It has been awhile since I had posted. Hopefully will become more manageable between school and get my degrees.

It has always bothered me, when I have seen a young man or woman act timidly. Unsure of themselves, whether to assert themselves, or not, or remain quiet in the time of choice and action. This is also true for me, when I see the opposite end of the age bracket act timidly in fear failing to give voice of their wisdom and experience. For the young, one should speak their voice and yet critically think; and, for the old to withhold what can be taught from experience and wisdom is nothing more than selfishness. With these pet peeves stated, it has come to my attention of late, how the persistency and the consistency of voice can transact change. Admittedly, the hard currency of violence and intimidation can and has instilled fear for many generations, but it is the voice of empowerment and the willingness to sacrifice oneself to something greater than oneself that brings about eventual change. This does not necessarily mean it has to be a physical form of sacrifice, but it does mean that one has to be willing to set oneself apart from the group. In essence, one’s willingness to make change is incumbent on their ability to give of themselves for the greater good; and, for the greater moral victory. To stand on one’s principles is of great value to the empowerment of oneself and their community. It is this unity of actions, morality, persistency, sacrifice, and the consistency of voice through non-violence that wins eventual change. This is the hard foundation of soft power. In the past few weeks, we have read and seen people’s willingness to take action by simply speaking out in many voices, whether it is through poetry or in voice of the narrative through art of film. I speak in particularly of one film especially, that has piqued my interest. –the Salt of the Earth.

In the film, the Salt of the Earth, we learn of differing voices and their challenges that affect their lives on a dally basis. We learn how they are valued by their “bosses,” and how they are valued by their friends and co-workers alike. We see their stories, their challenges, their sacrifices, and their willingness for change; in particularly, we see Esperanza, a woman, who sacrificed and suffered, never to be heard because of timidity until she learns to speak out for herself and others. Esperanza, who narrates her story and of her family’s, speaks not only for herself but of her husband’s, her children, and her community. For instance, in the beginning of the movie, after a serious accident in the mine, where husband works we see her concern for him. She is relieved when she sees that he is okay, but of concern for her friend’s husband. This accident will set in motion a series of events that lead to the women taking over the strike for their men, when it is ruled unlawful for the men to picket against the company they have worked for most of their lives, the women step in and step up to the challenge and give voice and visibility to the unfairness of the company and to the invisibility (now visible) of themselves and their families.

At first, Esperanza is timid (she wants to invisible) when she initially speaks out. She is not sure how people will react and she is worried about her husband’s disproval yet she speaks. Her voice is trembling. Her eyes are filled with anxiousness and angst, but by the time it comes to defend and stand with her fellow sisters on the picket line she is embolden. She is visible not just physically, literally, but figuratively present to stand up and the belief that she can transact change. Esperanza finds her voice, and, when her husband is about to strike her, she stands stoically in defiance and ready for his blow to come. She says, as he is about to slap her, “that would be the old way.” Her husband refrains and is confused by his wife’s new power and self-confidence. She is timid no more. He does not know what to do. He is lost in self-doubt. He is searching for answers. He understands what oppression is under the hands of his “white bosses” who try to use their power to divide the white workers and Hispanic workers solidarity. It is in his “bosses’” interests to keep the races divided so they can maintain their profits. And, Esperanza’s husband knows this as well and so do his fellow co-workers. Yet, her husband is angry and confused because the events that surround him are beyond his control. Esperanza ask him why must he keep her down and eventually tells him “that she wants to lift everybody up.” This is one of the most powerful moments within the movie and an illustration of what it means to speak one’s voice. The movie reveals in dramatic fashion how the efforts of the union and the women who supported their husbands in the union’s strike against the company were a powerful force. The women’s soft power help overcome the company’s stance against the striking workers by “manning” the picket lines. By passively asserting themselves in the face of disapproval of their spouses and eventually gaining their respect. An example of finding this respect, comes in the realization of what “women” works means and how grueling it can be to take care of a household that has no running water, no indoor plumbing, and having to cook for the children and themselves. The lack of respect and the indignity that are suffered by their wives gives the men and Esperanza’s husband a new appreciation of what it meant to be a woman under the men assumptions and oppression.

The movie, the Salt of the Earth, is one of the first to speak of not only about labor, but of the other voices—that of the minority and women. It is the first touch on feminism before it had been formally named. And, it is one of the earliest movies to address racism. This timeless piece of art is archetypal in sowing together universality and community. It is as complex as it simple. With the complexity of gender roles reversal, the film demonstrates how the forces change can be shaped for the better, if only temporary. However, it is my belief that once a change has occurred, it is most difficult to put the genie back in the bottle. Once the men and women of Esperanza’s community felt empowered it would never be the same. Soft power wins. All one has to do is look at the events since the making of this movie to find the certainty that soft power is a powerful currency. The March on Washington for citizen’s to proclaim their civil rights; receiving civil rights; seeing the change within ethnic diversity; and breaking the bonds of stereotypes have contributed and hindered the development and the evolution of social justice for not only labor but those who have been under represented and oppressed. The voice that Salt of the Earth brought to the conversation of equality has demonstrated that the force of soft powers wins out. Soft power does not mean passivity it means that one continues to give voice and speak out against wrong, evil, and injustice. The election of President Barrack Obama proves that to be sure. It was not through the force of arms that elected the first African American to the highest office in the United States—the presidency. Or, it was not the force of arms that the put the first woman on the Supreme Court, Sandra Day O’Connor, and again it was not the force of arms that put the first Hispanic woman on the Supreme Court either. It was through the sacrifice of people’s voices and their willingness to speak up, speak out, and taking the opportunity to seize the day and trail blaze for future generations in order to “lift them up.” Esperanza’s words are not only prophetic and visionary but they ring true.

In the past few weeks, the elements of soft power diplomacy have been on display. President Obama has illustrated what it means to assert authority of credibility and communicate effectively on the issues of a subject in terms of accountability and responsibility of the actors involved. He has used history to illustrate the commonalities and the differences of varying interest groups. Nevertheless, despite the president’s effort, his political opposition seems to be entrenched in the world of black and white, of either or, or that of political scoring points, which fail to elucidate the understanding of nuance of political posturing on the world stage and memory.

In other words, the world stage of politics has an elephant like memory which involves the past sins of administrations (and like and unlike governments) to foster or bolster the ideal of the use of their power. The opposition, meaning the Republican Party, has not or will not acknowledge the nuances of political theatre, and simply being reactionary to import a sense of authority and false sense of indignation to score points. One example of this is Senator John McCain, former Republican presidential nominee, advocated that President Obama should condemn Iranian elections and refer to them as fraudulent et cetera.

President Obama has explained this as being an internal matter, and yet, has expressed the hope that the will of the people be respected. He does not want to appear to be interfering with the election of Iran—and rightly so. Considering the history of US and Iran in terms of interference with the electoral process and the many recriminations since 1953, it is best that the US and the President appear neutral. This is the price of liberty. Sometimes saying nothing is the strongest action one can take. In Star Trek terms, for the geeks of science fiction, this is simply actually respecting the Prime Directive. For those of non-geek persuasion, remember the old saying by mom, “If you cannot say something nice, don’t say anything at all”

To be continued ….

In many past histories, in many cultures, and in many parts of the world; it is the youth that start the revolutions. Looking through the landscape of these histories, the passions that ignite them are various and many, but they generally have one common theme—the student. Even in Buddhism, it is the youthful Buddha who sets the course to change the world way of thinking. These things should come as no surprise, for when the youth of culture becomes mobilized; there is no force that can reckon with energy of that youthful passion. Today—on April 14, 2009—I saw such passion and energy, it was not desperate fervor, or, chaotic fervor, or even raw unfocused fervor; it was plain and simple — focused political angst.

 
I had been staring at the edges of the movement of the past, lurking, watching with skepticism to see if this passionate trial of hopped up energy was too scattered to matter, and, unfocused to be realized. I wanted feel the reforming energy of youth; too experience in the essence of its purity. And, with little travail—I did. However, this energy did seem to be tempered by experience and somewhat cooled to the affliction of time. They were well organized; they had speakers focused on task; and, they were not over emotional. The raw energy was well placed. It made me wonder, if this was the kind of movement that my parents may have been involved with in their youth. It all seemed to quite distant, artificial, and surreal.

I wandered through the crowd of youth taking picture after picture trying to capture the spontaneity of the rally, but something was off; the feel; the energy; and, the displacement of anger was not right or correct. It felt cold and dispassionate, calculated, and prompted. Oh, the energy of the crowd, of the youth seemed to be present, but there seemed to be an underlying current of remorse lurking behind the multitude of speakers’ speech.

Nevertheless, besides all my wariness and cynicism it was a joy watching the youth in action, and, to watch the youth take hold of their power. In a way, the civility of their passion and exuberance came across as reforming. The day was special. The weather was good and the circumstances even, and, I felt better in participating.

A tinge of my imagination wandered vicariously and my thoughts projected backwards. Thinking of youthful revolutions in places like China, and Europe; and, in the case of Europe, I pondered whether the temperament of the march was emotional enough—but as I headed back to campus such fancy dissipated—and my wanderlust of thought waned. It had been a good day. And, I realized, for the first time in a long time that life fitted just right. …

As away to get back into the swing of things, I have decided to work on my project that I said would do. The project was to facilitate the understanding of the other through narratives and storytelling. I left it aside to to finish school. The project was to allow for videos, poetry, and stories both fictional and non-fictional. However, it has been three years with many many many hair pulling moments for school, work, and relationships. I am now back to blogging. As an aspiring anthropologist, one of the universals of life, for me anyway, is storytelling. The narrative of the everyday, the mundane, the little moments, which seem unimportant but impacted when one stops to take the moment to smell the flowers. It is these times, in which, one feels the moment of empowerment. A time of healing, or simply a moment of creation and narrativity.

A fellow anthropologist, Kate Mullin, has been working on such a project–Healing Through Natural Childbirth. Her project touches on the profound narrattive for others. The choices a person makes and the steps to rectify or to create a place for empowerment or even displacement are those which one feels most fully engaged. The story in the video talks about such moments.

Please take a moment to rate the video and leave your comments of what you think….

I have been on a big budget movie kick of late, so naturally, Narnia fell into place. As a Mother’s Day gift to a friend, the opening of the movie played right into my hands, for me to see it. Then, it occurred to me that the piper for all these big budget movies would come at the end of the month with Sex and The City—the ultimate chick flick (yikes!). At any rate, to return Narnia, all the principles come back with another year of maturity (story wise) under their belts, but 1300 years later for Narnia in this latest installment, of which there will be seven by the way, and humans have oppressed and suppressed the mystical and magical creatures. Need I say more?

Although this is a typical and predictable movie, the special effects are excellent, and the story, for what it is, is a good yarn. It is a family movie. And, it is a enjoyable romp. It is unfortunate however, that Disney decided to release it between the two biggest hits of the summer, Indiana Jones—and—Ironman. Nevertheless, feel free to your take your kids to one of the best big budget movies of the summer. 

It is that time of year, when big budget movies, bad guys, action flicks, come roaring to the screen; expectations and hype run high and over top advertising tries to herd the masses into the cool darkness of movie theatres. Well, wait no longer the first big budget movie has made its pitch—and Robert Downey, Jr., has brought the comic book character Tony Stark a.k.a. Ironman to the screen successfully.

Downey’s depiction of Tony Stark leaves one the impression that he was destined to play the role, his bit of playboy and boy genius is played deftly, and gives the core comic book geeks satisfaction—at least for this one. I was not looking for the perfect origin narrative, but a well sketched story that reflected the current dynamics of the world today; that was done.

This version of Ironman was enjoyable and enough action from start to finish to almost satisfy any appetite. The special effects, which makeup big budget movies during the summer, seem to be almost flawless, but a second viewing is required (gee, that is too bad). Anyway, if you plan to see Ironman—do so—your time will be well spent. And, by the way, if you are wondering, more about plot and twists, this reviewer has decided that the commercials do a decent enough job to provide interest, besides I don’t like reviews that tell me everything before I go. Enjoy and have fun.

Okay, this a chick flick and a bargaining point for all the guys in relationships and potential relationships, and those who are “just friends” who are need in of counting coups. This movie, and secretly a guilty pleasure for guys, has successfully transferred itself from the small screen to the big screen. It had everything including the Hollywood ending, except for a good car chase and bullets flying through the air.

            It did, however, have the emotional daggers and dramas that women tend to crave, and allow the 21^st century guy the ability to empathize and relate without appearing gay or as wimps. In other words, it had enough titillation (pun intended) for the guys to be appreciative of the raw honesty that had made the series a success on HBO and plot to keep a guy’s interests. With that said, this reviewer does not reveal plot points or twists, enough of that has been in the commercials on television. Yes, it is predictable. Yes, it is sugary sweet, schmaltzy even, but it will allow you, the guy, to connect in an adult way with your lady friend for the evening—and if you are lucky, have a fond memory as you watch the joy on your lady friends face as she is viewing the movie.

            I certainly do—even after the movie, when we went out for drinks (we had Killians not Cosmopolitans, by the way)—her face lit up each time she recollected a particular moment within the movie. There was much joy—and I was happy I had been there to share it with her (yes, even guys get sentimental). Sex and The City may not make the top ten list at the end of the year on anyone’s movie list, but it will certainly be top ten list of memories (oh god—that was way too schmaltzy—I need an action flick—quick!) Oh, by the way, I parlayed taking my friend to Sex and The City for a romantic comedy and an action flick.

So guys take your gal pal and enjoy the evening, you might even enjoy yourself and have a couple of good laughs…

It is not often I find myself in a state of confusion after watching a movie. I would like to think that I am a pretty smart “cookie,” in this case, however, I am dumbfounded. I understood that the Will Smith character was “suppose” to be the last man on Earth except when he wasn’t, the viral zombies and dogs being the only vestiges of life left. I understood that he was supposed to be finding a cure. I even understood that the Will Smith was suppose to be kind of nuts, due to his loneliness, and the fact that he believed that “may” be some actual survivors left on Earth.  

However, after watching the performance of Will Smith carrying two-thirds of the movie, I am confused on why they chose so abruptly to end the movie. Why not show the development of the relationship between the new characters. Why not show the progress of the cure, or even, the establishment of the villain within movie, the zombie viral leader. I AM LEGEND has too many flaws for me to list or to go through without me getting a migraine. The movie overall was pretty good until the last third, therefore I cannot recommend it as a “go see,” but only as a “discounted” DVD recommend.  Hmmm, well, even my review seems to cut to the quick….

In general, I tend to agree Warms and McGee that postmodernism is no threat to anthropology; however, I do have some concern that those who advocate postmodernism are allowing themselves to be lost in nihilism.  The problem I have with Warms’ and McGee’s overall assessment, however, is that it tends to forget the transgression that postmodernism causes to the narrative of the ethnography. Granted, post modernism drives for the deconstruction to the infinite, which there seems to be no end. It is this aspect of postmodernist theory that tries to subvert anthropology’s legitimacy.

Early in their introduction, Warms and McGee try to differentiate Modernism and Post Modernism. They say,

Modernism is a term drawn from the study of literature and art as well as the history of science….it reflects the epistemological notion that the world is knowable… [through] the techniques of science, philosophy, and rational inquiry to analyze to understand the world…. (2008:532)

While postmodernism, “challenges the assertion” that the world is knowable and that Western American cultures distort the perception that are not of its own (2008:532).  In essence, in Post Modern thought each culture has its own world view of reality, and moreover, that anthropology has tried “setting” itself up as the authority; thus, anthropology has failed to recognize their own creation.  Warms and McGee quote Martin Heidegger “that humans cannot have knowledge about the world that is not tinged by a particular perspective or bias” (2008:532)  

Fair enough, but I contend if it was not Western American culture’s desire to examine beyond what was knowable and what was not, the world of Modernism may not have occurred even for the postmodernism to exist. Therefore, for the Post Modernism to exist the world of Modernism had to occur to first. Admittedly, a bit of circular thinking, but it will do for the moment. Yes, it granted that anthropology has tried to define, elucidate, “enlighten,” understand and bring meaning to the context of what the “observable world” means. Nevertheless, it is understood that this “interpretation of meaning,” hermeneutics, plays a role of not only how “we” the individual sees the world but ours and other cultures as well.

Throughout their essay, Warms and McGee try to demonstrate balance. In trying to elucidate their view of what postmodernism means to anthropology, and how cultures are examined, and how through postmodernism deconstructs, interprets, and tries to illustrate the distortion of anthropology through its implied authority (2008:533). In fieldwork, and ethnography, anthropology had to learn to apply itself as more of a science. This process, like any science, has learned through its suffrage how to write its objective narratives. At times, anthropology has been its own worst enemy by writing composite features and generalized these interpretations as authoritative. For instance, Warms and McGee give the example of how authors of ethnographies will use “literary tricks.” One of the most obvious characteristics of ethnographic writing is that rather than, ‘I am writing my interpretation of what the natives were doing,’ authors claim to represent the native point of view.  Of course, an anthropologist cannot possibly present the point of view of everyone in a society; he or she works with selected informants… (2008:533).

Essentially, Post Modernism proclaims that anthropology has in its various forms, at times, “delicensed,” or “silenced” the voices of the “other,” the culture that it has examined and taken away its power to define its own reality. Again, admittedly anthropology has done this in the past, but that is why it remains more of a science than a subjective art, because of its ability to view itself critically. The fact that criticism of Postmodernism challenges the anthropological narrative and the textual contexts in language and literature demonstrates how anthropology has allowed for its corrective force to be “reflexive.” This has allowed, as Warms and McGee say, “Cultures, instead of being read as texts, can be viewed as performances in which the anthropologist participates” (2008:535). This is in turn has made anthropology more objective and therefore created more “science” oriented study of culture and humanity in turn.               

 It has been quite apparent for some time now that there is a multi-tiered justice system in America. One for the elites, celebrities, very rich, and then there is the rest of us. In the category of the very rich, Ed Mattar leapt to his death after smashing out his window on the 27^th floor of one of Denver’s few “tall” buildings (link).   A result that was far too easy. And, for those who waited for justice, his conviction, his sentencing for nearly ten years, a bitter taste is left in their mouths.

Anyway, I keep thinking that if I click my heels together long enough that everything will be equitable, that the America Justice is blind, that somehow a criminal, a deadbeat, a pariah of the people, can and will be sentenced and serve their time.  In many case of white collar crime, this is not the case. I look at recent events from Ken Lay to Ed Mattar they simply fall off the grid and no longer heard about again. This was the case of Ed Mattar, his story dates back to the late part of 1990’s (well, earlier than that but for brevity sake), when it was initially that he had cooked the books of BestBank in Boulder, Colorado, but he was not charged until 2003. The FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation) had to bail out the depositors to the tune of 200 million dollars, yet some depositors lost another 27 million dollars of their monies.

The travesty of this case was his ability to delay justice. To pay himself nearly nine million dollars in bonuses and live off the assets of depositors, and then, as he is facing sentencing, cheat his victims seeing him behind bars by leaping to his death as his cowardice met the concrete. Most of Ed Mattar life was about avoiding responsibility and being accountable for his actions, once again he showed his true colors. Unfortunately, the red soaked stain that he left on concrete does not show the yellow streak that ran within him.