Posted by
glen ropella on
May 08, 2013; 5:46pm
URL: http://friam.383.s1.nabble.com/Woo-Peddlers-Visionaries-and-Cranks-tp7583094p7583114.html
I think we agree on most of these points. Another reason I like TVs is
because I'm mostly a wall flower at parties. Smalltalk irritates me and
I only talk to people after a given party passes through that phase
transition where it ratchets down a bit and allows more intimate
conversations amongst small groups. Until that happens, I need ways to
entertain myself. It's for that reason I like to play old movies or
"mix videos" on the TV during parties, usually with the sound muted.
Nosferatu and Fearless Vampire Killers are favorites. But I also have a
good set of videos from Spot Draves:
http://scottdraves.com/This is especially useful because I like death, speed, and heavy metal
music. And I usually like to turn that up loud enough to prevent
conversation. So, the TV is an integral part of any parties I throw ...
not for broadcast stations. That means that we have an ambiguity or
equivocation in the term "TV". I used to use a LCD projector for some of
this stuff. But with the cheap LED-LCD TVs, the picture is so much
better and the access to various TV "apps" on network enabled TVs makes
me think no digital swamp is complete without a big screen TV.
On 05/08/2013 09:36 AM, Steve Smith wrote:
> Thanks for the perspective. You may remember I insisted on referring to
> my own version of Owen's "Digital Ecology" as a "Digital Swamp". My
> point to that, which I hope parallels your perspective, is that no
> matter how much we want it all to be a nice, orderly, well understood
> environment, it is a complex, seething mass with unexpected/unintended
> consequences.
>
> I'm afraid I'm a compulsive dead-horse beater.
>
> I also understand your reaction to those of us who might sanctimoniously
> try to "hold ourselves above". I don't necessarily have any judgement
> against those who are able to frolic in the cesspool (your word) of pop
> culture and thrive in it's fecundity. I use the term "pop" dismissively
> and have to acknowledge that in some sense all culture is "pop". I'm
> not speaking from an elitist position that suggests Wagnerian Opera is
> better than Sing Along with Homer Simpson, as Television Characters go I
> kinda like Homer and don't care so much for Opera. One may be more
> rarified or expensive than the other but in some sense it is all part of
> a collective experience that both reflects who we are and perhaps
> establishes who we become. You may not believe the paradigm of "bread
> and circuses", I tend to.
>
> What I think I'm reporting is that having grown up (childhood and
> adulthood) somewhat *naturally* separated from the more obvious sources
> of popular culture (television, urban centers and suburban consumer
> culture) I am not inclined to seek it out in large doses (excepting
> those all night motel binges with the remote now and then). I'm also
> reporting that I think the "push" nature of TV in particular is
> insidious. Yes, the TV has an "off" button, but it is easy to forget
> to use it. If I'm reading a newspaper (online or in print) and I get a
> little disturbed by what I'm reading my failsafe position is to put it
> down and read/do something else. I guess I feel that TV is an
> "attractive nuisance".
>
> Having watched most of my television as an adult (in passing) in the
> mute state, I feel that I have a unique perspective on it. I think TV
> "reads" differently without sound, especially if it is a rarity rather
> than a constant companion. And TV sound "reads" differently than Radio
> sound. Having been a DJ in a border town in the 70's I listened to my
> share of Mexican Radio. Though I understood Spanish well enough and was
> not unfamiliar with Mexican culture, I was always taken aback by all the
> *selling by yelling*. TV sounds a lot like that to me, whether it is
> news or advertisements.
>
> And I share your concern (for myself in this case) about isolating
> myself any more than I already am. But somehow I don't think my lack
> of TV is what isolates me. Though there may be a correlation.
--
glen =><= Hail Eris!
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