. WARNING: Many of the instruments depicted are extremely surreal and may cause nausea. Enjoy or be scared or something, and share the weirdness.

Aaron

Monday, February 18, 2008

12 ’Adhar Ri’shon 5768: Presidents’ Day/National Battery Day

Greetings.

Today’s news and commentary:Today’s weird thing is the hideous-looking Pikasso guitar. This instrument is wrong on so many levels and probably extremely dangerous to play. Enjoy or be scared or something and share the weirdness.

Aaron

Sunday, February 17, 2008

11 ’Adhar Ri’shon 5768: Champion Crab Races Day/My Way Day

Greetings.

Today’s news and commentary:Today’s weird thing is “Poll: Which sci-fi/fantasy presidential ticket gets your vote?”. (I voted for Picard.) Enjoy and share the weirdness.

Aaron

Friday, February 15, 2008

Worthy cause of the day: “The games China is hosting in Beijing can't hide those it's playing in Darfur”

Greetings.

Today’s worthy cause is the petition “The games China is hosting in Beijing can't hide those it's playing in Darfur”. Please sign and tell China to get its collective active together. Yes, they probably won’t listen, but even communist party leaders are not immune to public opinion. Thanks in advance.

Aaron

Worthy cause of the day: “The games China is hosting in Beijing can't hide those it's playing in Darfur”

Greetings.

Today’s worthy cause is the petition “The games China is hosting in Beijing can't hide those it's playing in Darfur”. Please sign and tell China to get its collective active together. Yes, they probably won’t listen, but even communist party leaders are not immune to public opinion. Thanks in advance.

Aaron

9 ’Adhar Ri’shon 5768: Great Backyard Bird Count

Greetings.

Today’s news and commentary, some of which Barry is responsible for:Today’s weird thing, for which Barry is responsible, is “Hip Hop Violin Caprice”.

Enjoy, share the weirdness, and Shabbath shalom.

Aaron

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Worthy cause of the day: “Let the voters decide”

Greetings.

Today’s worthy cause is the MoveOn.org petition “Let the voters decide”. Please sign and let the superdelegates know that you want the decision for whether Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton becomes the Democratic candidate for president to be in the hands of those voting in the primaries and not in the hands of unelected officials. Thank you.

Aaron

8 ’Adhar Ri’shon 5768: Ferris Wheel Day/Valentine’s Day

Greetings.

Today’s news and commentary:In lieu of the usual weird thing (and as a break from the weird music I have been posting lately), I present my latest Divine Misconceptions-related review below. Enjoy and share the weirdness.

Aaron



A theological review of Tron
by Aaron Solomon Adelman

Yes, I am reviewing Tron, the 1982 film famous for being one of the first movies with computer-generated graphics and for being campy. Tron is most definitely a B-movie. The idea of a megalomaniac computer program is not original by any means, having been done before by Doctor Who, Star Trek, and probably other TV shows and movies. The writers clearly have no understanding of computer science or computer-related culture whatsoever, thus ignoring the operating system, turning programs into people, creating a virtual environment within the computer the way they did, having items from video games wandering around loose, and other such inanities. I could easily be brutal and needlessly sadistic describing an ignorance so profound as to confound programmers with users, but to the credit of the writers, Tron gets basic theology amazingly right.

The foundation of Tron theology is that “Users” are gods to the programs they have written. Given the amount of control “Users” can exert on programs, essentially godlike powers, this is entirely sensible. This is manifested in a number of details:
  • Programs in Tron are created in the image of their “Users”. This is taken much further than in Genesis 1:27—programs are invariably played by the same actor as their “Users”. Even the Master Control Program (MCP), who is not depicted in human form, is voiced by the same actor as his “User”, Ed Dillinger.
  • Programs have exalted notions of what “Users” are, much as we humans tend to view our gods in terms of perfection, grand plans, and infiniteness; one of the programs, Tron, initially believes that everything “Users” do is “part of a plan”.
  • What is good and evil for programs is defined wholly in terms of the will of their “Users”, much as religious humans usually define good and evil in terms of the will of their gods; therefore programs believe they must act according to the will of their “Users”, much as humans often believe they must act according to the will of their gods. And much as religions usually have held that the will of gods is revealed through prophecy, prophecy has its place in Tron, too. Early in the movie, the “User” Kevin Flynn communicates his will to his security program, Clu, who despite some trepidation attempts to obey and find some hidden data. Tron, one of the heros of the story, actively seeks out communication with his “User”, Alan Bradley, so that he may know his will and fulfill it. He puts his life at risk making use of an I/O tower to do so, but fulfilling the will of his “User” is important enough to be worth the risk.
Example: the (program) villain of the story is the MCP. The MCP is an extremely sinful character. He takes over the mainframe at the software company ENCOM and extends himself into many other computers as well. In his own dominion inside computers, he bends other programs to his will, forcing them to either deny the existence of “Users” or to fight to the death in video games. To make matters worse, the MCP blackmails his “User” Dillinger; declares his superiority to humans; and brings the “User” Flynn,who tries to subvert him, into the world of the mainframe to die in the games. If merely offending a god is sinful, how much more so trying to kill one! Even the MCP’s lieutenant, Sark, hesitates to raise a hand against Flynn, though he does ultimately comply with the MCP’s wishes.

Contrast Tron. Tron is a security program. He recognizes that his “User” considers the MCP a danger and wants him destroyed. Tron spends the movie working with Flynn and other programs fighting against the MCP and Sark. Tron even takes the step of communicating directly with his “User” to learn what he wants—which is risky due to the MCP’s suppressive policies. He never wavers from his duty.

What is the difference in outcome? Although the “Users” do not intervene to reward or punish, the law of karma seems to apply. The MCP and Sark are defeated and destroyed, while Tron and the surviving programs get to live happily ever after—especially Tron himself, who has the opportunity to live happy ever after with his beloved Yori.

Karma also works on the “Users”, too. Dillinger had achieved a high position in the company by stealing five highly profitable video games from Flynn and passing them off as his own work, with Flynn being reduced to running a video arcade for a living. For something so widely condemned as immoral, Dillinger’s deception is revealed in the end. Flynn fights against the evil MCP and Sark in the mainframe world, even giving his virtual life to allow Tron to accomplish his mission. For this virtuous behavior, he merits not only to be rehired by ENCOM, but to become the boss as well.

Good as Tron is theologically, it still has some flaws.
  • I would have liked to have seen more detail on what the “Users” did after Flynn returned from the mainframe domain. Did Flynn and colleagues reward Tron and Yori? Did they resurrect the programs that the MCP and Sark had killed (e.g., Clu and Ram)? (Presumably they were backed up somewhere.) Did they condemn the MCP and Sark to some sort of cybernetic Hell? Did Flynn do anything to reward Alan Bradley and Lora Baines, who helped him in a quest to break into the ENCOM mainframe which ultimately resulted in the uncovering of Dillinger’s deception? What is the fate of Dillinger? And how does karma work in the first place—or does it truly figure into the story at all? Until (and if) there is a sequel, we will never know the answers to these questions.
  • So far as I know, there is no religion which posits that sentient life came into existence purely accidentally.
  • The MCP kidnapping and deliberately trying to murder the “User” Flynn may be unprecedented. Flynn is not a willing participant to his kidnapping; in contrast, Jesus—the nearest equivalent in Christianity—walked into his arrest willingly, even though it led to his execution. There is some worrying about mortals having powers over gods in the Mahabharata, but I am not clear that the Hindu religions ever posit the notion of the kidnapping of a god.
So Tron is not theologically perfect. Still, for a B-movie, it turns out much better theologically than one would expect.

Classification: Campy science-fiction (heavy on the fiction) B-movie.

Overall rating: C+ (nearly instantaneous failure of suspension of disbelief, lack of character growth, unresolved plot holes, and very enjoyable to watch).

Theological rating: B (fix in those theological problems in the sequel, and I will be happy to raise the score).

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

7 ’Adhar Ri’shon 5768: Stamp Collectors Day/Get A Different Name Day

Greetings.

Divine misconception of the day: Many people think believing and acting irrationally is harmless. What's The Harm? documents cases where people have been injured or killed due to irrationality. To make things worse, sometimes the person harmed is not the person being irrational. Please note that irrational beliefs and behavior is characteristic of certain religions, such as the severely misnamed “Christian Science” and snake-handlers. Whatever you believe, do not practice your religion foolishly; you cannot count on Divine protection. Psalms 116:6 does indeed say “YHWH is the guardian of the gullible”, but it that is not an excuse for folly; without Divine intervention, fools would probably drop dead in far higher numbers than they actually do.

Today’s news and commentary:Today’s weird thing is “Vivaldi, The Four Seasons, Winter III, 3 Guitars & 2 Basses”.

Enjoy and share the weirdness.

Aaron

Worthy cause of the day: Take a stand against torture

Greetings.

Today’s worthy cause is the petition “Take a stand against torture”. Please sign immediately and help put a stop to the Bush administration’s immoral and illegal treatment of prisoners. Thank you.

Aaron

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

6 ’Adhar 5768: Darwin Day/Lincoln’s Birthday/National Pancake Day

Greetings.

Divine misconception of the day: “Oldest Rabbinic Group in U.S. Bans Voting for Anti-Family Values Candidate”. This article talks about how how R. Yehuda Levin of the Union of Orthodox Rabbis of the U.S. and Canada wants everyone to not vote for “Candidates who support abortion on demand, the homosexual agenda, liberal attitudes towards pornography of any sort”, even if means one does not vote for anyone in a major party.  (Yes, I should have reported on this subject before Super Tuesday, but I was sick with a respiratory infection and was not working at 100% mentally at that point.)  The article notes R. Levin’s video on YouTube:

Said video gives a link to his site.  Having reviewed article, video, and site, I sent him the following response, which covers errors both religious and political. Note for those not familiar with Jewish terminology: “HashShem” = YHWH, the God of Israel.
My dear Rabbi: 

I have read about you (http://wwrn.org/article.php?idd=27674) and seen your video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaIz4qjSji0), and it is with deep regret that I cannot sign your pledge. As an Orthodox Jew, I have no love of abortion, homosexuality, or pornography, and I certainly would not vote for anyone promoting them. But I have to ask: are these the only things that HashShem cares about? Whatever happened to caring about other human beings? Whatever happened to caring for the poor, including getting them out of poverty? Whatever happened to getting people out of debt? Whatever happened to healthcare? (We have a duty to heal the sick.) Whatever happened to the environment and recycling? (We have to the planet in good condition for the sake of the humans who live on it.) Whatever happened to education (as opposed to teaching to the test)? Whatever happened to fighting for justice? Whatever happened to the State of Israel? Why have you chosen only three issues as a hot button and ignored everything else HashShem wants of us?

Furthermore, I am unaware of any politician who is truly pro-abortion, pro-homosexuality, or pro-pornography; I have never heard of anyone in office or running for office promoting committing abortions, committing homosexual acts, or creating, distributing, or consuming pornographic materials. On the other hand, there are politicians who believe we should permit abortions and homosexual activities under the whole “rights” rubric, while not advocating said activities for those who do not wish to perform them. And who is “pro-pornography”? Would that not be suicidal for a politician? Why are you mischaracterizing people?

And how does being against abortion, homosexuality, and pornography bring morality to our lives? Does being against abortion automatically make one a better parent? Does being against homosexuality automatically make one a better husband or wife? Does being against pornography automatically make one respect and treat other humans better? How about doing something about the problems which lead to abortion and pornography rather than merely condemn the end in a series of mistakes?

Finally, your voting strategy is ineffective. Many of us are well aware that the system is biased to give us candidates who can be elected, not ones who are necessarily the best people for the job. All our candidates are humans, not angels. They are flawed. Many of them lie. The only way one can vote for the candidate one truly wants is to have low standards. The only thing one can do is to vote for the best of the bunch (or to be cynical, against the worst of the bunch). Your plan is to effectively not vote. Given the choice of a candidate whom one agrees with 50% or effectively not voting, most people would rather vote for Mr./Ms. 50%, as that at least tells the politicians that Mr./Ms. 50% is a better match for what they want, despite the imperfections. Effectively not voting, since it does not register, tells the politicians nothing and puts us completely at the mercy of other people, who may have radically different ideas about who should be in office. 

Sincerely yours,

Aaron Solomon Adelman

Today’s news and commentary:Today’s weird thing is “Fur Elise”. Now, while Für Elise is not a particular weird piece of music, it is rather weird for one person to play it (or anything else) on two electric guitars at the same time.

Note: Any guitar teacher will tell you this is not how you are supposed to play a guitar. Do so at your own risk.

Enjoy and share the weirdness.

Aaron

Monday, February 11, 2008

5 ’Adhar Ri’shon 5768: National Inventor’s Day/Don’t Cry Over Spilled Milk Day/Pro Sports Wives Day/Just Say No To PowerPoint Week

Greetings.

Today’s news and commentary:Today’s weird thing is “Paul Gilbert / Classical Electric-Guitar short edited”, in which someone with an electric guitar attempts to make several classical composers roll over in their graves.

Note that you can blame Barry for much of this week’s music-themed weird things. Enjoy and share the weirdness.

Aaron

Friday, February 8, 2008

2 ’Adhar Ri’shon 5768: Kite Flying Day/Laugh and Get Rich Day

Greetings.

Note: Due to having received two E-mails requesting a Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard)-compatible version of my Dvorak-insprired Hebrew keyboard layout in a short period of time, I have hastily created a new page for it. Go forth and download! Constructive criticisms are welcome. Feel free to make modifications to my keyboard or port it to other platforms.

Today’s news and commentary:Today’s weird things are Johnny Chung Lee’s Wii projects. Enjoy, share the weirdness, and Shabbath shalom.

Aaron

Wednesday, February 6, 2008

30 Shevaṭ 5768: Ro’sh Ḥodhesh/National Frozen Yogurt Day/Ash Wednesday

Greetings.

Worthy cause of the day: “Help Us Stop "Libel Terrorism"”.

Today’s news and commentary:Today’s weird thing is the Dominion of Melchizedek, a micronation whose purpose is solely to scam people out of their money. Enjoy, share the weirdness, and happy new month.

Aaron

Sunday, February 3, 2008

27 Shevaṭ 5768: Shrove Sunday

Greetings.

Worthy cause of the day: “Petition for the return of the abducted soldiers”.

Today’s news and commentary:Today’s weird thing is “What song is this?”. Enjoy and share the weirdness.

Aaron