Look At Our Protest

I'll protest more or less anything. Last time I was here in New York, back around Easter, my friends - or at least folks I know - and I walked past a protest organized by some people with impaired vision against the feudal-reactionary Writers' Guild who were doing something or other that prevented lots of books being made available in braille. I was dragged away from it, but I've been grumbling about the "feudal-reactionary Writers' Guild" ever since.

The one protest here on Turtle Island I wasn't into was the Quebecois protest against the visit of Prince Charles that coincided with my visits to Montreal and Ottawa. I despise royalty, but Quebecois nationalism is not something I can get behind. Francophones squabbling with Anglophones on Turtle Island seems to me as absurd as when the British and the Dutch were squabbling in South Africa. When two imperialist colonial cultures clash on stolen land, who cares who wins?

This, uh, protest below I can't support because I don't get it. It's post-it notes stuck to a door next to a new age therapy center offering past-life regression therapy on 31st st. The other day someone suggested to me that I might benefit from "primal therapy". I suggested that he'd been living in New York for too long.

Ontario Brutalism

Public housing in Ottawa influenced by the "brutalist" school. Makes me feel nostaligic for the parking garages and public buildings of downtown Bristol. I particularly like the way residents have covered over the balcony with clear plastic to add another room to the house. Not so sure about the piece of wood holding up the airconditioner, though. Off to New York City tomorrow. Autumn is my favourite time to visit NYC. It's like that movie with Richard Gere and Winona Ryder. She makes hats, you know. And shhhh she's got a secret.

Cone And Cornel And Canada

As an undergraduate I "grew up" with the radical theology of James Cone. I dug Cornel West in the Matrix movies, too. So I was looking forward to their conversation here at the American Academy of Religion meeting in Montreal. But what did I get? Giggling, middle-aged, pants suit and pashmina wearing bourgeois scholars and the construction of an ethno-centric hagiographic liberal geneology.

In his introductory remarks, West described Cone as "single handedly responsible" for a revolution in theology. He also went out of his way to point out that Cone had written two books of "liberation theology" two years before Gustavo Gutierrez in South America did. He then proudly claimed liberation theology for the USA before amending that - since we're in Canada - to "North America". The thing is, though, West played right into the criticisms of bourgeois theology that Gutierrez outlines in his work (I think it's his book The Power of the Poor in History but I might be wrong). Gutierrez writes that the obsession amongst some theologians and scholars with the origins of liberation theology and the question of who "invented" it is tied up with the question of ownership and authority. The idea of being able to say that you own your own theology, GuGu joked, parallels the middle class obsession with being able to claim that you own your own house. This is obviously a world away from any genuinely radical theology.

If Cone was really the "grand" Christian figure that West was anointing him as, I would have expected that he would have rejected all the trite, bourgeois platitudes offered. Would he not also reject attempts to make his work acceptable to the banality of the liberal bourgeois academic establishment? I would have thought so, but I guess I was wrong.

Cone's narration of a largely sentimental self-hagiography and construction, with West, of essentially a liberal ethnocentric genealogy of US American Black theology was all the sadder to listen to because its teleological sting comes when the wealthy white folk - all those Professors who subtly insist on being addressed as such on their six-figure salaries - smile affectionately and applaud politely the depoliticised political bons mots.

When Cornel West talked about reading Cone's first book Black Theology and Black Power outside of the Black Panther headquarters all those Professors who subtly insist on being addressed as such on their six-figure salaries sitting around me laughed. They fucking laughed. The tradition of militant working class Black politics in the USA that reached its height with the Black Panthers is safe for the establishment now. And so are you, James Cone. The establishment knows it.

That's why they laugh.

Cone can say that "the truth is always one sided." Cone can say that "the truth always upsets people." But when Cone said that he's been "fuming for forty years", and when Cornel West speaks of reading Cone's books with the Black Panthers, it makes the bourgeoisie laugh. And when James Cone says that we should "cross boundaries of class" and does not say that we should eliminate class, it makes me want to leave the room and go explore the underground malls of Montreal.

O Carrie-Da

Bonsoir, mes amis. That's all the French you're getting; that's all the French you need. Back to the language of Empire. I'm in Montreal - where Jesus was from, dontchaknow? - but what matters to me now is the latest episode in the scandal-plagued life of ex-Miss California, Carrie Prejean. As you will recall from previous updates, Prejean was dumped after invoking her Christianity to support her opposition to same-gender marriage. Overnight she went from pun-up girl to conservative pin-up girl.

Last time I mentioned her, she had launched a lawsuit against the pageant organizers for leaking the fact they paid $5,000 for her breast implants. Now it seems that she's dropped her alleged $1 million dollar lawsuit in the most dramatic of circumstatnces. It's alleged that the pageant owners' lawyers found a video of Carrie, uh, enjoying herself:

When the video started playing, Carrie's first reaction was "that's disgusting" ... and Carrie denied it was her. Then, the camera angle changed ... and panned up to her face. She was caught red-handed ... so to speak.

Carrie was rendered speechless and immediately began talking with her lawyer. We're told it took about 15 seconds for Carrie to drop her $1 million dollar demand.

Doubts have been expressed over the validity of the story, as you would expect. It is, afterall, a little too convinient, don't you think? If the video exists, it will only be a matter of time before it surfaces on line, I suppose. Until then we will have to speculate. Speculate, analyze and theologize.

You see, we could say that Carrie's act of self-love models God's love for the world, despite the theological complications of such a position. Or, we could say that Carrie's public life models the hypocritical trainwreck that is American civilisation. Yeah, I think I'll go with that one.

Remember, Remember, Whatever, Nevermind

(1) And so this is Guy Fawkes. And what have we done? Well, it's Britain's traditional day of anti-Popery. Now, no one loves a good Romophobic rant more than me. I grew up on that stuff as a kid living down the road from a Seventh Day Adventist church. Seriously, the stuff they used to stuff in neighbouring mailboxes made Ian Paisley look like one of the pussies appearing at this $624 jerk circle.

(2) But the thing is, all Guy Fawkes ever did was try to blow up the British Parliament. I mean, sure, ok, he may have sought to usher in a return to Romish obscuritanist oppression, but it's not like he committed any crime.

(3) I was reading through some old books on religion a while back and I came across some studies of anti-Catholic sentiment from the USA in the 1940s. Things like looking to Franco's Spain and the Inquisition to see the truce face of Roman Catholicism. I was struck by how similar those sorts of arguments were to contemporary Islamophobic discourse that takes the most dysfunctional and largely atypical Muslim majority countries like Afghanistan or Somalia and treats them as normative.

(4) I am looking forward to setting off some fireworks tonight, though. Growing up in Australia I never got a chance to play with fireworks. They are highly regulated down under. Unless you're a licensed fireworks dude you can only buy them in the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory - they're a little like Native American reservations in the USA, shit is legal there that state laws prohibit. Same goes with hardcore pornography. The joke is that it's necessary in the Capital Territory to keep all the bureaucrats and politicians amused.

(5) One person here in Bristol seems to have totally missed the point of Guy Fawkes Day, though. Get this:

Police are searching for an unkempt, bearded man after two reports of horses being interfered with in South Gloucestershire.

The first incident was in the Bridgeyate area at about 12.45pm on Tuesday, October 20, when a member of the public saw a man in a field with a horse. The man appeared to carry out a sexual act before he made off on a bicycle along the cycle path towards Bitton.

He was described as aged about 40, of medium build, dirty-looking, with a black beard and black hair. He wore a three-quarter-length coat, carried a backpack and rode a mountain bike.

In the second incident, someone broke into a stable in Siston Hill, tied a horse up and daubed it with ointment. This occurred overnight between Thursday and Friday, October 29-30.

Both animals were geldings and although neither appears to have been hurt, the one in the stable was clearly distressed.

I know that this sort of love that dare not speak its neeeeeiiiighme really belongs on Roland's blog, but I just wanted to big up Bristol.

(6) Tomorrow I'm off overseas for about 6 weeks. Turtle Island, the Republic of Samsung and whatever politically subversive name I can think of for Australia.

Church! Kids! Sex! Vampires!

The (self-described) Sane Man has made a reference to Insights, the newspaper of the Uniting Church in Australia, basically an amalgam of the Methodists, Congregationalists and most of the Presbyterians with the odd hardline hold out. In the little Vulgar Marxist blogging circle, the Uniting Church gets respeck for having had the wisdom to remove Roland of the State Capitalist Moustache from its roster of active ministers.

Anyway, like most 'mainline' protestant churches in Europe and its settler colonies, the Uniting Church has a bit of a problem with the kids. Specifically, a lack of them. You see, kids these days are all about mega-churches like Hillsong with their pretty-boy praise 'n' worship stadium rock bands, or they're into neo-pagan Aussie rituals like passing out in a cow paddock after drinking a bottle of vanilla essence.

So any chance the church has to connect with the kids, they're gonna take. Like this article in Insights about the vampire book and move phenomenon, Twilight.

[Author Stephanie] Meyer is a practising Mormon who claims her religious views were not intended to preach from the pages of Twilight. But interesting moral stances underpin Meyer’s remix of vampire mythology (purists loathe how Meyer’s vampires are so different).

Edward’s animalistic attraction to Bella and her hardcore infatuation with him easily symbolise the burning of lust. But his internal battle against sucking human blood causes him to rule out sexual intimacy, for consummation would mean losing control — and possibly killing Bella with his vampire strengths.

Now, I've not seen or read any of these books or movies, but I think there may be another explanation for this fear of intimacy thing. Is it just me, or is the whole "I can't have sex with you because I'm a vampire and if I do I may loose control, drink your blood and end up killing you" thing a little , um, unconvincing? I think maybe Mr Vampire here is a victim of the conservative Christian culture of heterosexual middle class suburban bliss. Otherwise known as the cult of the breederscum. You need to be true to yourself, Mr Vampire. Is it so much easier to believe that God made you a fucking vampire than to believe that God made you gay? I understand the appeal to kids of thinking they're vampires. I even did a blog entry on it. But, I mean, come on dude.

My reading of this issue aside, the article continues:

However, suggesting Bella and Edward are models for Christians is a perilous leap, considering we’re talking about a bloodsucking immortal and his girlfriend, who abstain so she can keep breathing. A Christian framework or lifestyle is not demonstrated in Twilight, leaving its act of sexual self-control to be more unusual than theologically defensible.

Damn. We almost had an angle into contemporary pop culture here. Oh well. We'll always have Veggie Tales and Tooth & Nail records.

A Week In The Life Of The Dear Leader

Phil, the Very Public Sociologist, has posted an item on a rather rare, and possibly entirely fictional event, the defection of a South Korean to the Stalinist north:

Kang Tong Rim, 30, who resided in Polgyo Township, Posong County, South Jolla Province of south Korea, Monday came over to the northern half of Korea by crossing the Military Demarcation Line in the eastern sector of the front. He is pleased with the accomplishment of his desire for defection. He is now under the warm care of a relevant organ.

The story originates at this here North Korean propaganda site, maintained by some pro-DPRK Koreans in Japan. If you're at all interested in the aesthetics of Stalinist propaganda, or just wanna know how the other half is living (in their own political fantasies at least) I heartily recommend a poke around the calendar of news items here.

I've been having a look at all the various events that the Dear Leader, Kim Jong Il has been up to of late. Alas, it doesn't just involve ogling female soldiers.

Pyongyang, November 1 (KCNA) -- General Secretary Kim Jong Il provided field guidance to the Unhung Cooperative Farm in Thaechon County. He looked at varieties of crops produced by the farm and acquainted himself in detail with the farming this year. He expressed great satisfaction over the fact that officials, farmers and technicians of the farm effectively did all farm work and successfully conducted double cropping, prompted by their ardent patriotic desire to contribute to building a thriving nation, thus bringing about the richest harvest ever known.

Well, if they're promising "the richest harvest ever known" you can basically guarantee record amounts of aid from the World Food Program are about to arrive.

Pyongyang, October 31 (KCNA) -- General Secretary Kim Jong Il provided field guidance to technologically updated industrial establishments and a chicken farm in North Phyongan Province. ... He expressed great satisfaction over that fact that the officials and workers of the farm have made leaping progress in the production of chicken and eggs. It is very gratifying that the officials and workers of the farm are raising a lot of ducks and pigs by making an effective use of excrement of chicken, he said, highly appreciating their tenacious work style.

Which comes first, the chicken or the egg? Neither! The Immortal Great Leader Kim Il Sung created them both!

Pyongyang, October 30 (KCNA) -- General Secretary Kim Jong Il gave on-site guidance to the Suphung Power Station. Guided by leading officials of the station he went round the monument to the on-site instructions of President Kim Il Sung and the room for education in the revolutionary history. Noting that the Suphung Power Station developed into a leading power producer under the wise leadership and meticulous care of the President, he stressed that the immortal exploits performed by the President for the development of the Juche-oriented power industry will remain long in the history of the country.

Yawn.

Pyongyang, October 29 (KCNA) -- A national seminar took place at the People's Palace of Culture Thursday to deeply study and grasp the scientific accuracy, validity and great vitality of General Secretary Kim Jong Il's work "Socialism Is a Science".

Ryang Kyong Bok, director and editor-in-chief of the Workers' Party of Korea Publishing House, said in his speech titled "The great leader Kim Jong Il's work 'Socialism Is a Science' serves as an immortal great programme indicating the road of winning the victory of socialism as it comprehensively systematizes and deals with the Juche-oriented theory of socialism" that the work is a perfect programme of socialism which comprehensively systematizes and deals with the socialist theory centered on the popular masses, the theory of putting main emphasis on man. The seminar heard six papers which deeply explained and proved Kim Jong Il's work.

Shit, I've sat through less interesting-sounding conference papers. I've presented less interesting-sounding conference papers.

Pyongyang, October 26 (KCNA) -- General Secretary Kim Jong Il enjoyed an art performance given by servicepersons of companies under KPA Units 567, 531, 762 and 630 who participated in the 33rd art festival of KPA servicepersons. They put on the stage chorus "Sentinels on the Defence Line a Thousand-ri away Offer Morning Salute to the Supreme Commander," dialogic poem "Love Prevalent at the Post" and Oungum ensemble "The Blue Sky over My Country" and other colorful numbers of various genres.

Rumours abound that Jawbreaker will be reuniting for a performance celebrating the 100th anniversary of the birth of Kim Il Sung.

Pyongyang, October 25 (KCNA) -- General Secretary Kim Jong Il gave field guidance to the newly-built Mt. Myohyang Recreation Ground. After being briefed about the ground before its guide map he toured the long tourist course extending from the entrance to Habiro to Manphok Ravine for hours to acquaint himself in detail about its construction.

After feasting his eyes on the tourist route, pavilions, a flyover built in a peculiar style and resting places in perfect harmony with beautiful natural scenery, he expressed great satisfaction over the fact that the youth shock brigade members have spruced up Mt. Myohyang to be a wonderful recreation ground for the people.

And here is the "youth shock brigade" in action. Anyway, aside from send off the odd form letter to various heads of state, this is pretty much all the Dear Leader did last week. I do more shit than that in any given week and I'm the laziest person I know!

Let Us Now Praise Danny Del-Re

Cult hero of the Footscray/Western Bulldogs Football Club from the early 1990s.

Highest goal kicker since the great (albeit recently humbled) Simon Beasley.

Record holder for the highest number of goals kicked by a Bulldogs player in a finals game.

Long-listed for the Italian VFL/AFL team of the century, alongside such luminaries as Hercules Vollugi, Moots Esposito and the notoriously awesome Mark Zanotti.

In honour of all the great Italian-Australian footballers, I give you Joe Dulce's wogtastic "Shaddap You Face".

bRaInZ! brAiNz!

Last night hoards of pale, pasty-skinned people were stumbling around the streets of Bristol mumbling, "brAinzz! bRAinzzz! BRainZzZ!!!"

Don't worry. It wasn't a zombie rampage. It wasn't even anything to do with Halloween. Just your average Saturday night in Bristol with drunken British folk demanding their favorite brand of Welsh beer.

Retire

That's my advice to crotchety old academics who are just talking crazy shit now. Just retire already. We all know a lot of you have invested your whole lives in your dull little careers and will probably expire of spite or boredom within about 3 months of getting the lock on your office door changed. But still. Retire. First it was Bryan Turner who wrote a ridiculous essay on Edward Said's Orientalism a few months back I can't be bothered looking for. Did you think no one knows that Said neglected the Germans? Did you think anyone would take you seriously when you insisted that claims of bigoted orientalism could not be sustained against A Passage To India? A Passage To India for fucks sake! Just go away already.

Now it's James Jupp, some crotchety old up to his turkey neck in the reactionary shift towards "social cohesion" in social science in Australia. Basically looking for ways to keep the willful immigrants, the demanding indigenes and sundry others who protest too much in line. And perpetuate the bullshit myth that Australia is or ever was a socially cohesive country, rather than a racist colonial settler state founded on genocide and exploitation. Fuck social cohesion I say we need a little more accelerated contradiction. So as if Jupp's project wasn't insideous enough to begin with, he's edited a book on religion in Australia and spouted some shit to Murdoch's broadsheet neo-con cunt rag The Australian.

So, when asked if concern about the potential for militant Islam in Australia is justified, he doesn't fudge or baulk.

"In my view Islam is an aggressive religion. When people say it is a religion of peace, I have serious doubts. Islam was spread in its original period, for two or 300 years, very largely by military conquest."

But, he adds, fears about militant Islam in Australia are out of proportion. There are only about 380,000 Muslims and the most are law-abiding peace lovers.

And how the fuck do you think other religions spread, o sage? How did Christianity and capitalism came to socially cohesive Australia? Gimme a fucking break.

Even so, he says, there is more risk in accepting some migrants as opposed to others. It is not just their country of birth that matters but their region of origin.

"Islamic fundamentalism varies a lot around the world and some countries like the UK drew a problematic lot, the Pakistanis from the rural areas. The core of the problem in Australia is among those who came from the Lebanon, which is a very disturbed society because of the civil war based on religious adherence, but it depends where the migrants come from in Lebanon and their background.

Well there you have it. Anyone who tells you that the Lebanese civil war was "based on religious adherence" knows fuck all about the Middle East, and knows fuck all about religion. Equally with the other "problematic lot" Jupp mentions; the Pakistanis in the UK. Take folk from a rural, feudal economy and deposit them in the post-industrial wasteland of slightly less feudal and xenophobic Britain at the precise time when the industrial capitalist economy is falling away. Wow. You got some problems. Who'd've fucking thought? But don't you love the archetypal ruling class British expression, "the UK drew a problematic lot"? I think the people of South Asia drew a problematic lot when they met the British. But that's just me.

"Australia is probably the most socially cohesive community in the world," he says. "Most of the discussion in Australia about social cohesion centres (on) Muslims, who are about 1.5 per cent of the population and most of them are practically hiding under the bed. They're the ones who have to apologise for their existence. The whole thing has been distorted.

"Most of the Muslims I know are university-educated and a lot of women come to conferences we have and are active participants in the discussions. Headscarves are common but it's very rare to see burkas."

So his unease about Australian society centres on other issues. Organised crime and drugs are a threat, including bikie gangs. Then there is what he calls "the youth problem", gangs that congregate at night, violent and very drunk.

"I'm not just saying this because I'm old," he adds. "The social tensions among the less educated, less skilled, working-class young in the outer suburbs, there is probably more threat from them than from the Muslims."

Yes, you like Muslims when they're middle class. No, you are not just saying this because you're old. You're saying this to piss me off. It's 3 o'clock in the afternoon. Time for all good reactionaries to have their supper and suppositories. You may be so taken with the fact that Muslim women are allowed out of their homes to - Allah forbid! - speak in public, that you need to make mention of it but you're really just bugging me now.

It's like those great Hebrew prophets, the Ramones, said to one C. Montgomery Burns...