Archive for July 31, 2006

Feminism vs. Multiculturalism

July 31, 2006 / / 2 comments

My friend Ken sent me this link to an article about anti-feminism in the Bengali community.

The logic of multiculturalism has made it hard for these thugs to be challenged. Multiculturalism treats immigrant communities as homogenous blocks, represented by elderly, reactionary “community spokesmen”. It has created the bizarre situation where the often-great feminist Germaine Greer has ended up siding with the patriarchal protestors as the keepers of authentic Bengali culture against the carping feminists. Yet in reality, immigrant communities are diverse, clashing cacophonies like everyone else. As the great Amarya Sen has been arguing, we should ditch the outdated idea of multiculturalism and support the progressive wings of all and any communities.

Read the whole thing.

Monday Movie Review: Buffalo Bill and the Indians

July 31, 2006 / / Comments Off on Monday Movie Review: Buffalo Bill and the Indians

Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull’s History Lesson (1976) 5/10
Buffalo Bill (Paul Newman) explores the nature of history, truth, image, and showmanship through the vehicle of his famous “Wild West” show in this loosely-based on fact film. Directed by Robert Altman.

When he received his Lifetime Achievement Award, Robert Altman said that he didn’t really consider his movies as separate; as far as he was concerned he’d been making “one long film” throughout his career.

With that in mind, I have to ask myself why I love some of Altman’s movies and dislike others. If they are all one movie—or, more moderately, if they are all stylistically similar, with similar themes—what distinguishes the great from the good from the dull?

An Altman movie is marked by overlapping dialogue in a naturalistic style, and by a sprawling cast. In addition, each is set in a distinct place, and that place is as much the movie as the script and the characters. It makes sense, then, that some Altman films are named for locations—Nashville, Gosford Park—and some take place among a group isolated by their unique location—M*A*S*H, A Prairie Home Companion, Buffalo Bill and the Indians.

The best Altman films have strong locations that inform the characters, and strong characters that allow you to focus on them. In the chaos Altman so loves creating, only the best characters rise above the fray (best as in best-written; fully-realized, not necessarily “best” morally). In the weaker entries, characters are barely sketched before swimming back into the sea of dialogue noise, and the location is unfocused. People in Altman films are often lost; they don’t understand themselves, they are too sad or lonely or foolish to look around and see themselves for who they are. When the film is disjointed, that’s frustrating, when it works, it’s poignant and beautiful.

Not all Altman films are wholly bad or good. Short Cuts had amazing moments and muddy ones; Gosford Park was equal parts mud and dazzle. Buffalo Bill and the Indians has a few minutes here and there of dazzle (with Paul Newman and Will Sampson, that’s a given) but not enough for the price of admission (even for free).

Other than Buffalo Bill himself, the many characters in Buffalo Bill and the Indians are little more than sketches. Annie Oakley is one joke repeated ad infinitum. Sitting Bull is a foil. The entire thing swirls around Buffalo Bill’s ego and his weak, drunken meditations on the Meaning Of It All. But he is poor at meditation, and the sprawl of set and cast is never justified. Indeed, some of the other characters (ably played by the likes of Harvey Keitel, Burt Lancaster, and Kevin McCarthy) might have added considerable interest had any flesh been stuffed into their costumes.

Here’s an idea: Rent Nashville.

Sad news for Bond fans

July 30, 2006 / / One comment

The Pinewood 007 Stage has been destroyed by fire.

When it was created for the filming of The Spy Who Loves Me, and was at the time the world’s largest soundstage. It was needed to accomodate the interior of the supertanker; which had two enormous tankers within it. This was used in the movie’s climax; a scene that was filmed with the help of Stanley Kubrick.

Pinewood Studios named the soundstage “The 007 Stage” in honor of this amazing event. And now, I guess, it’s gone.

Makeup, the Male Gaze, and So What?

July 29, 2006 / / 14 comments

Arthur and I got into a conversation about makeup. Specifically, “should” women wear makeup. And that morphed into a conversation about the male gaze.

Understanding the male gaze is probably the most abstract and hard to grasp part of feminism. Equal rights, equal wages; everyone gets that. Double standards about sexuality and sexual freedom, about social freedom, outspokenness and aggression; not hard to define and explore. But how we look at things, how we display or do not display ourselves, how we use our eyes and images to create subject and object; these are pretty highfalutin.

I am not opposed to the idea that the male gaze is hard-wired. We certainly know other species in which one gender draws the gaze of the other; peacocks are prettier than peahens. On the other hand, male and female gorillas and chimps look more or less alike, and I’d wager I’m more a chimp than a peahen. (Remind me to tell the story about the lesbian peahen someday.)
» Read more..

Friday Kittenblogging

July 28, 2006 / / 7 comments

Fanty is hard to photograph, she’s camera shy.

So, I caught her while asleep
So relaxed
» Read more..

Good Livin’

July 27, 2006 / / Comments Off on Good Livin’

When I clicked through to the Smartass Witch’s Guide to Good Livin’ in 10 Easy Steps, I assumed it would be, y’know, smartass. It’s not. It’s connected and smart and worth reading and worth bringing into your life.

Educate Yourself. When you know better, you do better. Pagans often get criticised for being fluffy so the best thing to do is educate ourselves. Read books, have actual, real live conversations with fellow pagans. Experiment with magic and spells whether or not they work. It’s just like being a good scientist; practice, educate and observe.

Read the whole thing.

Linky Links

July 27, 2006 / / 15 comments

I’m terrible with updating my links. I think I’m going to and then I don’t and then I forget who to add and then I look at who I might add and the list is too long so eff it.

Every now and then I add a new blog to the list because I’m bowled over, and very soon thereafter I either start hating the blog and feel guilty about removing it (okay that only happened once) or the blog disappears from the blogverse. So if I add you to my blogroll, heavens I hope that doesn’t happen to you.

Anyway, I added a couple today and also decided to separate Pagan Blogs into their own category. Once I did that, I had Pagan Blogs, Language Blogs, and Blogs. Blogs? Unmodified, undifferentiated blogs? Seems so unfair. But some of those other blogs are feminist and some are political and some are personal. Some combine all of the above. But they longed for a modifier and “other” didn’t seem to do the trick.

So now, I introduce “Bloggy Blogs.” This proves I watch too much Buffy.

Legislating Nature

July 26, 2006 / / 5 comments

Amanda makes a brilliant point:

I’ve never quite understood why we have to legislate and/or use social pressure to force women to behave naturally. I breathe and walk on two feet without society interfering, so why is it that if I, as a woman, have a “natural caution”, then only the fear of being tarred a slut will make me cautious? You’ll see the same argument coming from people who claim that women have a natural love of staying home and having lots of children—because this is our nature, apparently we need to be forced into it by having our reproductive rights stripped from us.

Marking life through Festivals

July 26, 2006 / / 3 comments

I go to quite a lot of festivals. Starwood is an annual event for me, and every June I’m forced to choose between two other favorites: Free Spirit and Wic-Can Fest. Over the years, I’ve attended many others, including Heartland, Rites of Spring, and Pagan Spirit Gathering.

In a very real way, festivals are how I mark my life.

In Bronze Age Ireland, the Pagan Celts gathered annually for a huge festival at Lughnasadh. Over the course of two weeks, contests were held (bardic, athletic, crafts), wares were sold, romances were begun, gossip was traded, and a sense of community was renewed for the coming year. In essence, this is what I feel modern Pagan festivals are. For all the workshops and classes and spiritual experiences, the essence, to me, is the establishment and renewal of community bonds.

I was 21 at my first festival. I got my first tattoo at Starwood. I met Isaac (my ex-husband) at Rites of Spring. I was pregnant at festivals, I nursed at festivals, and now I bring my teenager to festivals. It was at Starwood that I asked Isaac for a divorce. It was at Starwood that I had my first vision, and it was there that I injured my knee (twice).

It isn’t that what happens is good or bad. It’s that what happens is my life. Marked by the passage of seasons, and supported within the arms of my community. That’s festival.

I Don’t Remember My Vacation

July 25, 2006 / / 2 comments

Not “don’t remember” because it wasn’t memorable, or “don’t remember” because of mind-altering substances, but “don’t remember” because I was at peace.

I floated through my vacation. I allowed days to pass into nights and then into days. I left my expectations home. I was One with the experience of festival.

Vacations built on expectations are no fun. Maybe more memorable, but no fun. They are driven by an inner pressure instead of an inner peace. You absolutely wouldn’t guess, knowing me, that I have a clue about inner peace. I get angry, I get snide, I get worked up. But I know about expectation and I know about attachment, and I know how to let go of both.

So I have moments. Hot sun. Parties. Drinking with Kate. Cuddling with Larry. Hugs. Lots of hugs. Cooking the best meal I ever cooked; maybe not the tastiest meal, but the most praiseworthy one. Because I have never cooked for a dozen people before, and they all loved it, even with the restrictions of camp cooking, and I have never felt so delighted.

Since I’m always up first anyway, I had camp coffee ready every morning. By the time the other three coffee drinkers staggered out into the light, My teeth were brushed, my hair was de-scarified, and I was handing them their full cups of fresh hot java. Teh yum. And it felt so good to do that, to be the morning nurturer. Felt balanced, what with Charlie being the evening nurturer.

In the end I came home feeling like I had a wonderful time, but lacking the means to describe that time.

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