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Santa Needs an Image Expert |
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Topic: Society |
9:25 am EST, Dec 26, 2003 |
It appears that Santa's image as a sacred icon of American popular culture and childhood lore is a bit shopworn. One reason, say those who have observed the changing role of Santa in the culture, is that children, exposed to an overwhelming array of consumer goods and products, know at increasingly young ages that presents come not from the North Pole but from the mall or the FedEx guy. Nor do many of them view shopping and the receiving of gifts as a rare experience, or as a reward, but as a ritual practiced almost daily. Child, to Mom: "Toy shopping? Again? Do I have to?" Santa Needs an Image Expert |
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Topic: Society |
10:37 pm EST, Dec 23, 2003 |
In Understanding Me, Stephanie McLuhan and David Staines have brought together nineteen previously unpublished lectures and interviews either by or with Marshall McLuhan. They have in common the informality and accessibility of the spoken word. In every case, the text has been transcribed from the original audio, film, or videotape of McLuhan's actual appearances. This is not what McLuhan wrote but what he said -- the spoken words of a surprisingly accessible public man. He comes across as outrageous, funny, perplexing, stimulating, and provocative. McLuhan will never seem quite the same again. Understanding Me |
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The Law of War in the War on Terror |
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Topic: Society |
5:06 pm EST, Dec 23, 2003 |
What are the boundaries of the Bush administration's "war on terrorism?" The language in use stretches the meaning of the word "war." The Bush administration has used war rhetoric precisely to give itself the extraordinary powers enjoyed by a wartime government to detain or even kill suspects without trial. In the process, the administration may have made it easier for itself to detain or eliminate suspects. But it has also threatened the most basic due process rights. The Executive Director of Human Rights Watch writes in the January/February 2004 issue of Foreign Affairs. This is just one of several excellent articles in the latest issue. The Law of War in the War on Terror |
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Creating a Trusted Network for Homeland Security | Markle Task Force |
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Topic: Society |
4:42 pm EST, Dec 23, 2003 |
On December 2, the Markle Foundation's Task Force on National Security in the Information Age released its second report, entitled "Creating a Trusted Network for Homeland Security." The report is available for download in PDF. The Markle Foundation is co-chaired by Zoe Baird and Jim Barksdale, with membership from Eric Benhamou, Jerry Berman, Ashton Carter, Wesley Clark, Wayne Clough, William Crowell, Esther Dyson, Amitai Etzioni, Dave Farber, Tara Lemmey, Gilman Louie, and many more. Creating a Trusted Network for Homeland Security | Markle Task Force |
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Topic: Society |
5:18 pm EST, Dec 20, 2003 |
Dont scab for the bosses Dont listen to their lies Poor folks aint got a chance Unless they organize Which side are you on boys? Which side are you on? Which Side Are You On? |
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Topic: Society |
9:07 am EST, Dec 18, 2003 |
This column may be the most futile of my long career. I am about to plead for Saddam Hussein's life. I do so not because I have the slightest doubt that he is a killer, responsible for taking the lives of many thousands, but because sparing his life would send a message to the world that judicial death -- so often abused -- is no longer acceptable. Tom, do you care to weigh in? How do you feel about this case? Let Saddam Live |
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Topic: Society |
11:57 pm EST, Dec 12, 2003 |
Many of these rules, reflections and quotations came from my role as Chairman of the "transition team" for President Gerald R. Ford and my service as White House Chief of Staff. Others came from experiences as a U.S. Naval Aviator, a Member of Congress, Ambassador to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Secretary of Defense, Presidential Middle East Envoy, business executive, Chairman of the US Ballistic Missile Threat Commission, and other experiences. These reflections and quotations have been gathered over the past 40 years. There are many good rules here, but here is my personal selection: 1. Learn to say "I dont know." If used when appropriate, it will be often. 2. It is easier to get into something than to get out of it. 3. Dont divide the world into "them" and "us." 4. Keep your sense of humor. 5. If you are not criticized, you may not be doing much. 6. Dont be a bottleneck. 7. Look for what's missing. 8. For every human problem there is a solution that is simple, neat and wrong. 9. Simply because a problem is shown to exist doesnt necessarily follow that there is a solution. 10. If you develop rules, never have more than ten. Rumsfeld's Rules |
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Topic: Society |
11:55 pm EST, Dec 12, 2003 |
Colin Powell kept a set of rules on his desk. Here are a few: Get mad, then get over it. Avoid having your ego so close to your position that when your position falls, your ego goes with it. Be careful what you choose. You may get it. Check small things. Share credit. Have a vision. Be demanding. Powell's Rules |
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Topic: Society |
9:47 am EST, Dec 8, 2003 |
In an increasingly decentralized world, in which previously insignificant actors and factors can play a decisive role, strategic planning can leave decision-makers flat-footed. In its unidimensional reliance on a single future, strategic planning hardens the "official future" agencies internalize, and thus prepares them poorly for appreciating rapid changes in circumstance and for making agile adaptations. The idea is not so much to predict the future as to consider the forces that will push the future along different paths, in order to help leaders recognize new possibilities, assess new threats and make decisions that reach much further into the future. Seeing the Futures |
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Topic: Society |
6:48 pm EST, Dec 7, 2003 |
The challenge we face today is the possible stagnation of scientific progress. We can respond with indifference, activism, or rebellion. What about biotechnology, including genetic engineering? It has encountered severe opposition, and its political future remains gravely in doubt. Information technology has not yet become the target of retrograde political movements, but this could well happen in the near future, especially in reaction to the increasing government ability to conduct intrusive surveillance by means of computer networks. Progress will not simply happen automatically. We must take action. We must take risks. We must accept the challenge. In the end, I fear, many of us may be forced into rebellion against the power structures of traditional society. Social movements operating entirely outside the powerful institutions of society seldom succeed. Successful movements generally operate both inside and outside. Absolutely essential will be creative communication of new ideas. In the long term, revival of the scientific imagination will mean the death of many popular illusions, so the public will resist it. A sorely neglected area is rigorous research on culture, not replacing the humanities which have their own values and reason for existing, but creating alongside the humanities a new quantitative anthropology, perhaps modeling culture mathematically as a complex, evolving system. Accept the challenge; Invest; Encourage convergence; Take risks; Question assumptions; Involve new people. Challenge and Response |
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