Easter Bunnies

I find New Zealand's observance of a partially commerce free Good Friday at odds with the idea of being a secular society. Why can't I buy groceries today? I don't share the supernatural delusions of Christians (I'm sorry, but people don't rise from the dead - unless they are not actually dead in the first place). If you choose to observe some other faith, then too bad you're stuffed too, not only is it a public holiday but shopkeepers stand to be fined if they prefer to worship Mammon instead.

While I fast (haven't got a thing in the house to eat) I will read my pile of books.
Thoroughly enjoying The Culture Code by Clotaire Rapaille - I 'hear' the words in an outrageous French accent, which is curious - linked to watching the video of C.R. in The Persuaders documentary featured on PBS' website. I like the simplicity of his theory. He is a fascinating fellow. Equally interested in the fact that he has patented his methodology. Surely once the recipe has been published it is in the public domain. Which leads me to the second book (or should I say document?) by Laurence Lessig: Free Culture where he discusses the implications of turning intellectual property into a gated community. Jon Steel's book Perfect Pitch has arrived from Amazon (arriving from the U.S. in an impressive 8 days - when I ordered the site suggested that it would be here by the 23rd of this month - a classic example of under-promising and over-delivering).

Johnny Bunko competiton

The Great Johnny Bunko Challenge from DHP on Vimeo . There's a young chap in Indiana, one Alec Quig , who has written to me about creating a career based on a polymathic degree, from which he has recently graduated. He's an interesting young man and his concerns about going forward in life are the anxieties we all face at crossroads in our lives when we are forced to make choices. Dan Pink's latest book The Adventures of Johnny Bunko: The Last Career Guide You'll Ever Need might help: "From a New York Times, BusinessWeek, and Washington Post bestselling author comes a first-of-its- kind career guide for a new generation of job seekers.There's never been a career guide like it.the fully illustrated story (ingeniously told in Manga form) of a young Everyman just out of college who lands his first job. Johnny Bunko is new to parachute company Boggs Corp., and he stumbles through his early days as a working stiff until a crisis prompts him to find a new job. St

Ze Frank thinks so you don't have to

Ze Frank appeared on my radar when I saw his presentation among the excellent TED Talks videos . This morning I was reading Russell Davies planning blog in which he referred to a clip by Ze Frank - Where do ideas come from. Here's the transcript: "...Hungry Hippo licks Aunt JEmima [sic] writes, "Are you ever gonna break into song again? Are you running out of ideas?" Hungry Hippo licks Aunt JEmima, that's a good question. I run out of ideas every day! Each day I live in mortal fear that I've used up the last idea that'll ever come to me. If you don't wanna run out of ideas the best thing to do is not to execute them. You can tell yourself that you don't have the time or resources to do 'em right. Then they stay around in your head like brain crack. No matter how bad things get, at least you have those good ideas that you'll get to later. Some people get addicted to that brain crack. And the longer they wait, the more they convince themse

Sexist Advertising and stereotypes

Advertising lives in the short-form world. Because mass media is so expensive the 30 second commercial is conventional and because there is so much clutter simplified signals are essential to 'cut through'. One form of communication short-hand used as a default is the stereotype - "A stereotype can be a conventional and oversimplified conception, opinion, or image, based on the assumption that there are attributes that members of the "other group" have in common. Stereotypes are sometimes formed by a previous illusory correlation, a false association between two variables that are loosely correlated if correlated at all. Though generally viewed as negative perceptions, stereotypes may be either positive or negative in tone." In the 1950's and 60's when men dominated advertising stereotypical impressions of women as inferior or subservient were not only commonplace but usual. It was normal to show women as housekeepers, largely because most wer

ThoughtSpurs

Search This Blog

Easter Bunnies

Popular posts from this blog

Johnny Bunko competiton

Ze Frank thinks so you don't have to

Sexist Advertising and stereotypes