There's a couple recent opinion columns that should be read by as many people as possible. I figure that most people who would read this have already read those columns, but it can't hurt to do this post if it gets more exposure for the columns.
First is one by Harold Meyerson in the Washington Post. It's about how the GOP will raise your taxes if you're working- or middle-class. It's here.
The second one is by Paul krugman in the NY Times. It's about how Rick Perry's "economic miracle" in Texas is not a good model for the nation or other states, and is created on the backs of working people (i.e. low wages). It's here.
Tom
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Star Trek: The Original Series Reviews L
This is one of my posts where I “review” Star Trek episodes. I will be giving each one a star rating. I sometimes will make some comments about non-political parts of them that I like or don’t like. I’ll sometimes use the issues raised in the episode to discuss similar issues in real life. And I will sometimes simply high-light the progressive politics of ST. ST is in-line with the three original themes of this blog, as I explain in the first ST post where I offer some general thoughts about ST.
I have been more or less ignoring this- the need for me to become familiar with The Original Series. In general I don’t like much of what I’ve seen. In any case, I am now watching it and will be doing reviews of those episodes. I will be giving pretty low scores, probably no higher than three stars out of five- I just don’t like TOS.
Lastly. multi-culturalism is such a pervasive theme in ST that I only comment on it when it goes beyond the norm (i.e. inter-species partners).
“Spock’s Brain” See this for a plot summary.
For some odd reason, I had trouble figuring out an important aspect of this episode. That is, is Kirk being sexist when he talks about the low level of intelligence of the women? At one point it’s suggested that, because of the “Controller” that takes care of the women, their brains have atrophied through lack of use- so it probably isn’t sexist, although it sounds like it here and there.
I give it three stars out of five.
“The Enterprise Incident” See this for a plot summary.
There is one bit of politics. We see, for the first but not last time, that women do okay among Romulans, as the officer in charge of a group of three warships is a woman.
I give it three stars out of five.
“The Paradise Syndrome” See this for a plot summary.
This is another ST episode about American Indians and aliens. I have mixed feelings about such episodes, but don’t remember any info about how American Indians feel about them (I also don’t have any info on how the aliens feel about them : )). This one is based on the idea that aliens took some members of three tribes that were in danger of being wiped out from Earth and settled them on a very Earth-like planet.
I give it two stars out of five.
“And the Children Shall Lead” See this for a plot summary.
A non-political episode. I give it one star out of five.
I have been more or less ignoring this- the need for me to become familiar with The Original Series. In general I don’t like much of what I’ve seen. In any case, I am now watching it and will be doing reviews of those episodes. I will be giving pretty low scores, probably no higher than three stars out of five- I just don’t like TOS.
Lastly. multi-culturalism is such a pervasive theme in ST that I only comment on it when it goes beyond the norm (i.e. inter-species partners).
“Spock’s Brain” See this for a plot summary.
For some odd reason, I had trouble figuring out an important aspect of this episode. That is, is Kirk being sexist when he talks about the low level of intelligence of the women? At one point it’s suggested that, because of the “Controller” that takes care of the women, their brains have atrophied through lack of use- so it probably isn’t sexist, although it sounds like it here and there.
I give it three stars out of five.
“The Enterprise Incident” See this for a plot summary.
There is one bit of politics. We see, for the first but not last time, that women do okay among Romulans, as the officer in charge of a group of three warships is a woman.
I give it three stars out of five.
“The Paradise Syndrome” See this for a plot summary.
This is another ST episode about American Indians and aliens. I have mixed feelings about such episodes, but don’t remember any info about how American Indians feel about them (I also don’t have any info on how the aliens feel about them : )). This one is based on the idea that aliens took some members of three tribes that were in danger of being wiped out from Earth and settled them on a very Earth-like planet.
I give it two stars out of five.
“And the Children Shall Lead” See this for a plot summary.
A non-political episode. I give it one star out of five.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Star Trek: The Original Series Reviews K
This is one of my posts where I “review” Star Trek episodes. I will be giving each one a star rating. I sometimes will make some comments about non-political parts of them that I like or don’t like. I’ll sometimes use the issues raised in the episode to discuss similar issues in real life. And I will sometimes simply high-light the progressive politics of ST. ST is in-line with the three original themes of this blog, as I explain in the first ST post where I offer some general thoughts about ST.
I have been more or less ignoring this- the need for me to become familiar with The Original Series. In general I don’t like much of what I’ve seen. In any case, I am now watching it and will be doing reviews of those episodes. I will be giving pretty low scores, probably no higher than three stars out of five- I just don’t like TOS.
Lastly. multi-culturalism is such a pervasive theme in ST that I only comment on it when it goes beyond the norm (i.e. inter-species partners).
“The Ultimate Computer” See this for a plot summary.
This is generally about automation of jobs that humans do. In general I believe that technology CAN be used for good in the workplace. It is probably involved in addressing some safety issues; probably is involved with addressing some environmental concerns. As far as technology that is used by the bosses to replace workers, I have mixed and mostly negative feelings about that. I mean, some of those jobs have been replaced by new jobs maintaining the new technology and such jobs probably pay fairly well (I don’t know about wages on the assembly line building this stuff). But in general, jobs replacing those terminated by technology tend to pay very little. They don’t have to be like that, but I don’t have much to say about why they haven’t been unionized- I’m very unfamiliar with organizing issues and it seems like it’s very difficult to organize unions ANYWHERE in the US today. So, I have mixed feelings about automation in the workplace.
There is another kind of automation that I want to discuss as well. That is in the military (well, the US military and I think a handful of other countries as well). My thoughts on the military in general are mixed, and right now I’m not going to go into a discussion about that, I’m just going to focus on this aspect of the military. I’m thinking of the Predator drones, armed or unarmed, and probably some other machines. If they start replacing aircraft that require a pilot inside the plane, it could make it easier for our government to launch unpopular wars, as the number of US service men and women in danger will go down. That will probably mean that a lot of people who might otherwise oppose the war partly because more and more Americans are dying, won’t oppose it. So, I’m worried about that as well.
I give it three stars out of five.
“Bread and Circuses” See this for a plot summary.
This episode is basically about the Roman Empire and sort of about converts to Christianity. I’m not very familiar with Rome or the early years of Christianity, so I don’t have much to say. This episode is certainly anti-slavery, and anti-totalitarian.
I give it two stars out of five.
“Assignment: Earth” See this for a plot summary.
First there’s some political stuff to at least mention. In general it focuses on the idea that 20th century humankind was not as advanced politically and socially as they were technologically, and how that could lead to disaster- for example a nuclear war that destroys the planet.
I also like the Gary Seven part of this episode. Long before I watched this episode, I read a ST book which focused on him. I might try to find that book.
I give this episode three stars out of five.
I have been more or less ignoring this- the need for me to become familiar with The Original Series. In general I don’t like much of what I’ve seen. In any case, I am now watching it and will be doing reviews of those episodes. I will be giving pretty low scores, probably no higher than three stars out of five- I just don’t like TOS.
Lastly. multi-culturalism is such a pervasive theme in ST that I only comment on it when it goes beyond the norm (i.e. inter-species partners).
“The Ultimate Computer” See this for a plot summary.
This is generally about automation of jobs that humans do. In general I believe that technology CAN be used for good in the workplace. It is probably involved in addressing some safety issues; probably is involved with addressing some environmental concerns. As far as technology that is used by the bosses to replace workers, I have mixed and mostly negative feelings about that. I mean, some of those jobs have been replaced by new jobs maintaining the new technology and such jobs probably pay fairly well (I don’t know about wages on the assembly line building this stuff). But in general, jobs replacing those terminated by technology tend to pay very little. They don’t have to be like that, but I don’t have much to say about why they haven’t been unionized- I’m very unfamiliar with organizing issues and it seems like it’s very difficult to organize unions ANYWHERE in the US today. So, I have mixed feelings about automation in the workplace.
There is another kind of automation that I want to discuss as well. That is in the military (well, the US military and I think a handful of other countries as well). My thoughts on the military in general are mixed, and right now I’m not going to go into a discussion about that, I’m just going to focus on this aspect of the military. I’m thinking of the Predator drones, armed or unarmed, and probably some other machines. If they start replacing aircraft that require a pilot inside the plane, it could make it easier for our government to launch unpopular wars, as the number of US service men and women in danger will go down. That will probably mean that a lot of people who might otherwise oppose the war partly because more and more Americans are dying, won’t oppose it. So, I’m worried about that as well.
I give it three stars out of five.
“Bread and Circuses” See this for a plot summary.
This episode is basically about the Roman Empire and sort of about converts to Christianity. I’m not very familiar with Rome or the early years of Christianity, so I don’t have much to say. This episode is certainly anti-slavery, and anti-totalitarian.
I give it two stars out of five.
“Assignment: Earth” See this for a plot summary.
First there’s some political stuff to at least mention. In general it focuses on the idea that 20th century humankind was not as advanced politically and socially as they were technologically, and how that could lead to disaster- for example a nuclear war that destroys the planet.
I also like the Gary Seven part of this episode. Long before I watched this episode, I read a ST book which focused on him. I might try to find that book.
I give this episode three stars out of five.
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Star Trek: The Original Series Reviews J
This is one of my posts where I “review” Star Trek episodes. I will be giving each one a star rating. I sometimes will make some comments about non-political parts of them that I like or don’t like. I’ll sometimes use the issues raised in the episode to discuss similar issues in real life. And I will sometimes simply high-light the progressive politics of ST. ST is in-line with the three original themes of this blog, as I explain in the first ST post where I offer some general thoughts about ST.
I have been more or less ignoring this- the need for me to become familiar with The Original Series. In general I don’t like much of what I’ve seen. In any case, I am now watching it and will be doing reviews of those episodes. I will be giving pretty low scores, probably no higher than three stars out of five- I just don’t like TOS.
Lastly. multi-culturalism is such a pervasive theme in ST that I only comment on it when it goes beyond the norm (i.e. inter-species partners).
“Return to Tomorrow” See this for a plot summary.
A non-political episode. I give it two stars out of five.
“Patterns of Force” See this for a plot summary.
I could probably type thousands of words about this, but I’ll keep it pretty brief. There are two major political aspects to this episode.
1. The pacifist response of most of Europe’s Jews living in either camps or more generally Nazi-occupied areas. Obviously this is stating the obvious and is kind of using hind-sight, but pacifism wasn’t a good response to Nazi persecution of the Jews. Also, I believe that that could have been said WITHOUT hindsight, as I explain about 1/4 the way down a post here where I seriously attack the Irish government and the IRA about their separate responses to Nazi Germany. (I have heard that at some point non-Jewish anti-Nazi elements, including those quite prepared to fight, didn’t engage in armed resistance either (because their leadership failed to give them orders), which might have discouraged European Jews from resisting)
2. Kirk at one point says something about how they need to help the Zeons, but also need to help the Ekosians. I’m not sure if he was talking about the lack of freedom that Ekosians had under a dictatorship, or the way that bigotry does a fair amount of damage to the group oppressing another group through hate. I go into more details about that here while discussing the episode “Duet.”
I give it three stars out of five stars.
“By Any Other Name” See this for a plot summary.
At first I thought this was pretty non-political. But there is the issue of outsiders colonizing empty planets in the Federation. It reminds me of the settling of the area now known as the US by Europeans and European-Americans. It’s embarrassing for me to say this, but I’m not sure if the question I’m raising came up at any point in my studies; if it did I have forgotten it (some of my Ethnic Studies knowledge has disappeared).
Let’s say European governments and European people had been very different (you could call it “bizzaro Europe”) and had been interested in peace-full co-existance with the indigenous people of this hemisphere who, DID sort of welcome them. Would that have worked? I’m not sure. How much of what is now America was available for settlement? I’ don’t know. But it’s an interesting question. Of course another more positive scenario would have been no settlement at all. Anyway, it's something that this episode got me thinking about some.
I give it two stars out of five.
“The Omega Glory” See this for a plot summary.
This is a weird episode. Part of it is the idea that in the last years of the 20th Century, Chinese Communists (apparently joined or followed by free-market, democratic Americans) left Earth to colonize some far away planet. Apparently, long before StarFleet came to the planet, there had been a large scale war between the two sides that involved Weapons of Mass Destruction. There’s a few lines or so with good comments about bio-weapons and about democratic rights for everyone. On the other hand there is little said about the negative aspects of American democracy.
I give it two stars out of five.
I have been more or less ignoring this- the need for me to become familiar with The Original Series. In general I don’t like much of what I’ve seen. In any case, I am now watching it and will be doing reviews of those episodes. I will be giving pretty low scores, probably no higher than three stars out of five- I just don’t like TOS.
Lastly. multi-culturalism is such a pervasive theme in ST that I only comment on it when it goes beyond the norm (i.e. inter-species partners).
“Return to Tomorrow” See this for a plot summary.
A non-political episode. I give it two stars out of five.
“Patterns of Force” See this for a plot summary.
I could probably type thousands of words about this, but I’ll keep it pretty brief. There are two major political aspects to this episode.
1. The pacifist response of most of Europe’s Jews living in either camps or more generally Nazi-occupied areas. Obviously this is stating the obvious and is kind of using hind-sight, but pacifism wasn’t a good response to Nazi persecution of the Jews. Also, I believe that that could have been said WITHOUT hindsight, as I explain about 1/4 the way down a post here where I seriously attack the Irish government and the IRA about their separate responses to Nazi Germany. (I have heard that at some point non-Jewish anti-Nazi elements, including those quite prepared to fight, didn’t engage in armed resistance either (because their leadership failed to give them orders), which might have discouraged European Jews from resisting)
2. Kirk at one point says something about how they need to help the Zeons, but also need to help the Ekosians. I’m not sure if he was talking about the lack of freedom that Ekosians had under a dictatorship, or the way that bigotry does a fair amount of damage to the group oppressing another group through hate. I go into more details about that here while discussing the episode “Duet.”
I give it three stars out of five stars.
“By Any Other Name” See this for a plot summary.
At first I thought this was pretty non-political. But there is the issue of outsiders colonizing empty planets in the Federation. It reminds me of the settling of the area now known as the US by Europeans and European-Americans. It’s embarrassing for me to say this, but I’m not sure if the question I’m raising came up at any point in my studies; if it did I have forgotten it (some of my Ethnic Studies knowledge has disappeared).
Let’s say European governments and European people had been very different (you could call it “bizzaro Europe”) and had been interested in peace-full co-existance with the indigenous people of this hemisphere who, DID sort of welcome them. Would that have worked? I’m not sure. How much of what is now America was available for settlement? I’ don’t know. But it’s an interesting question. Of course another more positive scenario would have been no settlement at all. Anyway, it's something that this episode got me thinking about some.
I give it two stars out of five.
“The Omega Glory” See this for a plot summary.
This is a weird episode. Part of it is the idea that in the last years of the 20th Century, Chinese Communists (apparently joined or followed by free-market, democratic Americans) left Earth to colonize some far away planet. Apparently, long before StarFleet came to the planet, there had been a large scale war between the two sides that involved Weapons of Mass Destruction. There’s a few lines or so with good comments about bio-weapons and about democratic rights for everyone. On the other hand there is little said about the negative aspects of American democracy.
I give it two stars out of five.
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