How Pepe the Frog was hijacked by hate groups - PBS

I was flicking around the channels, and came across this story about artist Matt Furie, and his fight to reclaim his character from alt right hate and conspiracy groups. To anyone working on your own characters, and concerned about your online image, this is a must watch.

https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/films/feels-good-man/

I have to confess, I always thought "Pepe" had started out as a hate symbol. My first encounter with him years ago was so repulsive, that the character had seemed to be designed that way.

Kyoto Animation arson attack

Trying to read more into the arson attack on Kyoto Animation in Japan, and it's wearing me down. Most of the victims were women. 

(copyright Kyoto Animation)

A comment I saw on reddit speculated that the suspect claimed the studio was stealing his ideas. Maybe this is why we fixate on having superheroes around. That way we don't feel like sitting ducks waiting for the next wacko with a chip on his shoulder to attack.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-japan-fire/japan-officials-hunt-for-reasons-behind-fire-that-killed-34-idUSKCN1UH08I

https://variety.com/2019/film/news/kyoto-animation-suspect-arrest-1203275096/ 

http://www.kyotoanimation.co.jp/en/

E3 Electronic Entertainment Expo 2018 - Digital Village 90.7 KPFK

 Ric and Doran discuss high tech topics on their radio show, Digital Village. They also have Britney from Game Talk Live give a review of the E3 Electronic Entertainment Expo 2018.

Topics include:

The end of Net Neutrality

Tesla

AT&T/TimeWarner Merger

Uber pedestrian fatality
More female players, animators and game characters

With apologies, you have to search for Digital Village's latest show on KPFK's audio archive page.

https://archive.kpfk.org/index.php

https://www.e3expo.com/

Fortnite is reported to be the big game right now from Epic Games.

https://www.epicgames.com/fortnite/en-US/buy-now/standard

Ghosts of Christmas Future

Politicking is dangerous, but not speaking out is also a great risk.
These are my opinions, and I have tried to be well informed.
It's not so much about how Trump won, but how Hillary lost.

HRC needed to be more than just the anti-trump. She finally adopted some of Sanders' talking points, but the DNC could not connect with the battleground states, and took the "firewall" states for granted.

Millions of voters in middle America believe liberals have left them to rot. And they have proof. There are other factors at work, and critics can't lay this at the feet of Jill Stein or Bernie Sanders:

Billions of dollars in free media exposure for Trump.

Electoral college countermanded the popular vote.

Voter suppression among minorities.

Public's perceived electability of candidates vs. actual capabilities.

Low voter turnout due to unappealing candidates on both sides.

Mysogyny, and the hatred of Obama.

Gerrymandering.

* * * * * * * * * *

Trump has exploited the fears, prejudices, and misery that the GOP has created in the South and the Midwest. Many people there believe the money elites have abandoned them, left their towns to rot, and also coddled other people who are "unworthy". A Trump administration may toss a few bones to these states with infrastructure projects, but will also run up colossal deficits. I believe quite a few people in the U.S. also hope the "unworthy" people will quickly deported... or imprisoned.

This post is grim, and it is meant to be. The idea the pendulum will swing back to the left is obsolete. We also thought George W. Bush was the worst, but conditions in the U.S. will only bring out people like Trump. And worse.

Happy Holidays.

The Iron Giant's Dream (New Scene)

The Social Commentary of Zootopia

I finally saw Zootopia, and I was surprised at some of the issues the directors took on, such prejudice, class and disillusionment. For example:

Good people fall back on old negative stereotypes.

(Every Disney movie has plot point where the hero makes a horrible mistake, and then has to overcome the consequences of that error. Judy's press interview for instance.)

"Treat me like a criminal, I will act like a criminal."

(Nick Wilde is Zootopia's Han Solo, but he is also finally coaxed away from his criminal past.)

 Characters get hurt emotionally as well as physically.
(Both Judy and Nick during their childhoods.)

(my photo from CTN 2015, characters copyright Disney)

While the world of Zootopia doesn't have our level of wars, poverty and injustices, the basic personal issues still remain:

I have an image to maintain.
Jumping to conclusions.

Not sure who to trust.
What's in it for me?

 On the other hand, Zootopia did cheer me up a little bit, when I look past their cloying cutesiness:

 Things are not what they seem.
The strong don't always prey on the weak.
People can go beyond their apparent limitations.
The past does not have to decide your future.

Imho, Some of the old cartoon jokes hurt the movie, like the population counter of Bunny Borough, but that's showbiz.

This blogger has a more severe view:

http://birthmoviesdeath.com/2016/03/03/zootopia-review-a-muddled-mess-of-racial-messaging...-and-cute-animalshttp://birthmoviesdeath.com/2016/03/03/zootopia-review-a-muddled-mess-of-racial-messaging...-and-cute-animals

 Good points. What are our real cultural and ethnic blind spots? How do you present these issues to younger children without sugar-coating it too much?

Minor points:

Where does the protein for carnivores come from? What forests were cut down, and what mountains were strip mined to build the city? There all kinds of  logistical and technical questions that interfere with my suspension of disbelief, but Zootopia is still a clever, thoughtful movie nevertheless.

Charlie Hebdo

 First of all, these cartoonists should NOT have been murdered.

Period.

These events have challenged me once again to live up to the quote Voltaire is credited for: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." It's tempting to say that the Charlie Hebdo artists and editors were "asking for it". But if they were censored, then where would it stop? I learned the hard way what happens when you don't stand up to bullies, and failing to do so means living in fear and self-censorship. Life with religious extremists has always been par for the course. Unfortunately, so many extremists have easy access to war materiel these days.

From what little I have seen of the Charlie Hebdo cartoons, personally I  don't think their work was really any good. Their cartoons are cheap, hostile, vulgar, and promote the same old stereotypes. But again, this does not sanctify murder. Works like Andres Serrano's "Piss Christ" turned me off, but it wasn't enough to drive me to violence.

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piss_Christ

I don't have time to play into someone else's game. We need to grow up, and laugh off the drunks at the party, and walk past the garbage lying in the gutter. IMHO. And have the confidence in the things we believe to be sacred, and not freak out, no matter what others say.

Personally, if work in comics, or any other medium is going to be provocative, (hey, what work isn't?) then the creators should be able to take legitimate criticism, but not a hail of bullets. And in my opinion, artwork should have some educational, or at least uplifting undertone. Right wing groups in the U.S. publish and broadcast very hostile and denigrating material, and claim that it's their 1st Amendment right. To me, this still borders on yelling "FIRE" in a crowded movie house, but that's a discussion for another day.

I don't know which Muslim or Arabic publications make some sort of editorial response to magazines like Charlie Hebdo. They also have a right to heard, and be the voices of reason in those cultures. Spiegelman on Democracy Now! stated that  the Charlie Hebdo cartoons afflict the already afflicted.

http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2015/1/11/france-unity-rally.html 


http://america.aljazeera.com/topics/topic/event/Charlie-Hebdo-attack.html

But in the case of today's assaults, this shouldn't mean you have to turn your studio into an armed bunker. The worst thing to happen is someone getting sued if the courts decide that their statements are slanderous. (or, down on the street level, when you dare someone to take a swing at your chin, you had better be ready to defend yourself. But men of honor will fight only with their fists, right?)

 

 (art copyright Art Spiegelman)

We live in an age where violent action and deadly force is becoming more and more the first course of action. Someone will always lash out in the name of ___. It's safe to say this will never be settled.

Thanks for reading my thoughts. Check out Art Spiegelman on Democracy Now! on KPFK. 

http://www.democracynow.org/2015/1/8/comics_legend_art_spiegelman_scholar_tariq 

http://www.democracynow.org/2015/1/8/scholar_tariq_ramadan_harpers_rick_macarthur

Warning: Some viewers will find these links offensive.

https://occupiedpalestine.wordpress.com/2012/09/23/carloslatuffs-cartoon-suggestion-for-charlie_hebdo_-turning-islamophobia-into-freedom-of-speech-in-europe/

 https://prod01-cdn02.cdn.firstlook.org/wp-uploads/sites/1/2015/01/Charlie-Hebdo-attack-Altagreer-ENGLISH.png

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/the-no-2-man-on-al-qaeda%E2%80%99s-hit-list-is-not-in-hiding-after-paris-attack-he%E2%80%99s-selling-french-fries-in-florida/ar-AA82VS5?ocid=mailsignout